Busy weeks

With moving day looming in the next month we have a lot going on, as you can imagine. We have to sell almost all of our furniture, AND our car. We've got to cancel our utilities, return our rented fridge, book the movers, and enjoy our last few weeks as much as possible. And I need to do my visiting teaching this week.

We've got busy weekends too. This weekend Rick and I are going to the Sydney Opera House (finally!) to see the dance production of Edward Scissorhands. Then on Saturday I have a Visiting Teaching Convention that I'm still putting together. Then Rick and I are both teaching at church on Sunday. I'm betting that we're going to have a hard time at church on Sunday since Piper doesn't seem inclined to go to nursery as of late. We're also having dinner at a friend's house on Sunday. Then next weekend we're going to dinner with friends on Friday and then Piper turns the big 2 on Saturday with a full-on birthday party luau.

In February I started planning in advance for our move by putting together a cleaning schedule to get rid of stuff that we don't use or need anymore. That way we wouldn't be moving tons of stuff that we didn't need to and also to make the packing go faster for the movers. I planned for one project per week and I was pretty consistent and even ahead of schedule on some weeks. I cleaned out clothes closets, linen cupboards, arts & crafts boxes, medicine chests, etc. This week is the last week of cleaning - the kitchen. I can say that I'm very glad that I put together that cleaning schedule - and stuck to it - or else I'd be pulling my hair out more than I already am.

With all of this going on, nobody better get sick. At least my Mom is going to Tahiti with us on our way back to the U.S. Yea! I'm so excited to have her come along. I love traveling with my mom; she is a born traveler.

What a funny girl!

Recently Piper has said quite a few humorous things. I've listed a few below. It's hard not to chuckle when she's being so cute.

• At playgroup, after seeing that Mindy wanted Zoey to come with her Piper says, “Zoey, go Mindy” and gives her a little press on the back.
  
• When Piper came into our bed the other morning she told us that she was wearing jammies, pointing to them. (They have cows in pajamas on them.) After she said “jammies” she looked at the cows and said, with a giggle, “funny jammies.”
  
• As of this last weekend Piper has started having an Aussie accent but only when she says things that end in an “o” sound, like “no,” “go,” and “toe.” She says “noy” instead of “no” and it’s so endearing. It's especially adorable when something bad happens and she says, "oh no!"
  
• Piper knows my name and today she called me Misty. She was reminding me of the milk I had left in the kitchen as we sat down to dinner. She said, “Milk, Misty.” It sounds more like “Missy” but even that’s pretty good. A bit later she went to sit on the couch and said, “C’mon Misty.”

As you can see, we have quite a character on our hands.

Change of plans...

After almost two and a half years of living in Sydney, we're finally heading back home. There's a catch; when we move back next month, it won't be to New York. That's right, we're moving to...

Cleveland, Ohio!

Never thought you'd hear of Rick and Misty Johnson living in Cleveland, right? There's a very good reason for the change though, I promise. With the immense help and recommendation of our friend and cheerleader Chris Musso, Rick has scored a new job as an Associate at McKinsey & Co., in Cleveland. Musso works for McKinsey in Cleveland so we'll have some built-in-friends when we move which is a big plus for me.

Now, we had some misgivings at first about not moving back to New York. We had concerns about Cleveland too (mine were mostly about living in the suburbs). There will be a formal mourning period for New York as that was where our minds were focused. And Rick and I would still love to live there again in the future. Right now we're excited to be making some good changes for our family and for Rick's career. The amount of house we'll be able to have in Cleveland is quite alluring too. (For all of you who know Rick, you know that he loves clothes and shoes so closet space is a definite priority.)

I told Piper that we're going to be moving from Sydney to Cleveland. I was just trying to plant the seed so she's not too surprised when it happens. She asked me about Zoey. I told her that she was staying in Sydney but we'd be going to Cleveland. She then told me "no Cleveland." Poor girl, she sure will miss her friends.

We're still working with McKinsey on figuring out our moving date and Rick's starting date so stay tuned for more. Just remember: Cleveland rocks (or so we've been told.)

Party plans

With Piper turning two soon we thought we'd have a little party for her and some of her friends. It's going to be a birthday luau. We've been making invitations and flower leis. Piper is excited and wants to have it now - cake, presents, and all. She wanted to hand out the invitations before they were even done.

Now, some more experienced moms would say that I'm crazy but we've invited six of Piper's friends and their parents to the luau. Our plan is that not all of them say yes, otherwise we'll potentially have seven kids and 14 parents running around. We've indicated on the invites that the party is to last only an hour; we'll see if that's how it goes down.

Here's a snapshot of the invitations we made:

Luna Park

On Saturday night we went to Luna Park on Sydney's north shore. We were in the neighborhood at a housewarming party so we decided to take a venture over to see what it was like. Luna Park is fashioned after New York's Coney Island. It was expensive so we didn't do too much. We got there at seven o'clock so Piper was going to be tired soon, and also she was too small to go on anything other than the Ferris wheel and the carousel. We had some cotton candy, which Piper loved, and Rick won her a stuffed Nemo doll. We took a walk on the boardwalk and had our picture taken. All in all, a fun evening together.

