The Corry family

Another one bites the dust

2011-01-09T18:43:00.000-08:00

David lost his third tooth tonight...the front tooth. Technically, it was his 3rd lost but only the 2nd one he really got to pull out. His second lost tooth was pulled by the anesthesiologist before his surgery since it was loose and a risk. We saved that one and he wrote a note to the tooth fairy explaining the circumstances. David's mind was full as I tucked him in and the biggest concern he has is that he won't be able to bite into an apple for a long time. :) I told him I'd be glad to cut his apples up for him until his "big" teeth come in.

Snow 2010....take 2

2011-01-09T18:23:00.000-08:00

I still can't believe it snowed so much in SC last February and yet we got it again just after Christmas! The kids loved it! Daddy stayed outside with David and Grant playing in it for a long time. Oliver and I went out for a bit and decided it was a little too cold for him and headed inside to keep warm. I believe we got between 2-3 inches and it snowed off and on all day. It was gone the next day but we still had some patches of snow for several days after. How cool to move back to SC and get snow....twice in one year!

Christmas 2010

2011-01-09T17:57:00.000-08:00

Ok, I'm playing a little catch up here again. Our computer is very close to crashing so I haven't been able to upload photos the way I used to. We did a little travelling just before Christmas to visit family but spent the Christmas weekend at home. This year I participated in the "Bayler's birthday bash 5k" in honor of Bayler Teal, who passed away this year. It was a wonderful event and we made it a family affair. They raised quite a bit of money for Pediatric cancer. How wonderful!

We always love attending our church's Christmas eve candlelight service. We also baked our birthday cake for Jesus but decided to make it a cookie cake this year so we could share it with santa. What magic there is to see Christmas in the eyes of a child! The children were very blessed and each got one "big" item. Grant got a big girl bike, David got a whiplash scooter and Oliver got a laugh and learn crawl-thru toy. BeeGee and Papa came over later that day and we had a nice lunch. It was a very Merry Christmas indeed. We pray God's blessings rain down on us all in 2011!

Out of the mouth of Babe

2010-12-15T17:24:00.000-08:00

I have to blog this one because it is simply amazing! I was tucking Little David in tonight and he looks up at me and says, "Mommy, thank you for all of the wonderful things you do for Me and Grant." I smiled and choked up and said, "David, that is so sweet. Thank you so much....Did Daddy ask you to tell me that?" He replied, "No, Mommy I was just lying here thinking about it and I really wanted to say that to you." Then he said, "Good things are coming your way Mommy." Of course this led to a session that I like to call "Kiss your face off". I nearly bathed him in kisses and told him how proud I was to be his Mommy and how much I love him.
Now, I ask you....does life get any better? Thanks be to God for living in the precious heart of my son and always guiding me....even in the words of a 7 year old!

Giving Thanks

2010-12-01T09:47:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Thanksgiving this year! It was our 1st one at "home" with our family in 4 years. Little David didn't understand what all the fuss was about until afterwards...he had only seen me cook for our little family in recent years. Mom, Les and I did all of the cooking and we had a real feast! Robbie and Rachel joined us as well as Aunt Dotty. It was a perfect day. We have so much to be thankful for. What am I most thankful for? I am so thankful that God blessed me with 3 healthy, beautiful children. I asked Little David what he was most thankful for and his response was, "I am thankful for God and that I live in a free country so I can worship him." Speechless! What an amazing faith-filled boy he is! My cup runneth over....

Happy Birthday Grant

2010-11-29T17:55:00.000-08:00

I feel terrible because I am so behind on my posts. Our precious Grant celebrated her 3rd birthday on November 5th. We have had such a busy few weeks that we decided to ring in her birthday with a small family party. Leslie, Joey, Carlysle, Callie, BeeGee and Papa joined us for a spaghetti dinner, per Grant's request. I made cupcakes in her favorite color, white with white icing. It was a wonderful night and when I tucked her in that night she said, "Mommy, thank you for my party." We love our angel girl so much and can't believe she's 3!!!! BeeGee took Grant to the salon for her 1st real big girl hair cut and I love it! It suits her so well. She is our sassy little ball of fire and we are so proud of her!

Cub Scout

2010-11-22T06:33:00.000-08:00

David joined cub scouts this year and we are so proud of him! Daddy was a cub scout and boy scout and went all the way just shy of Eagle scout. We are thrilled that David is learning such wonderful life lessons and helping his community. They have done so many awesome things already and I can't wait to see what else is in store. We love our Tiger Scout!

Halloween 2010

2010-11-12T17:55:00.000-08:00

Meet Woody, Jessie and their trusty steed...Bullseye! We had an awesome Halloween evening! We started out with a stop at Mantissa Row to see BeeGee and Papa and finished up at Emmanuel Christian for their Halloween Carnival. Aunt C tagged along and we all had a great time! We are still trying to finish off the gobs of candy they got at the trunk or treat!

Oliver's christening

2010-11-12T17:08:00.000-08:00

We had Oliver christened in my home church in Bishopville on October 24th. It was such a perfect day! The sermon was perfect, the choir was perfect, and Oliver was perfect! He honestly looked like a little cherub. He never made a peep and just looked around while the preacher carried him around the sanctuary. Oliver was wearing a family heirloom christening gown which has been worn by 9 other babies in the family, all starting with David's Mother. We celebrated with a luncheon at our house after the service. It was a perfect day! We are so blessed and happy to share this special moment in Oliver's life with our family.

Family fun on the farm

2010-11-11T17:10:00.000-08:00

Several weeks ago we had David's mom and siblings out for a fun day on the farm. The cousins had a blast painting picture frames and pumpkins, roasting marshmallows, eating caramel apples, building a fire in the fort, swinging on the rope swing and even taking turns driving Grandaddy's pickup truck. It was a full weekend of so many awesome activites! David even coordinated a family game of kickball. Fall is my absolute favorite time of year and weekends like this make it just perfect! We all had an amazing time and can't wait to do it again!

Happy 7th Birthday David

2010-10-27T10:41:00.000-07:00

My baby is 7!!!! My how time flies...I say it every year! David's actual birthday is today but we celebrated with a party a few Saturdays ago and it was awesome! The kids had a blast with all of the Fall fun! We had a hayride, face painting, rope swinging, hot dogs, cupcakes and candy galore. David said it was the "most fun party ever"...that's all I needed to hear. I was so thrilled to see him and all of the children have such a good time. It was a perfect day! Oh, and yes that is Big David driving the tractor for the hayride...he really wants to be a country boy! I'd say he's well on his way! A big thank you to William Welsh for the tractor and to Aunt C, BeeGee and all of those who helped make the party the best one ever!

Pieces of Me

2010-10-11T17:45:00.000-07:00

Our daily lives continue to be full of all of the little moments that fill the day and make life more interesting. I'm amazed at how much the children are growing and learning. I'm amazed at how quickly Oliver's infancy is flying by...as though it's a dream. David is busy in school and started cubscouts. Grant is loving school a few days a week and the rest of the time, she enjoys being at home with me. The recent cooler weather has made for some great days at the park. We went to the park almost every day last week. The milder weather also got me outdoors some and I enjoyed taking Oliver for several walks. I can't even describe how much better I feel after a walk/jog in the park, and Oliver seemed just as happy. He actually cooed and giggled the first 10 minutes...maybe it was all of that activity when he was in my tummy? Whatever the case, it sure did us both good!
I've been thinking so much lately about how I give all of these little pieces of myself throughout my day to the ones I love. I pray that they understand and feel comforted in those small ways a mother loves. I find myself reflecting and wondering if they know and feel how much I love them by the ways in which I serve them. Will they ever know how much I put into making their lunchboxes late at night when I'm so tired I can barely stand? Do they understand the joy I get from seeing them run in the park with pure delight? There are endless days of discipline and love and laughter that aren't always easy and days sometimes run together. I've even commented that my life seems at times like the movie "Groundhogs day"....same thing over and over. Oh, but it's not! I learn so much from Grant as we talk and play blocks together and I learn so much from David as we sit and do his homework. I'm simply elated when Oliver looks at me and smiles his larger than life grin. They are wonderful blessings that I begged God for and I am so unbelieveably grateful for them.
So, in the quiet moments when the house is still....I find myself reflecting on how important my role as mother is. I pray for God's guidance and strength and I pray that they always know how much I love them and that I willing give them...all the pieces of me.

