A Letter to Santa

This is Johnny's letter to Santa this year.

We will be traveling to Los Angeles on Christmas day, so we thought he should request that Santa bring his presents on Christmas Eve.

He painstakingly copied the letters from what I wrote (fairly accurately). However, when writing his own name, he got creative. He used to always write "John", but he's recently taken to calling himself "Johnny", so he tries to write that. He didn't seem to figure out how many "n"s there are either time he tried.

Halloween

This year I found a great costume for John at a thrift store: it's a pterodactyl, and he loved wearing it to our church's Halloween party, to preschool on Halloween, and for trick-or-treating. We met up with several other families and all walked the neighborhood together. The kids liked being with their friends, and we parents didn't get quite so bored! As you can see in the second picture, John literally sprinted from house to house. I think all three of us had a fun evening. Don't tell John, but I've been snitching from his goody bag!

Warning: This includes violin playing by two people not-terribly-adept at playing the violin. If you get tired of "La la la", you can skip to about half way in for "Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star".



Jeremy is the first to accept that he must maintain his day job: He doesn't expect to live off of his musical talents.

Back-story: John has been singing "Twinkle, Twinkle..." on his own for the past few days. I realized that I knew how to play it on the violin. This morning I pulled the violin out and started playing and John got very excited. He sang along, and then said "I know how to play that, too!" and eagerly reached for the bow. After a bit of negotiating, he was allowed to hold the bow as long as I held the violin and he sat on my lap. He told me I had to sing along... Viola -- "La la la" was born. The music changes every time (in detail, though not in spirit), but the words are always the same. I also sang the ABCs to the same style music -- just not on tape.

Swimming

Admittedly, this is _way_ out of date...

We visited the Los Angeles back in the middle of August. During that time, we did a lot of swimming in the back yard pool. John has always been a bit of a water bug, but it takes some coaxing to get him some confidence when it's been a while. However, after almost a full week of multiple-times-a-day swimming, he was very confident.

Inspired by Jeremy's sister Amber, we decided to buy a disposable, under-water camera and try to get some good pictures. As it turns out, this was our first time developing film since our engagement pictures (more than seven years ago!). It took a long time for us to even think to take the camera in to get the pictures developed. It's just so much easier when they're digital!

As advertised, we got a lot of really lousy pictures. However, from among those, there were also some really good ones! Enjoy!



Sadly, the above had to be cropped to remove a lot of the beautiful bubbles. (Why? Well, Jeremy was standing right behind him (having just shoved him under the water), and it distracted from John's cute smile.)



John had gotten pretty good at pulling rings off of the bottom once we were done trying to get shots like this. He was a pretty good sport about us shoving him really hard under the water while another person was down there holding his/her breath.



Sadly, this was a really cheap camera (in case you couldn't tell from how grainy the images are). However, this one action shot came out quite well. John has just completed a run off of the slide head first at this point. (No shoving necessary!)

We got back to the pool yesterday for the first time in several months (a local public pool, that is). John was excited to go, but spent the first 10 minutes strangling me as he was worried about sinking and didn't think he could swim. However, after a few more minutes (and an apt reference to Dumbo's magic feather -- Dumbo didn't need his feather; John doesn't need my finger touching his belly), John realized he was a good swimmer. We ended up spending two hours at the pool by the end of it. He loved it all -- except for all of the irritation in his eyes from the chlorine.

Family Portrait

John drew this picture during church today. (Before he liked drawing, it was next to impossible to entertain him during church! Just in the last month, we've been very fortunate that John has discovered his penchant for drawing.) Anyhow, he drew this family picture in which I have an extra circle extending from my torso, with a tiny figure inside. He did it all on his own, and I was tickled that it was his first drawing of me pregnant.

After Jeremy labeled the baby for him, John wanted to add arrows pointing to Dad and himself, too. That's what the markings are in the center. Dad is on the left, John in the center, and me on the right. You can click the picture to see a bigger version.

(Note added by Jeremy): As I labeled the image, I wrote "Daddy" and "Mommy" above our heads, and then I was writing "Johnny", but John caught me and said "No Daddy! I already wrote my name." He then took the pen from me and determinedly crossed out the part of his name that I had written.

... Oh. By the way, for those we haven't been able to tell in person: Heather's pregnant with #2. Due sometime in late March or early April. The ultrasound to find out the gender is in 2 weeks.

John, a Giraffe, and Talan

John drew this picture and wanted me to "put it on the internet" so that everyone in the world could see it. The tallest figure is a giraffe, the middle one is John, and the shortest figure is a two year-old neighbor boy, Talan.

New York Trip (Part 2)

This post concludes all of the crazy things we did during the week of 13 July through 17th.

We also saw several other things while in New York. We got to see the Palmyra Pageant (a show put on by the Mormon church at the Hill Cumorah each year). Before the pageant, all of the actors go out in their costumes and speak with all of the people in the audience. We took the time to get some pictures with several of them. Jeremy ran across King Noah, Amulon, and Laman pretty quick (they're three of the bad guys in the Book of Mormon (akin to meeting Herod)). When he told Laman that he was meeting all of his favorite people from the Book of Mormon, the actor playing Laman seemed shocked. I don't think that sarcasm is his forte...

