...Part 3

Courtney already posted about our outing in the snow but I thought I'd post a few of our pictures. If you like to see more of our walk downtown, check out her blog linked on the sidebar. The first stop was of course for coffee. Caribou Coffee was Tyler's favorite from his days in Minnesota and we recently discovered that they've started to steam real chocolate into all their drinks with chocolate. Delicious.

We were getting cold toward the end of our walk so we jogged some of the way back to the train station. Here we're running across the bridge on Michigan Avenue.

Waiting at the train station. I love this picture because it kind of looks like Tyler has four arms.

Courtney didn't have the warmest shoes and took the train ride as a chance to warm her very cold (and very wet) feet.

Train ride fun.

Train ride snack.

We promise Asher was along for the trip but he was very bundled and slept through a great deal of it.

Interlude

We take a break from our regularly scheduled activities to show you this footage:

This boy doesn't stop, EVER.

...Part 2

On the Sunday after Christmas we left El Dorado and headed for both sets of my grandparents (they live 10 miles apart from each other) for a Christmas at each of their houses and then on to Kearney to stay with my parents. It was a hectic day but the kids survived just fine.

The Butts' Christmas:
Addilyn got a pretty new red coat for Christmas. Here she got a chance to try it out in all the snow in Kearney.

Addilyn learning about throwing snowballs.

You can tell that she may have received more snowballs than she threw. Supercutie.

We got out the sled here with hopes that since she was feeling better that she might be more interested in sledding. She certainly was interested in towing it around the yard.

Not so interested in actually riding in it. Tyler was bummed.

This might be one of my favorite pictures I've ever taken. Super sad girl being saved by her Daddy.

Addilyn loves to be read to and Grandma is really good at reading childrens stories. They were a good pair.

Grandpa and one very happy baby.

Grandma and that same happy baby.

Grandpa and Addilyn playing.

Next up is part 3 of our catch up marathon.

Getting Caught Up...Part 1

We've been a little out of it for a while. Asher was in the hospital which made my brain shut off for a little bit. As soon as we were able to pack up the car after he was released we headed out to our parents' houses for Christmas and as soon as we got back from that, we moved. Since we didn't update you all very well throughout the process, here is a quick catch up (or series of catch ups as the case may be) in pictures.

The Johnsons' Christmas:

Since I wasn't able to work on some of the Christmas gifts at home as planned, I borrowed a sewing machine and tried to finish up when we got to Kansas. Addilyn was fascinated by the process and stood there watching me for quite some time.

Asher all chunked out. You have to love Addilyn's expression here.

The Christmas chaos. Courtney and the kids made a calendar for Brian and Cheryl. The finished product looked really good.

Asher unwrapping some pretty snazzy pajamas.

Addilyn playing with her new toy guitar.

Addilyn got a cold almost as soon as we got there. It hit her hardest on Christmas Day and so she cuddled up with whoever would hold her and watched movies. Cuddling with Aunt Courtney.

Somehow in our hurry to get out of Chicago we forgot Addilyn's coat. Tyler really wanted to take her sledding so he got creative and dug out her old snowsuit from two years ago. We were able to shoehorn her in it but it was way too short on her legs. Some windpants did the trick and we ended up with the interesting ensemble. Bring on the snow!

Ready for some snow fun.

Grandpa trying out the ramp the boys built in the backyard.

Addilyn wasn't feeling the sledding but everyone else was able to give it a couple of runs.

Stay tuned for Part 2.

Long December

It's been a long couple of weeks. We've done quite a bit and haven't blogged but a bit of it. This is the catch up blog to get everyone up to date on what was happening throughout the month (outside of the hospital).

Asher experienced his first snow (see the one flake in his hair; there were more flakes too even if you can't see them in this picture)

Sleepy Asher boy.

Asher sitting and watching some TV.

Like all responsible parents, we decided it would be super fun to take our kids for a walk out in the cold to see the Christmas lights downtown. Here are out children all bundled and ready for the trip.

To save on parking and traffic, we took the train. The huge stroller was surprisingly easy to manuever on and off and the children were comfortable throughout.

The lighting downtown was difficult to photograph in thus we have this interesting picture.

Tyler and the statue on one end of the Magnificient Mile.

Good thing the kids were really bundled becauses it was just about freezing outside.

The train ride home.

Addliyn after enjoying a Christmas cookie. Happy girl.

Addilyn was an angel in the Christmas program at church. Actually she got all dressed up and then watched the performers from the front row while they sang. But she looked pretty cute!

And here's Asher enjoying his hour-long soak for his skin. We have to lotion him, wrap him in a wet gown and hold him for an hour twice a day. It's definitely helping his skin so it's well worth the effort.

We'll update about Christmas very soon.

He's Baack

Hey, guess what. Asher's back home! He was hospitalized for Failure to Thrive on Wednesday. He was losing weight and of course his eczema was driving him crazy. The doctors did well. They think he has trouble digesting milk protein and thus was losing weight and it also contributed to his skin issues. So they have him eating a special formula and it's working well. He gained about a pound and a half in the hospital and his skin is looking so much better.

Asher playing in his crib sometime around the middle of his stay. Note his huge hand (an IV line lost its vein) and his 'mega man' like bazooka arm (protecting his new IV access)

Chilling in the crib

Early in the visit

Late in the visit.

Gingerbread houses, and Asher's first blog

Hello everybody, I'm Asher this is my first post.

Daddy is busy with school work and Mommy and Addilyn are coloring so I thought I'd sneak onto the computer and introduce myself to the blogosphere. The other day I helped Momma supervise both Addilyn and Daddy while they built gingerbread houses. Here are some pictures of their creations.

Addilyn's house

Here are the two creations together.

And again.

A close up of part of Daddy's creation

Another close up

Addliyn is so proud of her creation.

Well there you have it. If you can figure out the story behind Daddy's then you'll win a free evening of babysitting me. Ready GO.

Asher