What a weekend

Today we spent most of the day looking at houses. We drove around town looking at all the different areas. We are still trying to decide if we want to build or buy a previously owned home. Decisions, decisions!

We are getting excited for June! My litle sister is coming down to visit for a week at the beginning of the month. Then we will fly back to SLC with Meag and participate in Mindy's wedding. It's going to be a blast!

Here are some cute pictures of Bella. In the first one I was trying to get a picture of her watching basketball with her daddy, but every time I pulled the camera out she wanted to look at it. She loves when I take pictures of her! I love having such a smiley little girl. She has been so happy lately. She is starting to develop a personality. I can't decide if her tempermant is more like Tyler's or mine. She knows what she does and doesn't want; totally Tyler. But she also seems to have a stuborn streak. If she doesn't want to be in her car seat, she screams the ENTIRE time we are in the car. Unfortunatly the stuborn-ness comes from me. It looks like her hair is going to be auburn, I guess since she has some red hair she has a right to be stuborn! Love - Dannielle

Swimmin'

Today was Bella's first time swimming. The water was a little cold, but she seemed to be okay with the pool. She looked darling in her little swimming suit. I can't wait until she starts splashing around. Hopefully we have a really good summer that can be spent by the pool. Last summer it rained for three months; not very good swimming weather. We hope everyone is doing good! Love- Dannielle

New Toy!

Things have been going good for our family down here. The weather has been getting warmer, up into the nineties. The natives tells us it doesn't get worse than that. The warm weather hasn't bothered me yet, or the humidity during the day. But at night, it doesn't cool off. For some reason that seems to bother me more than the heat during the day. Our new ward is amazing! We have been invited to Sunday dinner with ward members for the past two weeks. It is awesome that complete strangers would welcome us into their home.

Tyler is enjoying his job. The office he works for recently moved him into an Ortho chair; he loves it! I have had the opportunity to stay home with Isabella. For the time being we feel like she is too young to enroll in daycare. We also aren't sure if anyone in the ward would be willing to watch her, which means I get to stay home and play with her all day. It has been awesome! (Thank you Tyler)

Isabella got a new toy this week. She now has a walker. She loves trying to sit up; she thinks she is such a big girl! Bella is at such a fun age. She is starting to laugh and she smiles at almost everything. She recently learned how to blow spit bubbles (it is so funny to watch).

Tyler and I also got a new toy this week. We have never purchased a television since we have been married. We always received hand-me-downs from our parents. (Thanks mom and dad, Cory and Sheryl)So when we received our stimulus check we decided we would stimulate the economy by buying a television.

It has been a difficult transition for me to leave my friends and family. I know that I will see you all often. It is still hard to start over in an unfamiliar town. I love you all, and hope to visit with everyone when we come up for Mindy's wedding. Love-Dannielle

We're all here!

It's Sunday night and it has been a long week. I am glad we're here and everyone made it safely without incident. We already miss family and friends. I am realizing that the assistance they provide in times like this is unmeasurable. We have been blessed with some wonderful connections here in San Antonio. We have been able to stay with some of my mission president's friends while we've been looking for an apartment. We found a great place for a great price on Saturday, but are still waiting on approval to move in. We hope we get the green light on Monday.

We attended our new ward today and were welcomed with open arms. The Cutler's (my old bishop, the current mission president her in SA) are in our ward and so are the Condie's (They are the family we've been staying with). Cutler's had us over for dinner tonight and are just the best! I don't think a more selfless family exists!

Dannielle and Isabella got here on Friday, and it was a hot day. (95+humidity) But the past two days have been great, low 80's and beautiful! We took a drive today after church to the downtown area. We drove around the Riverwalk, and the Alamo. We also drove past sea world, six flags, and a waterpark. There is a lot to do here and we're almost ready to start hosting visitors, so plan your next vacation to San Antonio and we'll provide a place to stay, food to eat, and a car if you need one!

We want to thank those that helped us pack up in SLC, and those that prayed for our safety. We have been relying on the Lord and others very heavily this past week, and are greatful to those that have allowed us to lean on them for support. Thank you all for your visits, and your encouragement as we were leaving.

As we were sitting with the Cutler's tonight we reflected on "Tyler" in high school and "Tyler" now. I have had an absolutely amazing ride. Some of my most cherished memories fall in that window of time and were shared with those of you that read this blog. Thank you for shaping me into the person I am. Thank you for extending friendship to me and my family. We will miss you all very much.
Love,
Tyler, Dannielle, Isabella, and Chesterfield

I made it!

