Team Johnston

Austin Powers even made a quick stop at our party. He was there just long enough to embarrass a few people and start a conga line.




I also thought I should include this picture of our living room at Christmas time. I love our tree...even if it does take me 3 hours to put the lights on! Maybe I should take a better picture so the lights actually show up?
Well...I should run. We have a few more parties to attend...Merry Christmas!!

Apparently there is some sort of service online (maybe through Google?) that notifies you when a certain word or phrase is used on the internet. For instance, if I wanted to know everytime "Miranda" was posted on the internet, I could. I'm not exactly sure how this works, but apparently my boss' brother is.

Today my boss told me that by using our company name, his brother had found my blog. In particular, he went to the posting where I wrote about my car being parked next to a truck that caught on fire in the parking garage. As far as I can tell, that's the only time I'd mentioned our company.

When I think about it, it's pretty astounding the amount of information that's available for anyone, anytime. Of course, I've always known my blog lies in the public domain...but what an interesting way for someone to find it!

So, it is with great happiness that I welcome my boss and his brother to my blog. Hi!

And finally, it is with great sadness that I must inform the readers of this blog that 2 posts I was planning to write will no longer be published here:

"Top 10 Reasons My Job Stinks"

"6 Signs You Have a Bad Boss"

The courtesy wave in traffic. It is so nice to feel appreciated when you yield to another driver in traffic. I love the little wave that says, "Hey...thanks alot!"

The Cowboys being 5 and 0. It is truly fun when the Boys are winning! Although, I hope Tony Romo has thrown his share of interceptions now. Chad and I are such Romo fans; it just breaks my heart when he doesn't play well.

The Mavericks pre-season has begun! Chad and I were lucky enough to receive some really great tickets to the Mavs/Spurs pre-season game on Tuesday night. The seats were amazing....we were 10 or 12 rows up from the floor! Plus, we were able to watch every single player on the team. We've acquired a few new guys that look pretty good. This is our year, baby!

Family vacations. We had a great time with my family at the lake this past weekend. For more details and pics, check out Amber's blog. I appreciate that she didn't post the picture of me actually floating into a tree while on the jet ski!

Backing into parking spaces. I don't do this often, but this week I decided to start backing into a new parking space in the garage at work. Monday morning, it took several attempts and me getting out of my car once to make sure I was between the lines before I felt confident I could leave my car. However, I am happy to post that the past 2 mornings I have been successful on my first try!

Tomorrow is Friday...yea!

Thanks to Paige and Kim for this post idea!


1. Who is your man? Chad Allan Johnston

2. How long have you been together? Married for 2 years & 3 months

3. How long dated? This is a tricky question since it took Chad and I quite some time to realize/admit that we were actually dating. If it was timed from the first time he and I had a meal together (just the 2 of us), we dated for a little over a year before we got married. We had a pretty short engagement (4 months).

4. How old is your man? 27

5. Who eats more? I definitely eat more often, but Chad eats more per meal. I'm really happy because he's just starting to eat breakfast on a regular basis. I think this is a very healthy habit!

6. Who said "I love you" first? Chad did. We were in a car with my mom sitting right next to us, coming home from a family Christmas celebration. I don't think she even noticed!

7. Who is taller? Chad

8. Who sings better? I think we are a lovely duet! He is really clever at making up all kinds of songs, though.

9. Who is smarter? It depends on the subject, but overall, he is more intelligent. He is quite a bit more "street smart" than I am!

10. Whose temper is worse? Neither one of us have a temper.

11. Who does the laundry? Me

12. Who takes out the garbage? Chad

13. Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Chad...although he's always trying to switch sides! I push him over because I see no reason to change. :-)

14. Who pays the bills? Chad...he has a far better financial mind!

15. Who is better with the computer? We both have our strengths. With Microsoft programs, it's probably me, though.

16. Who mows the lawn? Chad! I have mowed the lawn one time since we've been married, and it was only because he had West Nile (or some other horrible virus that kept him confined in our home for a solid week).

17. Who cooks dinner? I do.

18. Who drives when you are together? Chad.

19. Who pays when you go out? Chad uses his card, but since we have one account, I suppose we both pay!

20. Who is most stubborn? Hmmmm..... I don't think either one of us is very stubborn, but I'll choose Chad since this is my blog and I can write whatever I like.

21. Who is the first to admit when they are wrong? Me. However, I do have a bad habit of taking blame for things that aren't my fault at all. I'm working on it.

