Welcome Liddy Ann Johnson

Born Tuesday August 12th at 11:13 AM 8lb 2 oz 21" long

We are so excited to have Liddy join our family at last. After waiting three extra days my contractions finally started progressing at 1:30 AM. We dropped the girls off at our good friends the Brimhals and arrived at the hospital at 7:20. Dr. Damour broke my water around 9:30 and said she would see my in an hour or so I was at a seven and Liddy was ready! This took me by surprise because I was expecting an epidural to help me in hard labor. I had to brave the tough contractions for a while until the anesthesiologist could make it. The doula Karen, and Burke were indispensable during my hour of "real labor". I can now truly give respect to any women who has her baby naturally. At 10:30 I received an entrathecal which is administered like an epidural but instead of a drip of medicine that remains it is only given once and then removed. I was right at my breaking point which I discovered is an eight in dialation, 100 effacement with the baby in station 1. Needless to say I was relieved when it took well and I was able to sail through the last contractions and two pushes with little pain. Liddy was actually facing upwards( the wrong direction) and turned while she was crowning to come out face down. Her sweet little face bears the marks of my posterior labor. The pediatrician was on hand to help with the meconium and she was screaming within seconds. I got to hold her soon after and she was ready to nurse. She is already a pro. After her bath and documentation we moved to the recovery room where I took a nap while Burke went to go get the girls. Susanna did not hesitate to climb right up and examine her new sister. Jennah was a little more cautious and preferred to watch. I am feeling great and thanks to our world of technology I am actually posting this blog from my hospital bed while little Liddy sleeps like and angel in her bassinet. We appreciate all your thoughts and prayers and thank our Father in Heaven for this little miracle that has joined our family. What a blessing to have a beautiful and healthy baby.

We love you all and miss you more than we can express.

Burke and his heart

Mid July Burke took a trip to Florida for a week with work. it was a very exciting trip for him. he would be leading his very first meeting with the contractors all alone. His mentor had to fly home early and left him holding the reigns. As usual we talked every night and he was doing great. I was tired but surviving not having him home. On Wednesday night however everything changed. I got a phone call from Burke around midnight. He told me that he thought he had a heart attack or something like that. I was in quite a shock. The ambulance was on the way to the hotel and he would call me as soon as he knew everything was alright. Then he had to hang up.... I sat there for a minute before the prayers and tears started. I knew Burke had had some problems with irregular heartbeats when he was younger and he struggled with some sleep problems that scared me to death when we were first married. He would wake up suddenly shoot straight up in bed gasping for air and flailing his arms. He wold shout I can't breath then he would lie back down never waking up. Sometimes I got hit in the process and that was annoying but I got used to it and started to be able to sleep through it unless it was really loud. The symptoms he explained to me on the phone sounded similar to these night time events only he did wake up and the panic, lock of oxygen, speeding heart beat and tingling in his arms and legs continued. Afraid he would pass out in the hotel room all by himself he called the front desk and they sent the ambulance. I was releaved when burke called me from the hospital a little over an hour later. His "episode" was over by the time the Ambulance arrived and he said he was feeling better. The doctors first guess was that he had some type of panic attack his heart looked fine from the casual tests they had run. I felt much better knowing he had not had a heart attack and that he seemed to be fine. but we still did not know what caused this episode. Burke explained to the doctor his history and the fact that he had heart i arrhythmias (irregualr hear beats) on a regular basis. He noted that in times of stress or when he was not sleeping well he would have them more frequently and they would be stronger. His doctor in the hospital in Melbourne FL was great and decided to keep him overnight to run a series of tests. He wanted to make sure we knew what happened. They did an EKG, ultrasound, stress tests and had Burke wear a heart monitor for 24 hours. In the end they discovered the reason for his arrhythmias. We are grateful to know that Burke has a very strong heart. He does however have a genetic heart disorder called called Mitral Valve Prolapse.

Mitral valve prolapse (MVP) is a common heart disorder. It occurs when the valve between your heart's left upper chamber (left atrium) and the left lower chamber (left ventricle) doesn't close properly. When the left ventricle contracts, the valve's leaflets bulge (prolapse) upward or back into the atrium. Mitral valve prolapse sometimes leads to blood leaking backward into the left atrium, a condition called mitral valve regurgitation.
Mitral valve prolapse affects slightly more than 2 percent of adults in the United States. Men and women appear to develop MVP in similar numbers.In most people, mitral valve prolapse is harmless and doesn't require treatment or changes in lifestyle. It also doesn't shorten your life expectancy.

When Mitral Valve Regurgitation occurs there are several side effects. Arrhythmias, loss of oxygen, numbness in the extremities, and panic attacks. The more blood that is regurgitated the more severe the symptoms. Regurgitation can occur anytime but when the heart is under more duress the regurgitations come more frequently and they can be more severe. Large caffeine, stress, lying on your back while you sleep and over strenuous physical activity can increase the episodes. There is also possible link between sleep apnea and mitral valve regurgitation.