(We also met Joseph Smith, Captain Moroni, a Nephite family (including two small children and a baby), Mormon, and Samuel the Lamanite.)

The next day, we drove to Niagara Falls. We walked out to the top of the American falls, then went down to the "Cave of the Winds" where you get to walk right under the smallest of the falls, getting splash-off from the rocks right next to the walk-way. We also went on the "Maid of the Mist" which is a boat which rides right up into the "mist" that comes up from the larger falls that split the US and Canada. The "mist" is in quotes because the amount of water coming down is incredible. You could take a shower in it if it weren't so cold and full of fish pieces that have been smashed into bits by the power of the falls.

That night we drove back from western New York, arriving in New Jersey quite late. After dropping off Eric and catching up on sleep, we drove down to Washington DC and spent an evening and morning with Glenn Roper (Jeremy's old roommate -- he and Julie gave us the red plate). Unfortunately, Julie was off with their kids visiting her family, so John didn't get to play with them. Glenn was "fun enough", though.

We arrived back in North Carolina almost 2 full weeks after we left, a lot more tired, but very happy to have gotten to do so many great things!

Pictures of this half of the trip:



Laman probably murmured so much as they crossed the wilderness because he didn't have sunglasses -- he had to squint into that bright sun.



King Noah up close...



King Noah during the show getting ready to order Abinidi be burned at the stake.



Christ just arrived at the American continent after his resurrection and ascension in Jerusalem.



Heather and John wearing their ponchos getting ready to go up close to the Bridal Veil fall.



All of us afterwards. The amount of water bouncing off the rocks was enough to soak Eric and Dad -- even through their ponchos.



The Maid of the Mist gives blue ponchos (vs. Cave of the Wind's yellow ones). The boat is sitting relatively still on a not-a-windy day. The wind blowing John's poncho is all from the spray and the water falling from the Horseshoe falls.





Jeremy and Glenn play catch...

New York Trip (Part 1)

This happened the week of 13 July through 17th. We'll only start the description of all the crazy things we did that week in this post.

The day after Katie and Shane's wedding, we skipped New Jersey to go to western New York. Heather's brother Eric came with us. We met Jeremy's sister Alana and his dad there.

Sunday, we only took a quick drive west, stopping in Pennsylvania for a brief visit with Jeremy's brother Ian (who just moved there from Washington state). We had a great time with Ian, his kids, and seeing his new place.


(John with cousins Joseph and Mari)

While driving north through Pennsylvania, we drove through Scranton (site of NBC's "The Office"), and saw an exit for Allentown (made famous by Billy Joel's song):





Admittedly, we didn't go to the office in Scranton, nor did we wait in Allentown.

When we got to New York, we saw the Whitmer farm (in Fayette where most of the Book of Mormon was translated), the Smith farm (where Joseph lived when he had the first vision), the Palmyra temple, and the Sacred Grove. Here are some of our favorites from those sites:


(John pitching an apple from a tree next to the Whitmer Farm. Sister Whitmer preserved applesauce from that very tree. Joseph definitely ate some. I know it.)


(The Palmyra temple is visible from the walk from the Smith farm to the Sacred grove... You'd think Joseph would have thought to stop there to ask about which church to join.)


(Heather sitting on a bench in the Sacred Grove. Joseph probably rested here after the first vision also.)


(John sitting on a fence with the Smith farm in the background. Joseph probably put his little brother Don Carlos on this same fence post for an excellent photo op. Don Carlos also wore those same plaid shorts, too.)

Katie and Shane's Wedding

This actually occurred on July 12. Yes, we know we're more than a month behind.

One of the major reasons that we traveled so much during July was to be there for Heather's sister Katie's wedding. She and Shane finally decided to tie the knot and we were there to watch and lend a hand. Heather planned and coordinated the decorations for more than a month before the wedding (from North Carolina -- via email and pictures). She also spoke with a friend and became an amateur florist.

We spent most spare moments in the week leading up to the wedding taking care of decoration, floral, and other arrangements. We were still setting up last-minute items as the first guests arrived -- there was a ton of work to do!

Saturday morning, we all drove from New Jersey into Manhattan for the ceremony at the Manhattan temple. Unfortunately, although the building is beautiful, it's also right on a heavily trafficked corner with no grounds. So we didn't get any pictures at the temple itself.

However, that's fine because Central Park is only about a mile away. We walked from the temple to the entrance to Central Park and then a ways to get inside. John got a ride from his Uncle Eric.



As we walked along Central Park Ave., we passed an eternally long line that was there for a concert. As Katie and Shane led the way, the crowd would spontaneously begin applauding.

Since we knew we were going to be a while between the ceremony, the walk, and all of the pictures, the Lysenkos were good enough to bring a cooler full of lunch for everyone. I'm not entirely sure, but I think that the crowd might have cheered louder for the cooler (they all wanted alcohol and were saddened to hear it was a Mormon wedding with nothing but fruit, sandwiches, and Capri-sun inside).



