Around the Bush...

Let the good times roll...

2011-02-21T20:28:00.000-08:00

I ran my best marathon time ever!! 3:41.25 I missed qualifying for the Boston Marathon by 26 seconds. I needed to get 3:40.59 and under. There's always next time. Kylie has been full of it lately. She loves to dance to music...especially Katy Perry's Firework. She heard it on the Victoria Secret Fashion show at my sister's house and has LOVED it ever since. She loves to get her pretty shoes, or any high heels and pretty dress and dance to "pikerwork." My Mom, Mandy and Jordan were playing soccer at the park with Kylie when she randomly went up to Jordan and told him, "You sweaty. Need to take shower." When I'm at work and just taught a class, she tells me the same thing. She is always asking "Where daddy? Daddy teacher? At work." She answers her question with a question and then an answer. She's a smart little girl. She speaks Portuguese with Jon. It's neat to hear them speak to each other. I can understand what they are saying but not say much back. She counted to 12 all by herself a couple of months ago. She watched an episode of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse where they counted a dozen muffins. I guess that's where she learned it. It's nothing big but makes me realize she is really a sponge and pays attention to things. She's quite responsible for a 2 year old. She almost always puts her toys away with out being asked before she gets out another thing, she'll put her shoes on and say "Ready Mommy?"while she waits for me by the door, she can feed herself and stay pretty clean (she always likes to have a napkin), colors quietly by herself and doesn't color the wall or table...anymore, picks out her own outfits to wear and matches pretty good (what can I say, she's 2), and she likes to take a bath, brush her teeth and do many other things by herself. As Kylie says, "I do, myself." What a stubborn child I have. She's really sweet and a stinker all at the same time. She has curly blonde hair, blue eyes and little round nose. She likes to go running with Jon and I and actually run. We went on Saturday and she loved it! She's pretty quick. Maybe she'll be a little athlete! She's tall! She's over the 100% for her age and in the 80% for weight. She's about 35 lbs. After she takes a bath, she says, "Baby, Daddy?" She loves for me to wrap her in a towel and carry her to Jon, like a baby, so he can give her hugs and kisses. She really likes her new Strawberry soap. She was on an anti-bath streak so we decided to get her some new soap. She doesn't like sleeping in her room. She's had a few bad dreams where she says, "Santa scares me." She is actually horrified with Santa Claus and now clowns. She went to her friend Jack's birthday party at Mini Town and saw a clown in the hallway and broke down sobbing and huffing. She was so scared. I felt so bad for her. Now we know not to invite a clown to her next birthday party. Kylie loves to read books. We recently read "Where the Wild Things Are" and she loved it. She goes through phases of having a favorite book and wants me to read it over and over and often times asks, "Read it silly." I like to read her stories in different accents. My favorite is the Spanish accent, like Buzz in Toy Story 3. This is by far her favorite movie. She could watch that thing all day if we let her. For about a month, every night she wanted to read 5 books in the "If you give a mouse a cookie series." We read each one every night. Oh, good times! I know this post is long but thanks for reading! We love and miss all of you!!

Wildhorse 5K and upcoming Marathon

2010-10-25T11:41:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, my neighborhood hosted a 5k. I decided to run it with some friends and have fun. My mom came and watched me run which is always so nice. The course ended up being about 3.5 miles instead of 3.1. That's almost a half mile extra which makes a big difference in any race. My friend Aubrey and I ran together. This was our first run together so I was excited. We stuck together the first mile and then we hit a big hill. Aubrey past me up but I kept on pushing and stuck about 10 feet behind her for the next mile. This brings us to about mile 2. I told her we had just 1 mile to go. She probably hates me for saying that because it turns out we had 1.5 miles left to go. I could see the leader of the pack, Mr Ben Manchester, and wanted to stick with him and hopefully catch him at the end. I looked at my watch and decided we should have been done by now so I shouldn't charge ahead because I don't know how much further we had to go. I turned the corner and about 20 feet ahead was the finish line and Ben had already finished before I had the chance to catch him. He's one lucky duck! I finished about 15 seconds behind him. I was really proud of myself. I finished the 3.5 miles in 23 minutes which translates into a 20:24 for the 5k with a 6:34 min pace. I haven't run that fast for a 5k in a long time. I kept redoing the math and just couldn't believe it. I'm training for a full marathon which is 26.2 miles on December 5th in Dallas. While training for this marathon, I have PR'd (personal record) in a half marathon. I ran about 13 miles in 1 hour 47 minutes. That beat my previous race time by about a minute. I've felt really good about my training and hope I can keep it up. I ran 10 today at about the same pace as the half which was 8 min 12 seconds. I'm shooting for about a 3:40 finish time for the marathon and feel confident I can do that. I know that anything is possible when we put our faith and trust in the Lord. If it's important to us, it's important to him. Much love to all!

Mini Bush Reunion!

2010-09-27T21:30:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, Jon's family all got together for his older brother Jeff's baby Eleanor's blessing. It was so much fun to be with everyone. We all had a great time. We rode up to Dallas with Girly (Jon's sister Jessica), and his Mom and Dad. We always enjoy long car rides with them. Thanks guys!!

Mel and her baby girl Eleanor

Our family

Jon and Girly have this thing about height. Girly thinks she is taller than Jon and Jon refuses to let this happen. Who is taller? Maybe Girly should have kept her 5 inch heels on...

Jon, Justin, Jessica, Jeff

So when we all get together, their is always something funny that happens. This time it was a mattress roller coaster!! I didn't try it but it looked like fun. This is like something we always did as kids. We would set the mattress, pillows, blankets and whatever else soft we could find, run down our hallway and flyyy thru the air and crash on all the soft stuff. They sat on the mattress and slid down the stairs. Good times!!

Bush Family 2010

Family's are Forever!!

Family Photo from Nov 2009

2010-09-17T12:43:00.000-07:00

These pictures were taken at the Japanese Tea Gardens in downtown San Antonio back in November of 2009. I have been looking everywhere for the CD they were on and finally found it...yeah! Kylie was on the brink of nap time when we took these so she wasn't her usual Smiley Kylie self. I forgot how truely bald she was...how funny! They were taken by our good friend Summer Manchester. Thanks Summer!!

Kylie says her first prayer!

2010-09-14T20:59:00.000-07:00

Tonight, as we were about to say family prayer, I asked Jon, "Do you want me to say it?" and then Kylie says, "I say it." I thought, okay, this is good but she probably won't say it. I said a few words and waited a few seconds...then Kylie repeated the last few words of what I said! I was so excited I couldn't think. Jon laughed at me afterwards because I acted like I'd never said a prayer before. I felt so good inside when we finished. I was so proud of Kylie. So if you ever wonder if they are listening and watching ...they are. We love to hold hands in a circle as we say our family prayer. Once we did this, Kylie seemed a little more willing to sit down and be apart of family prayer. What works for your families? What about FHE?

