O Holy Night

Having a baby boy around Christmas puts you as prime candidates for being in the nativity. Last week Jack made his acting debut as baby Jesus (and so did Jared & I). I was a bit nervous he would be a crying baby Jesus, but he understood the importance of his role and was a perfect angel through the whole scene.

We will not be moving to LA....

Go BYU

Jack is happiest when watching BYU with his dad and giggles the loudest when cheering on the cougars. I caught a little bit of his giggle on video. This was the second or third BYU chant so he was loosing a little steam. I'll get another video next time we dress him up in his cougar attire:)

The Weather Outside is Frightful!

Well the weather in Idaho was quite cold, but we sure enjoyed our time in Pocatello visiting all of the Taylors. Jack wasn't sure what to think of that cold air at first... we had to bundle him up just to get to the car. He would try to uncover his face to feel the cold air but then it took his breath away so he liked to stay nestled under the covers.




While at Grandma's, Jack gave some of his best grins, laughs, and coos. He loved all the attention!




And his cousins showed him so much love too:)





It was wonderful to spend Thanksgiving with family. We count our blessings every day and appreciate all the love and support we receive from friends and family:)


... and it was nice to land in San Diego with blue skies and 65 degree weather! Ahhh... sunny Southern California! We won't be here for Christmas, but any one is welcome to come thaw out in January!

What? Babies cry?

Jack is really starting to settle into life, and we couldn't be more thrilled. For awhile there we thought we might have a colicky baby (but then we believe anything we read on the internet). One night during a "Jack Attack" Jared stumbled across a website selling the best gripe water out there for colic ... so he bought four bottles and had them overnighted. Below is a picture of what the stuff looks like.

Needless to say to all parents the stuff really doesn't work. And we now realize our little man doesn't have colic; he's just a baby and has fussy periods. Fortunately for us though his fussiness is starting to go away and that sweet little boy we brought home from the hospital is returning, and we are adjusting very well to our new lives.

Blessing Day

At six weeks we blessed Jack. It was a special weekend with grandparents, Aunt Aimee, Uncle Jason, and cousin Avery to share in the memory. Jack was a perfect angel and was quiet for the whole blessing ... except for a couple of sneezes:)

We've really enjoyed having Jack in our home and each day is getting easier understanding what his needs are. Last night he even surprised us with sleeping all through the night (7 hours). We hope he keeps this up!

To view all of Jack's pics, you can visit our Picasa web album of Jack, http://picasaweb.google.com/johnsonkristina/JackTaylor?feat=directlink.

Jack Randall Taylor

So we finally have returned to somewhat normal life after our arrival of Jack last Sunday. Here are a few stats and pics of our little guy, and we promise to post more of a story next time. As of now, we are all home doing well and being taken care of by grandma Johnson for a few more days.

Jack Randall Taylor was born on Sunday, September 20, 2009 at 11:47pm. He weighed 7 lbs 1 oz and was 20 inches long. We came home from the hospital on Wednesday and have received lots of love and support from family and friends. We all feel very blessed!

Waiting for our little Cougar!

We were all ready for our little Jack to arrive for BYU's first game of the season, but unfortunately he is taking his time to come out.  In anticipation of his arrival, we've kept his game day outfit ready to go in his crib waiting for him.  Maybe next weekend he will be able to enjoy BYU's second game with his parents.

The real update from the doctor is he could come any day now.  On Friday, September 11th we will see Dr. Jones again if he hasn't arrived and set up a date to induce.  I'll suggest that afternoon:)  So really he should be here in less than two weeks!

We are all ready for him to arrive.  The past few weeks have been spent putting his room and all his gear together.  Jared LOVES his second job of a handyman:)  

Really everything is ready to go, and I wake up every morning disappointed that I didn't get to wake Jared up in the middle of the night to tell him, "it's time"!  I find both Jared and me walking into Jack's bedroom often surveying the scene in anticipation for our little boy to occupy his new environment... if he only knew how much better life is on the outside!

So to keep ourselves busy we've been trying to enjoy some favorite pastimes.  Last weekend we took in another Angel's game with seats right behind the Angel's dugout!  It was an awesome game being so close.  You could hear each crack of the bat and each strike hit the catcher's glove!  So glad they are having a great season.

Time Flies When You're Having Fun!

Well it is the end of August and I am just now posting something to give an update on what's been going on this summer.