22. Whose parents do you see the most? It's a pretty even split.

23. Who kissed who first? Chad kissed me, the night he asked me to marry him. We obviously had some pretty strict rules when we were dating!

24. Who asked who out? Refer to question #3 for ambiguous answer. Probably Chad, though.

25. Who proposed? Me. (Not really...just making sure you were paying attention!) :-)

26. Who is more sensitive? ME!

27. Who has more friends? More of Chad's friends live near us, so we see them more often. Because of this, they are my friends too!

28. Who has more siblings? Chad - 2 older sisters.

29. Who wears the pants in the family? Chad (But my pants are cuter)

I am a firm believer that more than one place can be called "home." It is the nature of our beings to move from place to place and from one life circumstance to another. However, we might not refer to every place we have lived as "home." "Home" is a word reserved for special places.

I have two homes here on this earth.

My first home is the one I have with Chad. Our life is my home; this includes our family and friends here with us. I love living in Plano, near our family. I love the friends we are so blessed to have. I love our church home, Prestoncrest, and the relationships we have built there. My home will always be with Chad, no matter where the Lord decides to take us. And, since our family is here, this will always be home, even if something takes Chad and I to a new place.

My second home is in Denver City. This is the town where I grew up. We were blessed to be in Denver City this past weekend, although the circumstances were sad. A very dear friend of our family passed away. However, despite these circumstances, I am so happy to have spent the small amount of time we did in my hometown. I visited with people I haven't seen in over 2 years. What is it that keeps us away so long from people who played such a large role in our lives?

Time is so precious, and I must admit, it is one of my most valued possessions. I am incredibly selfish with my time. Because our weekends seem to book up so rapidly, when we do have a weekend without any plans, my first reaction is to rejoice...a weekend with nothing to do! A time to rest, catch up on chores, spend time with only Chad. I truly believe that I am not at fault with this thought, but rather I don't use some of my time off in ways that I should.

I should plan to visit Denver City for the weekend, not because someone has passed away or someone is getting married, but rather just because I can. The people there have known and loved me since birth. I have some very close friends that have moved back and are raising their families there. I should see them more often. More than that...I want to see them more often. My friend Whitney was born only 4 days before me...she is an irreplaceable friend that has known me since birth. How is it that I can allow years to pass between our visits?

I finish with this...no matter how long it has been, when I go back to DC, I always feel welcome, and more than that, I always feel as though I belong. That's really what home is about.

Home is where we belong.

Hello all! I'm struggling a bit with blogging motivation, but I do have a few things to write about.

About a month ago, Chad undertook a quick little bathroom project. He installed sliding, glass shower doors in our bathroom. Gone is the shower curtain and liner! Our bathroom is actually quite small (something that we will avoid in any future homes), so any measure taken to make it increase in size really helps. Also, it allows more light to come into the shower, which is nice. Another plus... I have an aversion to shower curtain liners touching me, so this solves that problem as well!

And here is the finished project. We are gradually transferring all hardware in this bathroom to brushed nickel. Chad and I are both becoming "squeegie experts" since we squeegie after every shower to prevent residue build-up. Yucky!

This past weekend Chad and I went with Mom to the Brooks & Dunn and Alan Jackson concert. Dad was in Honduras, but bought tickets for the 3 of us. It was a really entertaining show, especially Brooks & Dunn. However, I must admit that the best part for me at these types of events is the people-watching. Concerts are great for this activity, as you see people from every age, locale, and walk-of-life. I really thought about taking some pictures, but there's probably a privacy issue associated with taking pictures of perfect strangers and then posting them on a blog.






The man behind us was kind enough to hold up his fan...you know, just in case we ever forget where we were when this picture was taken.


** On a side note, we had a dear friend of our family pass away yesterday. Ken McLeroy was one of the kindest, most gentle, God-fearing men I have ever known. It's hard to describe how I can miss him so much now that he is gone, even though I haven't seen him in a few years. I love his wife and family, and ask that your prayers be with them right now. Ken is at peace with our Father, and his body is no longer holding him back. Please also pray for everyone traveling to honor him at his service this weekend.

1. I am a Christian.


2. I married my best friend.


3. He's still my best friend!


4. I love to clean the house.


5. I despise ironing.


6. I have 2 nieces and 2 nephews.


7. I park in the same exact parking spot everyday at work. If someone is in my spot, I forget by the end of the day and walk to my usual spot anyway. This usually leads to me thinking my car was stolen.