Jon Starts New Job

2010-08-26T21:50:00.001-07:00

Its been a long road for Jon and our family to find a great job that he will enjoy and get everyday satisfaction out of. He has a finance degree and wasn't happy in the business world. He decided to take a new route and enter the world of teaching. He is now teaching for Holmes High School in Northside Independent School District, one of the top school districts in Texas. He has made it through the first week and is in high spirits. He is anxious to really get teaching and make a difference in the lives of his students. We are so proud of him. Great job Jon and I love you.

Holmes Huskies

Birthday Girl!

2010-08-26T12:07:00.000-07:00

Kylie was nervous and wouldn't blow out her candles. Luckily her friend Bryson helped her. We had some friends over for cake and then went swimming at our neighborhood pool. We all had fun! These pictures are all from her birthday week. I started singing happy birthday a week in advance so she would be ready for her big day. She walked around the house, and still does, singing "Happy, Happy."

Big Balloons from Aunt "Manny" (Mandy)

Opening a present...one of her favorite things, books!

Posing for the camera!

Classic! Love it!!

Loves balloons!

This is a kitty piano from one of my clients "Gramma" Jeanne. Kylie posed, smiled, and said "cheese!"

Kylie was making some funny faces while opening her presents. I think she was excited!

The crinkle noise of the wrapping paper was making her cringe.

She was very particular about opening her presents. She would pull a little paper off, throw it in the trash, pull a little more, throw it away, etc until it was opened. Funny girl...

She only wanted frosting, no cake.

More finger licking fun!

This was before her birthday. We walked around Toys R Us to see what she liked. She loved this scooter and called it a "cudda." I bought it at Wal-Mart for about $20 less and am saving it for Christmas.

Kylie loves pancakes and strawberries so that's what we had for breakfast.

Playing with her toy car set and eating a sucker.

Admiring her floaties she wears around the house, just in case we go swimming.

Eating at Red Robin for her birthday dinner.

WoW!!

The Fantastic Ms. Kylie just turned 2!! We are so proud of the little person she has become and is becoming. She is such a sweetheart and is very polite. She says please and thank you all the time. She even says "scuse me" after she burps. She loves stickers and coloring with markers. She loves any lip balm, chap stick, or whatever for your lips. She loves reading books together, especially Dr. Seuss. She also likes The Brown Bear and Polar Bear books by Eric Carle. She likes balloons and balls. She's quite the little singer and dancer, too. She loves to snuggle and have hugs and kisses. Swimming is one of her favorite things. She often wears her floaties around the house along with her goggles her Mi-Mi gave her. She enjoys "helping" mom in the kitchen by mixing and adding ingredients. Her favorite foods are almost anything. She's a great little eater and will try almost anything. She loves suckers and will do almost anything for one! It's amazing how much power a sucker can hold! She is talking a lot now and almost said a full sentence. She came up to me out of the blue one day, tapped me on the leg and looked me straight in the eyes and said, "I go poop, in da potty." We've been talking about going in the potty and no, sadly, she didn't actually go but that's okay. It's a work in progress. A few nicknames we have for Kylie are bug, menina (little girl is Portuguese), little (Aunt T calls her this), cutie, punkin (like pumpkin), sweetheart, and monkey. She loves animals. She really likes dogs and cats especially kitties. Her favorite color is "pupul" (purple). She is learning Portuguese from her daddy Jon who went to Brazil on his mission. He has spoken to her in Portuguese since she was born. She understands everything he says and sometimes tries to talk back to him in Portuguese. She likes to say "cheese" for the camera and will even pose a little. We love our little Kylie and are so blessed to have this happy little girl in our lives. She truly is a special daughter of our Heavenly Father. We love you Kylie!

A Couple of Fun Firsts

2010-07-04T14:29:00.000-07:00

Kylie's first jet-ski ride

Her first time with the life-jacket to go on the boat

First egg-beater licking!

First backpack, she loves to wear it

First pedicure!

Sisters are the Bestest!!

2010-05-02T21:05:00.000-07:00

Tiff, Me and Mandy

(Me and Tiff had 80's shoes but decided flip flops were more comfortable)

My beautiful Mother. . .she looks like she was born in the 80's too!!

Mandy got silly stringed good!

Mandy recently had a birthday and wanted to celebrate it 80's style. Us girls, minus Amy, dressed up in our 80's attire derived mostly from our existing closets . . . sad but true. We had a lot of fun. Mandy has been in Del Rio working as a nanny since January so I really haven't got to see her very much recently. I really miss Mandy a lot. I didn't realize how much we hung out together until she wasn't here anymore. Mandy is so energetic and loving. I love being around her. She is always the life of the party and has such a contagious smile and laugh. I'm really grateful for all my sisters and the special friends they are to me. I have 3 of the best friends ever!! I love my sisters. I'm glad we got to play dress-up and go back to where we all came from . . . the 80's!!

Fiesta San Antonio Missions 10K

2010-04-19T20:59:00.000-07:00

Part of living in San Antonio is celebrating Fiesta!! Fiesta San Antonio started in 1891 as a one-parade event and has turned into one of the nation’s premier festivals with more than 100 events. Fiesta is “The Party with a Purpose.” Each event is produced by a nonprofit organization chosen by the Fiesta San Antonio Commission. The funds they raise provide services to San Antonio citizens throughout the year. I chose to participate in Fiesta by running the Missions 10K. The procedes for this event funded the SARR scholorship fund. It was a really great race. The course was along the San Antonio River. It was PORING rain so we really saw the river flowing! I haven't run a cross-country type race in the rain before so it was fun. I ended up doing really well. I won my age group (25-29) and received a sombraro and a medal in honor of my fiesta victory. I love to run and am so happy I have stayed healthy and been able to do well in my past few races. Go Fiesta!!

Seabrook Half-Marathon

2010-03-29T12:27:00.000-07:00

I got this photo off the Race Shots website and do not own the photo.

It was cool that they took pictures.

Summer, Me, and Julie

Me and Bryce (my training buddy)

He finished 77th overall and I finished 44th overall

I got this photo off the Race Shots website and do not own the photo.

It looks like I'm closing my eyes. No, I'm just really focused!!