I was very excited to go home for a week to see my family. Cathryn, Teresa, and I all decided to make a vacation back home at the same time to see everyone, so it was extra fun. What I thought was going to be a cool relaxing week at home turned out to be a scorcher! Yes, Seattle was experiencing a very unusual heat wave the week I decided to go up there. When my plane landed the pilot announced a record-breaking 103 degrees for Seattle that day. Most may say big deal it's summer... but not in Seattle when only 15% of the population have A/C, and my parents aren't in that population. Needless to say at 7 1/2 months pregnant I was quite uncomfortable, but really the heat can't stop the fun.


It was great to be home and do my favorites... ferry rides, site seeing in Seattle, Iver's Fish & Chips, The Blue Angels, Mt Rainier, and cards with the family!


When Jared arrived for the weekend, I took him up to Mt. Rainier. I spent many weekends hiking around Mt Rainier growing up. It was a lot of fun showing him around. I wish I could have hiked more. We went up to Paradise where there is a visitor's lodge and short little trail heads around the parking lot. We can't wait to go back and do some hiking.







While at home, my sisters, Aunt Sue, and good friend, Laura, took me out to lunch and showered Jared and me with some fun baby gifts! It was so fun to be around all these wise ladies and hear the good advice that I need plenty of.








As fun as it was to be home with family, it was great to get back to the cooler temperatures of life by the beach:) The next couple of weeks were hectic as I wrapped things up at work, but August 17th was a great day to transition all my responsibilities to a new HR manager. I haven't had too many withdrawals of giving up working yet... and I don't really expect to. I had a great career for 10 years and now I'm focusing on new and better things!

This past week I went in for a 37 week appointment and all is looking well for our arrival of our little boy. The doctor did another ultra sound to find him head down and ready to go. The doctor doesn't think he'll change positions again... unfortunately for me because he is sitting heavy on my sciatic nerve, which makes walking VERY difficult, but he should be here shortly.

4th of July means... Company!!!

This 4th of July we were able to celebrate with Jared's mom, Shauna! We were so excited to have company--especially Shauna--come visit for the weekend.

We picked Shauna up from the airport on Thursday and went out to Coronado for lunch at the Hotel Del. The weather was finally nice and sunny for us here in Southern California and we enjoyed touring around Coronado and then up to my favorite shopping mall--Fashion Place:) They have every store you could possibly need except for Pottery Barn Kids, which we specifically went to the mall for. So of course we made our chauffeur (I mean Jared) take us up to the mall in La Jolla so we could look at some nursery decor:)

The next day we stopped at Babies R Us for some more shopping. Shauna was great and bought us a stroller and pack-n-play for junior coming soon. Jared was great and put both together right away so I could see how they looked.... I'm so ready for our little bundle to come!

After shopping we attempted the San Diego County Fair (The Puyallup doesn't hold candle to this county fair)! The lines to get into the fair were hours long and so we decided to go with our back up plans and hit a few other tourist spots.

First up, the Cabrillo Monument. The Cabrillo National Monument is located at the southern tip of the Point Loma Peninsula. This is where the explorer San Juan Cabrillo landed and discovered San Diego Bay in 1542. Up on this point are great views of San Diego.

On the other side of the point are tide pools with some more spectacular views. Up above the tide pools in the rocks are artillery batteries built to protect the harbor of San Diego from enemy warships.

We then hit Balboa Park and saw the Bodies exhibit. This was amazing. I especially liked the part about the babies:) Fascinating!!

It was fun to tour the park again, as this was were Jared and I had our engagement pictures taken. I thought I would let Shauan pose with Jared this time around:)-

We had worked up an appetite to eat at Miguel's Cocina! This is a great Mexican restaurant in Point Loma for anyone coming to visit. It has an amazing white cheese sauce to dip chips in... I know it doesn't sound very Mexican, but man is it tasty!

The next day we decided to attempt the fair again, and this time it was a lot less popular for everyone else in San Diego. I love the fair... the pigs, the cows, the crazy people and of course the food... the funnel cakes, corn dogs, kettle corn, and lots of other fatty fried food.

It was a great weekend of lots of walking and eating! We were able to cure our feet with a little R&R at a local nail spa!

Memorial Day Weekend

This past weekend Jared and I spent the holiday in Bear Bear Lake, CA.  This was a much needed getaway to the great outdoors!  Big Bear is a quaint resort town east of Los Angeles about 7000 ft up in the mountains.  It is beautiful landscape with plenty of water sports, fishing, and hiking to keep you busy.

