a friend...

It has been brought up to me that we do not update our blog enough. Funny, I write lots in my head, just don't get around to typing them out. Just need to get around to that.

This week I had an interesting discussion with a friend. Being the good friend that she is, she pointed out some problems our friendship was having. For me, it was just easier to be mad at her, and at God. But, it has been eating me up, and probably not making me the easiet person to live with and be around. So I thank her for pointing those things out, and helping me become a better woman of God.

Isn't it great how God puts people in your life? Friends to support you, to help you on your walk, to assist you in carrying your cross. Friends also to challenge you, to point out weaknesses, and treasure your friendship enough to do that.

We are soo blessed! May we be given the grace to always realize that!!

the reason...

for not blogging recently is our recent home projects!


You can see more at our website - http://www.alexisandryan.com/.

Will write more later, gotta work!

the end of February??

Wow, not doing too good on this blogging thing. It's like when I write in my journal, and when I write all I do is catch up on what's been going on, but not how I feel.

So, to briefly state what's been going on...

I've been trying to write about Sean. I think that is what got me stuck. I wasn't sure what to write. I wrote a reflection from the funeral for some Aggie friends, so you can read that below. I haven't even been able to muster the courage to look thru my old journals and photos.

February started off well. I went to one of those meal prep places the first weekend. It was soo much fun. I went with some girlfriends (thanks Paula, Kathy and Denise) and we made 12 meals. We are eating #11 tonight! It has lasted us awhile. The place is here in Austin (http://www.thestudiokitchen.com/) and the boys think it would be great to continue. All I have to stock is side dishes!!

Then we had Paula's baby shower. So much cute things for her little boy!! Despite what has gone on, the day went on much better than I expected and I am truly happy for her and her family.

For Valentine's Justin and I went to Chipotle. Yes, Ry was out of town. He was in Raleigh, NC for a business trip. And he got stuck there and had to be rerouted to Dallas to make it to our...

Marriage Encounter (http://www.ntexasme.org/) !! We did that a little over a week ago. It was amazing! What a wonderful time to refresh our marriage and focus just on us! I feel lately our marriage has had more stress, and this gave us the tools to deal with it. We had a wonderful time and a couple from the Austin area also attended.

Other than that Lent has started. I'm trying to include more Lenten traditions to our home. And trying to do more as a couple.

Ry is off today for Boulder. He will be back on Thursday. At least I got Charlie and Justin, and the wii!

More thougthts later...

reflection on Sean

Since many of y'all were joined in prayer for the repose of our friend Sean, I thought I would update you on the events the last 2 days.

Last night I attended the rosary. It was a beautiful liturgy, with readings, medals for the family, and stories. Some family,
Sean's flight instructor, and wives of buddies of Sean's in Iraq spoke. One of the most touching was a letter read by the wife of Sean's roommate in Iraq. He spoke about how Sean was so friendly and cheerful, carved pumpkins and put up Christmas
lights. And also how he grew his plants, and was even trying to grow some grass, even though the wind, birds, etc. were
against him. Lisa Morgan joined me at the rosary, and we also saw Nathan and Emily Swoboda, as well as many ags from his
outfit who we recognized.

The funeral mass was beautiful today. Bishop Aymond was the celebrant, with at least 5 other priests assisting. Gov. Perry
and Rep. McCaul were also in attendance. Bishop Aymond spoke of Sean's sacrifice, how when seeds are planted they are dead and then rise and bear fruit. And that is what he did! The wife of Sean's roommate also read an email her husband had sent her that morning. She said that the grass that Sean had planted had started to grow. It was 1 1/2 inches high. Even though he never thought it would grow, it has.

There were many Aggies (lots of Corps guys and gals) and members of our military. And the Church was full - and quite a
mix. People of all ages, races, and religions filled St. Elizabeth's.

When leaving the church there were members of the Corps lining the walkway to the parking lot. They stood at attention,
honoring our friend.

I did not go to the gravesite, but did watch the procession. It was lead by at least 35 members of the Patriot Guard
(www.patriotguard.org) who led on their motorcycles carrying Texas and US flags. Following that was over 100 cars in the
procession, and over 20 police officers both leading and guiding the group. Fortunately there were no protesters! It was easy to see how many lives Sean had touched and how much he will be missed.