In the short term we are going to work on solving Burke's sleep problems and find a good cardiologist. In the long run burke will abstain from caffeine and find positive outlets for his stress like most guys he just bottles it all up until...... It is also recommended that Burke see a cardiologist once a year for a check up.

This was a completely crazy experience for our family. I can't tell you how hard it was to know Burke was so far away in that hospital all by himself. I am grateful to the local church who sent priesthood holders to give Burke a blessing. I am glad that we know why Burke is having these episodes and that we have some strategies to help make it better. It has taken Burke a while to get used to all of this but he is also relieved to know that nothing serious is going on with his heart. He does not have to wonder or worry every time his hear skips a beat.

Due Date

Since today is my "due date" and my blogger baby says 0 days to go I figured some of you might be curious about our baby. Well we are curious too. She has not shown up yet and she keeps me guessing.... After a four hour stay at the hospital early Monday morning with very convincing false labor I have continued to have consistent contractions all week. They get promising in the evening and then fizzle out by the time I go to bed. My doctor says I am stuck in the latent phase of labor. My body is having a hard time turning the corner to active or hard labor. I guess she just isn't ready yet. Keep praying I can turn the corner soon so we can all meet this patient little girl.

Family Room Renovation

Our 1950's cape was built with a porch that was poorly converted into an addition. The industrial carpet, avocado green paneling, orange flowered wallpaper and brown wood must have been all the rage in the 70's but frankly it did little for our tastes. With exposed sheet rock, poorly insulated walls, and a rickety book shelf that doubled as a wall we knew the minute we bought the house this room would need a face lift. So after a year and a half of dreaming and planning we embarked upon our project with optimism.

Thanks to Uncle Sam and weeks of Burke working like a mad man, we are excited to announce the completion of our Family Room Renovation. Burke's skill with sheet rock, paint, miter saw, hammer and SAFETY GLASSES transformed the once drafty, outdated porch into a warm, comfortable space with built in storage for all the kids toys.
Amazingly he completed the majority of the work during the three weeks I was in UT with the girls. I hope you enjoy the before, during, and after pictures.

Before

During demolition Burke discovered that the brown baseboards, chair rails and crown moldings were made of VINYL!! That ceiling fan was as noisy as it looks.

Burke re-cycled this old bookshelf by using the wood for the new baseboards. So now we can call this a "green" renovation:)

Hopefully these pictures won't give you nightmares!

The Construction

Burke built this wall and door way to create a mud room where all the cold air and yes all the mud will stay out of the house.

He added an additional layer of insulation and sheet rock to all the walls. Now the drafty old porch will be nice and warm.

After

I love this color "denim wash" from Benjamin Moore. It has a little bit more gray in it then the picture shows. The windows were already double pane so instead of replacing them we painted the existing brown window panes, moldings and sills white to match the rest of the house. The new crown molding and base boards also lend themselves to the character of our 1950's cape.
Burke installed new hot water radiators along the length of the back wall and a digital thermometer to keep us nice and toasty this winter.
I got a Hunter ceiling fan to keep us cool in the summer.
The carpet is a classic "dirt" colored bereber which should handle a lot of wear.

Burke built custom shelves and a desk on the new wall to house the toys and computer.

The Perfect Play Room

The shelves filled with toys quickly but IKEA boxes and bins help us keep everything organized.

I had Burke build this shelf to sit under the window. He did a great job and I love all the extra storage.

I found this cute rug at IKEA for only $25!!!

I love this picture because there is nothing in it... no shoes, jackets, strollers or mud!

Exchanging our large entertainment center for open shelves makes the room feel so much bigger

Burke built me a shelf to keep the movies out of kids reach and being thrown all over the floor. He is going to build a bigger one for the streo and cd's when we get some more wood.

The girls love the new room and were excited to get all their toys back, especially the computer!

Happy 4th of July

To celebrate Independence Day we had a big party at our house this year. We invited a lot of the young families from our ward and had a ton of fun. Burke and I love to throw parties and it was great to have a yard and a home where so many people could come. We are grateful for the freedoms we enjoy in this country that allow us to have so many blessings. God Bless America!!!

Hooray for the 4th of July


George working double time

The mower was a hit with Evan

Jennah loved our make-shift water slide

Eddie and the Sprinkler

Preparing for the Water Balloon fight

Jennah after she realized that
water balloons are for hitting people...

Bombs Away

Susanna was content to stay out of the battle.
She entertained herslef by eating dozens of cheesy curls.


After the water play we got ready for the kids 4th of July Parade. Everyone brought decorations and the kids did a great job decorating their bikes. We paraded down the street to a large parking lot where the kids could ride their bikes .


Cherie and Tanner

Jennah riding her trike all be herself!!!

Susanna loved waving the flag

Jennah needed a little push
so Susanna saved the day

Patriotic Bikes


After the parade we ate burgers and had smores over the fire pit. My camera was out of memory and I was out of energy by this point so you will just have to imagine how fun it looked:)