Bushman Family Feature #17: Ashley Mecham

Today is Troy's sister Ashley's birthday. Happy Birthday dear Ash :) This post is ALL about you and why we think you're pretty cool.

1. Ashley loves to laugh. Ashley is so much fun. She has a lively sense of humor and she is always making everyone laugh. She is known for her ability to lighten the mood in any given situation. When Troy and I started dating, Ashley was living in Colorado. I didn't get to know her until she moved back home. The week before Troy and I were married, we went on a pioneer trek with the Bushman fam. Ash and I shared a tent. We had long late night talks together. That's when I felt I first got to know Ashley and we had a great time chatting and discussing different things there in the Wyoming wilderness. Now when we are in town,  I always enjoy a good Ashley conversation. She is extremely entertaining. And when we're back in AZ, she sends me funny texts often and they always make me smile.

Ash with little Jackson and Madi. September 2009.

2. Ashley is a super-aunt. Ashley is totally a super aunt. The grand kids flock to her when she enters the house. There are a lot of reasons for this. A. She has two dogs which is a built in plus to any child, B. She has a scooter (which is a HUGE plus in Jackson's book) C. She gets down on the floor so she can talk to the little guys eye to eye, and . She will play any silly game with them they want. We have THE FUNNIEST video of Ash clapping up a beat and singing a made-up song while Jackson dances. It is hilarious. Jackson was having such a great time and the singing and dancing game went on for probably ten minutes. See? What a great aunt?! Ash is going to be the funnest mom someday, I just know it.

Ash & Bry letting Jackson check out their scooter. July 2011.

3. Ashley is dedicated. I've been impressed with Ashley's ability to see things through. She works hard. Ashley has perspective and realizes perseverance will help her make it across the finish line. Right now she is finishing up her undergrad and is planning on pursuing a Masters in Social Work. She has worked hard to earn/save money for school and get good grades so she can accomplish her goals. I know her dedication will show through in her work once she is all finished. Her graduation is going to be the best day ever! Know we are so proud of you Ash and all the work you've done. You're amazing.

Ash entertaining Jackson during family picture day. August 2010.

Happy Birthday Ashley! We wish we could swing by your house and bring you a birthday treat. Know that we're thinking about you and that we miss you and Bryan. We hope all your wildest dreams come true. :)

Bushman Family Feature #16: Lindsay Barneck

Today is my little sister Lindsay's birthday. She is the greatest and deserves an awesome birthday. Since we can't be there to celebrate Linds, here's your birthday post. Here are a few reasons why we love you:

September 14, 1988. Me meeting Linds for the first time.

1.Lindsay is Outgoing. I remember when Linds was in jr. high and high school she had a lot of the same teachers I had when I was going through school. Because Lindsay was so social, several of them said, "Are you sure you're Brooke's sister?" (Because I was a lot less social.... as in I didn't really talk... I may have been worried about getting in trouble. Because I was a nerd like that... :/ ) Lindsay on the other hand was very talkative/social and still did great in all her classes. In college Lindsay and her roommates seemed to be doing exciting activities a lot. And not just your average activities either, creative ones. Last year Linds was the relief society pres in her ward. She was constantly checking up on girls in her ward. Texting them, sending facebook messages, making house visits. Linds is a super loyal friend and is very good at keeping up relationships whether with neighbors, friends, or family. She has a talent for it.

 Christmas 1989

(I decided to do some memory lane pics because they're just too much fun.)

2. Lindsay is a hard worker. Lindsay is hands down one of the hardest workers I know. When I was 18 my family moved across town and there were lots of yard and home improvement projects to be done. Lindsay helped sand down the deck and stain it. She painted, she did yard work. She was amazing. She has a knack for knowing how things go together. It's kind of uncanny. She disassembles things and then puts them back together without a hitch. It's amazing. (In fact Linds, I just took apart my carseats to wash them... want to come down to AZ and help me put them back together? I'm going to need help. Ha!) Linds came down to help us move in July. She was packing, lifting, disassembling, and assembling things like a champ. What always strikes me is her endurance. She goes and goes at projects like this for hours. She's incredible. And what's great is that she uses her excellent work ethic to serve others. Like coming to help her poor pregnant older sister move. She's amazing.

