sweet sophia

Last weekend we celebrated Sophia's baptism. You could feel the angels in the room as Lyza, Braydon, Becky, Tory, and I made the commitment to raise Sophia in a way that would nurture and help her understand Jesus' love.

Sophia's godmothers, Lyza and Becky, helped her dress for her special day.

Lyza, Braydon, and Becky stood with Tory and I as Godparents to Sophia.

 

 After the ceremony we celebrated with lunch and cake at The Cruise. Thank you Rana!

Thank you to our family and friends for being a part of this blessed day. We know that Jeremiah 29:11 holds true for Sophia, just as it holds true for all who love Jesus.


Jeremiah 29:11 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the Lord, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future."

true love

One month old

 Two months old

Guess who's two months old already! Sophia weighed in at 9lbs 4oz and measured 22.5 inches long at her two month appointment. This month she started smiling and laughing when we talk to her. 

She is also full of her own stories, which she shares with great enthusiasm. :) Check her out... 

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7eQoWDoKdHU

Love, Tory & Lynette

the light of our lives

We spent 9 months anxiously awaiting the arrival of our sweet baby girl and it was worth the wait!

 Sophia Noelle Dyck: Born April 9, 2012 at 11:43pm.

(pictures were taken at 1 week old)

Dear Sophia,

Be strong in the Lord and

never give up hope.

You're gonna do great things...

 we already know.

God's got His hand on you, so don't live life in fear.

Forgive & forget, but don't forget why you're here.

Love, mommy & daddy xoxo

Be still and know I am God. Psalm 46:10

grateful

We kicked off 2012 with a trip to Puerto Rico! It was wonderful to be in the sunshine (although I can't complain about the winter that we've had to endure this year). We ate lots, relaxed, enjoyed spending time with family, kayaked, and snorkled! Most importantly, we are so happy that we got to see Melba Marie and Alex tie the knot and be a part of their special day. Congrats prima!

::with the bride and groom::

::some of the Tejera cousins::

::love my abuelita::

::love::

With only 10 weeks left until baby D arrives, we are busy setting up the nursery, reorganizing our house, and taking baby classes. I look forward to what the next two months will bring as we prepare for our little angel.

::30 weeks::

Love, Lynette

embrace 2012

The end of 2011 came and went. It was an eventful and unforgettable one. On December 15, Tory graduated from basic training and I went down to Atlanta to watch him officially become an infantryman in the United States Army. Needless to say, I was a very proud wifey. I'm grateful to my mom, Michelle, Tom, Fred, and Karen for making the trip to support our family. Here's a quick glimpse into graduation:

Tory, Baby D, and I would like to wish a very happy new year!! We can't wait for what's to come in 2012. :) So many exciting blessings heading our way!

New Year's Eve: 25.5 Weeks

Love, Lynette

::God, thank you for the opportunities this New Year has in store for me. Help me see the blessings, even in the roughest days. Thank you for all the doors you open for me and my family; even the ones I might not see at first. Help me to always say yes to you and to keep my eyes focused on you. Give me strength to make decisions based on my faith in you.::

our little angel

It was so good to see Tory and share Thanksgiving with him. I'm thankful for the time that we got to spend together. I'm so proud of him. Only 18 days until he's home for good. God is good!

Thanksgiving in the chow hall at Fort Benning

I'm also thankful for the beautiful and healthy baby GIRL that will be here come April. She's becoming more and more active, which is so much fun. She continues to grow big and strong weighing in at 11 ounces at my 20 week ultrasound.

The ultrasound technician sealed the gender of the baby in an envelope so that I could bring it to Fort Benning and open it with Tory. It was the best way to find out that our little blessing is a girl. :) We are so excited!

With love, Lynette

stand firm in faith

Can you believe November is right around the corner already? Wow! October flew by, but November is going to be packed full of blessings and I'm ready. On November 23rd I will fly down to Atlanta and drive to Fort Benning for Tory's 48 hour leave. November 23rd marks the end of basic training for him. The remainder of his time will be spent in job training specific to infantry. It's my first Thanksgiving away from my family, but I know it'll be extra special after not seeing or talking to Tory for so long! Letters, although very special, just aren't the same.

