Recovery

Andrew Jumps Into the Pool

Sweet Baby Landon

1...2...3...JUMP!

Hmmmm...Maybe Taylor Will Let Me Chew On Her Hand

What a Smile!

Having Fun in the Floatie

Daddy & Andrew

Having Fun with the Kids

Landon - Our Little Peanut

Taylor's Kiss from Daddy

Taylor Just Loved the Bumbo

The Kosciulek Family

Me & Cory

Our Family

Sweet Taylor

Andrew Having Fun with Aunt Carol & Uncle Bart

Our Family at the Dallas World Aquarium

The Whole Crew at Chuy's

The Dads Are Having Fun with the Kids

Me & Landon Hang Out in the Shade

What a weekend! It was jam-packed with fun activities and we are exhausted and still recovering from it all...I also don't think we have ever eaten as unhealthy as we did over this past weekend. It was delicious food...but we'll be paying for it! Here's what went down...

THURSDAY:
Carol & Bart came to visit and we had a blast playing with them all afternoon! John, Andrea, & Taylor arrived and we played while Cory went to go get some wonderful NY style pizza and all the fixins. We turned in fairly early - as we were all tired from one thing or another.

FRIDAY:
We had a nice relaxing morning while the kiddos played together. Cory & John went off for a round of golf and Andrea & I had an enjoyable afternoon talking and playing with the kids. Cory grilled us a wonderful dinner and we talked and played for the remainder of the evening.

SATURDAY:
We started off the morning by meeting up with everyone at the hotel for breakfast. We then headed off downtown for a trip to the Dallas World Aquarium. Andrew & Taylor loved all of the animals. After the aquarium we headed off to Chuy's - for our favorite Tex Mex. With our tummies full, we deceided to take a drive up to our lot, and let the kids nap while we were in the car. Cory again heated up the grill for dinner and made his famous "Cory Burgers" for all to enjoy!

SUNDAY:
I made a breakfast of buttermilk pancakes, and eggs with sausage, peppers, onion. We headed off to the Frisco Athletic Center to get Taylor & Andrew some fun time in the pool. We all had such a wonderful time there and it tired the little ones out after about 1 1/2 hours. We then went back to the house/hotel for a little siesta and met back up for dinner. We dined at Babe's Chicken House...yes a dinner filled with fried chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, creamed corn, biscuits, etc...It was wonderful!

MONDAY:
The last day of our weekend with the Kosciulek's. We again met up with them at the hotel for a little breakfast and went swimming at the hotel pool. Taylor & Andrew love the water and they had a blast. Cory had to take them to the airport right around lunchtime and they arrived safe & sound later in the evening.

Thank you so much John, Andrea, & Taylor for making the trip to visit us. We had such a wonderful time with you and the weekend was filled with laughter and memories. We can't wait to make the trip to come see you after John Jr. Jr. is born!

I have included some pictures hi-lighting our time over the weekend. As you can expect I took way too many pictures...ahhh the joys of a digital camera!

Having Fun

Well, if this is the way our "Crazy Month" is going to start off then I say BRING IT ON! We are all having a great time here! It was great to see Carol & Bart yesterday - and we had lots of fun playing bubbles, hide & seek, and all sort of other things with them. Their visit was too short, but we are looking forward to some more frequent visits as their business is opening an office in Frisco - Woo Hoo!

The Kosciulek's arrived safe and sound. I don't think Andrea & I have stopped talking yet! Cory & John enjoyed a game of golf this morning and then we will be grilling filet mignon's for dinner (YUM!)...enjoyed with some of Cory's perfected Mojito's...okay some of us will be gulping down these yummy adult beverages. (Andrea is carrying some prescious cargo due in November). Andrew is loving Taylor and they are playing great together. Landon is just having a great time being passed around by all...but I think his cheeks are sore from smiling so much and everybody squeezing them. :)

Now on to more hosting duties...just thought I would share a quick note with you!

ON ANOTHER NOTE:
Please tell Gustav to stay away from East Texas! He doesn't know what he's facing with a Bammes woman down there! :) Please keep my Mom in your thoughts & prayers as he comes on land Tuesday and/or Wednesday.