 November 1991.

Linds and I wearing the sweetest denim dresses ever made :)

3. Best "fun" buddy. Lindsay is the greatest person to have as your buddy. She's always willing to come with you to the grocery store or on errands. And having her there makes those kinds of boring trips way more fun. I love going shopping with Lindsay. We have the greatest time. But we also have a blast doing things like cooking, boating, watching movies, etc. etc. etc. A couple weeks ago Troy and I talked to Lindsay on skype and we were dying laughing. It was so much fun. I really wish we lived closer so we could laugh like that more often.

April 2011 during a visit to AZ. Isn't she just the cutest aunt?

I hope you have the happiest birthday ever Lindsay. You certainly deserve it. I'm so grateful you're my sister and I look up to you in so many ways. You are wonderful. Love you lots! Have so much fun blowing out your candles okay? Happy Birthday!

Our Baby Girl in 3D (plus a pregnancy update)

I had my 30 week check-up today. That's right, we are officially into the single digits of weeks remaining in my pregnancy. This makes me happy and a little apprehensive, just depends on the time of day you ask ;) After trying THREE different times, (once a week and a half ago and twice today) the ultrasound tech was able to get some 3D pictures of our little lady. She and Jackson have a lot of the same tendencies in-utero thus far, one of which is keeping her little hands in front of her face and making it impossible to see her features :) But after I ate some gummy bears, she was a little more mobile and willing to show herself. Here's what we saw:

Look at those cheeks!! Aren't they just the cutest?

This one might be my favorite. I love her lips. They look rather plump to me.

This one mostly shows her arms in 3D, curled up by her head as usual. ;)

And this one... sort of looks nothing like the others. So who knows.

I think there may be some resemblance to Jackson. I found this pic of Jackson at 3 months (when he finally had cubby cheeks) and here's the comparison:

The lips and eyes look different in this photo, but the cheeks and nose look awfully similar to me. If she has a dimple then they'll be looking really similar.

I'm quite excited for our little girl to come out so we can see what she really looks like.... but not for a few more weeks. Which brings me to a pregnancy update, since I haven't done that in a while.

