<3 Jetty--here's to you KT

Today is the best day to write about my sister.

Katherine Annette Jett was born on December 9, 1993 at Shore Memorial Hospital in Somers Point, NJ. It had been Bill and me ruling the Jett house up until that point, so gaining a new member of the family was pretty exciting.


When I think of Kate, SINGING comes to mind. This girl has been singing for as long as I can remember, probably ever since she learned how to talk. And it's not just the fact that she sings--she happens to be excellent at it. When she was just three years old, she sang at Margaret Mace's annual Spring Concert--"I Love You" from Barney, in English AND in Spanish--and she brought down the house that night. The entire audience was amazed by that wonderful voice came from that little girl! Katie still sings and she is spectacular. I used to get nervous when she sang in front of people, as if I were the one singing, but I don't get nervous anymore because I know she won't disappoint.

SPORTS is another thing about Kate. It's not just the fact that she plays sports, she happens to be great at them. She plays soccer, basketball, and softball but her specialty is softball. She was named to the Cape May County All-Star Team as a FRESHMAN this past school year. She plays the sport year round--she's THAT good. She is a fantastic shortstop and she has become a very good pitcher, too. I can see her playing on the BYU softball team in a few years.

Katie is also SMART. She always won awards at MMS for being the top student in every subject and she had one of the highest GPAs at Wildwood Catholic this past year. With me being me and Bill being Bill, I think the WCHS teachers were a little apprehensive because they didn't know what to expect when they met Katie. Would she be a Bill or would she be a Mary? I think that she has good qualities from the both of us--which makes her one unique person who is not me or Bill. She is Katie.


I said today was the best day to write about my sister because it is. Chris, Lizzie, and I went to Cherry Hill NJ Stake Youth Conference 2009--just last night and this morning--but what I saw of Kate made me realize many things.
1. As I am married and now a Killion, and as Bill is serving a mission in Colombia, she is now the eldest child and many of our former responsibilities fall on her now. It has to be different now than from her days as the middle child.

2. She continues to surprise. Kate will show insight or shine exuberantly when you least expect it (this doesn't mean she's a yawn 24/7). Today she bore her testimony during the testimony meeting at YC and when she spoke, I could hear myself saying the words she was saying. Her testimony strengthened mine, which I consider a very important thing. She also gave the closing prayer at the meeting, and her prayer was sincere and powerful (and full of excellent diction, I might add). She is a wonderful aunt to my Elizabeth.

3. I reiterate that she is her own person.

While growing up, people compared her to me. People still do that, I suppose, out of sheer habit. As she was the next lady Jett in line, it was bound to happen. Although I don't know from experience, I can probably tell you that got old very quickly. Teachers accidentally called her "Mary" all the time! For awhile, I think she worked her very hardest to be anything but me.
Oh how different from earlier years when she wanted nothing to do but follow me around. I regret to say that I wasn't always kind to her--that's my own fault. I'm trying to make up for it now and I hope I'm doing a good job. I guess what I'm saying is that I am proud of her for being her own person and for doing things her way, even if the older sister in me sees a different way.

She helps me to...begin...to appreciate gladiator sandals; she tells me I should wear more makeup because it's fun; she calls me with Harry Potter questions on her mind; she confides in me her latest crushes; she vents to me about homework assignments. She tells me about her life and I am beyond happy to be a part of it.

In all of our history together, you can call us sisters, the BEST of sisters, because that is what we are.

When in Wildwood, do as the Wild would

Before we left for North Wildwood, I started setting up a quilt. I waited until I left Utah to start it! hahaha My mom and my gram can help me here. Liz wanted to help--check her out in the top left corner:

We bought Liz a tent from IKEA for the beach because the umbrella thing was not working. We set it up in her room to test it out!


Lockheed sent Chris to work in Valley Forge yesterday so we decided to spend the entire weekend in New Jersey! It took us long enough to get there--traffic on I-95 was HORRIBLE--it took us over five hours to make a trip that usually takes three and a half hours. By the time we sped into Cape May County, it was just about time for us to go see Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince!
I enjoyed the movie itself very much but I was a bit disappointed in its failure of following the book. I understand the need for dramatic license but as an avid reader of the series, I'd like it to keep to the book. I would lean over to Chris during parts of the movie and tell him that's not really how it happened haha. All in all, it was a great night with the kids and I'm glad we were able to make it!

