Monday, October 17, 2005

Notre Dame vs. USC

As for the game...I'll simply post what the NY Times had to say:
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/10/17/sports/ncaafootball/17colleges.html

Replays showed that the ball flew back at least a yard, but officials placed the ball's nose just inches from the goal line.

Leinart then sealed the victory with another charmed play. After pushing into his offensive line unsuccessfully, he twisted his body to his right and was pushed into the end zone by running back Reggie Bush. With two hands, Bush shoved Leinart's chest to allow him to stumble backward over the goal line through a gap between the center and the left guard.

Bush admitted to pushing Leinart into the end zone after the game, even though it is a violation.

According to Section 2, Article 2b of the N.C.A.A. rulebook, "The runner shall not grasp a teammate; and no other player of his team shall grasp, push, lift or charge into him to assist him in forward progress."

Monday, October 10, 2005

Sorry we haven't posted in a while...It took some time to come down after the ND win over Purdue (49-28). We're getting ready for this weekend; it's the "big game" against the No. 1 USC Trojans. It should be a pretty good game.

And speaking of the game, I've posted some pics of our family outing to see the Fightin' Irish.

I have also posted a pic of the wonderful hoodie-towel Uncle Phil and Aunt Jo Shirk sent us. Ryan loves it. Thanks, Shirk family!

Finally, Amy got a haircut today. She lopped off about 8 inches of hair, then had it straightened. It is the first time I have seen her with straight hair, and I have to admit that it looks pretty darn good. I've put a picture of it on here so all of you can enjoy!

In other news, it's time for mid-terms. On Thursday I'll take the exams for my Criminal Law, Contract Law, and Civil Procedure classes. It will be a three hour set following a full day of classes, but I take comfort in the fact that it is not graded. Our grades are strictly determined by the final, so these exams are simply a chance for me to see how the instructors ask questions and get an idea about the kind of answers they will want. Wish me luck!

Ryan has started sleeping longer, which of course makes Amy happy. He typically sleeps from about 10:30pm until around 5:30am. He has also learned how to roll over, which is the first big milestone. We're pretty proud.

Will write again soon,
Ryan, Amy, and Ryan Patrick
Amy's new haircut (look...it's straight!) Posted by Picasa
Vato Loco forever! Posted by Picasa
Busted calling the Psychic Hotline... Posted by Picasa
New monogrammed towel from Uncle Phil and Aunt Jo Shirk Posted by Picasa
Amy, Ryan and I go to the game... Posted by Picasa
Go Irish! Posted by Picasa
Irish Guard Posted by Picasa

Saturday, September 24, 2005

ND - 36...............Wash - 17

(We won't talk about last week...)

Friday, September 16, 2005

Night Before the First Home Game...

Hello, all!

It's been an eventful week this week. Amy's parents came up to visit for a few days, bringing some warm Texas weather with them. Now that they've left, it's a balmy 55 degrees and rainy. Everything should clear up before tomorrow's first home game against Michigan State. I've never been anywhere so crazy before a football game - and I've lived in Oklahoma and Texas! Over 80,000 people have streamed in from around the country (including Regis Philbin and Dick Vitale), and Notre Dame is frightfully under-equipped parking-wise. Should be a long walk to the stadium...

I've posted some pretty good pictures this time, or so I think. We were finally able to get a picture of Ryan smiling, so hopefully the fussy-face photos will come to an end.

Amy and her folks went to Lake Michigan on Monday while I slaved away at school. I've posted some pictures below. From what Amy tells me, we might be raising a beach-bum; Ryan really seemed to enjoy putting his "monkey-toes" in the sand. That's right...he inheritted my long and surprisingly dextrous toes. Amy gave him the hair, I gave him the toes. I think I got the short end of the stick on that one.

Last but not least, we bought an exer-saucer for the boy with the generous gift my Uncle John and Aunt Jo Grosso sent us. Ryan can't quite sit up in it on his own, but if we prop him up he really enjoys it. And speaking of the Grosso's, Ryan has a new cousin! Aiden John Grosso was born (7 lbs., 20 inches long) at 6 p.m. on September 9th. Check him out at http://grossobaby.blogspot.com. My favorite photo is the one with his tongue...take a look at the blog and you'll see.

Well, that about wraps it up for this week. I hope all is well and I'll post again soon!

Ryan, Amy, and Ryan Patrick
Just Because... Posted by Picasa
Finally!! HE SMILES!!! Posted by Picasa
First Day at the Beach... Posted by Picasa
Amy and Ryan on the shores of Lake Michigan... Posted by Picasa
Ryan Playing With The Grosso-Saucer! Posted by Picasa
Nana Skipper and Papa John with Ryan Posted by Picasa
Thanks Uncle John and Aunt Jo! Posted by Picasa

Saturday, September 10, 2005

Notre Dame 17...............Michigan 10

Go Irish!!!

Sunday, September 04, 2005

2 Weeks down...

Hello, all!

Well, I've finished my second week of law school (phwew). I typically go in around 7am and leave about 5pm - so far, this is working well enough. Amy had a hard first day adjusting to the single-parent lifestyle, but we have a routine now that seems to do the trick. If Amy weren't so good with the boy, I don't know what I'd do!

On Friday of orientation, we attended the Dean's welcome reception where I introduced Amy to some of my classmates. The Married Law Student's Organization (which we're now a part of) volunteered to do the babysitting during the reception, and we were happy to get the 2 hour break. At the end, however, I think we were both ready to see Ryan.

Last weekend we tried to take it easy. We rented a video and stayed at home, enjoying time with just the three of us. We also went to the zoo, and I have posted some pictures below. The most interesting thing about the zoo is that there is a field with kangaroos and wallabees that you're able to walk through! No fences! If a kangaroo just happens to hop over to you, you're welcome to pet it! Weird. I have no idea how they get around the liability issues (one of my courses is tort liability...).

This weekend, however, we decided to go to the Annual Blueberry Festival in Pleasant, IN. It's about a half-hour drive, and (like the Amish Acres Festival) had surprisingly little to do with blueberries. There was only one booth with anything blueberry. Hmmph. The rest of the festival was primarily food vendors (deep fried candy bars, funnel cakes, elephant ears, cotton candy, etc.), a softball and baseball tournament, and several knick-knack booths, as well as a number of carnival rides. Very odd. Unbelievably, there was a crowd of probably two to three thousand at the festival. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera.

In any case, that's the latest. I hope all is well, and keep your fingers crossed for Monte and Christine!

Ryan, Amy, & Ryan Patrick