I left a card with our spiritual bouquet for his family at the church, as well as a copy of what has been posted on the myfamily
site. In addition, some of you send stories about Sean to me, and I printed those off too.

I will miss my friend. And even though he is gone, he is still challenging me to be a better person. Thank you Sean!

too much stuff

Seems like the last couple weeks have whirled by. Here are the highlights:

1. Ice hit Texas! We had 3 days off work the week of MLK. We had fun just hanging at the house, but the boys did get a bit stir crazy... photos to come.

2. A good friend from college, CPT Sean Lyerly '98, was killed on Jan. 20 when the Blackhawk helicopter he was flying crashed in Iraq. He was 31, and left behind a wife and 3 year old son. I've been trying to think what I could write that would reflect the man that he was. Still working on that.

3. Lastly, my big event for work was this weekend - the Texas Rally for Life. The weather was perfect (clear, mid 60's), had great volunteers, and even had a few protesters. I feel at peace that it is over, now time to work on our next event.

I'm going to Sean's rosary tonight, and Bishop Aymond is presiding over the funeral tomorrow. I'm going to need to find some tissues.

recovering...

Well, these last few days have been great to help me in recovering. I thought I was good after 2 days, but God gave me 3 more! Due to the recent Ice Storm 2007, I haven't gone to work all week. It has been nice, catching up on some reading, writing, tivo, etc. We did get a little stir crazy tonight (and low on food), so we ventured out for some pepperoni rolls - and beer! yum!

I'll probably go in tomorrow. Looks like the roads will be better after 10. Still having a bit of pain here and there (quite intermittent), so I'll try not to overextend myself. It has been interesting how I have these last few days I have overextended myself - taking too long of a bath, walking around Sam's tonight, working with the laundry, playing pool). God quickly puts me back where he wants me - resting on the couch!

Ry made a cute movie of the snow and all. Maybe he can post it up here soon!

update...

Well, just and update on the latest progress. First, thank you for all your prayers (I know y'all read this blog). This has really been a difficult time, and I know your prayers have lifted us up and comforted us during this time.

We saw our doctor today, and my HCG levels (which were only increasing slowly), are now decreasing. The baby is just not growing as she should. I also have had no pregnancy symptoms, as I did have earlier in this pregnancy. We can either wait and have the miscarriage normally, or have a d & c. We have opted for the d & c, and that will be done this Friday at 12:30. If you could pray for us then, and for our continued health and fertility.

thank you again. may we be blessed to share some better news in the coming months!!

the new year...

Well, it has been awhile since my last post. So much has happened (Thankgiving, Christmas, our trip to the Grand Canyon, the baby).

Yes, the baby. Seems like our Advent gift was to find out that we were pregnant. When we got in for our first ultrasound 2 weeks ago, we were soo happy! We were 7 weeks, but the sac was empty. Over Christmas we waited for test results. Yea! They are going up! But not fast enough.

Yesterday we went in for our 2nd ultrasound. The baby is still growing, just not fast enough (currently sized at 6 weeks), and th sac is still empty.

Now we are waiting to see. If a miracle can start this baby to grow, or have a d&c to remove it. Not really how we wanted to start the year.

Yet, I can get pregnant! And hopefully it won't take 1 1/2 years between them.

Now, I plan to keep this updated, even if no one reads it. It helps me.

Many, many people have been praying for us and I am very grateful. May we be blessed with continued fertility this year!

Northwest

We got back last week from a great little jaunt to the Northwest. It felt like Texas - the weather was in the 100's. And no airconditioning - just a bit hot!

Went to visit our friends Ray and Elizabeth. Had fun seeing the sites in Seattle and spending time with my former roomie Andrea. Nice to spend time together, felt like just yesterday that they both were living in Texas.

Then we headed down to Portland to visit my uncle at the Brigittine monestary (http://www.brigittine.org/). We got there to celebrate the feast of St. Bridget of Sweden. Since the monestary is semi-cloistered, we were able to have the unique experience to speak with the other brothers. It was lots of fun!

We took Ryan back to Portand for his conference, and then I stayed at the monestary for a few days. What a wonderful and peaceful experience. I hope that we can make this an annual trip. It was so beautiful!

