Family

Moving Back to the U.S.A. in 2 Weeks

June 3, 2010 by Brian

Hey everyone…. We are moving back to the U.S. on June 18th.

It’s not because of the proposed tax (although that could prevent us from moving back in the future).

Uruguay has been a great country to live in for the past year. We’ve met some great people from Uruguay and some wonderful friends from around the world.

We didn’t plan on having our 2nd daughter Kaylee when we arrived here… but we were blessed with her and we couldn’t be happier.

One thing about being abroad with young children is lack of family they get to be around. With us being down here, it’s impossible for some of our family to make it down here to see us and our girls.

The family who could come down and see us, would only be able to stay for a short period of time.

On the other hand, doing a short trip back to the U.S. is what it is, a trip…

With trips back and forth, our girls won’t get to really “know” our family, which we feel is important to us.

We plan to stay in the Southern California area for the next couple of years, then explore the idea of taking an extended cruise around the world. It’s tentative… but it sounds like it would be exciting.

We were talking about moving back to the U.S. in September, but as a buddy of mine pointed out… that’s 2 winters in a row… We did that when we arrived, so moving back at the beginning of summer in Southern California sounds like the way to go… And we found a great last minute deal.

Regardless… We’re glad we’ve called Uruguay our home for the past year… We’ve learned a lot from our experiences.

We have a few things we are going to be selling… Keep an eye on the blog here and our forum in the classifieds section as I’ll be putting up pictures and detailed descriptions. A few things off of the top of my head.

Coronado acoustic guitar, hard case, strap, 2 mic stands, mic cords, mics, guitar tuner
Panasonic Universal DVD Player… It upscales to 1080, has HDMI hookups and so on
Baby Jogger City Mini Stroller with all of the gadgets, attachments and carrying bag
Britax Boulevard Car Seat
BABYBJÖRN Travel Light Crib
Folding bassinet with mosquito netting
Baby Bouncy Seat – Pink of course
Baby Bumbo Seat – light blue
Cutco Knife Set
Queen sized comforter: brown, tan, white and green
Twin sheets with pink and purple hearts and pink comforter
Sofa Cama (sofa bed)
Click Here to see all of this and more with prices and pics

There’s more than that, but you get the picture. If there’s something in particular you’re looking for, we just might be willing to part with it.

Also, our 2 bedroom, 2 bathroom apartment with parking and a part-time porter located here on 21 de setiembre will be going up for rent when we leave.

Video: Kaylee’s Debut

February 18, 2010 by Brian

As promised, here is a video of Kaylee, not just a video… It's her first of many:

If you want to watch another video right now of Zoë meeting Kaylee… Check out Chrystal's Happy Mothering Blog.

We'll be doing weekly "Two Under Two" updates there, so you can follow the girls through videos, pictures and stories.

We'll still have our family adventures in Uruguay here as always…

BTW… Yesterday many of you guessed and a lot of you were correct… But a lot of you weren't.

For those of you who guessed that Kaylee was on the right and Zoë was on the left… You were WRONG…

Kaylee is on the left and Zoë is on the Right.

Which One is Zoë and Which One is Kaylee?

February 17, 2010 by Brian

One of these babies is Zoë and the other is Kaylee.

Can you tell them apart?

Left is ?
Right is ?

We'll give you the answer along with some video tomorrow… In the meantime, take a guess…

Kaylee Joy Johnson is Here

February 15, 2010 by Brian

Hey Everyone…

Kaylee was born yesterday morning (2/14/10) at 1:10am… We have a Valentine's day baby.

Chrystal and Kaylee are still in the hospital, we thought they were coming home today, but tomorrow is what it's going to be.

We'll be getting some video up of Kaylee,
Zoë and both of them meeting for the first time in the next day or so…

In the meantime, here's a picture of Kaylee:

Here's a picture of my beautiful wife and Kaylee:

Have a great day!!!

Zoë Thinks Her Name is “Itsyou”

February 8, 2010 by Brian

Every time Zoë saw a picture of herself, she would say, “baby.” So, we tried to explain to her the baby in the picture was actually her by saying, “It’s you, Zoë.”

Well, she understands that it’s her in the pictures, but now she thinks her name is, “Itsyou,” because every time she sees a picture of herself, she gets all excited, points at the picture and exclaims, “Itsyou!” and then points at herself and then back at the picture.

She absolutely loves looking at pictures and videos of herself, so we get to laugh about this one pretty regularly.

We’ve been trying to keep Zoë busy with lots of fun activities lately. We’re always reading, coloring and just having a lot of fun. This last week, Zoë has been having so much fun that she hasn’t wanted to take a nap.

She’ll be completely exhausted, but doesn’t want to miss out on the fun, so there have been a couple times in the past week where she has just fallen asleep in her high chair while coloring.

She got to play with playdough for the first time last week. We found a recipe for homemade playdough, so we made some this week. It’s super easy to make (and it’s non-toxic), so if you want the recipe, check out Chrystal’s Mommy Blog on Wednesday and you can get the recipe.

We also got another package from Mimi last week (thanks Mimi!). Zoë got a new dress and a bunch of hats to dress up with (along with a few other things). She loves her new little dress. Here’s a picture of her wearing it getting ready to go shopping.