Cropduster and Combines

2010-09-04T18:22:00.000-07:00

Life in the country continues to be full of wonderful experiences for the children. The last several weeks have been filled with endless days of watching the plane "dust the crops". It has been so cool...almost like having your own air show right in your front yard. Several weeks ago we had our dear friends, The Adams Family come out for dinner and the kids had a blast running out in the yard trying to get the attention of the pilot. Despite their attempts, he was all business but he did get awfully low and fly right over their heads...I swear he was skimming the tops of the plants! So, after all the excitement over the cropdusting, we now have combines all around us as this year's corn crop is being harvested. I took David and Grant out to watch as they cut the field right next to the house and poured the corn into the 18wheeler...they were so excited! It makes me so proud to share the farming way of life with them. I just hate that they never got to see Papa as a farmer but they learn so much from him just as he works in the yard or toils in the garden. I hope they will also develop the love that I have always had for taking care of the earth and being responsible for it. Now, after all of those nice thoughts...I can't help but worry about all of the chemicals our friend "Mr Cropduster" has been spraying all around us. Let's just hope we don't start sprouting cauliflower from our ears! Yikes!

Oliver's 1st solid food

2010-08-29T17:29:00.000-07:00

Well, it was time...I knew it but was in denial. My little caboose is growing so fast! Words can't even describe the joy I experience every day with Oliver. All of my children were miracles and all were surprise blessings...I try to remind myself of that daily. What a joy Oliver has been! Many of my posts are centered around the activities of David and Grant because frankly, they are just "doing" more. However, Oliver is doing momentous things too and I'm going to try to do better to document them. Oliver has been showing signs of interest while we were all eating so I finally decided to set him up in the highchair and feed him rice cereal. He did really well and was leaning in for more. I started the experience, followed by Daddy, and then David and Grant each had a turn feeding him. Oliver is also now rolling over, in both directions and is now enjoying his exersaucer. My how time flies! I feel like his infancy is zooming by! We are so blessed by these small but huge moments in his life!

1st Day of School

2010-08-18T05:21:00.000-07:00

I can hardly believe David is a 1st grader! David and Grant both started school on Monday at Emmanuel Christian School in Hartsville. Grant is a proud 2ker and she seems to love school! She has literally walked around wearing her backpack everyday for weeks. She is only going 3 days a week but she wants to go everyday. David was so ready for 1st grade and he told me he wasn't even nervous. He recognized several of his classmates from his kindergarten class. It was so bittersweet to watch him walk in to his classroom and sit at his own desk. I can't believe how grown and independent he is! I'm so proud of my big kids!

Visit with Mana and Papa

2010-08-18T04:59:00.000-07:00

I decided to take the kids on a last summer hurrah up to Spartanburg to see my grandparents. We had a wonderful time! Mana and Papa took us to Chuck E. Cheese and swimming at Uncle David's pool and lots of other fun things. It was great to spend a few days with them and great to see Sarah, Uncle David and Aunt Karen. We have all agreed that Oliver looks so much like Uncle David!

1st trip to the Dentist

2010-08-17T06:25:00.000-07:00

David is an old pro at going to the Dentist but we had Grant's 1st trip to the Dentist a few weeks ago. We are so fortunate to have "Uncle Lindy" as our dentist and we got the royal treatment! It was a real family affair! Aunt C was on hand to help out and everyone held Oliver...we actually just took over the office! Grant did so well and sat like a princess and let Mrs Daphne clean her teeth like a big girl! I was so proud of them both! They were excited to pick out treats from the treasure box and left with lolipops...sugar free of course! It was a really fun and positive experience and Grant is already asking to go back! Thanks to our favorite Denist and staff! We love you guys!

Peach preserves

2010-08-17T05:44:00.001-07:00

I recently decided to embrace my inner pioneer woman and do my first canning project. We had a bunch of wonderful peaches from McLeod Farms so I tackled peach preserves. It was an all day endeavor but when it was all done...I had super yummy peach jam. I was bummed after all that work, that I only had 5 cans! Next time, I will triple the recipe so I can give away more jars. David and Grant loved helping me and I remember doing the same thing with my mom when I was a child.

Carrie and Aiden visit from Texas

2010-08-03T17:45:00.000-07:00

My very dear friend from Texas, Carrie and her son Aiden, came to SC to visit a few weeks ago. We were so thrilled! Our children (Carrie has another son and daughter as well) are also so close and Carrie and I were just like Peas and Carrots from the moment we met. We couldn't wait to show them around our area and share our South Carolina pride! We spent the first day around the house and the kids had a blast playing on the waterslide. The next day, we were off to the beach! We found an amazing last minute deal at Litchfield Beach and decided it was only right for them to see the coast. Our first afternoon was spent settling in and spending a little time by the pool. The next day we took a day excursion into Charleston and met up with Daddy. We got the full tour of the Citadel...sorry Carrie....I know David gave you the history of every rock on campus...he's so proud. :) Daddy even gave the kids the celebrity treatment by letting them run the football field. We followed that up with a quick visit with Kelsey and the girls and Nana and Aunt Margaret- then off to the market. Carrie was fascinated with market and loved the Gullah culture. She was introduced to lots of Southern things and became very familiar with Southern heat and humidity. It was so hot at the market but the kids did great and we had to reward them with ice cream. Our last and final day at the beach, we awoke to rain. :( The kids were devastated and so were the adults. We couldn't be at the beach and not get to go to the beach! We waited out the rain and decided to stay another night so we could get some actual time at the beach. Daddy decided to make our wait interesting by making the kids have a race in their flippers in the rain. It was hilarious! The rain finally passed and we squeezed in a few hours at the pool and the beach. Even little Oliver loved his first trip to the beach....he was just chillin out under the tent. We had a wonderful few days with Carrie and Aiden and we look forward to annual visits with our families like this. What a blessing to have such wonderful friends!

July 4th fun in Hilton Head

2010-07-19T12:37:00.001-07:00

Little David spent a week in Hilton Head at camp. He had so much fun with Nana and Papa Stanley! Following his week at camp, we met him there and spent the weekend in Hilton Head. The weather was so amazing and I just couldn't stop exclaiming how wonderful it was! We had such great meals outside and the kids had a great time in the pool and hot tub. We had a brief visit to the beach and topped off our weekend with a family photo session with our favorite HH photographer, Willie. I snapped a few pics with my camera just before Willie arrived and captured a few precious moments. We had a great time visiting and relaxing together as a family.

Father's Day

2010-07-19T11:08:00.000-07:00

I'm playing a little catch up on my blog while I have a very rare, quiet moment. David invited his siblings and his Dad out to the farm to play golf for Father's Day. They had a blast playing golf on Papa's "Grantsmanship" course. Joanne got a great golf lesson from Grandpa Don and her very well dressed brother. Yes, I do see the pants...he has several pair...I know....no comment needed. The kids had a great time playing on the water slide and catching up. Oliver was happy to meet his Higgins cousins. He watched most of the excitement from his bouncy seat and enjoyed hanging out with Trish. I'm sure if Oliver could talk, he'd be asking Daddy "what's up with the pants?" :)

Summer fun with cousins

2010-07-19T10:31:00.000-07:00

We had the Delaney family here for almost a week while Uncle Joey had call at a pediatric practice in Hartsville. We loved having them here! The kids had a blast playing on the water slide and the slip 'n' slide. What a great way to really kick off summer! Les and I have always dreamed we could have our families close...now that we're back in SC, that dream is a reality!

Clean up on aisle 5

2010-06-20T17:48:00.000-07:00

What do you do when your toddler has a poopy in their swimsuit and you're too busy playing outside to stop the activities? You hose them down of course! Oh Daddy!

We love telling the story when Daddy hosed down Lil D when he was a toddler and now it seems history is repeating itself!

Tie dye and Mud Pies

2010-06-20T17:30:00.000-07:00

How do you jazz up a summer day in the country? Well, with Mud pies and tie dye of course! We even topped our fun off with an outdoor potty!

Moving and a Grooving

2010-06-02T15:58:00.001-07:00

It's been another one of those days...you know, the kind where you're ready for bed at 3:30 in the afternoon. Grant is potty training and she went through 5 pairs of panties (3 containing juicy poop) before 11am. I've also cleaned numerous puddles around the house. Meanwhile, David is in to everything and at the same time is claiming to be bored. Oliver is just precious but still has to be fed every 3 hours and then held upright while he fusses for the next hour because of his tummy trouble. We just finished dinner and I rewarded the children with chocolate...they are wearing most of it. I decided to take a break from cleaning the kitchen to see what oldest brother and sister are up to and tip toe in to the den to peek. They are both dancing their hearts out and singing to the "Fresh Beat Band" on tv. Now, you parents know just what I'm talking about...."we had a great day....a super day.....spend some time together..." come on-you know that song! I literally had to put my hand over my mouth to contain my giggles! In that moment I realized that this is the good stuff....this is life. There is nothing but simple unadulterated joy in dancing to a catchy song. So, bring on the pee pee and the biting and the screaming and the poop smeared panties! At the end of the day, it's all precious and we did "have a great day....a super day..."