John got a little bored as pictures were being taken.



Before the pictures were even all done, we raced back to finish the decorating. The decorations were beautiful (and I'm allowed to say because I'm Jeremy -- Heather planned it all). The DJ also did an excellent job making sure it was an entertaining and lively evening.

I'll just end with several pictures of the flowers that Heather arranged and the centerpieces.

A Red Plate Day

Our apologies for the long hiatus. We've been busy traveling the Eastern US, working, and (now) getting ready to fly out to LA.

This post was actually written on the day it happened, but I didn't get the pictures uploaded in time. Then, all the business began. Anyway, here's a post from almost two months ago:

June 15, 2008

John had his first "Red Plate Day" today.

The red plate was a gift from our good friends Glenn and Julie Roper that they gave us when we left Provo. When someone has an extra special day, they get to eat off of the red plate, and the event is written (with the date) on the back of the plate.

Today was John's "Red Plate Day" because he:

1) Took a shower all by himself applying the soap himself and lathering the shampoo himself
2) Put on his own Sunday shirt, doing the buttons all by himself
3) Sang in Sacrament meeting with the rest of primary
4) Put on his seatbelt all by himself

He was quite pleased with himself -- as were we.

Just before church

We had a few spare minutes before church this morning and John was all dressed in his "gentleman" clothes. So, he and Jeremy spent the time creating this little video. His dance moves are pretty standard for him. However, the brushed hair was abnormal -- he rarely lets us put any gel in it, or do anything more than just brush it forwards.

Enjoy!

Fun on the Farm

One weekend in April, participating local farms held tours. We went to one with free-range sheep, goats, pigs, cows, and chickens. We had been hoping for a petting-zoo type experience, but alas, we had to view the animals from the other side of the electric fences. They did let us gather eggs from the hen house, though. John enjoyed that a lot. As we were explaining where eggs come from, he asked if these eggs had baby chickens inside. What was I supposed to say? "Yes, and we're going to eat them." So I told him these eggs don't have babies inside. Hey, maybe I was telling the truth -- I don't know how that process works. Anyhow, it was a fun time on the farm!

A birthday card for Dad

Yesterday John found two birthday cards I had received, and assumed that one was for me and one for Daddy (our birthdays are two weeks apart). When I told him that they were both mine, and Daddy hadn't gotten any (at least not this past week), John decided to make a card for him. He scribbled some marks on a piece of paper, then began telling Jeremy what it said. It was so priceless I had to transcribe, though I know I missed some.

"I know that your birthday is coming up, and I know that you are respected, and I know that you don't give me any more time-outs." I'll tell everyone that that's your birthday card, Dad. When somebody ever steals that birthday card from you, I'll say, "Don't ever steal that birthday card from Daddy!" Okay?

That's one lucky Daddy.

Grown-ups can have pinatas, too

A week before Jeremy's birthday, I pointed the date out to John on the calendar, and asked, "What should we do for Daddy's birthday?" Since John had recently had his birthday party, he immediately shouted out, "Make a canata!" (He always forgets how to say pinata.) So make a pinata we did.


















Jeremy requested cookies in lieu of a cake, so I made a batch of chocolate/butterscotch/peanut butter chip cookies (which were pretty delicious, I might add).














Two weeks later, for my birthday, Jeremy made me a VERY delicious dinner of tortellini alfredo, herb breadsticks, and asparagus. But the awesomest part of the day was when we got a call from my brother asking if he, my mom, my sister, and her boyfriend could stop at our house for the night during their road trip. Like we would ever say no! It was a really happy birthday surprise. Since they were coming, I made a birthday cake for us all to enjoy.

Easter Egg Hunt

It may be a month after Easter, but that does not deter us from finally getting these pictures up. The Saturday before Easter our ward had an egg hunt. Here is John anxiously awaiting the start, with his good friend Ollie.








Racing to find the next egg, and showing the camera his booty.

Bedroom Makeover!

Our birthday gift to John was a bedroom upgrade. We'd been thinking it was high time for him to get a twin sized bed, and one thing just lead to another. A new bed needed a new comforter. We always knew he wanted red on his walls, and when he chose a train fabric for the bedspread, a train wall border seemed to tie it all together. We were really pleased with the result!

He had been sleeping downstairs while we painted, so on the morning of his birthday, we brought him up to see the surprise. He wanted to try his new bed out immediately, so a storytime quickly ensued.


Unfortunately the image is blurry, but here you see his previous sleeping arrangements: the crib mattress on the floor.

Birthday Party

John's 4th birthday party was last Saturday. I think Jeremy was completely exhausted by the end, but I actually had a lot of fun. The reality of nine preschoolers in our house surprised him, whereas I was expecting insanity since I've worked with kids a little more. It was Curious George themed, and the kids made big yellow hats, had story time, ate lunch -- along with monkey face cupcakes -- and destroyed a Curious George pinata. The party seemed to be a hit with all the kids.