Hello everyone who reads my blog. I am happy to add a new post one time a month. Thanks for reading. Anyway, I recently completed a half-marathon with Summer and Julie (two friends from church) and my Uncle Bryce (my Mom's brother). I wanted to do better, even though I did pretty good. I placed first in my age group (20-29) out of sixty women and sixth overall for females. Now before you get to excited, the course was mostly flat and their were about 600 runners total. I finished in 1:48.something. That is one hour, forty-eight minutes and like thirteen seconds. I was shooting for a 1:40-1:42. I know I can get that. I will just stick to my plan next time and run my race. I am really excited about finishing first in my age group by a little more than 3 minutes. It was a huge confidence booster for me. I thought to myself, "Hey, your pretty good." I need to give myself more credit and not be so hard on myself. I think we can all do a little better in this area. Ardeth G. Kapp wrote a book called "Better Than You Think You Are." I have read this partly through and have realized I am really hard on myself. I should find confidence in knowing I am a daughter of a Heavenly Father who wants me to do well and achieve my goals. I know with his help, a little more confidence, and my families support, I will be great. We can all be great if we stand a little taller and say to ourselves, "I'm better than I think I am."

Temple Cleaning Experience

2010-02-21T21:31:00.001-08:00

This past week I was able to help clean the temple for the first time. This is more of a post for myself than anything so feel free to skip over it. But if you've never cleaned the temple before, it might be helpful if you ever do. It sounds crazy but I enjoy cleaning and was eager to clean the temple. I don't know if you have ever done this before but I wanted to share some thoughts and insights about my experience. First off, clothing. I knew I needed to wear all white but that's all I knew. I thought for sure I had to wear long sleeves but didn't think beyond that. I clean my house with my pajama's on or something comfy. I didn't think my bright colored, comfy pajama's were appropriate so I opted for the beautiful and elegant temple dress, hoes and all! Once I got to the temple, I looked around at the ladies and men and thought, "I guess I didn't need to wear my temple dress with hoes (lol)." The dress code, in case you go and clean the temple, is pretty simple. All white!! Most people who regularly clean the temple were wearing short sleeve all white scrubs with white tennis shoes or temple dress shoes. I even saw someone wearing capri pants but I wouldn't be brave enough for that. I felt silly in my temple dress surrounded by people in sweat pants and scrubs but I guess you learn. It was a really neat experience. A sister in my ward and I cleaned one of the Sealing Rooms. Next, cleaning materials. They have very specific cleaning rags to use on each type of surface. They used microfiber rags, a supercloth (like a Sham-Wow rag), an extended swifer, a duster, a vacuum, "A" cleaner which is the only liquid used to help clean the temple, and a white terry cloth towel to be used with the "A" cleaner. I was glad I got assigned to vacuum because you can't really mess up vacuuming, can you? I didn't mess up so I was happy with that. We moved the chairs and vacuumed under neath them. It was tough to put the furniture back because it needed to go back exactly where it was. Luckily there was still carpet marks where the furniture was. There was a specific area that didn't get vacuumed because of the detail in the carpet but that wasn't in the room I cleaned. The last part of cleaning the temple was how to execute your cleaning skills. Their are very specific instructions when cleaning any part of the temple because of the materials used. I found that vacuuming wasn't necessarily easy like it is at home because you have to go so slow in order not to scratch the furniture. I felt so bad when I did bump the furniture. I blame the vacuum...it was hard to handle. I learned how to better clean my own home and that cleaning more often makes it easier to clean. It didn't take long to clean the room because it was pretty clean to start with. I hope I will appreciate the beauty of the temple in all it's fine detail and go and clean the House of the Lord another time. It was a great experience, in it's own way. It was a spiritually edifying experience in a different way than any temple session. Well, that's all. Good bye for now.

-Jessica

3 posts all a little over due!! Cute videos of Kylie

2010-02-19T00:06:00.000-08:00

This is Kylie doing quick feet. It's also how she dances.

This is Kylie walking on her tippy toes. What an athlete already!

January 2010

2010-02-18T23:27:00.001-08:00

One day, Kylie wanted to sit at the table and eat with us. We let her and now we no longer use her highchair. What a big girl! I can't believe that this Sunday she will go into Nursery.

My little helper hard at work again. This time doing the dishes.

I just tied the blanket on and she didn't take it off. I thought she looked like a super hero with her cool jammies on so may the force be with you. She loves to write and is holding a crayon and paper in her hand.

On occasion, Kylie will set her chair down about 3 feet from the tv and hold the remote and have a little blanket on her. Jon and I laughed and wondered if this is how silly we look sometimes just chillin on the couch in a blanket with the remote in our hand. LOL!

Cutie girl already to go outside and play. She loves to go on walks, play at the park and kick a ball around outside.

December 2009

2010-02-18T22:22:00.000-08:00

Kylie loves purses. She loves to carry mine around and gets it when she is ready to go somewhere. She has become very independent and will go get her shoes when I tell her it's time to go somewhere. She is always sure to grab a blanky and a paci before we go.

Kylie loves to help clean. She's the best little sweeper in town so if you need some help, let me know. Her schedule fills up fast.

Kylie loves to draw and color (scribble or whatever). Here she is signing a card for her Grammy and Papa Bush

Smiley Kylie

Hello Beautiful

Two of Kylie's favorite foods - goldfish and yogurt. She's really into dipping everything so this worked great for her.

She thought it was pretty cool to put the glove on and take it off. It was like peek-a-boo with her hand!!

This is Kylie under the table...one of her favorite hang out spots

She was about to touch the plug and knew she was being a stinker because she turned around and gave me this cute little grin.

Jon and Kylie in our backyard playing soccer. It was really cold outside but she insisted on playing with Jon in the backyard.

Kylie loves to push me around on this little toy. She thinks it's so funny when I say "Whee!"

Letter from Jon!!

2009-11-16T11:18:00.000-08:00

I know my posts aren't very entertaining but I post as more of a reverence for myself than anything. Last Tuesday, November 10th, I was having a bad day. I hadn't heard anything from Jon in two weeks. I received a generic package the week before that contained his address and a welcome letter from the USCG. But it wasn't from Jon himself. I was lying on the floor playing with Kylie when my phone rang. I saw the number and didn't recognize the area code. I almost didn't get it until I thought for a millisecond it might be Jon. I answered and started crying right away when he said hello! I was missing him so much! I needed that phone call more than anything that day. I wasn't prepared, however, for the reason he was calling. He told me he might be coming home - hip, hip, hooray -wait, no that's not good, why might he come home? His fingers and his toes were going numb so he wasn't able to perform all of the tasks they were doing. He didn't know for sure but he told me he would call back Thursday to tell me if he was coming home. He said it was for sure that he was coming home. For confidential purposes, I will not disclose why he is coming home. I got a letter from him last week and have read it everyday. I feel like it's my only way to talk to him. He was having a blast and loving it up there. He missed us a lot but was still enjoying himself. I will write later but that's all for now.

Love,

Jay and Kylie

Halloween 2009

2009-11-05T20:20:00.000-08:00

Kylie at our ward Trunk-or-Treat

The costume was a little small on her because she grows so fast.

She's really gotten tall in the last month or so.

Kylie with her new found love, suckers!