The graduate....again

2010-05-28T17:29:00.000-07:00

David has already had more graduations than many ever get! We celebrated in Texas as he graduated from 4k to 5k and became an official elementary student. This year we celebrated in South Carolina as he graduated kindergarten. It is so hard to believe my baby boy will be a first grader! The graduation skit/musical and ceremony at Emmanuel Christian School was impressive! We even got a nice keepsake "diploma" with his cap and gown picture and his official report card. David's gpa for kindergarten....99.7!!!! We salute our graduate and couldn't be prouder!

3 angels

2010-05-17T07:46:00.001-07:00

The children were dressed for church on Sunday and we decided to take advantage of them being in their "handsome" and "pretty" clothes to snap a few pics. We took them all around the yard and snapped away. I think we got quite a few good ones considering they weren't into the photo shoot very much. Daddy finally bribed them with gum and the smiles came natural. I have several with the actual wad of gum showing in their cheeks! Oliver was great- even posing while he spit up a million times! It was a gorgeous day and we are so proud of our beautiful blessings.

Farmer David

2010-04-24T17:50:00.000-07:00

David has been talking to his Papa for years about one day growing a vegetable garden together. It was actually one of the first things he asked about when we told him we were moving back to SC. He has been so excited to get his hands in the earth and plant. David and Papa are growing lots of herbs, several types of lettuce, cabbage, broccoli, strawberries, cucumbers, squash, tomatoes and a giant pumpkin...just to name a few. Their first harvest was broccoli and we steamed it for dinner- man was it good! We are really looking forward to all of the wonderful vegetables we'll be having this summer.

Welcome to the world Baby Oliver

2010-04-06T05:18:00.000-07:00

We are so happy to announce the birth of our son, Oliver Morrison Corry. He was born on March 31st at 12:00 weighing in at a whopping 6lbs and 15ozs! He is so much smaller than my other 8.5lb babies. We had a little rocky start because Mommy had an infection in the amniotic fluid and was running a very high fever. Oliver's heartrate wasn't tolerating the fever well and they had to quickly give me pitocin to speed things along. There's nothing like being very ill with a super high fever and in labor! Yuck! They kept us in the hospital for several days for us both to have rounds and rounds of antiobiotics and we were finally able to come home Saturday. We are both on the mend and doing very well. Oliver is such a sweet baby....he is currently sleeping through the "zoo" around him and I pray he will always be able to do that. David and Grant are very proud of their baby brother. We are so blessed!

A name of honor

2010-03-29T12:07:00.000-07:00

David's grandmother (Gaga) passed away last Sunday afternoon. She was a wonderful woman and lived a full life. Before she passed, she spent Saturday afternoon visiting with most of the members of her family, including my precious ones. David took David Jr and Grant down to Charleston to see her last Saturday and I'm so grateful they got to have a wonderful visit with her. Big David is doing well but he was very close to Gaga and has been living with her in Charleston the last 6 weeks. What a blessing they had that time together! We will miss her but we know she is home and as Lil D says, "Gaga is walking on streets of Gold"! We have decided to name our son "Oliver Morrison Corry"- he will be named after Gaga and her husband, David's Pop. Gaga was Kathryn Oliver and his Pop was Carl Morrison. So, we are thrilled to give our son this name of honor. We look forward to meeting Oliver real soon!

No More Passy

2010-03-29T12:00:00.000-07:00

Grant has been attached to her passy from the moment she was born. We have tried several times to talk her in to giving up passy but we really didn't think she was ready. Grant is still very oral and inappropriately puts everything in her mouth, at least the passy was appropriate and kept her mouth occupied. However, for several months she has had nothing short of blisters all around her mouth from constant licking and sucking passy. So, last Saturday we decided it was time to force the issue. We explained to Grant that passy was hurting her mouth and she was too big for it. I bagged up all of her passy's in a ziploc bag and placed it in a tree. We waited an hour and went back to discover that the Mommy birds had taken her passy's off to their babies in the nest! It was the only thing that Grant would allow....we made a huge deal about how special it was that she shared her passy's with the baby birds. It has not been an easy transition but as time passes, she seems to be doing fine. She still cries for it and getting her to sleep is harder but it needed to be done, especially before her baby brother arrives. Now we sit in the kitchen window and try to spot the baby birds with passy's in their mouths! Hooray for Grant!

One for the books....

2010-03-17T11:52:00.001-07:00

David lost his first tooth last week! It was a momentous occasion since most of the kids his age have been losing teeth for awhile now. I figured he'd be a late "tooth loser" since he was a late "tooth bloomer". He got his first tooth at 11 months old! So, he has joined his peers in their gapped grins. He was so excited when it was loose that he was determined to get it out so he could get on the tooth chart at school. He wiggled and wiggled until his determination paid off...I thought he'd never stop bleeding. He placed his prize tooth under his pillow and was thrilled to discover the tooth fairy paid him a visit....a $2.00 visit!!!!

Weekend trip to Hilton Head

2010-03-08T16:25:00.000-08:00

We went to Hilton Head this past weekend to visit with Nana and Papa Stanley. We had a wonderful visit. The kids had a blast playing at Harbor Town and Daddy and David even went to the top of the lighthouse. We had beautiful weather and enjoyed making crafts and planting an herb garden with Nana and had lots of wonderful meals. We capped it all off by stopping by the beach Sunday morning to take some family pictures. What a great weekend! Oh, and those of you in Texas who have been asking for belly shots....here they are!

Visit to the sheep farm

2010-03-08T15:52:00.000-08:00

BeeGee and Papa took us several weekends ago to the Ovis Hill Sheep farm which is just right around the bend. The kids loved seeing the sheep and they even got to feed some of the babies. Grant even got to "hold" a one day old newborn. We finished up our visit with a quick stop in the store and came home with some 7 year old cheese. It was a great way to spend a Saturday morning!

Snow

2010-02-13T17:17:00.000-08:00

We had 5 inches of snow last night and it was so beautiful! Leslie and Family were here for the weekend and it was so great for the children to enjoy the snow together. This was Grant's first real snow and she loved it! The kids had a blast making a snowman and snow angels and even came inside and made snow cream. Don said this was the most snow he had ever seen here. It has been a very cold, strange winter....they're even forcasting more snow later this week. What a wonderful experience for the children to have!

Family news

2010-02-13T17:08:00.000-08:00

We are so happy to announce that Daddy found a new job! He will be working at The Citadel Foundation, a non-profit organization that raises funds for the benefit of the school and it's initiatives. David is thrilled for the opportunity to work for his alma mater. He starts his new job on Monday and will be in Charleston during the week until we can move down with him probably late May, or early June. We will miss him terribly during these next few months but know it will be good in the long run. We are so proud of you Daddy!

Farm livin is the life for me

2010-01-18T06:54:00.001-08:00

The children have really enjoyed living out here in the country with all of this room to roam. Little David is loving every minute of it! Papa bought him a set of walky talky's so he can go around as he pleases as long as he checks in. His handle is "goose" and Daddy's is "maverick"....very original. :)

Papa and the boys spent several hours over the last few weekends making a clearing out in the "wildwood" for a fort. I must admit, it is one cool hideout...complete with firepit. Joey, Les, Carlysle and Callie were all here this weekend too so we had a family bonfire on Friday night. We all had a blast cooking hotdogs, jiffy pop and smores on the fire!

Pretty Feet

2010-01-18T06:37:00.000-08:00

Grant let me paint her toenails for the first time and it was so stinkin cute! I honestly didn't think she would sit still for it, but she did! I don't own any "baby pink" polish so it was either black, or bright red. I went for the red! She looked so cute and walked around showing her Daddy her painted toes. Daddy said he wasn't quite ready for it but he loved seeing his little girl smiling about her pretty feet!

First Day of New School

2010-01-14T04:59:00.001-08:00

David and Grant were both eager to start their first days of school in SC. David is attending Emmanuel Christian School in Hartsville and Grant is going to the preschool at St Barts Episcopal church in Hartsville. They both did very well when we dropped them off. David's class was excited to see him and had already prepared for the new student, they were fighting over who would sit next to him. So cute! Grant was easily won over when she saw that her new classroom had a big slide, and two stuffed Barney dolls. She says everyday, "Barney slide". When the novelty of those things have worn off, her teachers know the root to Grant's heart is thru her stomach...they keep snacks on hand for when we leave her. It's a sure fire way to bring her right out of a fit!

I only have one pic of each on their first day. Little David wanted Daddy to walk him in so I sat in the car with Sissy...deep sigh. We have so enjoyed having Daddy around for all of these little/big moments that I am more than willing to step aside and let him have his turn. We are so proud of our precious angels!