The Start of Our "Crazy Month"

This weekend is the beginning of what I am referring to as our "Crazy Month"...this next month holds so many events that I can't bear to think about it all at once. I must say that I am thankful for this though, because this means we are loved by (and love) our friends and family.

Tomorrow brings a surprise visit from my sister Carol - who is in town with my brother-in-law, Bart who is conducting business. We love it because we get to have fun with Aunt Carol for the day! The Kosciulek's are coming to visit us this weekend and they arrive tomorrow evening. We are very excited to see them, as it has been a year since our trip with them to Aspen. I will say it's ironic because I was pregnant with Landon when we saw them last, and Andrea is now pregnant with their second child...my how a year can change lives! We are truly looking forward to both visits and I'm sure I will have the camera out and ready to capture every memory possible.

Here's an idea of what is coming over the next month...

Trip to Mimi's for her birthday
Cory's hoppin' a plane for a boy's weekend to Florida for some golf & KU Football
Grandma Aubuchon is coming down to visit
Landon's 6 Month Check-up
Landon's 6 Month Photoshoot
Talks of other friends/family coming down to visit for a day or 2
Our 6th Anniversary will kick off October...and I think I'm missing a few things.

Exhausted? I am...

Off to get some much needed sleep - Until next time.

Damn Geckos...part 2

Okay...since my last rant on these lovely creatures proved somewhat effective, I deceided to try it again. I think my previous mental thoughts scared the buggers, because I have only seen a couple of them since (and they have been outside). I alerted Cory where I saw them so we could be extra careful not to let them in the house. About a week ago I spotted one in the foyer, and thank goodness Cory caught it and released it...see they were getting too comfortable again... Last night they struck again! I was sweeping the kitchen floor and all of the sudden the floor was moving too, and I gasped and almost dropped my broom. Cory rolled his eyes and told me to get it...Yeah, right!!! I told Diva to "get the bug" and she scared it under our cabinet in the kitchen...GREAT! Now I have a gecko hanging out under a piece of furniture which is close to where I/we eat...and right in the middle of a very high traffic area...and we have company coming tomorrow!

Disclaimer:
I usually try not to kill them (as they do eat my other foe...bugs), but if it's going to be me catching it, or Diva catching it...I'll go Diva EVERY TIME!

For Becky - Part I

Location: Playroom

Location: Our Bedroom

Location: Landon's Nursery

Location: Landon's Nursery

Location: Living Room

These pics are for Beck - so she can see how marvelous her photography looks around her gallery....or should I say our house. There are some big pieces that Cory's planning to hang tomorrow so stay tuned for Part II.

A Prayer Has Been Answered

I found out some exciting wonderful news today that chilled me to the bone. A dear friend of mine has found out that she is finally going to have the baby she and her husband have dreamt of for 4 years. It is something that I have hoped and prayed for them for a long time and it's so fantastic that they are going to get to experience such love, growth, and wonder all in one little package. Congratulations! I can't wait to meet the little one!

A Year Ago Today...

A year ago has passed since one of my most frightening days as a parent. A year ago today was the day of Andrew's surgery. It was a year ago today that Andrew's life started to change drastically...because he was finally able to hear at 100% again. I was so nervous during that drive to the hospital in the wee hours of the morning, signing him in at the front desk, getting him dressed in his little gown and reading him books on his hospital bed like nothing big was about to happen, and then watching him walk away holding the nurse's hand into the Operating Room...with me and Cory waving to him and tears streaming down my cheeks. Then the waiting game started...it took an hour and a half...and during that time Cory and I went down to grab something to eat...anything to keep our minds off the fact that our little 1 1/2 year old son was in surgery. When they came to tell us Andrew was okay Cory & I looked at each other with such relief...and thanked God, Papa, and all of the other angels looking over him & protecting him. They then took us into the recovery room, so we would be the first people he saw when he woke up...and we just hugged him and rocked him until it was time to go home.

His recovery was quicker than I expected, and the results of the surgery were dramatic. Andrew's speech improved almost instantly and his vocabulary tripled within a few weeks...it was AMAZING! The best part is that he hasn't had one ear infection or been on any antibiotics since!

This procedure was such a blessing for him...and us.