Here is our little Kylie bug. She wasn't having a good day on Halloween so I'm surprised she even wore her cute little ladybug costume. She has been getting her moler's in on the top and bottom. The bottoms broke through and now we are waiting for the tops to peek through. I called Morgan Evershed because she was crying most of the day. I tried the numbing stuff and she almost bit my finger off, I had rotated through motrin and tylenol 3 times already, and the teething freezer thing kept getting thrown on the floor. He suggested a cold washcloth, which I just hadn't thought of so thanks Dentist Evershed =) Notice the sucker in all the pictures. She wounldn't let it go. It was her "teether" (don't tell my dentist, ha ha!). Don't worry, we brushed extra good that night. Since Jon wasn't here, I didn't feel inspired to dress up this year. I'm usually the one who says we need to dress up and match and be cute together. It would have felt like something was missing because he wasn't there. P.S. The leggings are an afterthought. It would have looked much cuter with tights but I looked last minute and couldn't find any.

Jon's Address

2009-11-04T21:09:00.000-08:00

Hey Everyone!!!

I finally have Jon's address. I didn't get a letter from him but I received some general information about his company. If you write Jon, only send letters, no packages. Please write the address EXACTLY as it is written or he may not get your letter.

SR Jonathan Bush

Recruit Company P182/Healy Hall

USCG Tracen Cape May

One Munro Ave

Cape May, NJ 08204-5083

He will graduate with the rest of his company on December 18th. He doesn't receive phone privileges until after the fifth week of training. This is around Thanksgiving time. I will post the letter I received from the commanding officer tomorrow. In the meantime, you can leave a message for Jon at this BLOG: http://www.uscgbootcamp.blogspot.com.

His company is Papa-182. Go to the comments spot at the bottom and leave him a message. The commanding officer said it is good to have regular, cheerful mail from home (or anywhere). Thanks for all your support. We love and miss you all.

Love,

Jay

J-E-L-L-O anyone??

2009-11-01T17:46:00.000-08:00

Hello Everyone!
So the updates on Jon...nada. We haven't gotten a letter, phone call or email. It's been hard not knowing how he's doing. I'm sure he's running a lot and loving it! I'm pretty sure this coming week he has to do a full medical check-up thing, which will include the Dentist!! Jon really doesn't like the dentist, at all. We were told before he left if he still had wisdom teeth, they would all be pulled that week. He will have all four removed at once (sad day). I hope he'll make an exception for jel-lo just this once.

This week was Halloween and Kylie was a lady-bug. SOoOo cute. We went to our ward's Truck-or-Treat and had fun. She got a sucker and fell in love with it. I think it's because she could eat it all by herself. She's a big girl now. She likes to do a lot of things on her own like brush her teeth, feed herself and drink from her sippy cup. She also loves to walk all by herself. She doesn't want to hold a hand all the time. She is a fast little stinker. I took her to the track at a high school here and she walked an entire 400 meters all by herself. She got distracted 3 or 4 times but never stopped. She pushed her stroller around half the time and the other half she just walked next to me. It was a lot of fun.

We went to Sea World on Halloween's Eve and saw the Shamu show. We went with my three sisters and my mom. It was sooo much fun. Are you ready for this...we sat in the splash zone in row numero uno!! This was not on purpose. It was seriously packed. There were 3 rows of people standing around the top on both sides!! Kylie was loving the music and lights. She was dancing and laughing so we knew we couldn't leave and miss the show. We looked across to the other side and saw lots of open seats in the splash zone. So we sat in the front row and said we would just run up to the top when we saw Shamu coming. How could you not see a gigantic whale coming? Well we didn't so we got wet. We turned our heads to the side so only one side of our bodies got wet. Amy was holding Kylie so only Kylie got wet because Amy used her as a shield, ha ha. I thought Kylie would freak but she was fine. I had a change of clothes with me so no big deal. The show was great and we had fun. I'll post pictures later of our little lady bug. We love and miss you all.

Love,
Jay and Kylie

First Day with Jon away

2009-10-26T20:30:00.000-07:00

I actually got to see Jon today so it wasn't technically the first day with him gone. We got to see him at about 5 o'clock this evening until about 830. We went to dinner and then drove around downtown until we had to take Jon back to the hotel. Today he woke up at 4 am and ate breakfast with the rest of the recruits from the Army, Marines, Navy and Coast Guard. There were only 2 other Coast Guard recruits. One for some reason wasn't there and the other is a 21 year old girl who is going to be a nurse. At about 530 am, all the recruits went to Fort Sam Houston where they filled out paperwork and took there oaths. Jon was finished with everything at about 1030 am. He said it was just a bunch of waiting around. After several hours of waiting around, he and some other guys went to the BX or the Base Exchange. As they were walking around, the came upon swimwear. Yes, this did include Speedo's. So the guys who were with him were like, "Hey, there's your uniform." They teased a little more until he bought one. Don't tell Jon I told anyone that!! I tucked the Speedo away so nobody worry just yet. He will leave tomorrow morning at 10 o'clock am for Dallas or Atlanta where he has a long layover...this equals more waiting. From one of those locations, he will fly to Pittsburgh, PA. Once in Pittsburgh, he will take a bus to Cape May, NJ where he will arrive at about 7 pm. The bus ride is about an hour and 30 minutes. Once there, he will check in. The recruiter said he will be lucky to be in bed by midnight. This is rather late for a man who is ready for bed by 9 or 10. I don't know much more than this. I will keep you all posted. Thanks for all your prayers. I know I wouldn't be able to do this without the help of my Heavenly Father and the comfort of the Holy Ghost. I have truly felt the power of the Holy Ghost comfort me. The spirit is so strong in our home I feel protected and watched over. I can just imagine Stripling Warriors surrounding my home and looking after it. Thanks again for all your prayers. We love and miss you all.

Love,

Jay and Kylie

Here are some fun pictures. I finally got a new camera after I lost my other one. Yeah!!

This is hilarious to see. Kylie plays fetch with one of my mom's dogs Scout. She throws it and he brings it back to her. It's funny to see her pull it away from him.

Kylie trying to put my sunglasses on all by herself

Our family before Jon heads out to boot camp

Coast Guard: Day 1

2009-10-25T19:35:00.001-07:00

While Jon is away at boot camp, I am going to do a post every Sunday to update family and friends on how he is doing. Kylie and I dropped Jon off at a Holiday Inn downtown where he will stay tonight and wake up at 4 am. He is a morning person so this won't be a problem for him. He will spend the majority of his day at Ft. Sam Houston Military Base. He will be doing paperwork and taking his oath tomorrow. We will get to see him one more time before he goes to Cape May, New Jersey for boot camp. We both dread good-byes so we have decided to say "see ya later." He gets home a week before Christmas. He has to earn phone calls so hopefully he will be a good boy and call will get to call on Thanksgiving. He gets to go to a families home for Thanksgiving up in Cape May. We find out where we are going around Thanksgiving time. He can receive letters only so I will post his address for anyone to send him letters. It will be weird around the house without Jon. I call him my "happy guy." He is such a calm and happy person. I will definitely miss his presence in our home. I know he will be a good example and a great missionary while he is away. Stayed tuned to see where the Coast Guard takes us!!