Scenic shot from the road.

Touring around the lake on our very expensive rental for an hour speedboat... now Jared wants his very own.

Fishing bright and early in the morning... you should see the size of those trout!

This was our hike up to "The Grand View".  You should also check out Jared's mad video skills at the following link:) 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4R4g1I76bQ8

It was a great weekend away from the city.  

It's a Boy!

Sorry to all you who voted for a girl... and that was the majority.  We found out yesterday that we are having healthy baby boy!

This was by far the most exciting visit. The technician was able to point out all his little body parts and put our minds at ease that everything was developing normally.  I loved going through the details of counting legs, arms, toes, and fingers and watching his little heart beat. 

Some have asked what our reaction was to a boy or what did we want.  Jared and I both agreed we were so caught up in going through the body parts that finding out the gender was just an afterthought and we were so grateful that we have a healthy baby.  Now the excitement begins, and I can't wait to hit the mall this weekend for some clothes and furnishings for the nursery:)

The technician printed some pictures for us to bring home.  Now that I'm home and I'm my own, I don't recognize anything anymore:)  

Baby Poll Now Open

The baby poll is open and will close shortly.  If you want to be part of the action you have to cast your vote for a boy or girl before Tuesday, April 28th--despite the poll saying it will be open for a week.  On Tuesday, April 28th, Jared and I will have our second ultrasound which will hopefully disclose the gender of our baby.

There hasn't been much to update on the blog lately. Jared and I have been spending our weekends finishing decorating our new home.  We really like our new neighborhood and new ward.  This past Sunday they asked me to be the Primary secretary.  Jared is still awaiting his calling... which I think will probably be Scouts.  

The pregnancy continues to be pretty smooth for me.  My belly keeps growing, and we are taking that as a great sign these days that all is well since I still haven't felt any movement yet.  

Life is a Marathon not a Sprint...

For some life may be a marathon and not a sprint, but not for Jared and me! It was just one short year ago that we met at an Angels game. Since then we have married, moved twice, and started our family:)

We celebrated our one year anniversary this past weekend at an Angels game. I guess the biggest evolution is my wearing pink to a baseball game instead of my traditional blue (go Mariners). Jared is pretty adamant that we will raise Angel fans and not little Mariners. I think I will give them a choice with the exception of no Yankees.

Actually I am not that much of a die hard fan. I definitely like to go to the games but for me the best part is the food--peanuts, hot dogs, popcorn, red vines, ice cream, coke... . We really do buy all that too!

So hopefully we will start our marathon soon and start pacing ourselves for many more life events. Every day we both are reminded that we are the luckiest people alive to have finally after so many years found each other. I guess good things really come to those who wait!



April 19, 2008 (Angels vs Mariners)

April 11, 2009 (Angels vs Red Sox)

Check up - 2

It's interesting how I can't remember anything lately except for how many weeks pregnant I am and what is developing in our little baby. Pregnancy consumes every thought of me.

This last week I was 16 weeks pregnant and that meant it was time for our second doctor's visit. The visit itself was pretty uneventful to others but for me was a great reassurance that everything is coming along fine. We saw Dr Jones for about 15 minutes and he asked us a few questions and then asked if we had any questions--which we didn't. I guess we need to read more! He then listened for the heart beat, which was loud and strong and very fast. That is such a relief to hear. Up until this week I felt so great and noticed little changes in my body that I of course began to worry just a little. So far everything is going well though, and we have a healthy little baby on the way.

After our doctor's appointment on Monday, I noticed that my pants were extremely tight... I couldn't even zip them without laying down on the bed. I was pretty puzzled by this since I had just worn the very same jeans earlier that week to my doctor's visit and hadn't gained any weight since the previous visit. I walked downstairs and asked Jared if he noticed I gained weight over the past few days. He laughed at my extremely tight jeans and made a confession, "I accidentally washed all your jeans in hot water and dried them". I guess we now know what house hold chores are off limits to Jared, which I am sure he doesn't mind.