It's Thursday night and I've been in SA for a few hours now. That moving truck sure sucks down the gas! When I came in the volvo I flinched every 350 miles because $50 was burned up. The moving truck has burned over $700 in gas already. Remind me to send G.W. Bush a thank you note for that stimulus check that paid my gas bill! I will post a picture after Dannielle and Isabella get here tomorrow! Hope everyone in Utah is enjoying the snow. 84 was nice today, time to get this pasty white body tan!

Blessing

This past Sunday Isabella was given a blessing and a name for the Church records. Everything went extremly well. I was nervous that Isabella was going to scream during her blessing (she was being a bit cranky, Church is during her nap time), and Tyler was nervous about what he was going to say in Bella's blessing. The blessing Tyler gave her was beautiful. After the blessing we had friends and family over at Nana and Grandpa Williams' house. We had a blast hanging out with everyone! If we missed you, I hope we get to see you this Saturday for our going away BBQ. (Anyone that is reading this is invited) We would love to see everyone one last time before we head off to Texas.
Isabella also had her two month check up this week. She is still tiny, and only weighs 8 lbs. 15 oz. She may be skinny but she is long. She has grown three more inches and is now 23 inches long! She is in the 4th percentile for her weight, and the 55th percentile for her height. I am having a hard time finding clothes that fit and are long enough! She is healthy and developing normally. Everything looked great!
Tyler has been in Texas since Sunday, he left right after the blessing. Although he has answered a lot of questions we have, there are still undecided variables. Tyler had some job interviews and was able to aquire a great position in a Dental Office. The pay and benefits are great and Tyler is excited about the people he will be able to work with. We are still house hunting. . .what a stressful process! And while we continue to look for a house we are trying to decide if Isabella and I should move down with Tyler, or if we should wait until we have closed on a house. Aghh!! So many possibilities! Hopefully everything will go smoothly and we will be able to make it to Texas in one piece. We love you all!! Don't forget to come to the BBQ, e-mail or call us if you have any questions. - Dannielle

Picture Day

Last Saturday we had Isabella's pictures taken. They turned out SO cute! Our good friend Brooke Franco (thanks Brooke) is a photographer; she did a fantastic job! If anyone is interested Brooke charges $40 and $15 for each additional child. She will take pictures until you are ready to be done and will then sit down with you and add any effects that you would like. The best part is she will give you a disc of all your pictures so you can go develop them at your leisure! If you are interested please email Brooke at brookefranco@hotmail.com. She is also willing to do photos outside. If anyone wants her number, we can get it to you. I would highly recommend getting your pictures done by Brooke. Isabella was a stinker during her pictures. Once again, so glad we had Brooke. She was still able to get cute pictures with our unhappy baby. Well we were finally able to get her to sleep, and the pictures are absolutely darling! Hope you enjoy looking at the ones I posted!


Even though Bella is crying in this next one, I thought it was precious.

Uncle Josh loves his niece!

As time goes on, we find ourselves closer and closer to May. We are getting very excited to move foward. I can't beleive we only have four more weeks until we move to Texas! Although our schedule seems to be filling up, we would really love to see as many of you as we can! Don't forget to come see us at Isabella's blessing or our farewell party at the Stark's home. Love you all!! - Dannielle

Pretty Lights

Well it's getting closer. We plan to leave Salt Lake the first weekend of May. Josh and I are going to head out Friday May 2nd, and plan to be in San Antonio by Saturday night. We will probably fly Josh home and fly Dannielle and Isabella down on Sunday the 4th, just in time for Cinco De Mayo! We don't have a place to live or jobs yet, but we are active in our search. The Cutler's have been a wonderful connection and have hearts the size of Texas!

For those that care...We are going to have a few activities before we leave. Isabella's blessing will be held at Dannielle's parents ward(roughly 8420 S and 1450 west)on Sunday April 20th at 1pm. We have personally invited a handful of men to stand in the circle, and are sad that the circle can't hold more people. I usally only go to stuff that I have a part in so for those of you that would just be coming to watch and think that sounds boring, I don't blame you. Why would I go to something I don't get to participate in right?!J/K We understand that even on Sunday's people have obligations and may not make it.

That's why we're having a second party! It will probably be Saturday April 26th and will be an open house style BBQ at Cory and Sheryl's. This is the important one! It's to celebrate my graduation! Hey, Hey, Remember that one time when I didn't graduate high school! Now I have an Associate's Degree from the Community College, and a Bachelor's Degree from the University of Utah! How cool am I! Man I hate school! We would like to see as many of you as we can whether it's at Isabella's party or my party.(Dannielle doesn't get one) Please don't second guess whether or not we care to see you. We care to see everyone! Even family, I know we avoid you a lot, but with us leaving for a few years we could probably tolerate you for a few hours before we leave.

