Johns 35th birthday

Today is Johns 35th birthday...Friday night we celebrated his birthday at Pappadeaux's with our good friends, Devon & Glenn Daigle. Today John and I are going to see the movie 2012 and then have a nice dinner at Carrabba's.

New job

On Monday, November 2nd, I started a new job at Argo Surety as an Underwriting Assistant. This position literally fell in my lap. LOL...This wonderful opportunity came to my by Q-temps, an insurance recruiting firm. The commute is 10 miles from home and takes me around 30 minutes in the morning. In January, they are relocating to a new building, which will be 3 miles from home.

After being home with Matthew for the past 14 months, I felt confident returning to the working world. We hired a nanny to take care of Laurynn & Matthew instead of placing them in daycare.

I'm learning a lot about the surety business and insurance bonds. I work with a staff of 7 (including me), which is quite different from working at Travelers when I worked with a team of 45 people.

I look forward to being a permanent employee within 90 days.

Laurynn's 10th birthday

It's hard to imagine my little girl turned 10 years old on October 3rd. Her Aunt Kim came for a visit last weekend and fun was had by all. On Friday, I surprised her at school and brought lunch. That night, our good friends, Devon & Glenn Daigle joined us in Laurynn's birthday celebration. She had a Michael Jackson birthday cake along with balloons. She received a MJ poster and Spongebob Squarepants 3rd season DVD set from Devon & Glenn. From us, she got a spin brush, Barbie dream bedroom, and tickets to Mary Poppins on Broadway Show (for Nov 1st). Saturday evening, we took her to Shogun Japanese Restaurant for dinner. She thoroughly enjoyed the night and capped it off with playing games from the Wii.

Remembering Mom

Today, September 25th marks 15 years of my Mother's (Glenda Kay Cromwell) passing. I remember it all too well like it was yesterday. She was diagnosed at age 40 with breast cancer and was treated with chemotherapy. She would be well for several years and then the disease would spread to another organ. By 1994, the cancer had riddled her body and got very skinny. I'll never forget the night of Saturday, September 24th. My Grandma frantically called as I was getting ready to go out with my then-boyfriend, Steven (and now ex-husband) and close friends. Mom's breathing had become labored and Grandma felt the urgency of Mom going to the Emergency Room. I immediately left my apartment and sped to Cy-Fair Hospital. She was in the ER and the doctor said there was nothing left to be done. Her internal organs were beginning to shut down and all they could do is make her comfortable. I would stand next to the bed talking to her and when she opened her eyes, I knew she was gone. I'm not sure if she knew it was me. We all decided it would be best to send her home for her last hours of life. I then had to make a difficult decision. Do I go back to Grandma's and watch her die? Or, go home to my apartment? I told Grandma that I just couldn't watch her die. At my age of 24, I wasn't ready to handle that kind of emotion. Fifteen years later, I would have definitely been there and take care of her. I drove home to my apartment on early morning hours of September 25th. I knew what was coming and had already accepted her outcome. The phone rang around 6 or 7 am and realized that she had passed. I was overcome with tears and sadness. She was my Mom; we were very close and now she was gone forever. She would never know her beautiful grandchildren, Laurynn and Matthew. She would never know how much her granddaughter looks so much like her.

Laurynn, Matthew and I brought flowers to her grave and had a moment of silence in her honor. Rest in Peace Mom. I love you and miss you!

1st day of school

4th grade here we come!

Meet the Teacher

Today was Meet the Teacher as Laurynn is entering the 4th grade. She has Ms. Nelson as homeroom teacher/social studies/language arts/reading and Mrs. Averitt for Math & Science. We also visited with her previous years teachers and the Birkes staff. Laurynn is very excited and looking forward to Monday!

Laurynn's first solo flight

Laurynn had a big milestone yesterday (Wed, Aug 12th)...She flew to Dallas all by herself! We arrived at Hobby airport around 7:30 a.m. and her flight was at 10:00 a.m. I'd rather be too early versus too late. Once clearing through security, we sat and watched the planes pull up to the gate. She'd ask me "Is that my plane?" And my response was "No, yours will be here little bit." About 9:40 she was able to preboard and we gave hugs and kisses (while Mommy held back tears) and she was escorted down the ramp to the plane. I had to stay at the gate till her plane took off and I didn't mind at all.

Laurynn's plane had arrived to Dallas and she called me the moment I walked in the door at home. She now realized how fast it was to fly versus driving in the car. Gee, I have a feeling this is the beginning of many future flights to come!

Matthews 1st birthday party

The past few days have been days of reflection of the last 365 days. On Saturday, we celebrated Matthew's 1st birthday with a party including family and close friends. I had specifically chose a personalized tee shirt for him to wear on the day of the party. I also had a 1st b-day onesie and bib as a backup.

Those in attendance were:

Mommy, Daddy & big sister Laurynn
John Gray Sr. (Grandfather)
George & Helen Gray (Great-Grandparents)
George Gray (Uncle)
Jeanie Gray (Cousin)
Devon & Glenn Daigle (friends)
Robin, Cheyenne & Colby Storrs (friends)
Kim, John & Sydney Rankin (friends)
Patsy, Nathan & Kayla Romano (friends)

Matthew had a morning nap while I scurried around putting the finishing touches around the house. Devon picked up the balloons and then we picked up the cake & food. I was quite pleased with his birthday cake. It was designed identical to the napkin & plates. The "smash cake" was adorable and perfect size for his little fingers. We sang "Happy Birthday" to Matthew while Mommy held the smash cake and Laurynn blew out the candle. Amazingly he just watched all of us singing to him and never cried. Daddy helped Matthew get him started with the cake by taking his hand and smashing it in the cake. Soon afterwards, the cake was unrecognizable and he began flinging cake in all directions. Those standing around the highchair, watch out! Here comes flying cake! After about 15 minutes, he excitement of the cake was beginning to diminish and he started to whine & cry in protest. Mommy cleaned him up and changed him in the backup onesie.

