Daddy Daycare

On Friday, we went over to Paul & Lori's house and Riley & Ryan stayed so we could have a date night. They were kind enough to let us get out without having to pay a babysitter! We realized we've been out a lot, but always in groups or for a specific event. We needed a good date night - just the two of us, so we took advantage of an opportunity to have a good dinner and catch up. It was a great night.

On Saturday, I left for a girls getaway to the Ritz at Lake Oconee. I can't say enough about how great the time there was catching up with my girlfriends from college (and after college) and just relaxing in a gorgeous setting. Kevin stayed here with the kiddos and they had a great time themselves. They went on a long walk and then had time to venture to the grocery store and to Target. Kevin kept them busy. Before I left, we were able to snap a few shots of Riley & Ryan in my suitcase. We contemplated packing them to take with me, but then remembered it was supposed to be a "relaxing" weekend! :) Riley has officially taken off and is really crawling - full force. She is also getting into EVERYTHING. We had babyproofed the big things, (cabinets, outlets, gates, etc.) but have a long way to go to officially "Riley-proof" the house. She is so curious about any and everything in her sight. She was pulling up in her crib before I left yesterday and we knew the time has come to lower the mattress. In all of their ventures yesterday, Kevin wasn't able to do it. When he went in this morning to get them ready for church, plans quickly changed when he saw Riley hanging over the top of the rails. He lowered the crib within the hour. She is back to being contained for now. I think God is giving us a break by only having one of them truly mobile at this point. The transition is going to be an eye opener for us to say the least, so one at a time is alright with us.

My parents came over today for our weekly lunch with them and they relieved Kevin until I got home. He was able to go see a movie - a much deserved time out after keeping them all day yesterday and today. They enjoyed seeing how much they've changed in just one week. We laughed a lot with Riley's growling (some low pitched noise she likes to make over and over and over) and Ryan's excitement about each and every bite of his meal. I keep asking Kevin questions like "were you totally exhausted last night" and "what did ya'll do all day" and he just keeps telling me how great they were and how much fun they had. I'm truly blessed... Either it was truly that way (which is so cool) or he's smart enough not to tell me all the juicy details, so I can continue to savor my relaxation weekend. Either way - I'm lucky!!! :) Have a great week - we're off to Rochester Wed-Sat of this week, so I can't wait to see what tale I'm going to have to tell this time next week!

Web Album Added: http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080726SuitcaseCrib

Bath Night!

Riley and Ryan are enjoying bath time so much now that they are in the "big tub" that I took a few photos tonight. Thought you might enjoy seeing them. They LOVE bath time - we've come a LONG way from our first ventures into the bath. :)

Web Album: http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080721BathNight

Non-stop Weekend

We had such a fun weekend! On Friday, Mommy took the afternoon off from work to take a much-needed break and went to the pool all by herself. It was such a pleasant afternoon sitting by the pool in the sun without any responsibility!!!! I could certainly get used to that. Once reality came back and Kevin and the kids arrived at home, we were off to La Parilla for mexican food with Jenni & Jay to kick off the weekend. On Saturday, Gramma & Grandaddy came to watch swim lessons and we had a full on photo shoot - 3 cameras and 1 video camera! I bet people began to wonder if Riley & Ryan were famous! That was their last lesson and we can honestly say they are very comfortable in the water. They were even "jumping" off the side into our arms and going under the water! They loved it! We went to OK Cafe for breakfast with the whole gang - just like we used to do after play-2-grow. After naps we headed to Rex, Georgia, to the Tanner Family BBQ (Lori's parents). There were about 60+ people there and it was a bit crazy when we arrived. Lori's father, Frank, had planned to retire this year and this was going to be his retirement party. But - he decided not to retire just yet, but everyone still came anyway! It was a nice day playing with friends and relaxing at their house after a good meal.

Today we went to Gramma and Grandaddy's house to for lunch. We were starving when we arrived, so we ate the moment we walked in the door. After eating our food, mommy gave us some bananas that were just cut up - not completely mashed. We LOVED pushing them around our tray and especially liked squishing them in our hands. We were covered in sticky bananas (as you will see in the pictures), but had such a good time - nothing a few wipes and good bath can't take care of. We tried to nap there, but had a hard time staying asleep. Gramma & Grandaddy played with us while mommy and daddy got a quick cat nap! It was a great day! :) Wonder if Gramma & Grandaddy will say the same since they missed their Sunday afternoon naps?

This weekend I will leave on Saturday morning to go to the Ritz Carlton at Lake Oconee for a girls weekend. We will be back on Sunday, but Kevin will have the kids all day Saturday and then Saturday night. I'm hoping I can get him to compose the blog next Sunday - we'll see! Have a great week.

Web Albums Added:
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080719SwimLessons
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080719TannerBBQ
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080720GrammaGrandaddysHouse

Growing Up

Riley is crawling just a bit more each day. I figured she would just take off once she got the hang of it, but she really hasn't. She moves just enough to get to what she wants. I'll savor my last few days of immobility. Ryan is still not showing any interest. I snapped a few photos on Sunday afterall - just before church. I must point out that Riley is wearing a 6 months dress and Ryan is wearing an 18 month outfit (although it is a little baggy). Ryan's outfit was supposed to be a Spring 2009 outfit from Grandma, but we decided we needed to get it out this year...it's a good thing because I don't think this will still be in the closet next Spring!