Hello again

2010-01-12T13:27:00.000-08:00

Well, it appears as though my blog has become outdated! I am so sorry that I have not been updating, especially to all of my Texas friends that I told this was a way to stay in touch with us. We are doing well and getting settled in. I'm just wondering when it will stop feeling like a long visit. David and Grant are really loving their new schools and that makes Mommy very happy. Daddy is still job searching and we continue to pray hard for God to open the right door for us. I am feeling well and am still amazed at how quickly this pregnancy is going. Baby #3 will be here before we know it! We still haven't settled on a name yet but I have a few I like. I'll keep you posted when we decide.
I still can't find my usb device to upload my pics but I will try to get a new one so I can put up some new pics. Hope everyone is doing well!

It's a BOY!

2009-12-01T17:29:00.001-08:00

Well, I have to say...the last few weeks I have been convinced that I was having a boy but it seemed all of the signs pointed to a girl. I had my 20 week ultrasound today and Baby #3 looks very healthy. David and I were relieved for the reassurance of knowing the baby is ok and then we celebrated that we're having another boy. Lil David is excited but when I first told him he said, "Aw Man...I wanted another sister." Now he's on board once I explained how cool it is that he gets to have a sister and a brother! Our due date is April 14th and we're discussing names- no decisions on that yet. We are so blessed to know our baby boy looks healthy and the pregnancy is progressing well!

Homeward Bound

2009-11-15T06:53:00.000-08:00

Well, it's official...we are moving back to South Carolina! We will be moving to the farm while we can get things settled. Lil D is looking so forward to getting back! It is very bittersweet for me...I have wonderful friends in this community but I am thrilled to be going home. We will be really happy to be near family, especially when baby #3 comes. So...our move date is December 11th....Homeward Bound!

Our new address: 2001 Sandy Grove Church Rd Lamar, SC 29069
My cell # will stay the same: 910-367-8364

Grant's 2nd Birthday

2009-11-15T06:27:00.000-08:00

I am very delayed on this post....sorry. We had a wonderful time celebrating Grant's 2nd birthday! Her actual bday is Nov. 5th but we celebrated with a party on the 7th. We had a few of her favorite friends and family over and she had a blast! We enjoyed cupcakes and the kids had a great time playing and busting the pinata. I can hardly believe she is 2...her life has been going at warp speed! Happy 2nd Birthday to our little Angel!

Trick or Treat

2009-11-02T17:00:00.000-08:00

We had a wonderful Halloween this year! David and Grant went as Superboy and Supergirl and they were adorable...if I don't say so myself. We went to the annual Baptist festival and also stopped by our Methodist church for Trunk or Treat. We didn't do any knocking on doors, except for the neighbors. It was so cute to see Reese, Rynn and Raegan come to our door...then we just walked over to their house and David and Grant got treats from them. We also were thrilled to have Mana and Papa join in the festivities...what a great night!

Mana and Papa visit TX

2009-11-02T11:14:00.000-08:00

Mana and Papa flew out to surprise David for his birthday and it worked! They had some flight delays getting here but made it in time to walk in and surprise David after school last Monday. His eyes lit up and he said, "What are ya'll doing here?" I think he was in shock and so happy! They stayed the whole week and we had a great visit. They were even here for Halloween and got to go to the church festival with us. We are so glad they came and had a great time!

Football....1st Houston "Texans" game...then...Dallas "Cowboys"

2009-11-02T10:55:00.000-08:00

Daddy has a client who plays football for the Houston Texans. Kevin was great and got David tickets so he could take Little David for his birthday. Donald and all of his girls went as well. They all had a blast! I stayed home with Grant...not the environment for her. The kids were excited because they even got to meet Kevin after the game!

This week, Daddy was supposed to go meet with a business client in his box suite at the Dallas Cowboys game. Unfortunately, the gentleman wasn't feeling well but offered up his tickets and his suite to David so he could bring his family for a fun day. The stadium is amazing...larger than life! Watching the game from a catered suite is definitely the way to go! We had a blast and David Jr has had some awesome once-in-a-lifetime experiences!

David's 6th Birthday Party

2009-10-24T18:02:00.000-07:00

Today was David's 6th Birthday party and we all had a blast! We had the party at Rockhopper's in Marble Falls for the 3rd year. The children love playing games and always have a great time there. This year David's theme was Citadel/Gamecock Football and Halloween! Thanks to Nana and BeeGee for getting us the Citadel and Gamecock gear! David was surrounded by great friends and family and it was a fabulous day. We are so proud of our little...almost...6 year old (actual birthday 10/27)!

Pumpkin Patch 2009

2009-10-18T19:00:00.000-07:00

We love to visit our local Berry farm/Pumpkin patch. We have enjoyed picking berries there over the years and we love going out when it's a pumpkin patch. This year it was so crowded we didn't do any of the "stuff"...just took pictures and enjoyed the beautiful weather. I can't believe how much our Lil Pumpkins have grown! It definitely feels like fall/Halloween now!

SC visit and Candice's wedding

2009-10-07T18:02:00.000-07:00

I am overdue on this post because my usb port device that I use to upload my photos went out and I had to get a new one. So...we're back with the program! We had a great visit to SC...Grant and I went and spent 10 days and the boys came out for the weekend for Candice's wedding. The wedding was beautiful and they didn't let a little torrential downpour and flooding deter them from having a great time. Candice was a beautiful bride and everyone had a great time! The wedding was at "Pretty Place" chapel and the reception was at Key Falls Inn in Brevard, NC. It was a gorgeous setting for a wedding.
We also had a great time visiting with BeeGee and Papa and we even got to briefly see Nana. We also got to visit with the whole Girtman and extended clan and Grandmother Hart. Mana and Papa met us in Spartanburg for lunch on our way up to the mountains and that was an extra treat. I was really wanting to get my hands on Callie and love her up good but we had to be careful. Joey had contracted the swine flu and they had to quarantine the family. I met Leslie in the park and was able to hold Callie outside briefly and it made my heart soar! She is so beautiful and Leslie looks amazing and seems so content and settled. I hope to see big Sis Carlysle on our next visit. We always love our visits "home"!

3

2009-09-09T11:45:00.000-07:00

Well, it's ironic that 3 has always been a lucky number for me....all 3 numbers are my favorites. Ironic because we are expecting our third child! Ahhh! This is an unexpected blessing! David and I are excited about a third...it's just taken me a few weeks to adjust to the idea. :) We had our first ultrasound yesterday and the baby looks good with a stong heartbeat. We decided after that reassurance to go ahead and spill the beans. Besides...I'm showing already for heavens sake! So...baby's due date is April 14th. I am 9 weeks along. We told Little David the news last night and he is very excited to be a big brother again. His early prediction is that the baby is a boy and he wants his name to be Dylan. More irony since that is the same name Daddy said he liked...for a boy or girl! :) We are happy that God has blessed us again and we look forward to the future!

David's first day of Kindergarten

2009-08-24T16:48:00.000-07:00

I can hardly believe my angel boy started Kindergarten today! He was armed with his new backpack and ready to go! He is excited about his teacher and he knew most of the kids in his class. It was exciting to hear all about his first day and look at his work that he brought home with him. I asked him what his favorite part of the day was and he said the math tubs. I held up pretty well and didn't even get teary eyed until I picked him up and looked back at him in the car with his backpack and realized how grown he looked. I think since he's been attending the same school for the last two years, it was an easy transition and less traumatic for Mom. I'm so proud of my big boy! Next up....Grant starts the Toddler class at David's school tomorrow! Wow!

Sea World...Corry Style...take two

2009-08-24T16:34:00.000-07:00

We decided to have one last summer hoorah with the kids before school and go to SeaWorld again. The last time we all went as a family, Grant was 8 months old and Raegan wasn't even born yet. We had a great time and the kids were able to ride lots of rides! It was a perfect summer day...except for the heat...it was brutal! We are so glad we got to do this all together again!

Our trip to Buffalo, NY

2009-08-08T07:09:00.000-07:00

Daddy goes to Buffalo every summer to play in a golf tournament with Peter, his roommate from college. He always has a wonderful time but we miss him terribly. This year he decided to take us with him. I thought surely, the Coleman's didn't know what they were in for with a house full of Corry's but it was an awesome visit! The guys played a ton of golf and us girls got to go and do some shopping and get some pampering. David and Peter had arranged for Kristen and I to have babysitters everyday! I have decided that is the way to live! The kids had a blast, the Moms had a blast, and the Dads had a blast! We met up in the evenings and went to the couples events at the club and had some adult fun too. The kids loved playing with Miles and Caroline in the water slide. They went swimming, to the beach, played lots of games and had lots of ice cream. We all agreed to try to make this an annual event.

Rodeo

2009-07-20T14:53:00.000-07:00

We attended our 5th rodeo on Saturday night and had a blast! I have to be honest...I love the rodeo!!! Donald and all of his beautiful girls came too- even baby Rae liked the rodeo! The kids loved riding the mechanical bull and Big David had to get in on the action too. It was hilarious! We started the day out by attending the rodeo parade and Lil David rode on his school's float. The kids played in the park and then we all went home to nap the babies and head out for the rodeo. Oh, and Lil David did Mutton Bustin again this year and had fun...except for when the sheep stepped on his ear! He was fine but I think he's had his fill of it. What a great day!