We seriously are sad to leave the wonderful support we have here in Utah, but have to take this next step for our future and career. I am amazed how fast time goes by. It seems like a few weeks ago I was in High School, crashing Richard's S-10 into out-houses. Now Everyone's not just married but people have kids too! Like more than one! From Jr. High to High School, my mission and various wards I've lived in since being married I have had great friends. I want to say thanks to all of you for creating so many great memories together. We look forward to seeing everyone over the course of this next month, and wish we could bring you guys with us, but I think people get in trouble for hauling truck loads of people through Texas...

Our First Spring Break With Bella

I don't think I understood how much planning goes into a family vacation. I have new respect for my parents! This past weekend our family went to St. George for Spring Break with the Stark family. The weather was wonderful, hanging out with family was awesome, and we had a blast! Packing for the trip was one story and getting there was another. . . I always knew that taking children on vacations required extra room for packing. However, with all the items needed for our new baby, we were able to fill the trunk and back seat of our trusty Corolla! Holy Cow! We had to bring so many things! Not only that, but we had to bring extra clothes for Isabella's everyday "blowout" occurrence. Although I am being an antagonist about the organization that went into the trip, we had fun. This last weekend was also Isabella's first Easter. Having her in our lives really made me think about Christ's resurrection. I know that I am a child of God, and that Christ was resurrected for me, but looking at my new baby I can understand the unconditional love our Father in Heaven has for us. Words can't describe how special Isabella is to me, I know that Heavenly Father has a wonderful plan for her, and that she was meant to be in our family. Sharing such a special holiday with her was spiritually uplifting, I can only imagine how meaningful this holiday will be when she understands. Love, Dannielle

A Day of Rememberance

Just 22 days after Isabella's spirit was united with her mortal body my grandpa's spirit separated from his. Hugh E. Holt was born on January 23 1921 in Parowan Utah, and left this world Friday March 7 2008. When he was younger he was a basketball star, and a potato farmer, he was also a medic in WWII, and left a wonderful legacy behind. He was a true hero. Not just because he served his country so many years ago, but because he was a good father, husband and most importantly an amazing grandfather. He emulated integrity and honesty. His body was in a lot of discomfort for a lot of years, but he was always doing what he could to keep his mind sharp. I will always remember the sacrifices he made to ensure his family knew they were his first priority. The hours he spent repairing my flat bike tires, and shouts of encouragement he would yell from the sidelines of my little league games. Goodbye Grandpa. We'll miss you.

As Isabella came into this world I found myself pondering over the magnitude of the great plan we are all a part of. Again today and over the past few days I have been thinking of that plan, my thoughts are focused on the phase my grandpa has passed through. I am grateful for the knowledge we have been given of eternal life. How sad it would be to know nothing of the hereafter, and be stuck wondering if there was no greater meaning to this life. I recall a couple I taught on my mission. They were young (thirties) didn't have any kids, and were quite excited to learn about Jesus Christ. They progressed well, but hit a solid wall when we discussed abstaining from Alcohol and Tobacco. The gentleman had a hard time giving those habits up and ultimately did not ever get over that hurdle. It was only a few months later he began suffering from liver failure and passed away soon after. My companion and I attended the funeral services and were rather surprised to find his wife very composed. She believed what we taught her, and had faith in eternal life. She had shed her tears and felt there was no need to weep or worry any longer. Her faith was sure.

Bella's Bath

What a cutie! Bella loves being naked, not the bath part so much, so hopefully we don't end up with a little girl that won't bathe. I can't believe it has been three weeks since we brought our pumpkin home with us. I can't remeber what I used to do! Bella had her first doctor's appointment at the beginning of this week and she is doing great! She now weighs 7 lbs and has grow 2 1/2 inches (she is now 20 1/2 inches). I can't believe how fast she is growing! Her hair is starting to lighten up a bit, we are still trying to decide if it will be red. Her eyes are still grey but they look blue around the edges. Bella is starting to find her voice and makes the cutest sounds. We love you all - Dannielle

First Playdate

We can't believe we've had our little diaper filler home for two weeks now. She had her first playdate today! Cole and Jacee brought Bailey over for a visit. I think they just might grow up and be friends. They'll be able to complain to each other about their quirky dads, and we will blame Cambodia!
It looks like we will be moving to San Antonio somewhere around the 4th of May. I will aim to take the DAT on the 1st or 2nd, load the truck and head out! We are so excited to start this new adventure! We have so many good friends here that we would love to see before we leave so please, if you have a minute to come by for a visit in the next two months we want to see you. Hope everyone is preparing for Easter. Dannielle is ready to accessorize Bella in spring dresses and sandals! We wish you all the best:)