Five Years

What a busy summer this has been. Between summer school, vacation, and taking care of Gary, it has flown by. Can you believe that we are already going back to school? Okay, kids do not come for 3 weeks, but I need to get organized if I am going to teach school and work on my master's.

Ross and I had so much fun in DC and NYC. We saw so much, did so much, WALKED so much, and were just together. This was the first time that we had left Gary for longer than a night. I think it was harder on me than it was Gary. Every time I talked with Gary on the phone he said hi and bye and then continued playing. He had a blast with his Oma and Opa, and Nana and Papa.

So our trip consisted of:

DC- We went to all the monuments and some of the museums. We also took a tour of Arlington Cemetery which was very moving. Since we were staying with Ross's brother, Brandon, we took a night at a hotel in DC. We went to Morton's Steakhouse and filled ourselves with some of the best New York Strips ever!

Harper's Ferry- When Ross and I went on our honeymoon, we went whitewater rafting which was awesome. So we found a place in West Virginia that did rafting. Ross, Brandon, Colby, Colby's two roommates, and I went together. Although the rafting left much to be desired, it was a beautiful part of the country that Ross and I plan on visiting again.

NYC- Talk about a big city. This place took my breath away. When we got in, we went to Times Square and watched Transformers. What an experience! Then walking back to our hotel at 1:30 in the morning...hmm not so smart. The next day we just walked... a lot. We went to the Empire State Building, which was cool, then just walked around taking in the sights. Ross and I then took a walk to a place called Serendipity 3. It is this really cool hole in the wall restaurant that I had seen in a movie. Wonderful frozen hot chocolate. Then we took a carriage ride through Central Park. It was so romantic.

We then came back to OKC and spent the Fourth there. It was so much fun!!

Fun in the Sun

So we are about 3 weeks into summer, and boy have we been busy. Scratch that....I have been busy. Between things at school (no, teachers do not actually get off for the whole summer), graduate school classes, and Gary, it has been busy. Ross and Gary have had a lot of male bonding time and it shows with Gary thinking that Mommy is also a wrestler.

One thing that has changed is that Gary is talking so much. He is becoming clearer and clearer. He has also become very polite. He says please and thank you for everything, which I know I better treasure while I can. :-)

Grad. school is very overwhelming. If it wasn't for Ross helping take care of Gary, I don't know what I would do. If you would like to see what I have been working on, try http://youngadultliterature101.blogspot.com. That is just one of the many projects I have up in the air.

Ross and I will leave on Wednesday for our five year anniversary trip. We are going to D.C. and NYC and are so looking forward to it. We will post picture when we get back!

Summer is Here!

We are finally our for summer. It has been such a crazy two months. Between trying to get completely enrolled in college, finish up teaching for the year, and keeping up with Gary, Ross and I need a vacation. But we did survive, and we are looking forward to a "relaxing" summer. Between my graduate courses, Ross's coaching clinics, and Gary's playdates, we are in for one busy summer. Ross and I are also going to be celebrating our 5 year anniversary. We decided to do it up right and go to D.C. and then NYC. Gary will be staying with his Grandma and Grandpa and then his Nana and Pa while we are gone. I am sure they are going to spoil him just right. :-) I am hoping to get better about posting on here over the summer, but I cannot make any promises!

April 2009

What a busy month it has been. Between schools, Easter, Thomas, and family visits, sitting down has not been an option. Starting with the first weekend, Gary and I and some friends went to see Thomas. It was freezing but we toughed it out. There was a huge model train, a blacksmith, and a ton of train tables. Then to top it all off we got to ride Thomas, which the boys got a kick out of.

Then this past weekend, my parents came down for Easter along with my grandma and brother. On Saturday, my mom and grandmother came down with kites in tow. Gary had a blast. He did not get the hang of it for awhile and his attention was short, but it was fun while it lasted.

Then on Sunday we woke up to rain pouring down. So a little of manipulating got the Easter Egg put indoors for the second year in a row. But with all of my family here we had a blast. Lots of food and watching Gary look for Easter Eggs made a perfect day.