-Jay and Kylie

U.S. Coast Guard

2009-10-15T21:10:00.000-07:00

A lot has been going on for us. My sweet husband has been unhappy with his job for awhile now so he decided it was time for a change...a big change. He has decided to join the U.S. Coast Guard and be a rescue swimmer. Many of you have seen the movie "The Guardian." Yup, that's what he'll be doing; jumping out of a helicopter and saving people. We don't know where we are going yet. We don't find that out until Thanksgiving week. We will then move at the end of December to wherever we are going. We would like to go to district 7 which includes Florida, Georgia, and South Carolina or of course Hawaii. Jon is leaving for boot camp on October 26th and gets back a week before Christmas. We move a week after he gets home. It has been crazy trying to get our house ready to sell. We thought we didn't have a lot of "stuff" but it turns out we do. I don't know why we keep everything. It feels so much more open and clear since decluttering our house, which wasn't really cluttered to begin with. Anyway, Jon is SO excited and ready to just go out there and jump out of a helicopter and save people. He's thought about being a fireman several times. I guess this is similar to being a fireman. You save people, you work 2 days and have 2 days off, and that's all I know. Sorry. Jon is really looking forward to this. He needs a job where he is active. He's not one to sit idly and work at a desk. He is loving his days off right now and has played something or lifted weights everyday on top of running or swimming that same day. He played ultimate frisbee this afternoon for 2 hours and right now, he is at the church playing Volleyball. He can't get enough exercise I guess. He is like the energizer bunny. He keeps going and going. A short update on our little Kylie and then I am off to sleep. She is hilarious. She jabbers a lot, holds out her hand when she wants something, likes to stomp her feet to the music, twirls around in circles, stops and says, "Whoa," after spinning, follows directions very well-when I ask her to go get her blanket she does, another example I asked her the other day where her shoes were? She looked down at her feet and then went and got her shoes so I could put them on. So smart I can't believe it. She asks all the time, "Da, da?" I think she's asking, "What's that?" or "Where's Dada?" She is amazing. I don't think I could love her anymore. She is my life and I love my little "Menina" (Portuguese for little girl) We love our families and hope all is well with each of you. We'll keep you posted on the upcoming changes.

Kylie's 1st Birthday!

2009-08-29T20:37:00.001-07:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU, HAPPY BIRTHDAY DEAR KYLIE, HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO YOU!

Kylie mostly liked the frosting on her cake. She really surprised me and didn't get very messy.

Our cute little girl had not been feeling well for a few days and still wasn't quite up to par. She still managed to smile a few times to live up to her nickname Smiley Kylie.

Here she is opening a present. She really did a great job of pulling the tissue paper out of the bag all by herself. She's great at taking anything out!

Here Kylie is with my sister Amy. Kylie loves to pretend she is talking on the phone.

Here is Kylie's cake. We got it from Costco because they have wonderfully delicious cakes. So you might notice there is not a candle...first time mom forgot the candle...shame, shame. Lesson learned for next year.

I thought this one was funny of her. She is "talking/singing." She always puts her feet up on her highchair like this.

This is her birthday hat that one of our friends made her. She thought she was so cool with her little birthday hat. She is holding a little baby doll her Grandma Bush gave her and is sitting a little chair that her Mi-Mi gave her. She loves both! When we first gave her the doll, she held it up to her shoulder and started patting it. It was so adorable. She's such a sweetie. She recently started patting my back and humming to me sometimes when I pick her up.

She really did hold still while I tied it on. She loved this little hat...for about 10 seconds and then she pulled it off!

Kylie is turning 1!

2009-08-20T20:32:00.000-07:00

Time goes by too fast. Tomorrow my little girl will be one and I can't believe it. This summer I took a trip up to Utah and lost my camera...that's why there's no pictures. Kylie has done so much since the last time I blogged. She jabbers all the time and loves the word "dog." She hears or sees a dog and gets excited! She has eight teeth now. She mostly eats what we eat, no ice cream or chocolate yet. She's not walking but is very close. The other day she took a few steps, stopped and took a few more before falling into my arms. We had fun up in Utah. Kylie got to meet lots of new family members, one of which is her Great-great Grandma!! We took a five generation picture while we were up there. For Kylie's birthday we are doing a little family dinner get together thing. We are going to do a bigger party with friends for her 2nd birthday. A funny story before I go. This past Sunday, before church, I made biscuits. I didn't have time to feed Kylie before we left for church (8:30 AM aah!) so I put a few in a plastic zip-lock bag and put them in her diaper bag. I set her diaper bag next to her and we left for church. Kylie was being very quiet in the car so I thought maybe she was sleeping...I was wrong. She had lifted the flap of the diaper bag, grabbed the plastic zip-lock bag, and bit the plastic bag in several places to get the biscuits out. She bit the bag and pulled the biscuits out. She had a full biscuit in one hand and took a bit as we were looking right at her. She looked like, "What? I was hungry!" What a cutie!! I laughed so hard. She is so funny and has her own little personality. Well, good bye for now everyone. We love and miss all of our extended family!!

First Wave Bye-Bye

2009-06-26T20:40:00.000-07:00

First off, Happy Father's Day to my husband Jon and to my Dad!! I love you both very much. On Monday, June 22nd Jon and I went to our friends the Manchester's. As we were leaving, Summer was waving bye-bye and Kylie waved back!!! It was a big moment for us (me, ha-ha). We have been working on it for a while. It wasn't a fluke either because now she waves almost every time. I have practiced with her in the mirror this week and she has loved it. She smiles really big and kind of shakes her arm. Today at the gym, she waved to several people. Good job Kylie!!

Growing to Fast

2009-06-19T20:42:00.000-07:00

Here Kylie is playing patty cake

She thinks she is such a big girl now with her sippy cup. I tried a lot of sippy cups before I found one she liked. Happy to say these were the cheapest one's and she loves them.

This is the coolest thing ever! It's a rubbery strawberry looking pacifier. It has been great while Kylie has been teething. She loves her pacifier but when she wants to chew on something, this has been great. I found it at HEB.

The look on her face is pretty funny. She was holding on seriously for dear life. When I hold her hands and walk with her, she uses the grip of death on my finger tips. If I try to let go, she holds on tighter. When I try to sit her down while holding her fingers, she will go almost compelety side-ways until I finally get her on her bottom.

Kylie was showing us her skills by standing up. She's funny. She will hold on to me with her one hand with the grip of death while she taps the table with the other.