Delaney Family visits Texas

2009-07-08T17:07:00.000-07:00

We were thrilled to have Leslie, Joey and Carlysle come visit us in Texas! They were only here for a long weekend so we made sure to try to see everything in a few short days. I hope I didn't wear them out too much! Poor Leslie hung in there like a champ, despite being 30 weeks pregnant and the 105+ degree weather each day! We picked them up from the airport in San Antonio and straight to SeaWorld we went! We had a blast! I think their favorite part was the Shamu show...and of course cooling off at the water park.
We had a family cookout, went swimming at Escondido, and some light shopping in town. We had a wonderful time at the Escondido July 4th party and topped it off with another visit back to San Antonio so they could see the River Walk and the Alamo! It was a weekend chock full of fun! We were so happy to have them here and so sad to see them leave!

Floating the River

2009-07-08T16:58:00.001-07:00

I had such a great time a few weekends ago floating the Comal River in New Braunfels, TX. I went with a group of friends...without kids! :) We spent the day floating the river and then went to Gruene, TX that night. We went to Gruene Hall, which is supposed to be one of the oldest dance halls in Texas (been featured in lots of movies). We saw Bruce Robison play and then headed on back to our hotel. The next morning, we woke up early, had breakfast at Ihop and home we went! It was less than 24 hours of much needed fun!

Happy Father's Day

2009-06-22T08:41:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful Father's Day dinner with Daddy and Uncle Duck. Kelsey and the girls are in SC visiting family so we had our second annual Corry Men Father's Day cookout. I let the guys choose their menu and the focus was steak of course. We topped it off with Mint Chocolate chip Ice cream pie. We ate ourselves sick and had a great time. Uncle Duck even put the kids to bed....what a special treat! Happy Father's Day to two great Dads!

(I'm including a pic from last year....my how the kids have grown)

Methodist VBS- "Son Rock"

2009-06-22T08:32:00.000-07:00

David had a great week at Bible School at our Church! They topped it off with a precious performance in church yesterday. David has been singing the songs all week and we were so proud to see him singing them in church. He is attending the Baptist church's VBS this week...I'll post pics at the end of the week.

Grant's 1st ponytail...or should I say...sprout!

2009-06-14T16:46:00.001-07:00

We often joke that Grant's hair is very similar to her big brother's...it just never really wanted to fill in on top. So, we make lots of mullet jokes at my poor baby's expense. She has finally grown enough on top that I attempted to put it in a ponytail but it mostly became a sprout on top. It also didn't last long. She has never allowed me to even but a bow in her hair. If you see a photograph of her with a bow or hair adornment of any kind...it was simply luck and a quick flash! So, here is my little "tomboy" with her first hairdo!

BeeGee and Papa's visit to Texas

2009-06-09T17:39:00.000-07:00

BeeGee and Papa have been a few times to visit us in Texas but not since Grant was born. So, it was time and we were beyond thrilled to have them here! We really wanted them to have a nice, relaxing visit because they work so hard and were in desperate need of a break. We thoroughly enjoyed our time together and soaked each other up! BeeGee gave David, Reese and Rynn an art lesson and they had a great time together doing a canvas still life of an apple. We had wonderful meals together and had a couple of fun visits to the pool and yacht club in Horseshoe Bay. We were so glad they were able to carve out the time for this visit....it will carry our hearts until the next time......

Final TBall Game

2009-05-23T14:30:00.000-07:00

David really enjoyed playing TBall this year. His final game was Wednesday night and the players were presented with medals. They did a great job and David even pitched some the last game! We are so proud of him and his team. Go Braves!

Mommy's first 5k

2009-05-16T15:27:00.001-07:00

Mommy is no "new kid on the block" when it comes to working out but I have never done any type of organized run. I have been running lately and decided I would do a 5k. I met a friend of mine from the gym and off we went! I don't know my official time but Daddy says it was 25 minutes. I really enjoyed it! The best part was having my family there cheering me on! What a great way to start a Saturday morning! Look out Daddy....Mommy may have the "bug"! :)

David's Pre-K Graduation

2009-05-16T14:52:00.000-07:00

Yes, it's true....Graduation! Many schools have a kindergarten graduation as you are preparing to enter into first grade but David's school has a pre-k graduation. He will officially become a Lion instead of a Cub and move over to the elementary building next year. His school gave the 4K class an official graduation ceremony in the sanctuary followed by a cookie reception in the fellowship hall afterward. It was a great night and they showed the sweetest video of the children. I held up well and didn't have uncontrollable sobs...just a few tears came to my eyes but I mostly felt such pride and joy for my precious boy! I took the children out to eat just before the ceremony and I told David he could have anything he wanted....he chose "China Kitchen"...that's MY boy! After the ceremony, Daddy and I had a card, balloon and a few special treats for the Graduate. It was an all star evening for David. We are so proud of our little Graduate! (pics aren't in order...sorry)

Oh What A View!

2009-05-08T15:29:00.000-07:00

We are finally getting settled in our new home and we are thrilled with our view! If you are on our mailing list, you'll be receiving a card but for those of you who just follow our blog...
Our new address is: 512 Bendito Way Marble Falls, TX 78654

Happy Anniversary Mommy and Daddy

2009-05-08T15:20:00.000-07:00

David and I celebrated our 9th anniversary on May 6th! My friend Becky offered to babysit David and Grant for our gift....what a wonderful gift! We went to a nice dinner and came home to our beautiful children. Before going out, we took some family pictures from our new home (see next post).

Happy Easter

2009-04-12T20:30:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful Easter morning together. We went to the early service at church and had a nice lunch out over Lake Marble Falls. Daddy had to rush to work but we were so grateful for our time together with him! We are so blessed.....He is Risen! How wonderful the love of Christ! Halelujah! He is Risen!

"Girlfriends"

2009-04-06T18:18:00.000-07:00

Well, I was informed at the gym tonight by one of my friends that David is her daughter's boyfriend. Imagine my surprise when my friend walks up to me and announces that her daughter is "in love" with my son! In fact, she calls him her boyfriend and speaks of him daily. Wow! I wasn't ready to hear that! So, I asked David about this tonight and he just said, "Yep Mommy, she says I'm her boyfriend and that she is going to marry me." He said it so nonchalant. David and I nearly fell out with laughter but we had to hold our composure. So, I ask David about his other "girlfriend" from school and he says, "well, yes Mommy, she is also my girlfriend." It would appear as though David is keeping his options open and just loving all of his friends. I also reminded him that there would be no marriage until he was an adult, and God brought him the woman he was destined to be with. Daddy chimed in saying I would be a puddle of tears the day David gets married so he says he won't get married then and he's going to tell his "girlfriends" that tomorrow. My how they grow! My Baby Boy isn't such a Baby anymore!

We're moving....sorry, not back to SC...yet

2009-04-05T07:04:00.000-07:00

We are moving to Marble Falls at the end of this month. For those of you who don't know, that is just like moving in to "town" from out where we are now. David talked to a builder friend of his and he is allowing us to rent one of his new homes in a great neighborhood. The best part is that we will have panoramic views of the town and the lake. We are very excited! We are also excited to say that our neighbors will be Donald and Kelsey and the girls. Yep, we are going to have a Corry compound. The kids are already scheming up ideas of coming over and sneaking out to play together. It will be so much fun! Stay tuned for address change, etc....we are moving in 25 days! Ahhh!

Tee Ball....Go Braves!

2009-04-01T11:23:00.000-07:00

David is having so much fun playing Tee Ball! He has a great team and they have played really well! We have enjoyed going to his games and he really looks forward to game nights. Grant is always the sideline cheerleader, along with Mommy and Daddy. David even had a "homerun" last Saturday. Well, it wasn't so much a "homerun" as it was just him stealing all of the bases while the other team scrambled for the ball. That's my boy! :) We are so proud of our little Brave!

Visit to SC

2009-03-23T09:18:00.001-07:00

The kids and I went to SC for an impromptu visit. I had a good friend having a baby shower and it was David's spring break at school so off we went. We were fortunate enough to find a decent flight fare. We had such a great time visiting friends and family! Mommy got together with a group of her dear friends from high school and had a playdate for Mommies and kids too! It was so wonderful to see each other and to see all of our children playing together. We also had a wonderful time at Misty's baby shower.

Leslie, Joey and Carlysle were able to come and stay with us at Mom's for the weekend and it the children had a blast together. Aunt C and Mary Anna came down for a visit and joined in the fun. We also made sure to include our precious dog "Bodhi". We kicked off our last night with BeeGee and Papa with "movie night". We laughed ourselves silly at "Madagascar 2".