Now if I can get my flowers planted tomorrow and brick off some of our backyard.

Spring Update

As we move into Spring, a lot has been going on in the Lassley household. For starters, I applied to graduate school. Ross and I have been talking and after lots of thoughts and prayers on the topic we decided that it would be best for our family. I have been thinking about being a librarian for years now, but timing never seemed right. And with Ross's coaching taking up so much time, I knew that this was the way to go.

And then Ross and I decided to get a new car. The Element was getting to small and we got a good deal and we love it.

Spring Break was a lot of fun. Gary and I went to Houston for a wedding. We got to see a lot of family. Then we went to Oklahoma for the rest of the break. One of the great things we got to do was go to the zoo. I have posted some of the pics. Gary is so much fun with animal sounds. Enjoy the pics!

Christmas 2008

What a wonderful Christmas! Between all the family time in OKC, then coming back to Krum for our first Santa visit in our house, we were so blessed.

On Saturday, 21st, we started for Oklahoma not too full, but with a very cold wind. Brandon and Angela, Ross's brother and his wife, were coming in from D.C. and we were very excited to see them. We stayed with the Lassley's for Saturday and Sunday and had a lot of food and good family time. Ross 's grandmother and her husband came in from Askansas baring many yummy homemade goodies. And then the much anticipated Risk game was finally played. Ross, Brandon, Colby, Gary, Heath (my brother), and Cole (Colby's friend) all sat there for 3 hours trying to take over each other's territory. This is boy's game, through and through. At one point, the yelling got so loud that I had to go intervene.

On Sunday, we also went to my Ma's house and had Christmas with her and my aunt and uncle from here in Dallas. Ma always supplies the yummy food, and this was no exception. Then we played a few Christmas games supplied by my mom.... she needs to work on her French accent, and just visited.

Then on Monday we transported ourselves over to my parents house were Gary decided that the Christmas tree was his domain. He loved to mess with everything, then go chase the cats. It is good that we don't have any cats at our house because I am sure that they would be terrified of our so-exited-I-am-going-to-hop-around-and-scream child. We got to spend time with my parents and Heath and his girlfriend. Then we went over to my other grandmother's and got to see my dad's side of the family. This is were Gary got his stick horse to finish off his cowboy themed year.

Then on Tuesday, we had a chance to sit around before we went and took pictures with the Lassley's. This was what Ross's mom had wanted for awhile. Then we went back to my parents house for spagetti and meatballs and a game on Monopoly.

On Christmas Eve, we opened presents with both families before heading home to try and beat Santa Claus there. Gary was so excited to come down the stairs and see his new train table.

Gary was going a little stir crazy, but it was freezing in OKC.

My mom trying to keep him away from the tree!

Helping Papa pass out presents.

The Risk game!

A few early presents at the Lassleys

Helping Nana passout presents to Great-Granny.

Sitting with Grandma and Grandpa

Gary and his train table!

Christmas Cookies

Every year in the Lassley household, there is a cookie frenzy going on. Passed down from generation to generation, there is a special sugar recipe that beats them all. The first time that I spent a Christmas with them, I was put to work making the dough, then sprinkling.

Well, for the first time Ross and I made our own cookies. This is such a progress that Ross had actually filmed it one year to make sure we did it right. Overall, I think Ross and I did pretty well. We ended up make 4 batches over the course of the holidays. We did pass the "Gary" test which made us very proud.

One of the many cookies we made!

Gary's Birthday

Gary in his new wagon

Gary opening up his presents.

This year he knows how to blow out his candles.

The birthday table!

As much as Ross and I cannot believe it, our little boy is 2 years old. Gary has gotten so big. He is talking a lot more, and with that comes the arguing. My dad keeps telling me that I deserve all the arguing I get.

Some of his favorite things are trains, trains, Cars (Disney version), and playing outside. It has been nice enough recently to take him out in the wagon that his Grandma and Grandpa got for him.

Gary's birthday party was focused on Thomas the Tank Engine! We had family and some friends come over to help us celebrate.