Happy Mother's Day!

Yesterday I was looking for a good quote about moms to include with the cookie bags that we're handing out today at church for Mother's Day. In my searching I found this article. It was uplifting for me and I especially liked that it was called "10 Secrets to Being a Happy Mother of Young Children." It's not how to be a good mother which would make anyone feel guilty; it's about how to be a happy mother.

The quote I ended up using was from the prophet Joseph F. Smith: “I have learned to place a high estimate upon the love of mother. I have often said, and will repeat it, that the love of a true mother comes nearer being like the love of God than any other kind of love.”

Also, my mom had Rick buy me flowers and dictated a note. A mother sending her daughter flowers on Mother's Day - that's a great mom. Thanks a bunch! I love you Mom.

To all you mothers out there, have a fantastic Mother's Day! You deserve it.

Powerhouse Museum

We took another trip to the Powerhouse Museum on Wednesday. This time Mindy and Zoey came too. At the museum there's this kid's play area called, funny enough, Zoe's House. Kids can climb and build, and learn about construction in an on-hands environment. Piper was too short to play here the last time we went but this time she was so close and Zoey was tall enough that we gave it a go. They had a great time.

Piper and Zoey in front of the a model of the Strasbourg clock


Y.M.C.A! At the Y.M.C.A., hey!

Piper is operating the toll bridge and seems a bit peeved to have her busy day interrupted.

More pics from Natalee's visit

I received my cousin Natalee's photos from her trip down here in March. She took some amazing shots. I've uploaded a few for your viewing pleasure.

Me and my girl waiting for the bus


That's one tired chiquita.

First snorkel attempt

Natalee and Piper enjoying the reef view together

A lone mangrove

Petting a koala at the Koala Park Sanctuary

Playing with puzzles

Piper and Rick were playing with her puzzles the other day while I was doing something in another room. Piper came knocking on the door and Rick told me that I needed to come out and see what was going on. This is what I found.

So funny

The kid at the end makes me laugh so hard. His Aussie accent is just priceless, and spot on.

Conversations with Piper

Exchange 1
Misty: What do you want to eat Piper?
Piper: Fruit.
Misty: Okay, a banana?
Piper: Yeah.
(After eating the banana) Misty: What else do you want to eat?
Piper: Fruit.
Misty: How about an apple?
Piper: No, fruit.
Misty: Raisins?
Piper: Yeah.

Exchange 2
(Piper sees a cat eating)
Piper: Mouw.
Misty: Yes, a cat. What do cats eat?
Piper: Cereal.
In Piper's defense, dry cat food does look like cereal.

Exchange 3
(After Piper tasted some canned pumpkin pie filling)
Piper: Mmm, more, I like.

Yahtzee!

In an attempt to entertain Piper one afternoon I pulled out our game of Yatzhee. I taught her how to shake the dice and say Yahtzee! while lifting her arms in victory a la Grandma Dody. She's got it down pretty good I'd say.

Naughty Days

Piper has been on a bit of a naughty tear lately. She's normally a fairly mild-mannered, obedient child. She says please, thank you, and excuse me regularly with hardly a reminder. However, of late she hasn't been listening very well, has had several tantrums and subsequent time-outs, and has taken a liking to screeching when upset or frustrated, or sometimes just for fun.

Last night while I was making her dinner she drew with a black crayon all over one of our cloth-covered dining room chairs. She was being somewhat supervised so the drawing didn't last long at all. She got a time-out immediately and was actually happy to help clean the mess afterwards. Thankfully all of the black marks came out - good thing for her.

Rick's been a bit saddened by Piper's orneriness because she's been withholding hugs and kisses from him. Let's hope that this whiny, contrary phase is short-lived.

Rugby and tigers

Last Friday was ANZAC Day which is equivalent to the U.S. Memorial Day. Rick got the day off so we took the opportunity to go to a rugby match in the afternoon. We went to see the Roosters vs. the Dragons. A guy who used to be in our ward is a first string player for the Roosters. It was great to see a live game. Mindy and Zoey came along. The girls had a good time. The match was the perfect length (an hour and forty-five minutes) so the girls actually didn't get too bored.

In the morning Piper and I went to the Powerhouse Museum. We had lots of fun, so much that I didn't get any pictures of Piper playing there. We saw full-sized planes, trains, we learned about electricity and the environment. It was good that we left when we did because it got crazy with kids (we went during the school break).

The last two pictures are of Piper this past Wednesday at the World's Largest Playgroup. All over Australia playgroups had big activities in their local areas. We went to the one for the Eastern Suburbs. They had free facepainting, cake and juice, arts & crafts, and an obstacle course. Piper and I waited for half an hour to get her face painted. She was surprisingly patient. She wanted to get a dinosaur on her face but the lady didn't know how to do a dinosaur. So instead Piper got a tiger just like Peppa Pig from TV did. She would tell me "roar."