Kylie will walk a few steps away from me, while holding onto my hands, touch the table, and then turn around and walk back to me. She always wants a hug when she comes back. Then she'll get back up and want to walk again. This entertains both of us. P.S. I had just gotten home from the gym so just look at the cute one in pink!

Kylie army crawls everywhere! She follows me around the house and whines and says mum mum until she finds me.

When Kylie is not crawling and laying down and reading books, she loves to babble and put her feet up...literally.

Ever since she was little, my Mom would play patty cake with her feet. She learned to clap with her feet and now claps her feet together and laughs and giggles about it. It's almost like she is singing patty cake and then laughing when she is finished. What a hoot she is!

"Alakazam!! Oh, I'm not big yet..." Kylie loves this fairy wand. She twirls it and switches it from hand to hand. She loves my high heeled shoes. Before we know it, she will be running around the house in them. I can't believe how fast she is growing.

"Look at my beautiful teeth!!" She has two on the top and two on the bottom. The two on the side of the top are starting to poke through.

She loves to be silly. She is quite literally the happiest baby ever!! She's always jabbering and talking and smiling. She is so content with herself. At such a young age she is such a great example to me of how to be happy no matter what!

I love this little "bug." My little Kylie is such a doll. She is jabbering a lot now. I can make out some words. She calls doggies "ga-gees." I need a picture of her and some doggies because she LOVES dogs. She squeals and laughs and is so excited when she sees any dog! She loves to say Mama, of course and she says something for bottle and I can't remember. Jon is so cute with her. He only speaks Portuguese to her. I think she gets it now. She'll look at him when he's talking to me in English. She loves to touch my cheek when I'm not looking at her as if to say keep the attention where it matters. If I'm looking forward and not at her, she will move her head to the front of my face so I will be looking at her. She is hilarious. She claps now with her hands. For the longest time she would only tap things together and not her hands. She loves patty cake. When I sing it she starts to clap and tries to sing along.

Sea World San Antonio

2009-06-13T21:46:00.000-07:00

Today, Jon, Kylie, me, my Mom, Mandy, Tiffany and Chris all went to Sea World. It was a blast!! We stayed at the water park most of the time because it was almost 100 degrees outside, literally. I kept Kylie sun screened but forgot about myself. I was already a little tan but now have a little red over the tan. My mom, Mandy, and Tiff all took turns with me holding a playing with Kylie in the water. She loves the water!!! My mom took her to the wave pool and she was laughing and having a lot of fun. She is so cute and joyful. I could do good to learn a few lessons from her on how to be happy with the little things in life. It was fun to go on some of the water rides today. Last week, Tiff, my Mom, Jon, Kylie and Jordan all went to Sea World but mostly watched the shows. My favorite show by far is the Viva show. There is so much going on it never gets boring. I had so much fun both weekends. I love and miss you family!!! I can't wait until Amy comes home and is able to have fun with us!

Jon's Run 5k - May 9th, 2009

2009-06-13T19:43:00.000-07:00

Let me preface this post with some clarification. I ran on behalf of Yvonne Kizerian who was not able to run. I was registered in her name. I wanted to be timed, because I'm crazy competitive like that, and was not registered to be timed. I grabbed a chip, a timing device, anyway and thought nothing of it. I finished in 22:34 and thought I came in sixth. Turns out, since I had a chip and wasn't registered to have one, it malfunctioned somehow and said I finished in 19 minutes something putting me in first place!! I was in shock...thrilled but shocked. Yes, I did receive a $100 gift certificate to Roger Soler's Tri Sports store for running illegally. To keep a clean conscience, I called and told them the mix up and wanted to know what I could do. The guy, Edgar, said he would find out. That was several months ago. Still haven't heard from him. So today, I took my certificate to the store and got the Asics 2140's. They fit my foot like a glove. Now I have to win (for real) to make it complete! Nancy Smith's mother in law Nancy took these photos.

The Jon's run is for SIDS. After having Kylie, I couldn't imagine just losing her, not knowing why. They release balloons in honor of infants who died from SIDS. It was pretty emotional. People were wearing shirts to honor their little ones and I couldn't help but hold on to Kylie a little tighter.

It was so hot I had sweat dripping down my face and into my mouth...salty...yuck! Not the ideal way to rehydrate oneself.

Kylie was a trooper, even in the heat.

I was really focused on getting done so I could get a drink of water!

I must be checking out my entourage...Jon and Kylie!

Run Forest...run!!! Official finish time 22 minutes 34 seconds. This time actually placed me third in my age group and sixth overall for females.

Kylie is 9 Months now!

2009-05-29T14:21:00.000-07:00

Showing off her new teeth

Teeth again and being happy

This is a face Kylie always does. It's a soft smile that is so cute.

Just laughing and having fun!

First Swim - May 7th

2009-05-29T14:08:00.001-07:00

This is Kylie at the pool for the first time. She has always loved the water. She loves to splash and kick her legs really fast.

Jon and Kylie

Me and Kylie

Kylie is 8 months old already!

2009-05-14T19:56:00.000-07:00

I got the green, blue and purple tutu for a couple of dollars at Wal-Mart on clearance. The purple one is from her aunt Tiffany. Maybe she'll be a little ballerina.

This was her Easter dress. I thought it would be cute to put her in the basket with all her Easter eggs. She loved it!

Kylie was giggling so much and almost squealing while sitting in her laundry basket. She loves the pink elephant and will cuddle and smile at it when she sees it. So cute!

So I was making cookies and Kylie kept trying to look around me and see what I was doing. I gave her a few things to entertain her and she enjoyed every minute. She is getting so big as you can see in the side shot of her in her high chair. She likes to put her feet on the end of the tray. She loves her high chair.

This was the same say as the cookies. Tiff and Chris came over for dinner. Chris put his hat on Kylie. She didn't know what to think of that. She is getting her top two teeth in so she chews on everything!

This is Kylie in her swim hat! She looks like a little sailor. Kylie loves bath time. I took a picture of us after her bath. She also LOVES the mirror.

Say cheese!! (If you look really, really close you can see her top two teeth coming in)

Blue Eyed Girl

2009-04-09T14:41:00.001-07:00

Kylie is my blue eyed little cutie!

Hello!

We have what's called a love sac. This is what she is laying in. It's like a gigantic bean bag! She loves to play with her feet and toes.

Sunburn...

2009-04-03T21:23:00.000-07:00

Kylie has such a cute disposition about her. She just smiles and it melts my heart.

I was trying to take cute pictures but she only had one thing on her mind which was "I'm hungry and I'll eat anything I can!"

This pictures kind of funny because it reminds me of her daddy. He is very mellow and calm. Kylie looks sweet and innocent but I wonder what she's thinking?

