Our Little Gigi is 8

Gianna Brianne, Gigi, is 8 years old! 

WOW! 

It is so hard to believe how the years have definitely 

flown by right before our eyes. 

Wasn't it just yesterday she was our first and only grandchild.

How we love this sweet, adorable, precious girl, 

to the moon and back!

Merry Christmas!

                  Now that it’s December it’s time to recall the fun we shared in 2012!  It’s been a great year spent with family and friends, traveling and camping (RVing), and enjoying our retirement! We’ve really loved spending lots of time with our 4 grandkiddos.  Gigi turned 5 in May and the whole family joined her for her first visit to Disneyland. There is nothing sweeter than seeing Disneyland through the eyes of a child! Brody and Micah are 2 ½ and talking up a storm, while little Hallee is 18 months, climbing on everything and displaying some not so cute “terrible two” behaviors early!

                  We ventured to a new location and enjoyed a fantastic week, truly relaxing by the pool which was right next to the amazing teal-blue ocean waters of the Caribbean, at an all-inclusive resort in Cancun with great friends. We traveled back to Washington DC, in the early fall, and meandering through several Smithsonian Museums. We visited with friends at their “beach” house in beautiful Currituck, (near Outer Banks), North Carolina, and in Virginia. We took a day trip to the picturesque colonial settlement of Williamsburg. It amazes us how much there is to see back east and all the history there is to absorb. So we know we will be going back several more times in the future.

                  During 2012, we used our RV even more. We went to Spring Training in Arizona for a month and attended our first Good Sam Rally held at the Phoenix Raceway (never seen so many RV’s in one location-literally 1000’s)!!  We spent several weekends at Newport Dunes RV Resort, to visit with Alex, Angelina and Micah who live nearby. We ventured to northern California for our now annual week of camping in Fort Bragg for Abalone Diving with our longtime camping buddies, Lynn & Rick. This year Nicole and David and kids joined us; it was a great week of camping reminiscent of all the years our families have camped together (although a few of our kids couldn’t make it)! Summer vacation took us back to Bend Oregon (such a beautiful area) where we attended the Annual Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show. Great show, although we didn’t get the chance to see all the quilts because it was rained out for the first time in its 37 year history! We spent time in Redding with Lynn & Rick, (Lynn and I got to do some quilting while the boys went fishing) before a week of camping at Lake Almanor, meeting up with more camping friends. We spent a quiet weekend in our RV at KQ Ranch in Julian late fall before our Annual Thanksgiving week of camping at San Elijo State Beach....And did I mention we got a new diesel pusher in the Spring! It’s got 4 slides, a roomier layout, more power and better storage!

                  Nick has traveled quite a bit to Sacramento this past year and stays very busy now that he is working with the State Fire Marshal’s office on fire training curriculum. He’s also traveled to Northern California and Tucson with several other retired fire professionals for fire teaching and advising. It’s his way of giving back to the fire profession to which he dedicated his life’s work.

                  I attended several quilt retreats this year with my friend Lynn (for a couple of retreats our hubbies joined us for the weekend and we RVed at Flying Flags RV Resort).  I made many quilts for gifts and charity this year -my way of giving back!

                  Nicole, David and 3 kids moved in with us in September because the owners wanted their house back.  3 weeks turned into 3 months, but they moved this past weekend into their “new” condo. They are very excited to be first time“homeowners” and to have freshly painted the walls!

                  Alex started a new t-shirt design business and has his own online store (http://fiftyfivesouth.storenvy.com/). Check it out--he's got some "awesome" designs. But the best news of all is that Micah’s “only child” status “expires” next June when we will welcome a new Pavone into the family!!

                  Wishing you and yours a very Merry Christmas.  

                                    May you richly be blessed by God in the coming new year.

                                                      Love & Joy,
                                                      Karen & Nick

See How Big They are Getting

Our adorable grandkiddos are growing up so fast!! It seems like they were all just little babies!

April, 2012 L to R Brody, Hallee, Gigi and Micah

Top L:Gigi, 5, 1st Day of Kindergarten, R: her 1st lost tooth

Micah, 2 1/2, always on the RUN!

Two happy boys, Brody and Micah, always have fun together

Brody 2 1/2 (his new favorite-horses) always smiles

Hallee loves her cousin Micah and she was so excited (!!!) at Micah's Birthday Party

Hallee, 16 months; R: Big brother, Brody helping Hallee ride the trike!

Camping with our BFFs

We spent a wonderful week camping in Fort Bragg, a small town nestled on the beautiful rugged coastline of northern California, spending time with family and great friends! Nances and Pavones always have the best times together and this trip was no exception.

This year our daughters (Nicole and Emily) and their families joined us, as well as 5 adorable grandbabies (3 of ours and 2 of the Nances, as well as one to be born in August)! It was heartwarming to see the newest generation becoming great camping friends, as their moms before them! 

The oldest girls, Gigi, 5, and Isabelle, almost 4, even liked doing the dishes on the table benches (reminiscent of their moms, many years ago)!

We had the best campsites ever at Pomo Campground! They were so private, we hardly knew anyone else was there. We had gorgeous views of the large redwoods, pines and blooming rhododendrons surrounding us.

We relaxed, played games, visited the quiet town, and talked, a lot!  

Guys went abalone diving and were successful both days.

