Merry Christmas from The Johnsons

Santa

We took Caleb to see Santa at Bass Pro Shops last week. He doesn't look super thrilled in the photo, but he is seriously excited about Santa this year! I need to try to capture on video how excited he is when he says Santa. It's so funny!

2014

2013

2012

Tyler Cole

Our second child no longer has to be referred to as "baby brother" "#2" or Caleb's favorite "Bubba". Our little guy finally has a name! Six more weeks!

The Birth of Jesus

Last year, the organization Brad works for put together a video of the staff's kids reciting Luke 2:1-20 (the birth of Jesus). We did it again this year, and I'm so happy to share it with you! Caleb's part starts at about 1:35.

32 weeks

I had another ultrasound yesterday, and we learned that baby brother is big! The ultrasound tech estimated his weight at 5lb, 1oz! If we make it all the way to my due date, he could be around 8-9 lbs. Caleb was 6lb 13oz (born at 38 weeks), so I can't even imagine 8-9 lbs!

The baby is doing well, as am I. It was at this point in my pregnancy with Caleb that I had to go on bed rest, thanks to contractions and elevated blood pressure. Aside from a few Braxton-Hicks contractions every now and then, I'm feeling great this time! And I haven't been told to slow down yet (aside from the whole "stop running" thing), so I plan to continue working part-time and juggling my/Caleb's crazy busy schedule!

32 weeks, 4 days

32 weeks, 4 days

32 weeks (December 7th)

Babymoon

When I was pregnant with Caleb, Brad and I took a "babymoon". We had such a great time, and we decided then that we'd have to do it again if we ever had more kids.

Our first babymoon was to PGA National Resort in Florida. Brad played several rounds of golf, while I relaxed by/in the pool. It was perfect for us both. But now that we're not DINKS (dual income, no kids), we decided to go for a more budget-friendly option this time around. We found a nice Groupon deal for the Omni Barton Creek Resort in southwest Austin. The weather turned out colder than we hoped, but we still had a nice time. We went to TopGolf one morning (we're going to get one less than a mile from our house next spring!), did some shopping, watched a movie (Interstellar), played golf at one of the resort courses (Brad), went on a nature hike/walk, went to bed early, slept late, and ate some great food. Before the trip, I asked some friends for restaurant recommendations. I had quite a list of places to try, but then our schedule and my pregnancy cravings didn't really line up with the recommendations we were given. We ended up searching online for restaurant reviews at the last minute for several of our meals. If you're heading to Austin soon, here are a few of our favorites!

Magnolia Cafe
We went to Magnolia (the Lake Austin Blvd location) for breakfast one morning. It must be a pretty popular place. There isn't much parking, and what parking is there is hard to come by. We got lucky and a spot opened up just as we were arriving. The wait wasn't too long, and the food was excellent. We heard that they're famous for their gingerbread pancakes. They were good, but Brad and I both preferred the whole-wheat pancakes. Brad had an omelette, and I had something called the Eggscape. They were both excellent!

Salt Lick
This was the only friend-recommended restaurant that we made it to. It was a bit of a drive, but it was so worth it! We went to the one in Driftwood, TX, which is their original location. Brad ordered The Rancher (brisket, pork ribs, sausage, turkey, cole slaw, potato salad, and beans), and I ordered the turkey sandwich. We shared everything. Our favorites were the turkey and sausage. The BBQ sauces were a little different than what I'm used to in north Texas and central Oklahoma (BBQ and the sauces vary so much around the country), but they were still very good.

Marye's Gourmet Pizza
We picked this place, because it was only a few miles from our hotel... and this pregnant mama was really in the mood for pizza that particular evening. It had good reviews online, and we were pleased. It's a very small restaurant in an unassuming shopping center. The ingredients were so fresh... most of their produce is sourced from local farms! Brad and I both got salads and split a pizza.

24 Month Recap

Well, this post is more than two weeks late... but better late than never, right?  

Weight: 22 lbs, 8 oz

Length: 30.5"

Clothing size: Mostly 18 month, but he does wear a few 24 month shirts. He still wears size 3 infant shoes, and he wears size 4 with his SureSteps.

Diaper size: size 4

Eating: Some of Caleb's favorite foods are blueberry pancakes, raisins, string cheese, mac & cheese, mandarin oranges, grilled cheese sandwiches, pizza, Goldfish crackers, Teddy Grahams, and Annies Bunnies crackers. Caleb drinks all of his milk with the Talk Tools Straw #1 and Take & Toss straw cups. He drinks water from Munchkin Click Lock Insulated Straw Cups

Sleeping: Caleb goes to sleep around 8:00pm and wakes up around 7:00am. He usually takes one nap in the early afternoon. He usually sleeps about 1.5-2 hours. 

His days: Caleb still goes to Mother's Day Out three times each week. He also does several hours of speech, occupational, and physical therapies each week. 

Highlights of the last three months: Caleb is crawling, pulling up, and cruising! He walks while holding onto our hands and occasionally while holding on to a push toy. He says about 25 words (some don't sound quite recognizable to others, but Brad and I know what he's saying), and he signs about 30 words! 

Caleb has twelve teeth now. The only ones he's missing are his four canines and his four two-year molars.

And here are Caleb's final white onesie chair pics...