Johnson Family Reunion and then some...

Last weekend was the famous Johnson Family Reunion. Jayson hadn't been able to go since 2008 (it was the last thing we did before he shipped out for training for his deployment)so we were really excited to go see the family. Jayson got off work a little bit later than we planned but I was ready to go so it wasn't going to be a problem. I met Jayson at his job and we left from there. For those who don't know, you have to travel through a canyon to get onto I-15 from Logan. The town you hit after the canyon is Brigham City and it's about 35 minutes from Logan. We were cruising along, enjoying the drive when we got down to the last hill from the canyon. Whenever I get the chance, I usually make fun of Jayson's stick shift driving skills, so when he tried putting the car into fourth gear and ground the gears a little. We were still slowing down, approaching the light at the intersection and he tried to put the car into gear again but it still wouldn't work. By now, we were stopped at the light and he looked at me, with worry on his face and said "Jenifer, the clutch won't work. It just goes straight to the floor." Keep in mind, my car is 8 months old. It's a 2010 Hyundai Elantra and we have only put 11,000 miles on it. There is absolutely NO reason why a clutch should be acting up in an eight month old car. None. By now, all the cars that were behind us have moved around to continue on their way, so I made Jayson switch me so I could get in the driver's seat to see if I could get it to work. I got into the car and Jayson wasn't kidding...the clutch went straight to the floor and stuck. Great. We coasted around the corner to get off the main road and I started to freak out. We barely had money to make it down to the family reunion so this was the last thing we needed to happen. Thankfully, once Jayson made me calm down and my rational brain kicked back in, I remembered our warranty! Now I just had to figure out how to get back to Logan. We called my mom to have her come pick us up and then called roadside assistance so they could come tow my car back to Logan. I called the dealership to get us a loaner car and got all that taken care of. Now we just had to wait. And wait. And wait some more. A little over an hour later, the tow truck and my mom got there to pick us up. We made it back to Logan at about 7:45 and got our loaner car. The second time we left Logan, it was almost 9 o'clock. It's a four hour drive. Awesome. We got down to the family cabin at a quarter to one in the morning. Jayson didn't want to wake up any of his family to find out where we were sleeping so we slept in the car. No blankets, no pillows, the moon shining bright, and dogs that looked like wolves outside. Talk about an interesting first night. I finally got sick of sleeping in the car at 6 in the morning so I made Jayson get up and come in. Here lays Jayson's dad on the couch and he says "Are you guys just getting here? I've been waiting for you all night so I could tell you where you were sleeping." Aaaah!!!! Night one, over.

The second day was actually pretty fun. I was tired most of the day but that's what happens when you are pregnant and sleep in a car. We had the annual Johnson Family Talent Show where everyone does something (the original kids (like Jayson's dad and his siblings) and their families pool together to do something), it's usually something like singing, either church songs or funny ones. Jayson's uncle Dallen and his family did a really cute thing this year "How to Create A Johnson Monster" where they took food (like spaghetti) and passed it off for body parts to all the little kids. It was really cute. Carri and her family sang a song to all the pregnant ladies, myself included, about having a second child that is better than the first, it was hilarious! Jayson's family did a church hymn that we sort of changed the way we sang it, which made it really pretty. Kim's family did a church hymn in English and then in Spanish, which was cool. Polly recited a poem for everyone. Karlene and her family did a game show that crowned Jill Queen of the Johnson Family Reunion for the rest of forever! It was a fun day. We finished off the day with a game of Survivor, which our team, the Pink team, kicked butt in! It was really fun.

The third day, Sunday, everyone was talking about going on a hike. Almost everyone was going, including two ladies with 2 month old babies and an 8 month pregnant lady so I couldn't wimp out....even though I am always short of breath, we were in 9000 feet elevation instead of the 6000 I was used to, and I had no shoes. Well, I had flip flops. My tennis shoes were back in my "real" car. But I couldn't wimp out. I have no idea how long it took us to complete the hike, all I know is I finished!! 10 mile hike, full of rocks, sagebrush and very little water but I finished! When we got home, I couldn't walk for two and a half days, my calf muscles constantly felt like I was flexing, even when I was relaxed and I had to have help to stand up from a sitting position. It was sad but I finished. That's all I care about. I finished.

About my car...they replaced the clutch and the cables but it still wasn't working so they called me to tell me that they are pulling the entire transmission out to look at the clutch assembly. Nice. Thank goodness for warranties. I have no idea when I will get my car back but at least we still have the loaner.

That brings us almost up to date. The only other big thing that has happened is we FINALLY sold our truck!!! We sold it for 1800.00 which was enough for us to pay our bills, get out of the financial hole we were in and still have baby money! We bought a crib set that has a dresser, changing table, and a crib that changes into a toddler bed, day bed, and then a full size bed. We also got a stroller and car seat combo. The stroller is really cute! The handle can switch so you can make the baby look at you while you are pushing the stroller or it can look out like a traditional stroller. I love the colors, it'll work for a girl or a boy. Jayson had so much fun putting it together and he can't wait for the crib to get here so he can set that up too. We still have six months to go and Jayson is cuter than ever. He loves setting up all the baby stuff. It's great.

Anyway, that brings us to the end of July. It's August tomorrow. Another two weeks and we have our next ultrasound. I can't wait. By October, at the latest, I am hoping we will know whether it is a boy or girl. We are having a baby shower in Montana as soon as we find out the gender. Now we just gotta wait. :)

Anyway, hope everyone is doing well. And even if you aren't right now, keep your head high because it'll turn around eventually.