On Saturday we ran all over the island running errands and enjoying the beautiful day. Kate worked at the Candy store that morning so we headed over to visit. In addition to selling candy, Samuel's Fudge and Candy Cottage sells BEAUTIFUL trinkets: tea sets, valences, flowers, etc. They were trying to get rid of some last season gifts so naturally I went nuts. I bought some really cute potted plants for the house and we bought an adorable sign for my parents' house which says "Blessings be upon thee." Later that afternoon, after stops at Walmart and TJ Maxx, we headed over to Chaz Flud's graduation party in North Cape May.
Chaz and I have been friends since the beginning of time (at least it feels that way)! But really, we've been friends since kindergarten and we've managed to keep in touch after grade school and high school (thank you, facebook!) and it was wonderful to see some more familiar faces from the early years, like Kyle and Dave MacDonald. Margaret Mace reunion right there! Chaz will be continuing his studies at West Chester University and we wish him the best of luck, especially with wedding plans! He proposed to his girlfriend Katie just last week!

My dad's High Council speaking assignment was in Cape May on Sunday so we were all able to be at church together. Many times my dad always cracks a few introductory jokes that we kids always know will come, but this time he invited his daughters to the podium to sing the Twelve Disciples song he learned as a child and consequently taught us when we were young. Apparently he did that to Joe a few months ago during his speaking assignment in Moorestown, so Joe was off the hook this particular Sunday! My dad's talk was wonderful, as always.
We bought a hair cutting kit last week and we decided to test it out in NJ and it turned out really well! Chris hadn't gotten his hair cut since we left Utah so it was much needed, especially during the hot sticky months of summer! Julie was kind enough to feed Lizzie her dinner while I worked on my subject.

Here's a before--

and an after!


As I mentioned earlier, Lockheed wanted Chris in Valley Forge for work so Liz and I hopped along for the ride: the King of Prussia mall is right across the street from Lockheed Martin! Can't get much better than that folks! Liz and I had a glorious day of shopping. We walked the entire mall, all four levels, but we hit the stores that I knew we'd actually buy something. I mean, Louis Vuitton, Burberry, Hermes, etc. are great I'm sure, but there's virtually no way I'd ever step in them unless they were having a 99% off sale haha. Chris earned himself a new pair of Reefs, I earned myself some Vera Bradley (LOVE!), and Liz earned herself outfits from Baby Gap, Old Navy, and Gymboree. We're good!

Swim, swim!

Living here in Maryland means a wonderful (and necessary, for me) proximity to the Atlantic Ocean! We consider ourselves lucky to be near a body of water for swimming.
Fourth of July weekend provided wonderful beach time: lots of sun plus the right amount of breeze equals prefect beach days! Naturally we had to go--the ocean was calling us! Liz loves playing on the beach, exploring the sand, and watching the waves.







I don't know what we'd do without the condo association pool down the street from us! Julia has been staying with us this week and Liz loves all the fun she has with her aunt! We've been to the pool a few times and Lizzie LOVES playing in the pool! She loves to splash:

Happy Fourth of July!

It is 8:23 am on a simply gorgeous morning in sunny North Wildwood, NJ. It is early enough to hear the ocean roaring over the din of cars, full of people, rushing to get the early bird breakfasts at their favorite restaurants. The seagulls are making their racket of course, but the other birds chirp along and you're thankful that the seagulls decide to take a break once in awhile. Wondering what is on your schedule for the day--knowing that a few hours on the beach is a must...it's the good life!
I love being home.

The Fourth of July is my favorite holiday. Red+White+Blue, fireworks, BBQ food, the company of family and friends, right smack in the middle of the summer--really, you can't beat the 4th. On the drive up here (which was uneventful from DC until we hit RT. 47--took us another two hours to get here instead of the usual 40 min), Chris and I discussed why this is my favorite holiday. We also realized that the first thing people think of when they think of the 4th is all the glitz and glamour, but above all, we must remember this is a celebration of our independence.

Chris found a beautifully written page about the signers of the Declaration. These men who put their names to this incredibly important document were not pompous, arrogant little men as legend may portray. Rather, they were serious, studious men who knew that they would be considered traitors to England and that they would possibly die because of their commitment to America. Despite all the dangers they knew they would face, they still signed their names on that parchment and helped establish the greatest country the world has ever known.

Happy Independence Day, my friends! Remember the men who helped shaped this nation all those years ago and remember the men and women who fight for our freedom today. God Bless America!