Fun in the Sun

It was so nice out today! I couldn't resist filling up the little pool we have and letting Ryan get a kick out of it. Grace really enjoyed being outside too.

Bye Jennie :(

Today was Ryan and Grace's last day at Jennie's daycare. We are going to keep the kids home during the summer months and search for a new daycare to begin in September. The kids don't understand that they won't be going to back to Jennie's, so it was really a sad day just for Jennie and I. But I told her that we'll visit from time to time. Ryan gave hugs to all his friends and he gave Jennie a hug too. She cried and I know this is really hard on her because she's attached to them. Ryan has been going there since he was 6 months old! Time will take away the sadness, but I felt bad seeing her so upset, so this was a hard day for me... and her.


Jennie, Ryan, and Grace ~ June 25, 2008

Grace Eats Puffs

Awhile back I posted a video of Ryan eating puffs when he was a little baby. So today I took some pictures and videos to share of Grace eating puffs. She also got to have some pork chops, applesauce, and baked beans for dinner (although that's not shown in the photos). She really seemed to like being a part of our family dinner tonight.

Raspberries for Grace

Grace had her 9-month well baby check today and all is well. Every time the doctor sees her he laughs and says, "She isn't missing any meals." I take it as a compliment. She's a big baby! 20 pounds & 3 ounces (81st percentile), 28.8 inches long (93rd percentile), and 18.5 inch head circumference (99th percentile). She has five teeth already, with a sixth on the way. The doctor said that she has a lot of teeth for her age, so she can definitely start eating small pieces of table food now. I decided to test this out tonight by giving her small chunks of raspberries. She took one look at those on her highchair and started to cry. It was pretty funny because up to this point she hasn't refused any food. I finally convinced her to try one bite, but she did not like that. She took it into her mouth, mushed it around, and then did her best attempt to spit it out (all while fussing about it). It was amusing to watch.

Forests & Bears

Today was pretty fun. Since I don't work on Thursdays and Scott is officially done with school and teaching for the summer, this was our first day at home together (on a weekday) with the kids. Ryan had swimming lessons at 10:15 AM this morning. Scott took him in the pool for the lesson, and Grace and I watched from the bleachers. Ryan jumped off the diving board (with a little help) 3 times! I was proud of him. They also sang songs in the pool, and practiced kicking and floating. He has four more days of swimming lessons (next Monday - Thursday) and then maybe we'll enroll him in the next level. Anyway, after swiming lessons we went to the Mall of America. We used Ryan's birthday gift certificates from Maria to have lunch at the Rainforest Cafe and afterwards we built a moose at the Build-A-Bear Workshop. The Rainforest Cafe is pretty cool, for kids and adults. There are huge fish tanks all around the restaurant. You can't even see the ceiling because they have trees all over, so you feel like you're in a forest. And every so often thunder rumbles, lightning strikes, it rains, and monkeys dance. Ryan liked it a lot. In fact, he couldn't stop thinking about those moving/dancing monkeys. After we left the restaurant, we went to the Build-A-Bear Workshop and he remembered (an hour later) that he wanted to go back there to see the monkeys again. At the Build-A-Bear Workshop Ryan picked out his own stuffed animal (a cute moose) and then he got to stuff it with a machine, wash it and brush it, pick out an outfit, and give it a name. The outfit he picked was a Minnesota Vikings uniform (super cute). And he decided to name it (with a little suggestion from me) Moose A. Moose. There is a kids' channel on TV that has a character named Moose A. Moose and since Ryan couldn't pick a name, I suggested that one to him. Here are pictures from today:

Scott and Ryan.

Me and Grace (I love her face in this picture).

About to put a heart inside the moose.

Watching the moose get stuffed.

Washing and brushing the moose.

Dressing the moose.

Receiving his new friend.

Stopping to smile because I asked him to. :)

Giving the moose a name (actually Ryan's just playing around here, but Scott got his moose registered for him).

At home with his new buddy.

This is a pretty cute looking little Viking.

Happy Dad's Day

Happy Father's Day Scott! WE LOVE YOU VERY MUCH and we missed you today. We hope you had a double win in Rochester. Love, Ryan, Grace, and Heather

Gimme a Screen!

Yeah! We've waited for a few years, but we finally got a screen/storm door (thanks to Duane & Diane). On Saturday my parents (Skip and Karen) came over to help install it. Actually my Dad, Scott, and his Dad Duane installed the door while my Mom and I watched the kids and shopped for patio furniture. Here are a few pictures of the installation work. We tried out the new door that night and it worked great, especially when the wind picked up to 45 mph! :)

Blog Posts By E-Mail

To those of you that get an e-mail every time I post to our blog... I just want you to know that you can click on The Hackett House link at the bottom of each e-mail to go directly to our blog's website. You might be able to view pictures and videos more successfully if you go directly to the website. ALSO, if you want me to remove your name from this e-mail list please tell me. I won't be offended because I know it can be annoying to get lots of e-mails in your inbox. Some of you might rather visit the site on your own from time to time as opposed to getting an e-mail every time I post. :)

Rockstar Ryan

OMG, all I can say is that this video makes me bust out laughing. Watch it. We went to the Childrens' Museum earlier this year and Ryan found a room where he got to sing on stage and watch himself on TV. I'm in the video for a short time, playing guitar next to him. The date was April 25, 2008.

Monster Grace

I laughed out loud when I first saw these pictures on my computer! Grace does this a lot. She gets excited, makes a "monster" face, and puts her arms out like she wants to grab you and eat you. It's hilarious.

