Remote Love

Grant absolutely LOVES the TV remote (and really all gadgets in general). We have tried to break him of this and constantly tell him, "That's not for babies," but it doesn't seem to be getting through. Any ideas here? We're always hiding the remote from him and then we can't find it. :)

Meeting Mommy's Friends

I was in Dallas all Saturday morning at a continuing education class for my SLP license and two of my sweet friends from Waco drove up for the class as well. I went all through Baylor with these two pretty ladies and then on through grad school with Holly. Both of them were in our wedding and both now live in Waco so we see them at least once a year at Homecoming. :) It was so fun to introduce them to Grant and he just LOVED them both. You know Grant and pretty girls....he is all over that. :)

Going Calling

I loaded up all the "kids" last Friday and we went to visit Mimi and Grandaddy. Mimi pulled out all of the pots and pans and made a GREAT make-shift drum. So fun!




Gigi came over too and brought with her the "vintage" toy bag (a.k.a. All the toys that survived Craig and I growing up.)


And it makes us laugh so hard because Dakota is completely in love with Mimi. She likes all people but she just has this thing for Mimi. It's hysterical!


I'm thinking this face says it all. We had a GREAT time going calling!

Baby Dedication

Grant's sweet little friend, Brandon, was dedicated at church on Sunday and we were so glad we were able to be there. Such a sweet family! Love you guys.

Happy 11 Months!

Well, I think this is the last time we'll have a "month" birthday seeing as next month we'll start counting in YEARS! Oh my. And to ring in this last "month" birthday we have our first ear infection. Poor little man. By the looks of him though I think he's handling it pretty well.



Thanks for the very cool "Ride the Rockies" shirt, Aunt Jill!!

TWO Doggies

Yes, we had 2 dogs in our house all last week. We "puppy-sat" my cousin's 4 month old puppy, Riley. She is so cute but it made us glad that Dakota is no longer a pup! :) Riley followed Dakota everywhere and we often sang "Me and My Shadow" to the funny pups.

Riley was wonderful with Grant and let him climb all over her, pull her hair, pet her, and even steal her toys. Although she also stole his toys which resulted in some crying that made me laugh. They were like 2 little kids, one was just really furry.

Most of the week looked something like this:





We took everyone to the Grapevine Botanical Gardens on Labor Day. The dogs LOVED it and I think Grant had a good time too.




We had good times with Riley and hope she'll come back to visit soon!



The whole gang....with Riley in "time out"

Sonshine Academy

Well, we have had 2 very successful days of school for Grant. He LOVES his teachers and his little friends, but most of all I think he loves all the cool toys! :) He did great on his first day of school despite the fact that I had to interrupt a nap to take him. As you can tell from our "1st Day of School" picture, he was a little out of it.


But mostly I was just happy that he seems to like his school so much. He goes on Thursdays from 9:30-2:30pm and it's so nice for me to have that time (even though I do miss him). His teachers are great and say that Grant has adjusted so well and I love that he's in the "Monkey" class. So funny.

Final Good-Bye

We attended the funeral of our friend, 2nd Lt. Darryn Andrews, this past Saturday in Cameron, Tx. He was killed in Afghanistan on September 4, 2009 while protecting 3 other soldiers from a rocket-launched grenade. The funeral services were almost more than we could bear and I don't feel the need to relive the events here, however, I would like to say one thing. Whatever your feelings about the war and Operation Enduring Freedom and whatever your political beliefs, honor the soldiers who lose their lives and the families that grieve for them. This is not a forum for political debate and though everyone is perfectly entitled to their opinions and beliefs, there is a time and place to voice your opinions and/or protests and the funeral of a fallen soldier IS NOT one of them. Enough said? I think so.


Moving on, we were absolutely floored at the patriotism shown for Darryn and his family. People lined the roadways all the way from the small airport in College Station to the funeral home in Cameron in the unrelenting rain to salute and wave the American flag as his flag draped coffin passed by. Breathtaking. And the Patriot Guard Riders stood surrounding the church, standing at attention, holding their flags as the rain came down for hours. Breathtaking.

Darryn was buried today at Fort Sam Houston National Cemetery in San Antonio complete with a horse-drawn caisson and 21-gun salute. We did not attend the burial and to be honest, I'm not sure my heart could have taken it. I displayed enough of the "ugly cry" at the church on Saturday.

Darryn leaves behind his wife, Julie, his son, Daylan, who turned 2 just three days after Darryn died, and a daughter who is due in December. Breathtaking.

We miss you, Darryn, but know that you have found peace and happiness beyond your wildest dreams. We will never forget.

9/11/09

2nd LT Darryn Andrews: On Patriot's Day, Bringing Home a True Patriot
Posted By Robbie Cooper On 9/11/2009 (8:40 am) In Military, Patriot Guard Riders, Texas, War on Terror
RIP: 2LT Darryn Andrews

Via a Department of Defense media release:

2LT Darryn Andrews, 34, of Cameron, Texas, died Sept. 4 in Paktika Province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his vehicle with an improvised explosive device and a rocket-propelled grenade. He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska

On the day where our Nation stops, stands still, and remembers those who were murdered by Islamic jihadist on September 11, 2001 — a small-town Texas family will stand silently on a tarmac at a small country airport landing strip in College Station, Texas and wait for their father/husband/son to come home from Afghanistan in a flag-draped coffin.