A delicious abalone feast was consumed by everyone, even the little ones loved it! 

Eric shows David,Brody, Gigi, Isabelle (Nicole)and Olivia (Emily and baby) an abalone in its shell.

  

We explored nearby "Glass Beach" at the north end of town, on a foggy morning,

David, Nicole, Brody, Auntie Grandma Lynn, Papa and Emily 

Rick, Lynn, Karen and Nick

 enjoyed campfires each night, roasted marshmallows and made s'mores

Beautiful weather, sunny days, crisp nights, camping, and friendship, mixed with only one afternoon/eve of some rain, a rarity for Nor Cal, made for a great week of fun!

More photos

The Boys are 2 !!

Brody and Micah are 2 now!  

Brody turned "2" on April 6th and Micah turned "2" on May 12th.

So hard to believe these two little babies

 are now running, jumping and climbing pretty much anywhere they want to go.  And GO they do! They are always on the go!

Both boys are happy all the time with the cutest smiles!! They love to eat! Love to play and Love to Laugh and they always make us smile and laugh too!

Brody loves his "Dodger Blue" hat and to play ball!!

Micah loves his steering wheel to "drive" his truck!

Getting all 4 cousins to sit and smile at the same time is no easy feat! 

Brody, Hallee, Gigi and Micah 

We are such proud grandparents!!

Gigi Goes to Disneyland!

We spent a wonderful day at the "Happiest Place on Earth" on Gigi's 5th Birthday! It's a whole new place when seen through the eyes of a child, especially on her first visit to this magical land!

Papa and Gigi just before entering the park.

Mommy made Gigi a Minnie Mouse shirt to wear with her Minnie ears 

which she also wore on Halloween!

David, Hallee, Gigi, Nicole and Brody

Unc A and Micah joined us.

First ride for us was the all new Star Tours.

  Dumbo and the Carousel were both hits for all the little ones.  We all enjoyed the Tea Cups, Jungle Cruise and Autopia, too!  The grown-ups loved Pirates and Big Thunder as well!

Midday, Gigi changed into her princess Belle dress and had her face painted.

We explored ToonTown and took a tour of Mickey's house and the rest of the ToonTown.

Gigi and a reluctant Brody had their picture taken with Minnie Mouse.

In the afternoon we visited the Disney Princess Fantasy Faire.

Gigi was getting a bit tired,

But, despite the almost hour wait to Meet the Princesses, when asked what her favorite thing about Disneyland was, Gigi still replies:  "Meeting the princesses, Cinderella and Tiana!"

Gigi and Cinderella, her favorite princess, shared a chat, a hug and an autograph;

Gigi getting Tiana's autograph!

 It was truly a fantastic day!! 

You can see more pictures on my flickr page.

Milestone: Gigi Turns 5 !!!

In 6 days our sweet, little granddaughter Gigi will be 5 years old!

It seems like it was only yesterday when she was barely 6 pounds.

She's a cutie, there's no denying it!! (you can call me prejudice and that's ok!) 

 Pictured above, 4 generations of "Johnsen women"from L to R:  

Yaya, mommy, Gigi (6 months old), GreatGrandma

It's hard to believe this little princess will be starting school!!!  

She has brought such JOY to our lives!!

Gigi is so loving and sweet, with the cutest smile and a dimple on her right cheek! She warms our hearts and we love being able to spend lots of time together!

She loves books and loves to be read to.  She loves camping. She loves being a big sister to her brother, Brody (2) and her baby sister, Hallee, almost 1. She loves to help in the kitchen. 

She loves to ride in Yaya's car and loves to go with Papa to get Yaya's car washed.  She loves to be tickled and she loves her back scratched (just like her mommy!).

 

She loves animals and loves going to the Wild Animal Park, 

oops, I mean the San Diego Zoo's Safari Park!

She loves to "make a plan" especially for spending the night at Yaya and Papa's house!

She loves to play dress up and loves princesses. 

Her favorite princess is Cinderella, so Yaya made her a Cinderella dress.  

I think we've watched Disney's "Cinderella" more than a hundred times; 

and it never gets old watching it with her!

And, guess where this special little princess is going tomorrow, in honor of her birthday, 

for the very first time!?!?!

(Shhhhh!  It's a surprise for our birthday girl!)  

So happy we get to experience the special day with her and her family!!

HAPPY BIRTHDAY GIGI!!!
Yaya and Papa love you; we love you more--to the moon and back!!

Fun at Spring Training

Traveling to Arizona for Spring Training has become a family tradition!

A waterfall near the golf course

Nick enjoying a game of golf

David shot his best game ever!

Nicole with a happy Brody

Gigi helps mommy make lunch

Hallee having fun playing with the beanie babies in the basket!

On a hot Arizona day, Sydney "relaxes" in the shade

An Arizona sunset

Papa and Yaya with Brody and Gigi at a night game

A tired Brody

Padres' Baseball at Peoria Sports Complex

The Hoffman brothers together in the Padres' dugout--

Glenn on the left and Trevor on the right!

Angelina, Alex and Micah in front of Peoria Sports Complex, before a Padres' game.

Micah having fun running through the waterfalls at a local park in El Mirage, AZ.

Andy and Nick enjoy a green beer on St Patrick's Day

An afternoon in Old Town, Scottsdale