On another note, this is the week of my big birthday - the big 3-0! Wow, I can't believe it!!

Guess I should get better at updating this thing :-)

Topped $1K

Well, it is a couple days until the Walk for Life, and I have passed $1000! Whoop! Thanks to all our friends and family who have sponsored me. I'm looking forward to a fun walk - we will have a moon bounce, face painting, puppet show, chiropractic testing, and Ry's soon-to-be-famous snow cones!

Just hope it cools down a little...

Sponsor Alexis!

I'd like to invite you to sponsor Alexis at the 12th Annual Walk for Life
on June 10th at Pease Park, Austin and June 17th in Sun City, Georgetown. I'm hoping to get her at least $2000 in pledges!

To sponsor her with a one-time, tax-deductible donation, please click here:
https://texasallianceforlife.org/walkforlife_2006/SponsorRegistration.asp.
You can make a donation right away via a credit card or make a pledge
and be billed later. To join the fun and participate as a walker,
click here:
https://texasallianceforlife.org/walkforlife_2006/WalkerRegistration.asp.
Either way, I hope you will support this worthy cause.

She'll be walking with hundreds of Texans from dozens of churches to
promote the sanctity of innocent human life and to raise funds for
life-saving programs and agencies in our community.

100% of the proceeds will support peaceful, legal efforts by Texas
Alliance for Life to protect mothers and their unborn children and to
promote respect for innocent human life. To learn more about us, visit
our home page here: http://www.texasallianceforlife.org/. All
donations are tax-deductible.

Thanks! Have a blessed Easter Season!!

Exploring Auckland

Well, today is our last day. Carmel, Matt's cousin, was our guide. We went up the Sky Tower (http://www.skycity.co.nz/skycity/index.cfm?5FB84201-50BA-1DC3-6503-2FD86214423F) to have a view of the entire city. The craziest thing was there were parts of the floor that were just glass and you could look straight down. You could also bungee off the top, but that was a bit scary for us.

We drove around the city, went to the Greenstone outlet (where they sell jade). We also went to the wine store where Carmel works and got a few for our trip back.

Julie and Matt then took us to the airport. They had a 3 hour drive back home, so just dropped us off. We had a pretty uneventful trip, but had the new planes with our personal screens and video games. Finally got home at midnight and got back to the house!

What an amazing trip! We want to thank Julie, Matt, Christina and Damien who took their precious time off to spend it with us! It was a trip of a lifetime!! We have tons of photos, so you can check them out here: http://web.mac.com/ryandobson/iWeb/Main/Main.html. Also, Ry is working to consolidate our 4 1/2 hours of video. Not an easy task! Hopefully we will be able to share that with you too!

Te Pui

We went to the Maori Arts and Cultural Center (now known as Te Puia - http://www.nzmaori.co.nz/) in Rotorua this morning. The tour was very interesting, learning about how they lived, ate, etc. We saw them make totem polls and learned lots about their culture. They had a geyser, which was very interesting.

We ended with a show of the traditional Maori dances and songs, including the Haka. Even Matt was impressed.

Drove up to Auckland and went to Mass with Marie and family. The Mass was generally the same. It was very nice (but I was kinda tired). Tomorrow we leave :-(

Taupo and Rotarua

We got up early and headed to Taupo, on the other side of the lake. We saw the awesome Huka Falls! They were soo powerful and clear. It was beautiful.

We drove to Rotarua and saw the sulfer pools. Loved their beautiful color, but could do without the smell. We stayed the night in Rotarua that night.

That afternoon we headed up a gondula to see the entire city. Did couple runs down the 1st ever luge track. Very fun!

Relaxed that evening with Pizza Hut and a movie. One thing Julie and Matt miss in living so far from a town, that is something they miss. It was a fun night.

Lake Taupo

We travelled to Lake Taupo (about an hour) today to Matt's parents beach house. We took their great boat, the Panhandle (also their name for the farm) out on the lake, but it was quite choppy. The lake is actually a created as a crater from a volcanic eruption.