Web Album: http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080713HangingOut

Riley's Milestone!

We officialy have a crawler! Kevin put Riley on her belly when they got home tonight and she just went for it! She's been rocking back and forth for quite a while now, but today she finally took the plunge. When I got home she did it again for me - several times. Her object of choice was a truck with Kevin and then a bottle top from a jar of formula with me. She bypassed the toys for the bottle top and was so proud of herself when she reached it - you can see for yourself! Brother is oblivious at this point, but I'm sure he'll be right behind her once he realizes what she's able to do. Life as we know it has officially changed... :)
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080714VideoRileyCrawling

Quiet Weekend

We have had a somewhat quiet weekend - which has been nice for a change. I'm writing this morning rather than my usual Sunday night, because after church, I'm heading to the Kenny Chesney (with Gary Allan, Lean Rimes and Brooks & Dunn) concert with my girlfriends. I am giddy I'm so excited. I've been looking forward to today for quite some time. I've been going to see Kenny for about 6 years and he never disappoints. Last year I went when I was 32 weeks pregnant and very huge. People stared at me a lot and thought I was crazy (obviously I was) for being there, but it's my true "treat" each year to go. I'm hoping to be a bit more comfortable this year! :) If you can believe it, we have not taken any pictures this weekend. I will post them later if we do. I did take some video and as you will see - they are so close to crawling. I'm expecting it just about any minute now. The first few clips are just the two of them playing, but the last two I took after Riley went down for a nap and Ryan was just playing by himself. He can be quite vocal - I'm glad I caught it on tape. I'm now listening to him over the monitor talking away while he's supposed to be napping. Whatever works - hopefully he'll talk himself to sleep soon, so we won't have to wake him up to leave for church! :)

http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080713Video

9 Months Old!

Today is Riley & Ryan's 9 month birthday. I'm in shock at how fast these 9 months have flown by, but I'm also amazed at how much they've grown and changed. I imagine there won't be another 9 months that they go through such transformation. It's truly incredible to watch them grow each day. They are so much more interactive with us and one another each day. Can you tell how much fun we're having? :)

We went to the doctor today for their check up and Ryan is 22 lbs 11 ounces and 29 1/2 inches tall. He's 75th percentile for weight; 90th in height. Riley is now 17 lbs 5 ounces and is 28 inches tall. She is 50th percentile for height and 25th for weight. She's come a long way considering at 3 months she was in the 5th percentile for weight! Hopefully they'll both have some good height and take after their daddy!

They are right on track developmentally and when they checked their iron each of them was low (like their momma). They will start on iron supplements and will be rechecked in 6 weeks. She was not overly concerned since they've grown so well. We'll keep an eye on this, but hopefully it will something we can correct with diet and/or supplements.

Web Album Added: http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/200807079MonthsOld

Parades and Pools

It was Riley and Ryan's first 4th of July and we truly celebrated. They were in 2 parades - 1 at school and then another 1 in the neighborhood. They were too cute and had quite the patriotic wardrobe! Kevin was in NYC with his buddies and he got back just in time for the parade through the neighborhood on the 4th. After the parade, Ryan and I went to the grocery store. It was such a treat to go out with just one child. Ryan was so good at the store and we enjoyed each other's company. We had a cookout lunch with the Fenzl's next door and then it was nap time. That night we went to the Vaccaro's house for dinner and then headed to the cemetery to watch the fireworks. Yes, I said cemetery. It sounds crazy, but it's within walking distance from our house and it's one of the very best places in Atlanta to see the fireworks. We could see 5 different fireworks shows at one time - and we didn't even have to hear the loud booms! Riley was mesmerized by the fireworks and Ryan stayed awake for just a few of them and then passed out. They were such troopers and stayed up about 2 1/2 hours past their bedtime.

Saturday morning we went to swim lessons and they did so well again. They seem to be getting more and more comfortable with the water. That afternoon, we went to my co-worker Lisa's house to swim in her pool. It was such a treat to swim in such a beautiful pool. Lori, Katharyn and Paul joined us - they loved it too - especially the waterfall. We had a picnic lunch by the pool and then we called it a day. We had some friends over for a dinner party last night and the babies went to bed at 5:30. They were pooped since they went to bed so late the night before. They slept from 5:30pm until 7:30am this morning. They woke up so happy! We declared today a "day of rest". We took the day off from church and just relaxed all morning. We went to La Parilla for lunch and thankfully did not have a repeat of our lunch last Sunday! They were fantastic. This afternoon was Riley's turn to go out with mom. We had some good "girl" time shopping. We got some foam letter pads for the floor in the new play room. They look so great and I think Riley and Ryan will definitely enjoy this new room.

Milestones: Riley got her 2nd tooth on the bottom; we brushed their teeth for the first time tonight and they both giggled - I'm glad they don't mind it! Ryan now seems more interested in crawling. I figured Riley would be first, but now they're just about at the same point - we'll see who wins this race.

Photo Albums added:
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/200807034thOfJulyParadeOpenArms
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/200807044thOfJulyParadeDCCookout
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080704Fireworks
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080705LisaSPool
http://picasaweb.google.com/hutchinson.heidi/20080706PlayRoom