We also had a great visit with Mana and Papa, who drove all the way down to Florence to visit us. This is the second time they have come down and taken little David off to stay in a hotel. They went to Chuck E Cheese, we went shopping and out to eat dinner, and they went back to the hotel and went swimming....what fun!

The last part of our week was spent with Nana and Papa Stanley. Nana was so kind to come and get us and drive us down to Hilton Head, where we had a great visit. We had wonderful home-cooked dinners, discovered some great parks, had a nice picnic and visited the horses in Sea Pines. David and Nana topped things off by baking Easter cupcakes together. We had an early flight out of Hilton Head and off we went back to Texas. We were sad to leave family but so happy to get back to Daddy...we missed him so much! We always enjoy our trips "home" to SC and look forward to the next one.

David's 1st Tee Ball practice

2009-03-04T06:47:00.000-08:00

David is so excited to start Tee Ball this spring! His team is called the "Battling Braves". They had their first practice Sunday afternoon so we all went to watch him. It's really neat because many of the boys on his team are already his friends and they also have young siblings. All of the mommies were chasing babies the whole practice. Grant loved playing in the dirt and trying to eat rocks. David listens so well to his coaches and had a blast! He even wanted to stay after and run the bases- a Daddy tactic to make sure he was good and worn out!

Daddy's birthday office surprise

2009-02-23T08:47:00.001-08:00

Donald decided a few months ago that he wanted to decorate David's office with some really neat things. He called so many people and asked for items that he knew David would love. I helped him and we pulled off a really great surprise for David. Donald worked really hard accumulating the items and then set them all up and decorated David's office. He did a great job and David was almost speechless. He was truly overwhelmed! I was able to snap a few photos but they aren't great- I was so busy taking it all in myself. Thanks to Donald for making David's day/month/year and thanks to the family and friends who contributed! Some of the items included; a replica M-14 rifle (with a plate inscribed for Star of the West), several golf flags signed by various PGA professionals, golf flags from courses they've played and one from a championship in high school from Grandpa Don, a signed photo and football from one of David's clients (a Houston Texan football player), a family photo collage from Nana, flags and a print from HHI from Papa Stanley and apparently there is more to come...Very special indeed!

Happy Birthday Daddy and Uncle Duck

2009-02-23T07:00:00.000-08:00

Daddy and Uncle Duck were able to leave work a little early yesterday so we could have a family cookout for their birthday. We had a great time! The kids rode bikes and had a blast playing outside all afternoon. We are fortunate that Texas doesn't really have a winter, only a hard fall and an even harder summer. The weather was perfect for our cookout. Reese was getting backyard football lessons from the guys and I couldn't help but think of the lifelong memories that were being made. The mommies were on food and baby detail, but we had so much fun spending time together as a family. The Birthday boys had a great, relaxing afternoon and we are so glad they did. Happy Birthday Daddy and Uncle Duck!

Daddy weekend off

2009-02-16T08:29:00.000-08:00

David got his first "weekend" off in several years and we decided to take a family vacation down to Galveston. We packed up and left Friday afternoon- beach bound! Well, let's just say the phrase "life always happens while you're making other plans" could be our mantra for the weekend. First off, we hit traffic in Houston, three tolls, and steady rain...it took us 6 hours to finally get to Galveston. We arrive and Little David comments from the back seat, "I am NOT impressed with this place guys!" I thought David and I were going to lose it we were laughing so hard. I think our standard of the beach is a little high, considering South Carolina has some pretty darn beautiful beaches. Galveston was devastated by hurricane Ike this past fall and it is still in bad shape. Many of the businesses are still closed, there is debris everywhere, so many people displaced from their homes, piers washed away, beaches washed away.....it was truly sad.
Still eager to embrace a new adventure, we check into our condo-which was very nice but still had so much water damage...again, sad. I had at least packed food and snacks for the kids and rice milk but after the long journey we were hungry and tired. In order to get any food (not even a vending machine in the condo) we would have to go back out into Galveston and we were down on the east end away from everything. We decided to order pizza in and stayed up late watching a Disney movie with Jr.
The next morning, we awoke to a foggy, rainy and increasingly growing colder morning. We decided to go out to the aquarium. We had a great time at the aquarium! After that, we realized the water park (even the indoor part) was not open, and many of the other "kid activities" were closed. We couldn't go to the beach due to weather so we decided to just save the money we would've spent on another night in the condo and head back.
Plan B...we drove to NASA and drove around that area for 2.5 hrs looking for a hotel room. No hotels were to be found. Most of the hotels in Galveston and outlying areas are still full with Fema families. So, with heavy hearts we headed home. We made it a point to discuss how lucky we are and how many blessings we have, when so many of those people are still homeless.
We arrived home and after spending more than 14 hrs (cumulatively) in the car, were relieved to just get back in our own beds. We woke up Sunday morning, had a nice breakfast at home and headed to the park and then our local exotic safari zoo. Little David and I have been to this zoo before but it was Grant and Daddy's first time. The experience there is so unique because you have bison, Scottish cows, camels, deer, llamas and many other animals come up and eat right out of your hand. Daddy really enjoyed it too and it was good to see him relax and let go of the stresses of work, even if for a short time.
So, although our weekend wasn't what we pictured, it was wonderful because we got to spend it together! We will remember the people in Galveston in our prayers as they rebuild and we are grateful that God opened our eyes to even more of our blessings.

Cowpoke Day

2009-02-15T16:55:00.000-08:00

I am behind on my postings....honestly, I have just not been taking pictures like I normally do. I am still intimidated by my new camera and have been avoiding it and David has my other camera at work. I've missed lots of special events and I'm just sick about it but I have some new posts I'll get up soon. Little David's class had a "cowpoke day" at school a few weeks ago and everyone got to come dressed as a cowboy/cowgirl. Well, that's like asking a fish to dress up as a fish around here......everyone got on their rodeo digs and headed off to school! It was so cute. Even Grant wanted to get in on the action! Yee Haw!

Just Life

2009-01-26T19:55:00.000-08:00

If you were judging my life by my blog, it would appear as though nothing is happening since I haven't been updating. That couldn't be farther from the truth.....life has just been happening. David got me a new camera for Christmas and I'm very excited to use it but quite frankly, I'm intimidated by it. I'm dreading reading the users manual! So, when I get it figured out I will post some new pics of David and Grant.
Let's see....what's new? Little David is getting geared up for a round of winter swim lessons and is mostly so excited to play t-ball this spring! He is doing so great in school and still loves it. He amazes us with the things he says, we often remark that we never talked that way at 5 years old! One of these days I'm going to record one of his prayers- they are unbelievable and overwhelm me with love and joy. I feel so lucky to get to witness his little relationship with God, and listen in on their "talks". He is already so grounded spiritually- I pray that he will always be. This is what I want for my children above all else!
Grant is just an absolute stinker! She is so precious and knows it! She will often flash us her toothy smile after being reprimanded for getting in to something or doing something she's not supposed to do. Her Daddy will turn into a puddle instantly and it breaks his heart to raise his voice to her. She rules the roost around here. Little David gets very upset with her for getting in to his things and I have to call him down all day long and remind him that she is a baby who does not know better and just wants to play. She will let him have it if he takes something from her- she is quite the "swatter". My biggest hurdle with Grant is her squealing. Now I realize that even the term squealing sounds cute and that she will not do this forever. However, Grant will scream blood piercing screams that come out of nowhere. She is quite good at achieving the shock factor for her screams. I have become relatively immune to them but most anyone in my presence at the grocery store, etc will jump 3 ft in the air when hearing Grant's scream. I have told many a stranger in the grocery store (after being given looks) that I am open to suggestion. I can't make it stop, I'd give anything if I could and I know that one day I will miss her screams. She certainly keeps things interesting. I can't imagine life without her.
So, life is good and we are still making the best of our life and community here in Texas. I have made lots of friends and really enjoy it here. It will never hold the same place in my heart as SC but like my Mom always says, "You make the best of where you are because you are there." I intend to keep doing just that. We are happy and healthy and loving life!

My how you've grown....14 months

2009-01-10T18:21:00.000-08:00

I realize that I am quite past due on keeping up with Grant's "My how you've grown" pics so, I decided it was time to get with it again. It is hilarious how she loves to carry on full conversations in "babynese". Grant is so full of personality! She is spunky and has much attitude- her newest thing is swatting- she likes to hit at everyone in the family and has often knocked us silly. She babbles up a storm, loves to eat salmon, bananas and gluten free oat bars- just to name a few. She is so smart and when asked if she needs a diaper change, will bring me a diaper and wipes. She amazes me at how smart and yet how full of personality/attitude she is. She weighs 23 lbs and we just crack up at her protruding belly- she is a little, sweet chunk of love! It is hard to believe our baby girl is already 14 months! We love seeing the world through her eyes and David's!