She is sucking on her bottom lip to help soothe her upper gums which are about to burst! You might notice she is a little more pink, or red, in the face. We went to the park on Tuesday and I forgot her hat. Luckily she had on long sleeve's, pants and socks. It was chilly outside so I didn't even think about how hot the sun was. The sunburn was better in just a few days with the help of some aloe vera. I was pretty upset with myself and how I could let something like this happen. I just have to learn from it and never forget a hat or sunscreen again!

The "Bald" and the Beautiful

2009-03-22T15:54:00.000-07:00

BALD: This is Kylie at 6 months old. She has two bottom teeth, very blond hair and fair skin. She loves the camera and tries to grab it. She can almost sit up all on her own now. One of her favorite toys is a little blue soccer ball her Dad juggles with his feet in the house. She watches him play soccer outside and loves it. I'm almost positive she is going to be a very active child once she is able to move around.

BEAUTIFUL: Baby blue eyes

Beautiful Baby

2009-03-19T10:50:00.000-07:00

Just having fun taking pictures of my Kylie

Teething =(

2009-03-19T09:37:00.000-07:00

If you look close, Kylie has two bottom teeth starting to come in. They have been really hard on her. She'll kind of cry/moan for hours until she'll fall asleep or the Tylenol kicks in. Poor baby.

Trying to soothe her teeth. (February 9th)

Endurathon - Bulverde, TX

2009-03-19T08:50:00.001-07:00

This was at the starting line. It was probably 35 degrees. Whatever the temperature was, it was cold!

This was me finishing the 25k (16 miles) in about 2 hours 10 minutes. I placed third in my age group and 10th overall for females. This was about 5 months after Klyie was born. Running was my way of losing the baby fat.

The wind was blowing so my hair looks retarded. These guys are my training buddies. We do long runs together on Saturday mornings. They are awesome and I love training with them. (January 24th)

Cutie Pie!

2009-03-19T08:43:00.000-07:00

Cool baby. She loves to go for walks. It happened to be sunny and cold outside so we did the beenie and the sunglasses, which she loves. She was sqinting in this picture to push up her glasses, which she has done several times. Now she takes them off and puts them in her mouth. (February 2nd)

Another bathtime shot. She has discovered the washcloth doubles as a teether.

Just cute as a button. (January 21st)

Yummy!

2009-03-10T14:12:00.000-07:00

This was Kylie's very first time trying rice cereal. The picture says it all - she LOVED it! (January 17th)

Can't miss a drop!

Pretty in Purple

2009-03-10T13:56:00.000-07:00

Kylie has beautiful blue eyes and fair skin. She has a little bit of hair which is very blond. She has a little dimple on her right cheek that is so cute! (January 15th)

Smile, Laugh, Boo!

2009-03-10T13:08:00.000-07:00

Kylie loves this exerciser she can stand up and play in. She was in such a cute little mood this day. She was laughing at everything I said. I know I sound silly but it's worth it to see her smile and hear her laugh. Her favorite word is "BOO!" She laughs almost anytime I say it. She has th hiccups too which makes it even funnier. (January 14th)

Sleeping Beauty

2009-03-10T12:58:00.000-07:00

Almost everyday on our way home from the gym, Kylie falls asleep in her car seat. She looked so cute this day because she had her favorite little red bird clenched in her hand and her ruffle blanket in the other. This little red bird has a ring with 4 little colored balls she loves to bite and chew on. Could this be teeth? Probably because she's drooling up a storm. She has such cute little toes and feet I couldn't help but capture them and make it a Kodak moment. (January 14th)

Tummy Time

2009-03-10T12:43:00.000-07:00

Kylie was on her little Einstein play mat, which she has loved. She has played on it since she was probably 2 months old. She would just sit there and look up at the toys and sometimes touch them. She loved the Sun right above her that lights up and plays music. It's not loud and annoying like some music making toys. She was trying to push up but was getting frustrated. She doesn't always like tummy time. This is why she looks somewhat sad in these pictures. She's not crawling or scooting but has been doing a swimming motion which I think is a precursor to crawling - uh oh! She likes to be on her back where she can look around at everything. She also loves when I make her fly and she can see EVERYTHING. She also loves mirrors very much. She can't get over herself! (January 3rd)

January - First Push Up!

2009-03-10T12:25:00.000-07:00

This was the first time Kylie was on the floor and held her head up! You could call it a baby push-up. I'm so excited she's into working out already! I guess it's the personal trainer in me. She loves this Winnie the Pooh toy. He makes noises and talks. Kylie is very alert and can really focus on things. I'm pretty sure Winnie the Pooh was sitting next to me in the top picture. She was oohing and aahing at her new found friend in the bottom picture. She is such a happy little girl and loves to be around people. She smiles at everyone. What a cutie pie! (January 6th)

Bath Time!!

2009-03-09T13:43:00.000-07:00

Kylie loves bath time. She loves to kick and splash. She's trying to lay down in the tub by crawling her toes up the end in the second picture. In the last one she's trying to lay down by going sideways. It was like she was trying to roll over in the tub. What she doesn't like is getting her face wet or having it washed or dried off. She kicks her legs and pulls her head away in hopes of escaping the towel and washcloth.

Christmas - a little late

2009-03-09T13:20:00.000-07:00

Kylie's first Christmas. These presents were for all of us...sad but true. Kylie was our Christmas present this year

We had to wake her up because Jon couldn't wait to open presents

Jon's Mom made Kylie a stocking to match ours. She made one for me when we got married

First family Christmas morning

This was Kylie on Christmas Day with my Mom. Kylie was more into the wrapping paper than the presents.

Valentines Day

2009-03-09T11:16:00.001-07:00

Our Stake did a Valentine's Dinner, Dance and Workshop. Jon and I were engaged 5 years ago this past Valentine's Day. I love you Jonathan!!!

November

2009-03-02T12:15:00.000-08:00

Kylie with her Great-Grandpa Harrison for the first time

Kylie and me at Justin's Wedding over Thanksgiving break

Kylie was a trooper in the car. We went from San Antonio to Houston to Baton Rouge to New Orleans and back. All in a few days time!

This was in front of the Baton Rouge Temple where they got married

October

2009-03-02T11:07:00.000-08:00

"Smiley Kylie"!! (November 20th)

Before church in her little red dress. (November 2nd)

Cute Little Pumpkin Fairy (October 31st)

Yummy fingers!!

Kylie flexing her baby muscles. (October 30th)

Discovering her tongue (October 6th)

Another baby photo shoot. She loves the camera. (October 6th)

Classic baby look...maybe a dirty diaper? (October 4th)

Kylie loves her baby sunglasses. (October 3rd)

FIrst Smile and Laugh

2009-01-15T14:32:00.000-08:00

This was out of no where! I had her on the floor when all of a sudden she starts laughing, smiling, and carrying on. She was making funny faces. She would go from smiling and laughing to a serious face to pursed lips and so on. I couln't believe it. I didn't think they did stuff like this so early. What a cutie!

