social butterflies

Lucky Charlie... she's having a playdate with Aidan Carroll (in the blue), Thomas Lieb (in grey), and Carson Smith (with pink bib). Ryan and Charlie also recently got to have a playdate with Tommy Traver to the Aquarium of the Pacific. Ryan and mommy went to Disneyland with cousin Katie and Aunt Nancy back in February. And just this past weekend Ryan and Charlie were the only girls in a group of friends at our Laguna Hills playdate. Between Brent, Trevor, Seth, John, and Nathan... Ryan was a ball of nerves (Her dad would have been proud that she was so shy around them. I'm sure he hopes she'll be like that around boys forever. If the "apple doesn't fall far from the tree", I doubt it!) Next week, Charlie gets to have a playdate with Baby Holden down in Del Mar. We're so lucky to have so many great friends to play with!

our little ballerina

So, we had a doctor's appointment yesterday with an orthopedic surgeon to discuss Ryan's "toe walking". We've been worried about it for some time and have had to wait FOREVER to get this appointment. He told us some good news. He does not believe that the problem is physical or neurological. Basically, we need to retrain her in the way she walks. To do this she will need to wear high tops every day and we will need to do some stretches with her to help the muscle. We will do this for two months and at the end of that time, if her condition does not improve, she will need to be put into casts. The casts will force her to walk on her heels. She will wear them for 3 months with an additional knee straightening device for when she is sleeping (our own little Forrest Gump, poor thing). Needless to say, we are praying that the high tops and stretches work!

Hat-tastic Party!!

Ryan's second birthday party was "hat"tastic! It was a hat themed party where all the guests had to wear a hat. The decorations were all done with hats and even the cake was in the shape of a hat! You'll see that Aunt Ginny wore a captain's hat and Aunt Casey wore a tiara. Very creative ladies. Also showcased in these photos are Nonna Kudron, Uncle Tim, Papa Grace, Cousin Patrick, Buddy Aidan, Sister Charlie, and of course, the birthday girl herself!

little milestones

Charlie's first solid food. Needless to say, she didn't like it much! She does now... We don't call her Chunky Monkey for nothing!

Ryan and Tommy's second annual birthday kiss. Looking forward to many more years of this.

Ryan's first haircut. What a big girl. They gave her a certificate with a lock of her hair and everything!

You would think this represents a milestone for Charlie but... no. It marks the moment mom and dad found yet another apparatus to occupy a wonderful 15 minutes so we can get things done around the house.

Ryan's first swimming lesson with Ms. Heather. Can't you just see the fear in her eyes? Poor thing. I'm happy to report that today was her 12th lesson and there were only minimal tears. Yea!

after a fun day at disneyland

GOING...

GOING...
GONE!!

pictures long overdue

All right... now I'm gettin' this down! It was tough to figure it all out at first but now I'm cruisin'...I managed to get pictures to post, finally! So, let me share some long overdue pictures of our beautiful Grace Girls!

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Here is Ryan and Charlie at Christmas time. We missed out on all the festivities because the girls were sick but we made the most of our time at home. One of Charlie's first days in this wonderful world.
Nonna and Charlie get some quality time.
Ryan... our little model.
"Raggedy Ryan" Halloween 2005

welcome friends and family

Hello everyone! This our new Grace Family Blog. We got this idea from our friends, Anna and Aaron, who created a blog to show their friends and family pictures of their new baby boy. Thanks for the idea guys! I hope to write often about all the happenings around the Grace household. We are sure busy with our two little ones. It seems that I can't talk on the phone much because Charlie is usually sleeping right next to me and it wakes her up... but I can type! That doesn't wake her up! So with our new blog, I can fill you all in! Enjoy!