Happy New Year from The Johnsons

As I'm sure you've read and heard ad nauseam, 2016 has been a tough little year on the humans. I don't want to dredge up all the negative feels when we're on the cusp of a new beginning, but it bears repeating: Prince died on my birthday. Sigh. Personally, it's been a doozy of a year as well - a year of surgery and long recuperation. Of moving Grandma J to Florida. Of dealing with all the emotional and physical implications of having dearly-loved people battle cancer and other serious illness. I could go on, but I think we're all depressed enough.

Here's the thing: Life is full of hardship, as Jesus warned us it would be. And that is exactly why we all need to know, love and follow Him. He and that marvelous Holy Spirit has sustained us in 2016, and they will sustain us through whatever 2017 has to dish out.

Plus, 2016 wasn't all bad. Some pretty incredible things happened too - even amidst the tough stuff. Yes, I spent a lot of time unable to do my thing - the kid wrangling, the exercise, the running around town to this activity and that. The obvious silver lining is that I got a brand spankin' new, titanium-reinforced spine! Plus, I got a couple of months off to lay around binge-watching good shows and buying stuff off the Internet! But our family also found a great friend in Cady Ryan, who helped us out on all fronts as our nanny.

We had a great year of travel, with Aaron and I getting away by ourselves on his company's rewards trip to Hawaii's Big Island. As a family, we enjoyed the sun in Gulf Shores and Myrtle Beach, and just this week in Florida, visiting Aaron's mom. So even though we don't get to have her in Louisville, she's a happy newlywed living just an hour away from the happiest place on Earth - Disney World! Plus, we really like her husband, Doug Macaulay! So now the only thing to decide is what to call her, as she's no longer Grandma J. Grandma M? McGrandma? My personal favorite: GrannyMac? What's your vote?

That's the macro view of the Johnson's 2016. Here's what we've been up to individually:

Aaron enjoys his career in commercial real estate for Marcus & Millichap. It's a challenge and comes with a good bit of stress, but Aaron thrives on strategy and puzzle solving - he loves to figure out how to make deals work! He continues to teach The Cord weekend group at Southeast Christian Church, and we both love the relationships we've cultivated there with some wonderful young families. It's a great community and has given us wonderful support! Aaron went above and beyond in supporting me this year as I recovered from surgery, juggling duties of mom, dad and bread-winner. Thankfully, he's a great juggler, too!

I'm happy to tell you that after four years, I'm finally pain-free! I can't thank Drs. Joseph Werner and Steven Reiss enough for their skillful hands and wisdom. With hope, as I continue to heal and strengthen I can get back in the gym and chase my children around, because it turns out that whatever you sit on for three months tends to expand and drop :) With three kids in three different schools, I've spent an enormous amount of time in the car. Honestly, it's been difficult to keep up with all their stuff, but that's parenthood. I expect that won't let up for another fourteen years or so. So I'll just choose to enjoy the madness. I enjoy leading our weekend group's ladies Bible study and am so thankful for the friendship and support the ladies give to one another. Friends, women are amazing. If you're of the female persuasion, I strongly suggest you gather up a group of women you admire and invest heavily in those relationships because they will teach you, make you laugh and cry (sometimes simultaneously) and will make you feel supported. I value them more every year of life.

It's been a big year for our first born, with Katie starting a new school and stretching herself to do things outside her comfort zone. We've seen her reading skills and general maturity leap in the last few months! To our surprise on spring break, she scaled a three-story ropes course without a sniffle. On her birthday, she got her ears pierced. She bounds into school in the mornings and returns to the car happy at the end of the day - a welcomed change, for sure! Katie has enjoyed being in the Lego club at school, extending from her growing collection at home. A prolific creator of all things artistic, Katie loves to write and illustrate her own short stories and has constructed and decorated an untold number of realms in her Minecraft world.

See those pearly whites? Several of them are gone in the three months since this school picture was taken. After much anticipation, Adam has been losing teeth left and right since turning 7. He has been a busy little man lately. Between school work, math club and now Trail Life, Adam loves to sidle up to the computer with big sis and create in Minecraft. He won his grade's spelling bee and will represent CAL's second grade at the district competition in February. He continues to be the family's comedian, as Nora explained to a perfect stranger a while back, saying, "he's quite funny." Adam has an insatiable curiosity about how things work, specifically as it relates to taking things apart (which recently had Aaron scouring the house for objects Mom wouldn't freak out about if he did so).

Nora was thrilled to begin preschool this year! While just starting her academic career, she's already developed a personality bigger than she is. Nora loves to sing little ditties she's heard on the radio or sometimes epic pieces made up on the spot. Word to the wise: just smile and clap your hands if you want to keep her happy. Nora loves Play-Doh, puzzles, kitchen dance parties, playing with her doll houses and keeping the dog on his toes. She's so much fun!

Pedro joined our family in July, and we love having him in it! A 3-year-old-ish mix of Jack Russell Terrier and who knows what, Pedro came to us from the Oldham County Humane Society. He loves to snuggle with human types, keep Dad's side of the bed warm, take brisk walks around the neighborhood and bark his head off at all passers by. His dislikes include fetching, preferring instead to chase after whatever edibles falls on the floor. So much a terrier, yet not a terrier! Pedro was Mom's shadow during recovery from back surgery, and his companionship was good medicine.




So tomorrow we all get a fresh start. The Johnsons get the added blessing of beginning with a celebration of new life for our son, Adam, whom Aaron will baptize into the family of Christ tomorrow. Aaron and I couldn't be more thrilled to not only call Adam our beloved son, but also our brother in Christ. As two people who've found peace and hope in Him, there's nothing we could want more for our children - or for you!

We pray this year brings you God's blessings, even in the trials. May they come in the form of love, peace and joy. Give lots of hugs and grace. Be kind to those who don't deserve it. Be grateful for the time we have together as friends and family. We love you!