Merry Christmas 2008

2008-12-25T19:01:00.000-08:00

We spent such a wonderful Christmas together- just the four of us. Truthfully, it is always difficult to be without family but this was our second Christmas without travel or family, and we did really enjoy ourselves. It really makes our family unit feel stronger! We made sure to thank God for all of our blessings- most importantly, we thank God for Jesus. We read the Christmas story together and witnessed such a beautiful little prayer from little David. We woke up early and opened gifts- then Daddy and David went to play golf at Escondido, we watched a little bit of Christmas programming on TV and then went out to eat at the Marriott in Horseshoe Bay. It was a perfect Christmas for us and although we miss spending it with our extended family, we are so grateful for this time together. Merry CHRISTmas!

Another David musing

2008-12-19T18:44:00.000-08:00

"Mommy, how can something with stickers for eyes be alive?"
This is what David asked me in reference to "Charlie" his "Elf on the Shelf". "Well, David....it's magic." This is my new answer for everything. "How can Santa get from the walkway at Marble Falls to the North Pole so fast?" "Why does that Santa in Marble Falls look different than the santa in Austin?" It's just magic Son! What will I do when that answer doesn't work anymore?! :)
I am always amazed at the sweet, poignant things David says- I love seeing the world through his eyes!

A Christmas Smattering of Things

2008-12-14T18:06:00.000-08:00

My next post is a collection of our latest events. The first of which is David's Christmas musical. The Pre-K classes at First Baptist Christian School held the musical and it was soooo sweet. Unfortunately, as you may have noticed from some of my previous posts, my camera has been acting up. The pics I got are terrible but I was able to catch a few quick video snipits. I have enjoyed hearing David practice these songs at home, in the car, in the grocery store check out line, in the post office.....you name it- my boy loves music!!!!

The second event is our Mother/Son date night to the Nutcracker. David and I got all dressed up and headed out to the show while Daddy volunteered to stay home with Grant. We had a very nice time and we snapped one quick (way to close) pic for memory sake.

The third event was our day with the Corry girls. We wanted to soak them up a little before they head to SC so we had a nice trip to the mall in Austin. Santa was very much the popular guy today and we weren't able to stand in line for eons so we settled for letting David and Rynn ride the train and a visit to the chocolate store. Hey- as long as there is chocolate- who needs Santa?!!!

Walkway of Lights 2008

2008-12-14T17:43:00.000-08:00

We visited the walkway of lights in Marble Falls again this year, but this time we had another set of Corry's with us. We had a great night of exchanging gifts and pizza followed by hot cocoa from Starbucks, a stroll through the walkway and a visit with Santa. It was another great night spent sharing memories with family. David and Rynn had fun "bracing" in front of the soldiers and always keep us laughing with their love/dislike relationship. One minute they are hugging and the next they are bickering like brother and sister- it's terribly cute- and their love always wins out in the end! Grant was a little less than thrilled with Santa and it was getting cold but she and Raegan hung in there. Even big girl Reese (who is almost as tall as Santa) had a seat on the "big Man's" lap. It was a fabulous Texas Christmas Festivus! :)

Thanksgiving 2008

2008-12-14T17:32:00.000-08:00

I'm quite behind on my postings so I'm trying to play a little catch up. We had a very nice Thanksgiving dinner (lunch) at our house with Donald, Kelsey, Reese, Rynn and Raegan. Kelsey and I prepared the food and we had a great little feast! The kids had a fun time playing in the back yard, riding bikes, building a gingerbread house and many more activities. We were so thankful to have a Thanksgiving dinner with family. It was a wonderful day- however, I only have 1 pic from the day and it was in front of our puny little loved Christmas tree. P.S. Not sure why David feels the need to pose this way but it has become his new "thing".

Citadel Homecoming 2008

2008-11-17T08:40:00.000-08:00

Daddy had his 15 year college reunion this year at the Citadel. He was so excited to go and participate in all of the events and see his buddies. We missed his 10 year because Little David had just been born. So, off we all went to Charleston to celebrate with Daddy. We had a wonderful time at the reunion party and even went to dinner with some friends while Nana was so gracious to stay in the hotel room with the children for us. We so rarely get out that when we got all dressed up to go out, Lil D said, "Mommy, is it your anniversary?" :)
We also had a great time showing David all around campus. We went in to the chapel where we were married, we visited Pop's tree and monument and the Star of the West monument with Daddy's name on it, visited the barracks where Daddy lived, went downtown to the market, visited Gaga and went to the football game. It was such a fun-filled weekend and Daddy was so proud to show off his family! Little David can't stop talking about the bagpipers and the summerall guards. Daddy taught him how to "brace" and how to stand with "cheerios" in his hands like the guards. Silly! What an awesome weekend for all of us!

Grant's 1st Birthday party

2008-11-17T07:38:00.000-08:00

We had a great 1st Birthday party for Grant at home. We celebrated with family and friends and the kids had a blast! We had cupcakes galore and although they were not the most beautiful of cupcakes (Mommy made and decorated them) they were pretty tasty. I can hardly believe that Grant is 1 now. She loved her cake and enjoyed playing with the other children. She was sacked out by 6:00! Grant is walking, babbling and has 5 teeth and is working on breaking out one of her back teeth now. She weighs almost 21 lbs and is so smiley all of the time. She always has her mouth open and is quite the little squealer! She is learning some signs so we can communicate without the piercing screams and is showing some progress. She loves dogs and every time we see one she starts to make a woof woof sound. Her hair is starting to fill in and I can get a bow in it now- but she pulls it out not long after I put it in. She is such a joy in our lives and we love our baby girl!

Watch me Grow.....One Year!

2008-11-05T17:54:00.000-08:00

Grant is 1 today! I can hardly believe a year has passed. We are filled with joy when we think of all of the ways God has blessed our family! We are so lucky to have our miracle babies! We will have Grant's party on Sunday so I'll post pics from that later. I will post her stats from her 1 year check up next week. Happy Birthday Grant- we love you so much!

Halloween 2008

2008-11-01T10:44:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful time at the church Fall Festival last night! Donald, Kelsey, Reese, Rynn and Baby Raegan joined us for a super fun time. David decided to be Superman this year and has had so much fun wearing his suit with the huge muscles built in it around the house. We've been playing "Superman" around the house for weeks. Grant, bless her heart, had no say so in the matter and was a little elephant. She was so cute I just wanted to squeeze her! What a fun night!

Memory Lane

2008-10-19T07:26:00.000-07:00

I thought it would be fun to look back through the years of the life of David. He brings us so much joy and we couldn't be prouder of him. I just get weepy thinking of how quickly his life is moving! Here's a look back at David on each of his Birthdays Birth thru age 4 (see previous post for Age 5).........

David's 5th Birthday party

2008-10-19T07:04:00.000-07:00

It's hard to believe my baby boy is 5! His actual birthday is on the 27th but we celebrated with his party yesterday. He had such a fun time and enjoyed playing games with his friends and cousins. He wanted the theme of his party to be soccer and Halloween so I had a lot of fun with that! We love you so much David- our big 5 year old!!!!

Our little pumpkins

2008-10-13T06:38:00.000-07:00

Yesterday was a wonderful "Daddy Day Off Day". We went to church together as a family, which is very rare and went to the pumpkin patch. We had a great time picking out our family pumpkins and taking some neat pics!

David's first soccer game

2008-09-30T06:57:00.000-07:00

David has looked so forward to playing "real" soccer this fall. We missed the first few practices and the first two games while in SC but he was quick to get caught up. Daddy is the coach of his team and has been practicing with him in the backyard. He had a blast! Every time he was out on the field he had the biggest smile on his face! Grant and I cheered them on from the sidelines. Great job David!

Welcome new cousin

2008-09-30T06:48:00.000-07:00

We were so excited to visit Aunt Kelsey, Reese and Rynn and meet Raegan! Raegan Isabella Corry was born on September 23rd in Austin. She weighed 8lbs and 13ozs and is a beautiful, healthy baby girl. She looks very much like big sister Reese. Grant really loved her and was so tender with her. David was mostly wrapped up in playing with Reese and Rynn. He really missed them. Congratulations to the Corry family!

Grant's Christening and visit to SC

2008-09-24T13:11:00.000-07:00

We had a wonderful trip to South Carolina! The main reason for this fall trip was to have Grant christened in my home church (the same church where David Jr was christened and the same church I was confirmed in). The service was so great and Grant was like an angel. She did so well as the minister walked her around the church while the choir sang all the verses of "Jesus Loves Me". I was filled with emotion- what a blessed event! Daddy had to get back to Texas to work but David, Grant and I stayed on for a week. We were able to go down to Hilton Head and spend a few days with Nana and Papa Stanley. We had so much fun visiting all of our family. There are so many neat things happening in our family and we were glad we got to see BeeGee and Papa's new business, Joey's new pediatric practice, Les and Joey's new home, Nana and Papa Stanley's home renovations, and much more! We even squeezed in an impromptu playdate with the Pennington girls- what fun! Sound like a full week? Well, we topped it off perfectly with a stop by the hospital in Austin upon our arrival back to Texas to give Aunt Kelsey a hug. Raegan Corry was born just a few hours after our visit. We always cherish our time with family and look forward to our next visit.