Next....Opening gifts! All the kids, including myself and Matthew sat in a circle on the floor. Laurynn read the cards out loud while I helped Matthew open the gifts. He received wonderful gifts from all who attended.

It was a relaxing afternoon visiting with family & friends. After the guests left, it was time for a nap and he went right down without a fuss.

Hard to believe it's been a year!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Matthews 1st birthday

Today was a milestone day for the Gray family....It was Matthews 1st birthday! All day I kept thinking back a year ago and saying to myself "This time last year, I was ...." Our good friends, Devon & Glenn Daigle joined us in Matthews celebration. About 7:30, it was cake time! Or, should I say "smash" cake time. We all sang him "Happy Birthday" and presented him with his own blue cake he could eat all himself. This was the first time he'd ever had sugar icing and he made some priceless faces while eating. He didn't know what to do with the cake at first, but then his big sister, Laurynn, helped getting his fingers in the cake. After the mess with his cake, he immediately got a bath and then he opened his gifts. I knew he was working on overtime because it was past his bedtime and was getting crankier by the minute. He received an Elmo play tv remote and fun balls from Devon & Glenn. We gave him colored sorting boxes, rattles, and a play ball. He'll get the other gifts at his party on Saturday. Matthew received an original sock monkey from his Aunt Melinda & Uncle Joe, and cash from his Great-Grandmother Peggy. At the moment he was ready for bed but tomorrow, he'll have new toys to play. Overall, it was a very good day! A big thank you to Devon for making some delicious cupcakes! Happy 1st birthday Matthew! We all love you!

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Swimming

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Miscellaneous Matthew photos

Make a Smilebox slideshow

Westfield High School Class of 1989 ~ 20th reunion ~ June 20, 2009

Dinner at Benihana's






Rachel & John Gray










Darin & Robin Storrs








John & Kim Rankin

Before we left for the reunion

Hard to believe it's been 20 years since I graduated from high school. The reunion was Saturday night at the Houston Club in downtown Houston. John and I went with our friends and classmates, John & Kim Rankin (friends and classmates), and Robin & Darin Storrs (Robin is a good friend and classmate).

After a few months of deciding what to wear, I found a beautiful maxi dress at Nordstrom's and it felt so comfortable. I felt so pretty! John made a funny comment, "I was a chicken fajita wrapped in a flour tortilla" because I took a lot of effort to look "skinny" (thanks to Spanx!)

It was a fun evening, kinda surreal and sometimes awkward. All the classmates would look at the name tag and then try to place the face with the face from the past. Some changed quite a bit while others haven't changed a bit.

Make a Smilebox scrapbook

Make a Smilebox slideshow

3rd Grade Review by Mommy

3rd Grade Review
By
Mommy (Rachel)

Laurynn Emily, another school year is done and what a year it has been! For 3rd grade, you really liked all your teachers; Mrs. van Wunnik (Math & Science); Mrs. Langford (Language Arts, Reading & Social Studies); and Mrs. Linhart (Speech). We knew 3rd grade would be challenging because of the Reading & Math TAKS tests in the Spring. Within the first 2 weeks after school began, you resumed tutoring with Ms. Perkins for reading & Mrs. O'Dell for math. School was only in session for 3 weeks when Hurricane Ike struck Galveston on September 13, 2008 and the school district was closed for 7 school days.

Math was still a subject that was a challenge for you, but you always strived to figure out a math problem or the answer. Mrs. van Wunnik was a great Math teacher and worked with you as needed.

Reading wasn't too hard for you this year like in years past. In the fall of 2008, you began learning the TARGET strategies for the Reading TAKS. After many months of practicing in class and tutoring with Ms. Perkins, you were ready for the TAKS. Ms. Perkins called Mommy with news you passed the TAKS! Congratulations!

After the Reading TAKS was complete, it was time to concentrate and prepare for the Math TAKS. The test was scheduled for April 28, 2009, but a strong thunderstorm resulting in flooding closed the school district. You were not happy that school was cancelled because you wanted to take the test. The next day all 3rd graders took the TAKS test. A few weeks later, Mrs. van Wunnik called Mommy with wonderful news that you passed! Great job!

Finally, all the important tests were behind you and in May, you enjoyed Field Day with your classmates. You worked so hard this year and the report card shows the results. Always remember knowledge is power! You had another year with perfect attendance -> 4 years in a row! Good luck in 4th grade! We all love you very much!


Subject Year-to-Date Average
Language Arts 88
Reading 83
Mathematics 80
Science 84
Social Studies 90

3rd grade Awards Day & Last day of school

James Avery sterling silver "horse" charm











Surprise!












Last day of school ~ June 3, 2009








Laurynn's awards: Perfect Attendance Award (4 years in a row), Persistant Student Award & Inquisitive Learner Award

Laurynn and her 3rd grade teacher, Mrs. van Wunnik

New Entertainment Center

Since Matthew has started crawling and getting into the electronics, we started looking for an entertainment center. We found this one on Craigslist and it was an awesome deal for $245. It's almost brand new, in perfect condition! We got lucky!

Girl Scouts Bridging Ceremony

Laurynn bridged from brownies to junior girl scouts on Thursday evening...She has completed her 4th year in girl scouts. Here are some photos!