We rested at the house, then went to play miniture golf. It was the best golf I had ever been too. Each hole was a place in the area (ski resorts, hotels, etc.), so you had to go with a local person to explain it to you. Went to the mineral pools afterward. I stayed a little too long, and overheated myself. Found out that doing that isn't very uncommon. Had fish and chips for dinner, played some pool and another night of Clue!

The farm...

Julie and Matt took us to explore the farm today. In olden days, they used horses - now 4 wheelers!

We started by musetering a paddock. What this means is using Matt's very trained dogs and his calls to move the sheep from one field to another. It was a very interesting experience.

Had lunch with the Olds. That is how New Zealanders refer to their parents - Old Lady and Old Man. We stared with sauteed wild mushrooms that they had picked from the farm. And then had a yummy macaroni casserole.

Matt's parents Simon and Joanne took us on a tour of the farm. We saw the preserved rainforest (about 1000 of their 7500 acres). They also have a city farm of 500 acres (the nearest town is about 30 minutes away). We looked at their entire property from the highest point of their land. It was beautiful. We also heard lots of stories about my brother Steve throughout the day - Steve's pond, where Steve sheared the sheep, etc.

Julie then made us a traditional New Zealand dinner. A lamb roast (that Matt killed last week), potatoes, kumra (like sweet potato), carrots, brocoli, and wild mushrooms. Very good!

We brought Matt the game Clue, since we had fun playing it with him when he visited us. We taught it to his parents that night. I think they were a bit confused. Another great day!!

Waitomo "Glow Worm" Caves

We left early this morning (5:45 New Zealand time/3:45 Australian time) to head down to the Waitomo Caves. It took a couple hours, and the countryside was just like Lord of the Rings.

We got to the Rap, Raft n Rock (http://www.caveraft.com/) to check in. We had a small group, just us, our guide Marcus, and a Czeck guy named Marek.

We first donned our gear - wetsuit, jacket, pants, belt, boots, helmet and light. We then practiced abselling and abselled about 100 ft. into the caves. We hiked in the underground river and saw some glow worm caves. The "glow" is on the ceiling, as a byproduct of the larvae there (of a kind of spider/mosquito). When you turn your lights off, it looks like the ceiling is glowing (and so other bugs think so too, and are caught in the webs of the larvae).

We hiked, rafted, did a little spelunking, and ended with rock-climbing ourselves out (which was quite tiring since it was our last thing).

We drove to the "farm" that Matt's parents have. About 7500 acres with mostly sheep and some cows. Met Matt's parents and had some of Julie's great lasagna!

Goin' to New Zealand!

Today John and Gill took us to the airport. We got there early, did a bit of shopping, then headed down to the gate! They stayed with us and watched us get on the plane. So sweet!!

Took the short jaunt to Auckland and Julie and Matt picked us up. We stayed at Matt's aunt and uncle's place in Auckland. Michael and Marie are so sweet, and we got to meet the entire family. Since my brother Stephen lived for about 9 months in New Zealand, I am now introduced as Steve's sister, not Julia's cousin :-)

the beach!

So, for our last day in Australia, Christina took us to the beach! Here we come Sunshine Coast!!

We went to a cool aquarium called Underwater World. We learned about seals, otters, stingrays and all other kids of fish. They had a cool exhibit where you were on a moving walkway and the aquarium was on both sides and over you! so cool!

We then went to the beach and went in the water. It was great! Ry and I had so much fun, like we were little kids - jumping in the waves and trying not to get saltwater in our eyes.

John and Gill made us a traditional Australian dinner - lamb, pumpkin, potato, peas and carrots! It was yummy! We had pavlova for dessert (meringue with whipped cream and fruit). It was great! We sure are going to miss this beautiful place and wonderful hosts!! It has been so much fun!!

the Big Pineapple

Damien had to leave us today! His work called him to India for a business trip.

Christina took us to the Big Pineapple. It used to be a working pineapple plantation, with macadamia nuts, petting zoo and more. When we got there it looked a bit abandoned. After we spoke to a worker we found out that the land was for sale, and the owner was not doing any improvements. It was sad to see the empty fields where pineapples used to grow.

Luckily, since there were few people there, we were able to crach our own macadamia nuts and were one of the only ones on the Nut Mobile. It seemed a little like a family amusement park whose hey-day was in the 70s and 80s.