• I think, I'm not sick anymore. I say this with some hesitation, as I threw up during sacrament meeting last Sunday. Throwing up in public restrooms is the best I tell you. But before that incident, I hadn't thrown up for 3 weeks. Big deal right? I was honestly starting to think I would be sick the entire pregnancy, so the fact that I am not feeling sick now and that I have a little more energy is fabulous. I have found myself wanting to start on some "nesting" projects which is proof I'm feeling better. Hooray!
• Baby girl is breech. Interesting huh? It makes me wonder, does my uterus have some deformity that keeps my babies the wrong position? Maybe. But it doesn't really matter anyway, as we were always planning on a repeat C-section. I'm just going to take this as extra affirmation that we made the right decision. Bring on the surgery!
• I have had lots of braxton hicks contractions lately. I walk too fast in the grocery store, I get a contraction. I bend over to pick something off the floor, I get a contraction. I get up from the couch quickly, I get a contraction. I roll over in bed in the middle of the night, I get a contraction. They don't necessarily hurt. But they are much stronger this time than anything I had with Jackson. I also have been feeling lots of pressure when I stand up, like that the baby might fall out. Not good at 30 weeks right? So after hearing Troy, Stacy, Kindi and Amanda all tell me I should probably call the doctor and just let them know, I did. The MA at the office told me I should go into the ER immediately. What?! "But they're not regular," I told her. She said it was better to get checked out. So teary-eyed (because now I was really worried) I dropped Jackson off at Amanda's and spent 3.5 hours at the Labor & Delivery triage. The nurses weren't so helpful. They were busy and not very concerned about my condition. So, I spent an hour lying on the bed waiting for someone to come see me while not being monitored in the slightest. Lovely. So of course, by the time the monitors were put on, I had zero contractions. None. But it makes sense as I wasn't doing anything but lying on the bed. The good news is, they checked me and I haven't dilated at all yet. I left the hospital feeling a little silly. I talked to my doctor about this today. He made me feel much better, saying there were no "boy who cried wolf" penalties for pre-term labor, because it's serious stuff. Ha! I still hadn't dilated at all as of this morning, also good. So i think things are looking up. I'm going to try not to lift or move too fast and will be drinking lots of water, just in case.
• They checked my fluid today and my C-section scar. Good news on both accounts. The placenta isn't anywhere near my scar and my fluid is normal. However, it was at 15 (normal is between 5 and 25) and as I'm only 30 weeks, I feel like it could still drop out early. Only time will tell. They'll check again at 36 weeks. I'd really like a little more notice for this girl's arrival than I got with Jackson (which was less than 24 hours) so it's super great that my doctor's office has an ultrasound tech right there to keep me at ease. 
• I love my doctor. My original doctor had to unexpectedly retire after my 12 week appointment. But his partner Dr. Folkestad is awesome! He spouts out statistics and studies about every question I ask him. He is incredibly smart and has this way about him that makes you feel like everything's fine. At the end of every visit he tells me, "Keep up the good work. That baby is looking great!" I love the pep talk. Ha! 
• How does Jackson feel about his little sister on the way? We don't know. We talk to him about the baby. He knows she's in my belly. But, he didn't want to see any pictures of her today. He seems mostly uninterested, I think because he doesn't understand. He does love the 3 new baby boys that have shown up this summer in our neighborhood (Cameron Peterson, Eli Crum, and Nash Wahlstrom.) He thinks their little feet are funny and he'll come over and look at them for a full 15 seconds before moving on to another activity. That's progress! After how cute Jackson was with his cousin Boston this summer, I'm not too worried. He has to adjust to a new baby eventually. Right?..... right???
• Any names yet? We're still not sure. And by "we," I mean me. Troy is ready to name this baby right here and now. I want to be absolutely sure we have THE BEST girl name out there before I commit to anything. Which means, we probably won't know for reals until she's born. My debate right now is what to do for a middle name. I could use "Brooke" which is Troy's vote because he thinks it would be fun to have one named after him and one named after me. But, I've been wanting to use my Great Grandma's name as a middle name which is "Bea" (short for Beatrice.) Of course, you need a first name to know which middle name is going to flow. But since we're not sure on that, any thoughts on the middle name? Bea or Brooke? Hmmm. We'll have to see.

So there you have it. More than you ever wanted to know about my pregnancy. It's okay if you just looked at the pictures. All this info is mainly for me to look through later. Yay for babies! We're going to have one soon!

Our Backyard

As promised, here are some pictures of our backyard-- (our new pride and joy ;) Troy has taken great care to make the yard look wonderful. Unfortunately, our lawn completely died the month before we moved in. Everything we've tried to do thus far to restore it has only added weeds. So, when we plant winter grass in a few weeks, hopefully it will be looking lush and green again.

Jackson loves to be outside. When we first moved in, he didn't want to be out there by himself. Now he says, "Mommy, outside, kay?" as he's walking out the door. He watches the golf carts drive by, looks for airplanes, rides his bike. He's a happy camper out there.

It's been a little too hot to spend long periods of time back there (especially for my pregnant, over-heated body) but I've been out there quite a bit myself. Troy and Jackson have had a blast running from one end of the yard to the other, playing baseball & football and creating masterpieces with chalk as seen below.

Jackson asked Troy to draw a football on nearly every stepping stone in the entire yard. Troy said Jackson would point to a new rock and say, "Daddy-- football, here." Jackson loved it.

