Howdy from NYC

Wow; it's been a long time since I posted new pics. This summer has been crazy! We moved to Brooklyn in stages and said long and hard goodbye to Brendan. Brendan spent the summer preparing to deploy in NC, New Jersey, and Mississippi. This past week he flew to Kuwait and will continue on to Iraq in a week or two. After he makes it to Iraq, he'll be sending me his contact info. We miss him very much, already. Send your prayers and love his way :).

Garrett and I are settling in nicely. We live in Sunset Park, Brooklyn, a nice and very family oriented neighborhood. We live across the street from Sunset Park, itself. It's a big, pretty park, and has a beautiful view of Manhantan. Our apartment is the top floor of a limestone townhouse. I'll post some pics soon. Our block is very friendly and diverse. There are lots of kids Garrett's age on the street. I just joined the local parents group. I have friends very close by, and they've been lots of help. We stayed with my friends, Casey, Mary and Micheal while we apartment hunted. There help has been invaluable.

I have so many pics from this summer. Some of the most recent pics of Brendan are on his camera, and he's going to send them to me. So, I'll post those later. On are way to New York, we stayed with Brendan's Aunt Debbie, at her beautiful home in Maryland. Garrett was thrilled at to see the dogs and horses. Garrett loved the tractor ride!

Lots more pics to be posted in the coming days.

Happy Anniversary!

Today, June 3rd, 2008, marks one year of marriage! It's already been a year; can you believe it? It seems like no time at all, and yet it seems like we've been together forever. Here's to the first!

Brendan is in France right now. He's taking part of a D-day reenactment. It's pretty awesome--jumping out of planes and taking pics and video. We are so proud of him.

Brendan was able to e-mail me from England. He jumped near Stone Henge and got to visit the site. They had a whirlwind tour of historic sites in England before heading to France.

Brendan returns on his birthday, June 11th. So, we have double celebrating to do...

Also, I have some great Mama's day pics to post, if I can find them.

A Hike, a Trip to the Farm, and Family

Last weekend was very eventful. We went for a short and very beautiful hike along the Horne Creek. Later we stopped by the historic Horne Creek Farm fair. At the farm, there was music and farm activities-- sheep shearing and cider making, 1800's style. Garrett loved the farm animals; he especially liked the turkey and the sheep.

As you can tell from the pics, Garrett thinks he's king of the trail. He loves adventures into the woods. He was delighted when Daddy tried to catch a toad. We had a lovely afternoon.

Sunday we drove to Raliegh to visit Brendan's folks, Aunt Isabelle, Aunt Katie and cousin Evelyn. We also went for a short walk near the Raliegh Museum of Art; there's a great trail sprinkled with outdoor works of art. Along the way Garrett made friends with the dog owners.

Garrett had so much fun with Evelyn. He gave her lots of raspberries and loves, whether she wanted them or not. Garrett was so tickled by Evelyn but didn't quite realize how to be gentle. We were so happy to see Katie and Evelyn b/c they live in Canada, and we don't get to see them often. Garrett knows his family. He is always so sweet with Grandma Judy, Nanny, and Great-Grandpa Ralph.

Weekend Adventures

Let me update you on what's been happening with us and our many adventures. (Long time, no pics or updates--sorry.) So, we're still trying to sell our house. We've had a few interested buyers, and last weekend, we had two showings. It's looking good, I think. Brendan and I can't wait to make the move-- one step at a time :).

Garrett is big, little man with lots of energy and spunk. He's saying more words and many more sounds. He takes a real interest in animal sounds and other sound fx-- he can moo, meow, bark, cock-a-doodle-doo, neigh, baa, hoo hoo, hiss, etc. Garrett is still a little book worm. He's recently had a big thing for Thomas the Tank Engine books and books with lots of pictures of different things (such as, The Golden Book of Science). The top 10 for Garrett: Thomas, trucks/cars, animals, airplanes, Elmo, bubbles, books, The Wiggles, new places, and horse play.

Garrett loves the outdoors. He loves playing in the grass, walks, bike rides, and nature, in general. Outdoor playtime is pretty much a must, rainy days are the worst. Over the past month we've been on several hikes and bike rides. Fortunately, our exercise equals thrills for Garrett.

On recent hikes, we've let Garrett do a bit of walking. He loved it! He thought he was the king of the trail. Garrett would alternate between going as fast as he could and stopping to examine rocks or plants.

Last weekend we went to the Piedmont Earth Day Fair. Garrett particularly enjoyed seeing the snakes and owl, from the wildlife preserve booth. Later we grilled out with our good friend Neil. On Sunday, we went to the NC Zoo. We had a great time. Garrett loved all the animals. A polar bear swam right up to the glass in front of Garrett; he was very impressed. Sometime this weekend, I'll post video from our zoo trip :).