8. I love to watch golf on TV, but I don't play golf.


9. I love chocolate.


10. I drink at least 70 ounces of water every day.


11. I am 5 feet tall.


12. Sometimes Chad says I laugh like Betty Rubble.


13. My car is named LaFonda.


14. I grew up in Denver City, TX.


15. I am a certified high school English teacher.


16. I don't work as a teacher.


17. I enjoy looking for new recipes on the Internet.


18. I plan our meals for the week every Sunday.


19. My husband is super handsome!


20. My husband is super handy!


21. I don't play any musical instruments.


22. I love to sing in church.


23. I am terrified of spiders.


24. My favorite movie of all time is Miracle. It's slightly embarrassing how many times I've seen it.


25. I get headaches, particularly if I've had too much sugar.


26. I love sugar. :-(


27. I get migraine headaches, especially if I've had WAY too much sugar.


28. I like the word "ghosts." I think it's something about the way it sounds when I say the letters "sts" together.


29. My favorite TV summer guilty pleasure is "Big Brother."


30. I'll turn 27 next month, and I'm not quite sure how I feel about it yet. It sure is close to 30!


31. We have no pets, but hopefully someday we will when we have a little more time at home.


32. I really enjoy cooking dinner for Chad.


33. I have never been to Colorado.


34. I really enjoy my 2 cups of coffee every morning. It's the only caffeine I drink all day.


35. I drive 22 miles to work.


36. In the mornings, I listen to Kidd Kraddick on 106.1. They seriously crack me up!


37. In the afternoons I usually listen to ESPN radio, but lately I've been checking out audio books from the library, which is probably a better use of my time.


38. Crème Brulée might be my favorite dessert, although I've never made it.


39. Chad and I are in a wonderful small group! We have such great relationships with the Bagleys, Tiptons, and Turnbows.


40. I graduated from Texas Tech University. Go Red Raiders!!


41. I make lists, and then start over and make them again so they are more organized. In particular, items on my grocery list are always grouped together with other like-items. Sometimes this takes 3 lists.


42. I've had many different colors of hair, and often times a few colors at once. Right now, I'm back to the natural color God gave me. I think I'd forgotten what it looked like.


43. This is really hard.


44. I have one brother, Josh. I wish he, Amber, and the kids lived even closer than they do.


45. We live 10.3 miles from my parents and 11 miles from Chad's parents. I'd say that's about as in-the-middle as we could get!


46. Chad and I are members at Prestoncrest Church of Christ. We love it there!


47. I need to take a break...


48. I'm back.


49. I get really excited when I sleep in until 7:30am. How sad is that?


50. Chad says I turn into a furnace at night when I sleep. I think he's making that up.


51. My dad is writing a book, and it is going to be awesome!


52. I watched High School Musical, and I liked it.


53. I watched High School Musical 2, and I liked it too.


54. I love all of the Harry Potter books and movies.


55. I would like 4 kids. (So Kim, you aren't alone.) :-)


56. We are going to Playa del Carmen on our next vacation. Yea!!

57. I'm a little clumsy. Sometimes I fall over for no reason at all.

58. I made some poor choices in college. I know that God has used those choices to teach me valuable lessons, and I am a better person because of those lessons.

59. I consider myself a patient person.

60. I clean things subconsciously. Sometimes I take Chad's cups and plates and rinse them and place them in the dishwasher before he is done. I often have no memory of doing it.

61. Apparently Chad is very patient as well!

62. My neck turns red and splotchy when I'm nervous.

63. I like my pale skin. I don't think I used to.

64. About a month ago, I hit a little chihuahua named Lily with my car. She lived, but the story is very traumatic.

65. I eat every 2-3 hours. If I don't, I'll get a headache. In fact, it's time for a snack right now.

66. I haven't grown since the 6th grade.

67. I have never had stitches.

68. I have never had a broken bone.

69. I have probably just jixned myself right before vacation....awesome.

70. I love cheese....this is probably why Mexican and Italian food is so yummy to me!

71. I also love pizza...I could eat this several times a week if I didn't watch out.

72. I have 3 really wonderful sisters-in-law. It is such a blessing to have them in my life since I didn't grow up with any sisters. They are all 3 so different, which is also a blessing!

73. I have freckles, and I really like them.

74. I just cut my hair. It is now shorter than it's been since college...yikes!

75. I was a cheerleader and played volleyball in high school.

76. I was also vice-president of the student council.

77. One responsibility of being vice-president was that I was the co-anchor of our high school news program. This was really fun, especially because the other anchor was my dear friend, Dusty.