If you look closely you can see "Jackson loves BYU" written in chalk.

The boys also had fun tracing each other on the patio. Jackson was very excited to show me this when I came outside. Ha ha.

Jackson likes his Dad to follow him around the yard like so.

Our backyard overlooks hole 11 of the Legends golf course. We get to wave at lots of people as they pass by, sometimes even some that we know. Which is what is happening above. Troy doesn't give such a hello to everyone you know. ;)

Our friends the Thomases who lived here before us put in these awesome rope swings. Jackson loves them.

And so does Troy.

According to me, the trees are the crowning jewel of the backyard. If you haven't lived in Arizona, you don't realize that these are some nice shade trees. They don't get much bigger than this in the desert. Between the shade from the trees and the shade from the patio, we have quite the shaded backyard. It's awesome. It will be even more awesome when temperatures drop enough that being in the shade feels cool. ;)

A few Saturdays ago, we broke out the kiddie pool (a present from G & G Barneck) and had a swimming party. Jackson and Troy were splashing each other and Jackson was laughing so hard he couldn't breathe. It was awesome. When I finally had the camera out to take a picture though, he decided to look like we were torturing him. We all got in for a few minutes. It was just big enough for all three of us. And it was hot enough that we felt fine about all the golfers watching us sun bathe in our inflatable pool. Ha!

Hooray for a backyard-- aka The best present ever.

Our House

I figured since we've been living in our house for 6 weeks now, maybe I'd update you all on our new digs. First off, I must say, we LOVE living in a house. The extra space is magnificent and the backyard is a dream come true. Jackson is in heaven. He goes out there all the time. In fact, the backyard is such an important part of our lives now that it is getting its own post entirely. Ha!

Here are some pics of the new house.

The entry way. A little bare right now, but maybe I'll be able to find a nice table to put in there as garage sale season starts at the end of this month! Hooray :)

Family room, featuring our 'new' tan couches. We bought them from the Thomases and they are comfy. Yay! Plus, they gave us a pretty rockin' deal. You can also see the big windows on the back of the house. I love those. I can see Jackson playing in the backyard from almost anywhere in the house.

Other side of the family room. (The cougar banner is part of some cougar decor I'm working on.)

Family room #2 off the kitchen. This is our mismatched furniture room. Gotta love hand-me-downs. :)

Our bedroom. Which just happens to be HUGE. We're in the market for a desk right now and there will be no problem at all fitting it in this room. Lots of room for the pack n' play once the baby's born too.

Master bath with attached master walk-in closet.

Kids' bathroom

Jackson's room.

And there is also another bedroom for the baby. But, it's a wreck right now, so I chose not to photograph it. Once it's somewhat decorated and organized, I'll document that room too.

We feel pretty lucky to be in a house. Especially with such a reasonable rent! We're trying not to get too spoiled before we move to residency and have to live some place tiny again. :) But for now we're loving having a garage, a driveway (that people can pull up to without a silly gate that keeps them out), an extra bedroom, a patio, being extremely close to my favorite grocery store Fry's (because you know I'm a nerd like that) AND having our some of our good friends be our neighbors. It. is. awesome.

Cougar Day

I'm going to do my best to be caught up on our blog by the end of the week... wish me luck! First up on the list (I know I promised pictures of our house-- they're coming) is our celebration of Cougar day. We were extremely excited for the season opener at our house. Troy told me he was more excited for the first BYU Football game than he is for Christmas each year. Wow! So that means Cougar Day is an official holiday in the Bushman home. :) Part of the reason he was extra excited this year is because he has Saturdays free to watch the games. This makes it so much more enjoyable.

