M.E.L.

Swimming Lessons at Wise Swim School

2012-01-17T15:25:00.008-06:00

Thank you Community Ed for the past three years of parent/tot swimming lessons, but we are moving on to bigger and better things. We have decided to enroll Mallory in swimming lessons at Wise Swim School in Apple Valley. Don't get me wrong, CE did a fine job, but Mallory needs to learn how to swim on her own and since CE doesn't offer a non parent/tot class until she is five years old, we had to start looking elsewhere. Plus the water was sooooo cold. Mallory is very interested in and not afraid of the water. Since we spend our summer weekends at Lake Jefferson and summer weekdays in Grandma Dee's pool, it's important to both of us she learns how to swim properly.

At three years old she is a beginner so she is enrolled in their Mini Dolphin 1 class. The purpose of this class is to get the kids used to the water, put their face in the water, float and jump into the pool on their own. There are only three kids including Mallory in her class, so there is A LOT of one on one time with the instructor. Mallory has Mrs. Andrea for an instructor and she likes her very much. Mallory's lessons are Monday mornings, so Christopher and I can both attend to watch. We are very pleased with the results so far and have nothing but good things to say about Wise Swim School and Mrs. Andrea. Mallory is already showing great improvement in her abilities to swim on her own. We are already talking about registering right away for the second winter session to keep up her newly learned skills.

On top of all the skills she is learning, she is having a BLAST! She NEVER smiled like this during our CE lessons. My guess is because the water is warm at Wise Swim School. They keeps the pool around 92 degrees, so the water is always comfortable. We never have trouble getting her to comply with our requests when we are on our way to Wise!

Mallory's First Dance Recital

2012-01-10T20:26:00.006-06:00

The holidays kicked my tail, so please take my apologies for the long gap in between posts. Before Christmas and New Years blew through this house, leaving a wrapping paper/gooey goodies/candy cane/new toy twist tie/too many leftovers to count debris trail the length of the Nile River in ever room, Mallory had her very first dance recital. I had mentioned previously in this blog that Mallory is dancing with Just For Kix. She just loves dance and had been working really, really hard each week. I do not consider myself a stage mom by any means, but I do want to see her succeed, so I expect her to pay attention and do well.

I was a little concerned about the recital because Mallory has a girl in her class that I feel is to young to be in the class as she does not always pay attention and only dances when she wants to. I have seen this week in and week out at rehearsals, including one night where all she did was run around in circles off to the side. She happens to stand right next to Mallory and Mallory is sometimes more concerned with what that girl was doing rather than her own performance. I was worried for no reason. When it came down to it, Mallory performed perfectly!

Mallory's first recital was held on Saturday, December 17th at the Robert Boeckman Middle School in Farmington. I had every intention of putting a video on here of her first dance recital, but I am not a computer geek and I am having trouble using the right format to get it to download. I guess pictures will have to do. Their first song was Magic Tutu and their second was Santa Claus is Coming to Town. They danced back to back about halfway through the show. Grandpa and Grandma Hauer were there, along with Grandma Dee, Mallory's Godmother Kelly and her husband Drew. It was just WONDERFUL having all that support for Mallory and Christopher and I. This was our first dance recital too! Her audience was not disappointed! She danced beautifully and didn't miss one step. I cannot tell you how proud we are of her, it is very hard to put it into words, she did amazing!

I am sorry I have no action shots of her actually dancing. I was watching Mallory! I did snap this shot showing how much she enjoys Just For Kix!

Gymnastics 3.0

2011-12-07T15:45:00.007-06:00

It's winter time, so for Mallory that means indoor events that will help her burn some of that energy of hers! We plan on enrolling her in swimming lessons after the new year so she's taking her Gymnastics classes now. Because she is three years old, she no longer needs a parental escort in her class. She gets to do all of it on her own. That is bittersweet for obvious reasons.

Twist-N-Tumble has a new policy this year in which the parents are not allowed in the gym to watch their children. The Community Education director along with the Twist-N-Tumble director came to the conclusion the parents were too much of a distraction to their children. The evening classes are in session while the Farmington High School JV and Varsity gymnastics teams are practicing. Apparently last season there were a few kids that ran across the floor to get their parents attention, putting themselves and the high school gymnasts in danger. At first Christopher and I were upset since there is no real gymnastics competition for Mallory's age group, nor do they put on any type of show. When were we going to be able to see our daughter perform all the skills she is learning? It all worked out in the end, since Mallory's class is held on Wednesday mornings, she was not going to be in the gym at the same time as the high school gymnasts. There were five other kids in her class, so that made for a small group of parents/guardians waiting in the lobby. Because of that, we were able to peek in the gym door from time to time to watch. Also last week they allowed us into the gym for "parents week" which gave us the opportunity to see Mallory bouncing all over the place!