Scott is a Winner!

As some of you may or may not know, Scott got the head coaching job for the Eden Prairie American Legion baseball team this year. I'm proud of him. And so far he's coached his team to 3 wins and 0 losses! Tonight his team beat St. Louis Park 9-0. If anyone is interested in checking out his schedule, or attending a game with me sometime, let me know. The link to his team's website blog is http://www.eplegionbaseball.blogspot.com.

Grandma T.

I brought the kids to visit my grandma Charlotte, but we call her Grandma T., two Fridays ago and we had such a good afternoon with her. I think she had a good time too. She mailed me a letter afterwards (she's very prompt) and part of what she wrote was, "Thank you for taking the time to visit me last Friday. I had a nice time with you and your kiddies, and that means a lot to this old lady. I don't have many experiences like that, as we are usually together in a large group.... Thanks again for everything. You are a special granddaughter." Here is a picture from our time with Grandma T. By the way, she is in her 80's and has the energy, love, and sharp mind of someone half her age. I'm glad I get to enjoy my kids with her. I can tell she adores them so much.

Ryan Used To Be A Baby?

Does anyone remember when Ryan was this age (11 months)? OMG, I used to have clean carpet? This video was taken on February 20, 2006.

Random Stuff

My posts are so random right now. But I've got 3+ years of photos and videos stored up, so I'll post them in random order as I come upon them. As for current stuff... here is a quick summary:

Ryan is almost 3 1/2 years old. He's talking like crazy, and saying things that are far beyond his 3 years. It's pretty funny. Of course, I'm trying to come up with an example but my "mommy brain" doesn't allow me to think on the spot. Ryan is also learning to use the potty. He's wearing training underwear and goes on the potty 1 to 2 times per day. I don't know when it will click with him to use the potty every time he needs to go, but hopefully by the Fall. Oh, I thought of something cute that Ryan said the other day. Out of the blue he walked up to me and said, "Mom, you're sweet." He can be so loving sometimes. He loves to give kisses and hugs... to all of us (me, Scott, and Grace). And he's extremely crazy - and I mean CRAZY - about his little sister Grace. He's always telling us how much he loves her. I love watching them interact because he can make Grace laugh like no one else can. It's pretty funny. I need to catch it on video sometime.

As for Grace, well, she's almost 9 months old and she's just learning to sit up. She's just like her brother was at this age - no rolling over and no crawling. So I've decided to accept the fact that she's going to be a late bloomer when it comes to the physical stuff (rolling over, crawling, scooting, standing up, walking, etc.). Ryan didn't walk until he was 16 months old and I'm sure Grace will be the same way. I guess I should look at it this way... at least she won't be getting into stuff and I'll be able to keep an eye on her. As for her accomplishments - she can sit up on her own now and I think she loves the different point of view that gives her. She's also learning to clap and give kisses. She eats everything we give her and hasn't made even one sour face over the taste of any food. Pretty soon she'll be moving on to regular milk and table food. Where did this past year go??? My favorite, favorite, favorite thing about Grace is how she cuddles with me. When I hold her in my arms she gives me "squeeze" hugs. She tenses up her little body and squeezes me, then releases, and then does it again. It's pretty cute. And when we're lying down next to each other, she rolls towards me so we're both lying on our sides (bellys facing each other) with her arms outstretched and her mouth wide open - almost like she wants to kiss or suck my cheeks. Her little arms will grab my face, or hair, or neck... and then her mouth is wide open, all happy and smiling. It's adorable. Right now she's very much a mommy's girl, but I know she's going to LOVE her Daddy as she gets older.

I Miss Poppy

This is a video of my grandpa, or "Poppy" as we called him, and Ryan (who was 9 months old at the time). The date was December 27, 2005 -- about 9 months before Poppy passed away. Although this video is short, I'm so glad I have it because it shows him smiling and happy (the way he always was, even when he faced an aging body). I miss you Poppy.

Birthday #32 for Scott

Scott turned 32 on Monday, June 2nd. We celebrated his birthday last weekend at his parent's house. Here are some pictures from that day.

Duane is making the kabobs. Mmmm...

Vicki (Scott's sister) and Grace.

Ryan loves to help blow out birthday candles.

Grace seems pretty content with her Dad.

Scott and his parents (Diane & Duane).

Cate (our niece), Duane, Ryan, Diane, and Grace.

Grace's Arrival 9/19/07

Here are two videos showing the moment Grace was born. The first video shows me laying on the operating table, but don't worry... you only see my arm and face. It's interesting to hear the doctors talking in the background though. Once Grace is born they are amazed at how big she is, and they speculate about her weight, and my doctor (the OBGYN) makes a comment like, "Natural delivery is totally out of the question."

The second video shows Grace being cleaned off and they also cut her cord. She's crying and it's funny to hear that because I recognize her voice.

My Favorite Grace

This is one of my favorite pictures of Grace. She was only 8 days old in this picture. The date was September 27, 2007.

Ryan Eats Puffs

I'm not really posting these videos in order, but since a lot of you haven't seen any of them before, I'll just find ones that are good (and hopefully not too long) and post them as I find them. Ryan is 9 1/2 months old in this video. The date was January 7, 2006.

Ryan Calling Jessi & Mal

This is the first video I've ever posted, so please give me comments. Can you see it? Does it play okay? It's a video of Ryan, age 2 years and 2 months, at our hotel room in Duluth. The date was May 5, 2007.