October has kept me busy. My niece, Yuri Nelly, was born September 30th and she has filled our lives with lots of love. With many health complications over the last month, she has truly shown us what it means to persevere. She is recovering at home now after a surgery that removed pressure building up in her brain. She is doing extraordinarily well. She's full of so much strength and courage. We are all in awe of her. God is so good and has led our family through faith. I am blessed to be apart of a family that stands by each other no matter what and will do whatever it takes to be there for one another. XoXo



I spent a much needed MEA break in Las Vegas with Rebecca and we had a blast! There was so much to see and do. I can't wait to go back with my man. We shopped, ate, gambled, walked everywhere, took in the sunshine, danced the nights away, saw a Circus de Soleil show, and much more.




Tory is doing great and eager to move onto Blue Phase. Tomorrow is his first day of Blue Phase, which is the final phase of the basic training portion of his time at Fort Benning. Like Red and White Phase, Blue Phase will last 3 weeks. December 15th (his return to Fort Home -hehe) will be here before we know it. Baby D and I can't wait. We miss our soldier :) Here's what he's had to say in the last week or so.


October 20, 2011
Today was a big gun day. We learned how to operate the .50 cal and MK19. Shooting the .50 cal was one of the highlights of basic so far. You should youtube these weapons so you know what I'm talking about when I use these things. The .50 cal is a huge gun that is usually mounted on top of a humvee or striker that shoots rounds that will literally tear someone in half and send them 20 feet in the air. We were on a hill shooting at old tanks that were about 2,000 meters away. The feeling through your whole body when you fire that gun is awesome. I wish we could fire more rounds. The MK19 (pronounced mark 19) is a fully automatic grenade launcher. I shot about 20-30 rounds with that one. The cool thing about the MK19 is that you can actually see the rounds as they go down range because they don't travel nearly as fast as a bullet. Saw some good explosions today. You feel like the man sitting behind a big gun that size and feeling it vibrate through your chest. Definitely a good day.

October 21, 2011
Today we went to the EST range again. This time we got an intro to shooting targets from a standing position while we are moving. We are transitioning from BRM (Basic Rifle Marksmanship) to ARM (Advances Rifle Marksmanship) which involves more combat situations rather than basic shooting of targets. The simulation today had targets that popped up and we had to raise our rifle on the move and double tap them. Any time you shoot an enemy you double tap to ensure that they are dead and don't try exploding a suicide bomb or anything. I'm excited about ARM training. We will get to run around and do a lot more high intensity training. Tomorrow was supposed to be our 8-mile ruck march, but it was moved to next Saturday. ... I have a wicked blister on my heel so I'm okay with that.

October 24, 2011
We were up at 0345 this morning to march out to eh grenade range. That's right, I got to throw hand grenades today. We did a round march to get there, but it was just in full kit (body armor, assault backpack, etc.) and not a ruck so it was a solid 3-mile workout. It's actually hot here today and we had to sprint around the range in our body armor so I worked up a good sweat today.

After learning how to properly arm and throw a grenade we threw 3 dummy grenades that just flashed and banged when they hit the ground. You can't throw it like a baseball because they weigh a pound and a half and you have to get it over the barrier in front of you. ... You stand in a pit with concrete barriers around you and a Pit NCO in there who gives you instructions. You gotta make sure you so it the right way or they will straight up body slam you on the ground. Some people have actually dropped the grenade or thrown it straight at the wall in front of them or even backwards and the Pit NCO's don't hesitate to mess you up.

Basically it's simple. You flip the safety lever, pull the pin and throw. As soon as you throw it releases the final safety, called the spoon. You better believe I was holding that tight until I threw the grenade. We all had to stand behind this big wall and could hear the tower give instructions to throw the first grenade and I was expecting it to sound like a shot from a big gun but it was WAY louder. The whole ground shook, it was fricken sweet. I threw my 2 live grenades with no problem, except that it was over too fast. You have to duck behind the barrier after you throw so you don't see the explosion but after you throw you get to stand behind a big plexi-glass window and watch the next group throw. The explosion is bigger than I thought it would be for a little hand grenade. It was another thing I never thought I'd do.

Keep you posted :) -Lynette
Be on your guard; stand firm in the faith; be men of courage; be strong.
1 Corinthians 16:13