Also very excited for some football time was Jackson. The Serafines graciously invited us down to their house to watch the game (as we still are cable-less.) In order to make it to their house on time, we had to wake up the little man from his nap, which is always a risky venture. However, Troy had explained Jackson before putting him to bed that when he woke up we would be watching football. "Football?!" he exclaimed. This made him happy to oblige to a nap and when he woke up, he remembered what we were supposed to do next. Jackson was a regular old cheerleader while watching the game. He repeated everything Troy said. "Go cougars!" and "Nice!!" interspersed with lots of clapping and yelling cheers from both my Bushman boys. I was surprised how well he lasted throughout the game. That's a long time to be excited about football when you're 2 (and 25 ;) but he did really well.

We got some pretty cute pictures of opening day. Of course we had to photo document the day that is more exciting than Christmas for a certain someone. ;)

Stacy made football sugar cookies. So cute! Jackson was so excited. Football + cookie? What's not to love.

Jackson loved playing with his buddies James Ashby and Graham Serafine. Here he is with Graham.

James. Jackson. Graham.

And here is our effort to get all 3 boys to look at once. Pretty funny.

Towards the end of the game. Matt Serafine was SUPER nice and let Jackson watch some videos on his phone. Jackson loved this, and as you can see, so did Graham.

Troy taught Jackson how to flex his muscles and say "Cougars!!" Which resulted in these funny pictures.

And here we are in the Family Cougar shirts I made. We won't talk about how mine is already getting too tight ;) Yay for the Cougar win! We sure love our team. But hopefully they do better this weekend than they did last... Go Cougars!

Remembering September 11th

I came across this video today about the photographers of September 11th. It was particularly moving to me because of my appreciation of and interest in photography. Watching some of these images brought back so many memories for me of that day. I can't believe ten years have already passed. I'm grateful we have these images to help us never forget what happened that day.

Bushman Family Feature #15: Grace Anne Bushman

Our cute little niece Grace turns 2 today. I can't believe how big all our little babies are getting. It's crazy. So here is Grace's family feature in honor of her doubling her age today! ;) We don't get to see Miss Gracie very often as she lives in Oklahoma, but there are lots of reasons we love her.

1. Grace is the happiest baby I know. She literally is. (I suppose she is technically a toddler, but I'm still calling Jackson a baby so Grace gets to be one too ;) I don't think I've ever seen her freak out. That's is a big feat when you are two!  I realize that she probably has her moments as all kids do, but I'm constantly amazed at how happy she is. Whenever we're around Grace she is all smiles and giggles. I've seen her be awoken early from a nap and come out of the bedroom with her hair all disheveled and a huge grin on her face. It's adorable! She has also endured an 18 hour drive from Oklahoma to Utah several times and reports are she does it with flying colors. What a champ!

Look at that cute little face! (Some of these pics were taken by Suz which explains the sudden increase in photography wonderfulness :)

2. Grace is super smiley. Her little smile is totally infectious. She is very quick to smile at everyone around her and she loves to cheer. When we saw Grace this summer she would break out into a cheer on many an occasion. She would clap, yell "Yay!" and sometimes her huge grin would be accompanied by a little laugh that turned into a snort. It was seriously the cutest thing ever. When you look at Grace you can't help but smile back. I think she already has a talent for lifting the moods of people around her. She is just so smiley and happy that she convinces everyone else they should be too. It.is.awesome.

Grace with her Dad, being completely overwhelmed by the Disney store. So cute!

3. Grace is very affectionate. Grace loves to give hugs and kisses. She'll run up and give hugs when she enters the room. And she's not stingy with how many she gives or who she gives them too. This kind of goes along with the the other points I made. She is just a very happy and loving child and it totally rubs off on those around her. When we were visiting this summer, Jackson and Grace curled up together on a pile of pillows and blankets and enjoyed some "Sleeping Beauty," which is apparently one of Grace's favorites. It so fits her little personality. She's so bubbly, happy, and smiley-- the perfect princess.

Grace giving Jackson a big kiss.

We love you Grace! Happy happy birthday from us. We wish we could swing by and watch you blow out your candles and open your presents. You are one very special girl. Way to be two! Love, Aunt Brooke, Uncle Troy, and Jackson