Sleeping Angel Sept 28th

2009-01-13T11:58:00.000-08:00

First Sunday Sept 14, 2008

2009-01-13T11:33:00.000-08:00

This was our first Sunday back to church. Kylie was 3 weeks old. I was getting pretty antsy to get out and do something. Kylie was an angel. She slept the whole time and didn't make a peep. After church, she wore her rocker jammies!! (There are guitars and notes on them.)

Turkey Call Sept 13, 2008

2009-01-13T11:15:00.000-08:00

We were at my sister Tiffany's house. Her husband Chris has a turkey call we decided to give a try. Kylie wasn't sure what to think about it. She was looking around and would stop and pause when she heard it. Her face was like "What is that noise?"

2009-01-13T11:07:00.000-08:00

Yummy Fingers!! This was on September 12, 2008

Smiley Kylie

2009-01-13T10:35:00.000-08:00

Kylie and Family

2009-01-13T10:29:00.000-08:00

Ceiling Fan Fun

2009-01-13T10:08:00.000-08:00

Kylie loves the ceiling fan. She tries to catch the air in her mouth. She first did this on September 8th. I can't believe she is aware enough to do this! She's growing up already.

First Walk

2009-01-11T15:19:00.000-08:00

When Kylie was 10 days old, she went on her first walk. I wasn't able to walk very far so we walked about 2 blocks. It was kind of warm outside but still didn't want her to get cold. She slept the whole time. What a good girl. This stroller we got from Jon's Mom and Dad. It came with a car seat that matches. Look at those cute cheeks!

Kylie's 2nd Week Check Up

2009-01-11T14:54:00.000-08:00

At Kylie's 2nd week check up on September 5th, she weighed 8 lbs 15.5 oz and was 21 1/4 in long. She was in the 60th percentile for weight and 80th percentile for length. She likes to purse her lips like the picture on the left. She is pretty alert when she is awake and sleeps really well when she's asleep. It seems like all we do is feed and change her. We try to sleep when we can and rest when she is resting. I am recovering well and am loving this special gift from heaven.

Kylie's 1st Week Check Up

2009-01-11T14:31:00.000-08:00

On August 29th, 2008 Kylie had her first doctors appointment with Dr. Jim Donnel. I used to be his personal trainer at Spectrum Athletic Club where I work. I still train his wife Laura. Kylie weighed 8 lbs 2.5 oz and was 20 1/4 in long. She was in the 60th percentile for both height and weight. Kylie had some blood work done at her 1 week check up. I think it was harder on me than on her. Luckily my Mom was with us and helped me feel better. Thanks Mom. Kylie was a little jaundice so we tried to keep her in non-direct sunlight at home to lower her billiruben count. Everything else seemed to be just fine. She was eating well, as you can see by her leg roles. She has chubby and loveable cheeks that you can just kiss all day. Kylie loves to be cuddled and held close. We don't mind doing this at all. We love you Kylie Jade!

Jon and Kylie

2009-01-09T13:42:00.000-08:00

Jon loves to cuddle with his little girl. He likes her to lay on his chest and fall asleep. She loves to be held close and cuddled by anyone, but especially her Daddy. Jon is so sweet with her. He speaks only Portuguese

to her. One day I know this will be a special thing for them to share. Hopefully she will pick up Spanish, too. She will fall asleep while being held by anybody. She loves everyone and is a sweet little girl. She has such a reverence about her. She is very loved and we are happy she is ours.

First Bath

2009-01-09T13:32:00.000-08:00

Kylie's first bath at home was exciting to watch I say watch because I didn't know how to give her a bath so I asked my mom to do it and show me how. She was so fragile I didn't know how to hold her head up and bathe her at the same time. Amy my sister helped. She loves the bath very much. She still does. I know for sure she will be a little water bug. It will be hard to get her out of the tub and pool when she gets older. She gets mad sometimes when I pull her out. She has tons of rolls all over her little body. It's hard to get in between all of them. She is so precious to me and I love her dearly.

Sweet baby girl

2009-01-09T11:54:00.000-08:00

Jon was so sweet with her. It was neat to see him look at her so loveingly. She was a big girl. She weighed 8 lbs 11 oz and was 20 1/2 inches long. She arrived 3 weeks early on the 21st of August. I was a borderline gestational diabetic and my doctor said not to worry. That was until my stomach measured 42 cm at 36 weeks gestation. She had a growth spurt the week before and measured 38 at 35 weeks. My doctor did another ultrasound to see how big she was. They thought she was about 9 lbs. This was 4 weeks before my due date. My date was right on, she just had a few growth spurts. It must have been the neopolitan ice cream I ate so frequently. This is weird but, I also craved tejano music! I loved to listen to the spanish radio station. I want her to learn another language so why not start early. Jon talks to her in portuguese. It's fun to see the look on her face when he talks to her. While Kylie was in the hospital, she was in the NICU for several things. It was so hard to see her in there with all of the tubes and IV's on her. She had fluid in her lungs and was breathing funny so she had a breathing tube. The fluid in her lungs was from me having a c-section. In natural birth, the fluid gets pushed out of the lungs. They thought she caught the strep B virus, which I had so she had an IV in her. My doctor thought it was best to have the c-section and not try natural because she was big. They didn't know how big. They thought at least 9 lbs. My doctor said it would be easier on me and Kylie to have a c-section. I don't know if any of you have had a c-section but it is not a walk in the park. I felt like I was split in two. It sucked to say the least. I had terrible pain for about 2 weeks. I couldn't laugh because it hurt so bad. I had to get up carefully and walk carefully. Being the active person I am, this was very hard. I was so lucky to have my mom with me for the first week. Kylie didn't come home until she was 4 days old. She has such a sweet spirit. We are truly blessed to have her in our lives.

2008-09-23T08:48:00.000-07:00

2008-09-23T08:47:00.001-07:00

2008-09-23T08:37:00.000-07:00

Our precious daughter Kylie Jade Bush was born on August 21, 2008 at 1048 am and weighed 8 lbs 11 oz and was 20 1/4 inches long. She is such a wonderful blessing. She has such a sweet spirit about her. I know these are precious moments and will go by too fast. I take pictures of her all the time. I wanted to go and have some really nice pictures taken of her because I'm not the best photographer. I thought the worst that can happen if I take them will be I don't like any of them. That didn't happen thankfully and I had a lot of fun doing a mini photo session with her. These are some of the pictures I took with my digital camera. I turned the flash off and used the natural light from the windows for a nice soft effect.

2008-06-15T16:34:00.000-07:00

The beach can be so calming.

I love this picture. It kind of

describes my life right now,

up and down.

FINALLY...Graduation 2008!

2008-05-10T20:30:00.001-07:00

Little Baby Girl

2008-05-05T14:53:00.001-07:00