But they will not be alone.

His family has invited the Patriot Guard Riders to help honor the service and ultimate sacrifice of US Army 2nd LT Darryn Andrews, 34. The PGR riders will be at the airport today where we’ll wait, cry, and pray with the Andrews family. Standing our flag line, standing for those who stood for us

I can’t imagine anywhere else I would rather be on Patriot Day. So I’ll join my fellow PGR riders for the nearly 2-hour ride through the rain to welcome home a hero. Then we’ll get back on our motorcycles and escort the Andrews family 60 miles back to Cameron, TX. Our mission is to honor the sacrifice of a true American patriot today, on Patriot Day.

And then tomorrow morning, we’ll get back on your bikes and ride back out to Cameron to stand our flag line at his funeral.

Stand down Soldier; your mission is complete. Job well done. May your Heavenly Father welcome you home to rest. My sincere condolences to the family and friends of 2Lt. Andrews, U.S. Army Airborne / OEF. LT, I am forever grateful for your service to our country. Your service and sacrifices will not be forgotten.

Today is NOT a day of service, as some on the forgetful Left would like you to think. Today is a day to remember; it’s a day to steel our resolve to continue the long fight against radical Islam and the horrific terrorism that it breeds and promotes.

Article taken from UrbanGrounds - http://urbangrounds.com
URL to article: http://urbangrounds.com/2009/09/2nd-lt-darryn-andrews/

Please pray for our military men and women. They and their families need our support.
Thanks,
Lindsay

Happy Birthday, Little Bro!

It took me a little while to recover from writing the last post, but I couldn't let today go by without wishing my one and only brother a very happy 27th birthday!!!! Proven by my post written earlier this morning, life is short and we don't know how many birthdays we're going to get, so LIVE IT UP, little bro! And if you just can't get over the fact that you are now in your "late twenties" just think, that means I'm in my "early thirties!" See, I'll always be able to make you feel better about your age because I'm 3 1/2 years ahead of you. :) Have a happy day! Love you.

Breathe Peace

To say we are heavy of heart this morning would be a gross understatement. We received word that our friend and defender of this great nation, 2nd Lt. Darryn Andrews, was killed in action on Friday, September 4th. The press release sent out on the 6th read simply:

DoD Identifies Army Casualty
The Department of Defense announced today the death of a soldier who was supporting Operation Enduring Freedom.
2nd Lt. Darryn D. Andrews, 34, of Dallas, Texas, died Sept. 4 in Paktika Province, Afghanistan, of wounds suffered when enemy forces attacked his vehicle with an improvised explosive device and a rocket-propelled grenade. He was assigned to 1st Battalion, 501st Parachute Infantry Regiment, 4th Brigade Combat Team (Airborne), 25th Infantry Division, Fort Richardson, Alaska.

He leaves behind a young wife and a little boy. Our hearts are broken. We were with Darryn and his darling family the night before he left for Afghanistan, April 4, 2009. (Darryn is on the far right.)

These guys have been through a lot of tough stuff in life but this may be the toughest yet. Darryn loved these friendships and valued them so much he chose to spend his last night here with us, in our home, sitting at my dining room table. I am humbled by his desire to to fight for our country and devastated that it cost him his life.

I have no other words right now. We will be attending his funeral in Cameron, Tx this Saturday. Would you pray for his family? If this is hard for me, I cannot even begin to imagine how his wife and his mother are standing through this.

"Now may the Lord of peace himself give you peace at all times and in every way. The Lord be with all of you."
2 Thessalonians 3:16

Lord Jesus, come quickly.

**More information from another News Source:

"I fly C-17s for the MS Air National Guard. When I landed at Bagram AB on Saturday, we picked up 2nd Lt Andrew's body and flew him to Germany, where another aircraft carried him stateside. His family would have been floored to see the send-off given to him at Bagram. It was impressive. The very least our country could do...."

Photo Shoot

My long time friend and photographer, Courtney who owns Anthologie., got up early with us on a Saturday a few weeks ago and took some great pictures of our little family. Here are just a few we especially liked. Thanks for working so hard to make Grant smile that close to nap time, Courtney! :)

Week In Review

This last week has kept us busy!

We went to visit Gips at work and took him to lunch....


Grant had a slumber party with Gigi and Gippy on Saturday night while we had a nice night out at Al Biernat's for Dallas' restaurant week. Thank you Gig and Gips!

On Monday after I finished work at the hospital we headed to Fort Worth to meet our friends Jill and Emory and the Syres family who were in town from California. How did we not get a picture of us with all the kids, girls?!?!?! So sad.

Tuesday (yesterday) we went for orientation at Grant's new school. We met his teachers and found his room....the Monkey room. Yep, very appropriately he will be in the Monkey class every Thursday at the Sonshine Academy. :) Loved his teachers and we're getting everything ready for his first day tomorrow. (I WILL get pictures tomorrow.)

After our orientation our friends Mrs. Kari, Rylie, and Brandon came over for lunch to play with Grant and Dakota and then Aunt Jenn brought over her puppy Riley to play that afternoon. And we had some good times playing with Dakota's yucky ball in the backyard....and maybe eating a little dirt while we were at it. :)







This morning we discovered Dakota's big crate with a very fun but tiny pool to play in!




And now we're napping and mommy is seriously considering a nap too!