But every mistake always has a silver lining... right? No jeans to wear forced us to go to the mall to buy some new clothes... which I never object to. So now I have clothes that show I am pregnant instead of clothes that I stuff myself into that make me look fat:)

Movin'

With the new little one coming, Jared and I decided we needed a bigger place than our two-bedroom apartment. It took us awhile to decide what to do... buy or keep renting. We made a decision to rent a place while here in California since the market is still so unstable and we know we will be leaving in 2-3 years. So we found a great townhome in Carlsbad that we were able to work out a great 3-year lease from a fellow Navy guy now stationed in Washington DC. It's a great neighborhood with a park across the street... and best of all we have an extra room for all who want to come visit!

Moving wasn't all too hard since we hired movers. Jared doesn't think I am very strong... and I play up to his thinking:) We also had another curve ball thrown at us on Wednesday night when I received an urgent email from my partnership that we needed to cut 10% of our workforce yet again, and it needed to be done within 48 hours. So the big D trumped our plans once again, and I spent most of Thursday and a good deal of Friday on conference calls.

But the house looks fabulous so far, and I am surprised at how quickly we were able to get settled in (thanks Jared). Now it's just a lot of shopping to finish decorating so much more space!

First Comes Love, Then Comes Marriage ...

Rumors are true, and we are so excited. This week marks the 2nd trimester of our pregnancy. Jared and I were quite surprised to learn in January that we are expecting since we had just agreed to start our family in December!

Coming back from the holidays I had a bad ear infection and needed to go to the doctor. The day before my appointment I had a feeling I should take a home pregnancy test just in case. I had a home pregnancy test and thought what the heck... it's kind of fun taking those things. Not thinking twice about it, I continued preparing dinner. Much to my surprise when I went back into the bathroom a few minutes later I saw not one but two little pink lines! I immediately called my sister, Cathryn, to see what this I really meant. She confirmed two pink lines really does mean I'm pregnant and encouraged me to take another test... so I took two more and confirmed what the first one was telling me. The next day at my doctor's appointment I took a blood test and it came back positive again. This really is happening for us.

First reactions: Cathryn thought is was funny that Jared and I would be having a baby before our first wedding anniversary; Jared was stoked; all grandparents extremely happy; and me... well I was in denial for a couple of weeks!

The first few months have been pretty good with only a few weeks of sickness but all in all I'm feeling great and gaining weight.

We'll keep everyone posted.

Cruisin'

Last week Jared and I set sail for the Mexican Riviera. We sailed from Los Angeles and visited Puerto Vallarta, Mazatlan, and Cabo San Lucas. This was my first cruise on Princess Cruise Lines since I quit working for them 5 years ago... and everything was the same!

It was a nice getaway for us. There is nothing more relaxing than a week away at sea. We both hunkered down for some great reading and sun bathing. We hope to sail with friends and family in the future--anyone up for the Mediterranean?

Happy Birthday J, Jayrody, Budders, Buds ...

Yes, this is a historic birthday, after all, we did elect the first black president on Jared's big day... just teasing! I promised I would not be political in my blog--so I will remain silent:)

This was J's birthday to go down in the history books because it was his first celebrated with K-- ahh isn't that sweet:) Wish we could report a more eventful day but unfortunately I had to work very late up in LA and we ended up ordering in and watching TV.

I totally surprised him with his gift though--and apparently his family too. Awhile back Jared mentioned he wanted to learn to play the guitar. When it came time to find a birthday gift for him, a guitar is the only thing he doesn't already have. (He definitely lived a bachelor life for many years!) So in a short while we'll be inviting everyone out to the beach to sit around the bonfire and singing "Brown Eyed Girl".

Happy Birthday, J, looking forward to many more with you:)

Resolutions!

Well we are are finally getting to one of our many New Year's resolutions--our blog! Yes, we have caved and decided to make our lives public to those who care to read. After all, 2008 proved to be a pretty eventful year--right? :) We hope to keep everyone on the edge of their seats in the coming months.

Our first big adventure in 2009 was hosting our first guests--Kris's parents, Dahl and Joyce. They decided to stay a weekend with us before heading down to the Panama Canal. We had so much fun touring San Diego with them. On Saturday we toured many ships down in the harbor.

Our first stop was the "Surprise" the ship Master and Commander was filmed on.

We also toured a submarine. I could never be a submariner... .

And those movies that show the crew running through the vessels... just isn't reality!

Our last ship was the USS Midway Aircraft carrier. What an amazing ship... but obey all the rules, Jared and dad found themselves in the brig.

It was a yet another beautiful weekend in sunny San Diego--the greatest place to visit in January, February, and March! We love visitors, so come anytime.