Final penny update....I hope

2008-08-27T18:13:00.000-07:00

Ok, finally the drama has subsided. The xrays this morning showed there was no penny so they cancelled the surgery. However, the tech would not tell me whether or not the penny had completely passed, but only that the surgery was not necessary. After following up with our primary Doc, we are told that the penny may possibly be in the rectum (restrain yourself of the possible jokes sis) and is definitely on the way out. Hallelujah! We treated David to a huge breakfast at IHOP afterwards. I don't normally allow him to eat this type of food so he was beside himself. He had the kids funny face pancake with chocolate chips, eggs, sausage, toast, hashbrowns and topped it off with a bit of my omelet. He already eats like a teenage boy! We are so relieved that he did not have to have the surgery and he promises to never put "foreign" objects in his mouth again. I still have not officially seen that blessed penny but I had hopes that we would frame that darn thing! Thanks for all of the well wishes, it was actually pretty scary there for a bit but all is well!

Another penny update

2008-08-25T18:41:00.000-07:00

Well, here we are Day 11 and still no penny. I spoke with the nurse at the pediatric gastro office in Austin, they would like to go ahead and schedule David for an endoscopy for Wednesday. We will arrive in the morning, they will xray him again and if the penny has passed or is showing in the colon or intestines, they will send us home. If it is still in the stomach, we go directly next door to the surgery center where they will do an endoscopy to remove the penny. David's still feeling ok, occasionally complains of abdominal pain but for the most part, is still going strong. I will spare him the details of what may lie ahead for him. I allowed him to attend half a day of his first day of school today and he had a great time. I need to keep him home so that I can be on hand to inspect his bowel movements. I think it would be above and beyond the call of duty for his teachers. So, we trudge on. Look for an update on Wednesday.

Penny update

2008-08-22T17:46:00.000-07:00

Well, what started as a relatively funny BOY story about swallowing a penny has gone completely south- slight pun intended. The issue with David swallowing the penny has turned into quite a nightmare. We had xrays done on Tuesday- they show that the penny is still in the middle belly- they actually told me they thought it was in the transverse colon. The Doctor assured me it would pass and sent me home to give David Magnesium Citrate. If he did not pass the penny within 48hrs after that, we were to return. So, two days of fun with Magnesium Citrate and Miralax still produced no penny. We end up back at the minor emergency center for more xrays. The penny is still in the "middle belly"- very difficult to tell where exactly. Meanwhile, we are trying to get a referral to a pediatric gastroenterologist and we're on the line with poison control center. Apparently, the biggest concern is that the penny could be lodged in the stomach or colon and could lead to a rupture or blockage. Also, there is the minor point that pennies made after 1982 are made with zinc and that can have a corrosive effect in the body. Great! Little David failed to mention what year the penny he swallowed was. So, poison control is stressing the importance of removal of the penny to the nurse, the Dr and myself. It had been 7 days since he swallowed the penny. Most children will pass swallowed foreign objects within 4-5, after that, everyone becomes more concerned. Apparently, less than 1% of children who swallow objects still have them "stuck" in their body 5 or more days. This is about where I begin to panic. We spent the better part of the evening at Dell children's hospital and more xrays later....the penny is still in the stomach. The on-call surgeon was called for consult and they advised us to go home and continue to wait it out. They told us that they really want to try to avoid surgery so unless David becomes increasingly ill, or has acute abdominal pain- we wait. So, here we are, Day 8...waiting. We will follow up this week with our pediatrician and they may do an xray again to verify progress- if it is still "lodged", we will be referred to a ped/gastro for further options. Shooooooo! What drama! I will never look at a penny the same again! Stay tuned.....

A penny for your....well, just a penny please

2008-08-19T18:09:00.000-07:00

Ok, so this is one for the books. Last week, Little David and I were dancing around and acting silly together. I know, just another day in the Corry house. However, this day was different. In the middle of our silliness, David gulps, eyes bulge, and he yells, "My coin, my coin.....!" "What do you mean your coin David- did you have a coin in your mouth?" "Yes", He replies. "Oh my goodness", I manage to sputter out. Commence waterworks! David is crying uncontrollably while I am frantically calling Uncle Joey. I'm trying to make him laugh with references of pennies making more pennies inside his belly until we could shake him and fill up a piggy bank- still tears. So, Uncle Joey reassures me that he should pass it in a few days and just to be on the lookout for it. Ok, gross! There are no limits to what you will do as a parent, but I just have to say, this has been a very daunting task the last few days. Never did I think my son would call for me after his "morning/afternoon poop (as he calls it)" and I would begin the fishing process. So, it's been five days and no penny- and he's complaining of a tummy ache. We visit the minor emergency center today where they take x-rays and tell us the penny is in the transverse colon. It's probably going to pass- they send us home with Magnesium Citrate- woo hoo! Speaking from experience, that is the nastiest stuff! Long story longer.....we're still waiting on the penny to pass and will have to return in 48 hrs if it does not make it's exit.
All of this narration leads me to another David moment that was blog worthy. As we are riding to town to the minor er center, David says, "Mommy, maybe if I'm a good, brave boy and I don't cry, I could get one of those chocolate coins- so it will remind me that you should never eat real coins, just the chocolate ones." Now how on earth can I argue with that?!!!!
Update on progression of penny to follow......

My how you've grown...9 months

2008-08-08T18:50:00.000-07:00

Grant is growing so fast- I still can't believe she's already 9 months old! She has two bottom teeth and seems well on her way to cutting more. She is crawling around everywhere, pulling up on everything and has even begun to let go as she stands. I really don't think it will be long before she if fully walking. She is such a happy baby, so much so that we like to call her "baby smiles a lot". She is learning to hold her own against big bro and will squeal at the top of her lungs for attention or to let him know she is fed up with him snatching toys from her hand. David is an ever present watch dog and is constantly pointing out things that she should not be getting in to. I have to kindly remind him that I am the mommy and I've got it under control. He is very protective of Grant. Grant is very, very busy and we have quickly realized we need to babyproof- and fast. Her nickname should be "Dash" or "Flash" because she is so quick! We are so blessed with our beautiful children- they make us so proud!!!

More musings from Little David.....

2008-07-29T20:11:00.000-07:00

David never ceases to amaze me! He can often be my absolute clone (just ask my Mom- she finds it rather amusing to hear me struggle with him and often reminds me that I am raising myself) but at times, he is sooo his Daddy. We often laugh over how he is already a born salesman- I can't tell you how often he says, "Ok Mom, let's make a deal." This evening one of my friends came up to me at the gym and was smiling and shaking her head. I immediately assume there's trouble in the gym daycare and ask her if the kids are ok. She laughs and says, "Oh, everything is fine. I'm just laughing at how much you have your hands full with that David. He is so smart and always saying the funniest things." David apparently went into an entire discussion with her about how he is saving up his money for a train table and a train track. He received a gift card from Mana and Papa for Christmas and still won't spend it- even though he's had ample opportunity. He keeps reiterating to me that he is saving it for something BIG, like a train track and table. So, he is explaining this to my friend at the gym and then he pauses, looks up at her and says, "I know what I'll do...I'm going to use my gift card and buy 5 more gift cards, then I'll have enough for the train table!" She thought this was hilarious- just a glimpse of how my angel boy's mind is always working. In theory, his little idea is brilliant!

Mutton Bustin!

2008-07-20T08:50:00.000-07:00

Well, we have officially become rodeo fanatics! We went to our 4th Rodeo last night and loved every minute of it. David has been saying that he wanted to do Mutton Bustin since last year- so, we let him do it! I had such a nervous stomach but it was one of those moments where I had to put my worry aside and just let him experience life for himself! HE WAS AWESOME! It's difficult to tell from the video but he actually came in 2nd place out of 12 kids! Not too bad for a rookie! We even treated him to a real pair of cowboy boots to top off the experience. Donald, Kelsey, Reese and Rynn and Chris, Carrie, Cole and Cade Munnerlyn went with us- it was a true Escondido guys family affair. David had an awesome cheering section and all of the kids loved riding the mechanical bull. What a great Texas Saturday night at the Rodeo!!! (If the video is taking a while to play, simply pause it and let the red line fill up- then play it without interruption)

More summer fun

2008-07-20T07:27:00.000-07:00

David finished up Golf and Tennis camp this week. He loved it! They finished up Friday with a little "contest" on the putting course. He had so much fun and is already asking if he can go again next week! What a busy boy!