78. I am terrified of driving on bridges over water. The recent events in Minnesota did nothing to help with this fear.

79. I don't like to be dirty.

80. In college I worked as a waitress and a beverage cart girl at Lakeridge Country Club in Lubbock.

81. This is where I made my closest college girlfriends. I treasure these friendships and try to keep in touch with Carlie, Brenna, and Michelle as much as possible.

82. I've been to Hawaii once (senior trip right after high school), but Chad and I hope to go sometime next year! Aloha!

83. I do not like needles...at all! I have to concentrate really hard on breathing, or I'll cry.

84. I'm so glad I'm almost done with this list, as this is very hard to do!

85. I'm discovering that I'm truly not that interesting. :-)

86. Pride and Prejudice is my newest movie favorite. I could watch this again and again.

87. I worked in retail once in college, and was horrible at it. I have a hard time selling things to people when they don't really need them.

88. I love new shoes! Thank goodness for DSW!

89. My father and mother-in-law love me! Just ask them!

90. I love living so close to them and my parents.

91. I find out more every day how much like my mom I really am. This is a very good thing because my mom is wonderful!

92. I do not know how to grow flowers and keep plants alive. It's really quite sad.

93. Chad has most of his close, college friends here in Dallas with us. Thankfully, I they have also become my friends, and their wives as well. I am so blessed by friendships with these ladies!

94. I can't wait for the Mavericks to start playing basketball again! Pre-season starts October 9. This is our year, baby!

95. I am currently listening to Emma by Jane Austen while I drive home from work.

96. My favorite movie as a child was Annie.

97. I am almost done...

98. Wait for it...

99. So close...

100. Yea! I made it! Thanks Lori and Kim for this idea. I don't think I can ever do this again!

Pre-moistened wipes (such as Clorox Disinfecting Wipes, Wet Ones, etc...) should not be flushed down the toilet. In particular, if you live in a home with a female who loses copious amounts of hair in the shower, use caution. These 2 substances could combine in your pipes and cause flooding to the interior of the home.

On another note: We save quite a bit of money because my husband is so handy!

Addison and Davis stayed the night with us on Saturday night. We had a really fun sleepover that included pizza, brownies, and the movie, Nacho Libre. Following the movie was the all important Chad vs. Addison and Davis wrestling match that seems to happen quite often. (It probably didn't help that we had just watched a movie all about wrestling.)

A few months ago Addison and Davis were over at the house, and we came up with the greatest activity...Swiffer Shoes! We simply taped Swiffer floor sweepers to their feet and let them go crazy all over the wood floors! They had fun, got some exercise, and my floors were completely clean!

Chad plays on our church class softball team. He's been playing with these guys for over 2 years now, and it's really so much fun for both of us. It's not year round, but really close to it since there is a summer, fall, and spring season. The Rally Monkeys (team name) play every Monday night, which gives all of the wives an excuse to get together and gab. Every now and then we catch a good play or hit and cheer our husbands on, but mostly we just gab. I credit these weekly softball games as the reason Chad and I were able to plug into our class so quickly 2 and a half years ago. We were able to establish friendships with people beyond the surface level of Sunday mornings.

We spent all of last week at the beach! Chad's parents rented a house down in Port Aransas for the whole family, and I must say, I am so grateful! It was so wonderful to be away from Dallas and work for a week and just relax and take it easy. Everyday was so laid back, and the weather was perfect! The house had plenty of room for all of us and was just a short walk to the beach. Being the pale girl in the family, I was careful not to spend too much time out in the sun without loads of sunscreen, but I enjoyed the beach and pool as much as I could!

Here we are with Wade and Amber being completely ridiculous. What this picture doesn't show is that we are actually waiting outside a souvenir shop because their Yukon broke down in the parking lot! Lucky for us this shop had this great picture-taking opportunity right outside the bathroom!











This final picture makes me laugh. Chad still has the original Nintendo gaming system, and Clay was more than happy to play with him. They were so into this football game, and sadly, Meesh and I had just as much fun watching them play! I tried my hand at a little Super Mario Brothers, but alas, I am truly awful.

Yesterday was our 2nd wedding anniversary! In some ways the time has flown, and in other ways I feel like I've been married to Chad for much longer (and I mean this in a good way!). I am so glad God decided Chad and I belong together. Here's a little look back:

This past weekend was full of birthday and family fun! Not only was Sunday Fathers' Day, but it was also Mom's birthday. It was a big birthday too, however I will not reveal her age to the blogging world!