And for those of you wondering, Zoë’s little sister still hasn’t arrived. Chrystal was due on the 4th, but Kaylee is more than content right where she is for now. Hopefully next Monday we’ll have pictures of Zoë and Kaylee together to share!

Zoë Made Her Own Peach Sorbet

February 2, 2010 by Brian

It has been really hot here, so we’ve been trying to find creative ways to cool off. Since Zoë is allergic to dairy she can’t have ice cream, but she loves sorbet. So, over the weekend she made her own Peach Sorbet in a Ziploc bag.

She had a ton of fun making it and even more fun eating it. The video is below, but if you want the recipe, you’ll have to come back on Friday for the Recipe of the Week!

Zoë Dancing, Playing Guitar and Singing

January 26, 2010 by Brian

There was one video we didn't have time to upload to YouTube before yesterday's blog post and it was just too cute to wait until next week to share.

Besides swimming, one of Zoë's favorite things to do is dance and sing around the apartment. She loves when her Daddy plays the guitar and sings for her. It can literally keep her entertained for hours. Here’s the video of Zoë and Daddy from a few days ago:

Our Funny Girl Loves to Swim

January 25, 2010 by Brian

Last summer, we enrolled Zoë in ISR (Infant Swimming Resource) swim lessons, which basically teaches infants how to survive if they fall in a pool (great investment). From all of the screaming that emanated from that pool, you would think that she would have no interest in swimming.

Well, last week we finally set up her little inflatable pool on the front balcony and she absolutely loves to go swimming in it. Most days she’s out there twice for 30 minutes to an hour. So, we had to share a video with you:

Of course when she’s done swimming, she has to be wrapped up in one of her blankets for a while to warm up (as if it’s not warm enough!):

Last week Nana’s final Christmas package arrived as well (apparently it had been sitting in Montevideo for a couple of weeks and just hadn’t been delivered). Zoë got a new pair of Sketchers shoes and she is absolutely in love with them.

Since it has been hot and humid out, she has mostly just been wearing a diaper around our apartment. That is, until she got her new shoes. Now, she’s mostly been wearing a diaper and her shoes (although I’m sure as soon as I pull her Tinker Bell hoodie off the clothes line that will be added back into her ensemble).

I put together Kaylee’s bouncy seat (thanks to Mimi for sending that down for us!) this week and Zoë thinks it’s funny to climb into it and play with the toys like a baby (notice the shoes).

She loves being funny so much that one of her new favorite phrases is, “I funny.” That, along with, “I a helper.” I’m not sure which one is cuter.

Zoe Eating Jello

January 18, 2010 by Brian

Zoë has been developing quite the little personality lately. She loves singing and dancing and being the center of attention. And, if she’s not happy about something, she’s not afraid to let you know!

When I was getting ready for my doctor’s appointmetn this morning, Zoe was eating Jello. It’s only the second time she’s had jello and she loves it:

Apparently after I left, she started singing while she was eating her Jello, so Brian grabbed the video camera:

After she was done eating, she needed a shower. She loves being bundled up in a blanket or her towel after a shower. She gets mad and starts to yell at you if you take her out of the towel before she’s ready:

She still loves dressing up, and even though it is very hot and humid in Montevideo right now, she insists on wearing her TinkerBell hoodie all of the time. She brings it over to us and says, “help,” and after we get it on, she asks us to “zippy” it for her.

And anytime she can get a hold of something that belongs to mommy or daddy, she wants to wear it:

She also loves playing games. One of her favorite games right now is to hide from us in the boxes that her Christmas gifts came in. We still have this box in our kitchen because she loves it so much – it’s pretty much become part of her toys:

Even though some days it feels like the terrible twos have come to live with us early, at the end of the day, she’s still our sweet, snuggly little girl who just wants to curl up and go to sleep:

Summer is in Full Swing in Montevideo

January 11, 2010 by Brian

While it’s a very nice change from Winter, the heat and humidity have been pretty high the last couple weeks. We’ve been enjoying the sun as much as possible, without overexposing ourselves (the sun is VERY strong here and it’s easy to burn if you’re not careful).

Over the weekend, we took a blanket and some snacks down to the grassy area on the Rambla to relax in the shade. Beware: you even get lots of sun in the shade here.

Zoë had a great time running around and playing with her new toys. Santa brought her some bubbles and she got to play with them for the first time. She had a blast! We went through the entire bottle of bubbles, so we’ll have to pick up some more for her.

She also got a couple more boxes of gifts from family in the States. Pretty soon she’s going to start thinking that she should get gifts all the time!

She got a couple of new books and new movies from Auntie Tiffany, Uncle Jared and cousins Dayla and Brody. She’s been watching Tinker Bell and Hotel for Dogs a lot and reading her new books.

She got another package from Aunt Leslie, Uncle Ted and Cousins Jennifer and Joe. This time she got a Tinker Bell doll and a Tinker Bell short-sleeved hoodie. The package also had a baby doll from Nanny and Papa. She has been carrying her two new dolls around religiously this week and has insisted on wearing the hoodie all the time even thought it's been so hot!

She also got a package from Mimi. Lots of cute clothes and a new set of dishes. Perfect for her new kitchen! She’s been cooking for us and making us yummy drinks all week.

Mimi also sent a bunch of great gifts for baby Kaylee. Less than four weeks until her expected arrival!