It's incredible how much her tumbling skills have improved in one year. Not only does her age make a big difference, removing the element of the comfort of her parents being by her side has made her much more independent and more likely to follow instructions. One of the apparatuses she simply would NOT do last year was the high bar. This year, she's jumping up to grab onto it all on her own and spinning around it with the help of her instructor. We are so proud of her!

This session has simply flown by. She only has one week left. Thank goodness Christmas is right around the corner, it will give her something to focus on. I remember last year when gymnastics was over she was seriously bummed out. We are so excited to see where this interest will lead in her life!

My good friends and the Holidazzle

2011-12-03T13:41:00.006-06:00

This summer we spent almost every weekend at mom and dad's cabin on Lake Jefferson. One of the "cabin neighbors" as we like to call them, live there full time. They are The Morsching's and we just love them. This summer we became pretty good friends with them, mostly because their two daughters, Bailey and Anika, take such good care of Mallory and are always willing to play with her.

We figured this year we should make a grand effort to see them more than just during the summer months. In conversation we learned they had never seen the Twin Cities Holidazzle Parade, so we made early plans to attend with them Thanksgiving weekend. There was a little weather scare, but what was supposed to bring icy roads and some snow, stayed far enough south to not be a problem for The Morsching's to head up to the metro area. We were so excited to have them over, especially Mallory. She just adores Bailey and Anika, not to forget Steve and Kim.

They arrived bearing a gift. Well, a big gift for Mallory. Bailey and Anika knew that Mallory loves "newicorns", so they made her one! It's cut from cardboard and painted, complete with a sign that says "Mallory's Newicorn"! What a special treat for Mallory!

When I got home from work, the girls were playing Dora dominoes and the adults were able to converse for a little while. Pretty soon we were bundling up and heading to the light rail park and ride in Bloomington. Mallory loves to ride the train but she was extra excited this time to have friends with her. Anika let her sit on her lap and look out the window the entire ride up to Minneapolis and the entire ride back.

We had a great time watching the parade! The Morsching's were very pleased with the content. We have seen the parade so many times, it was fun for us to see someone else taking it in for the first time. It was special for all of us! It's a good thing the parade is only about 30 minutes long because it was COLD and WINDY! Not as cold as some years past, but still frozen fingertip cold. I snapped a picture of all of us together, and while I thought it was a very nice picture, Bailey said it wasn't the best picture because I wasn't in it. So, she got her creative juices flowing and came up with a better picture of the whole group. I gotta hand it to her, she did a fine job and I LOVE my hat!

After the parade and train ride back, we decided to head to Ole Piper for dinner. Another first for The Morsching's. Once we were all settled at the table, I took a look around and felt an overwhelming feeling of happiness. We are so blessed to have met this wonderful family and to currently have them in our lives. Mallory just adores each and every one of them and was so sad when they left our house that evening. She actually hid behind the couch so she wouldn't have to say goodbye. I can't thank the girls enough for the "newicorn". What a sweet thing to make for little Mallory. I know they will read this post, so I am saying this loud and proud....THANK YOU to The Morsching's for their continued friendship and presence in our lives. We look forward to every encounter and sincerely hope there are many, many more!

Frosty the Snowman

2011-11-20T17:08:00.006-06:00

Most of you already know, we got various amounts of snow yesterday, here in the Twin Cities metro area. In Farmington we got around two inches of snow. Mallory was super excited to watch the flakes fall and after nap time, she was begging to go outside and play in the snow.

We bundled up and headed out. She was frolicing around our front yard, back yard, into the street and up and down the driveway. She was very excited to be out playing in the snow! We were out playing for quite a while when Mallory suggested we build a snowman. The snow was not sticky enough to roll the body of snowman, so Christopher grabbed a shovel and made a snow pile which we turned into the best snowman we could.

We were finally able to use the very cool snowman in a sack kit that Molly Wengler gave me so many, many years ago. I was digging around in the snow for two sticks, some rocks and something for a nose when it dawned on me I had this kit. It worked perfectly and made Mallory's first snowman a SUPER one! We asked her what she wanted to name it and she promptly said "Frosty".

When the sun rose this morning and Mallory woke up, she said instantly that she wanted to go outside and play in the snow. It was a bit colder outside this morning, so we put on one more layer than last night and out we went. She checked on Frosty first thing and then headed for the back yard where we had a lot of fun tracking the bunny rabbit that lives under our shed! We rode the sled down our driveway several times, and "skated" a little on the icy street. My toes started to get really cold, so I headed in to warm up but Christopher and Mallory stayed outside for a bit longer. I am starting to think we have a cold weather girl! She never complained once of being cold or bored. She was having so much fun just running and jumping into the snow. Both last night and this morning she was bummed to have to come inside.

If this is how our winter is going to go, it will be so much better than last year. If Mallory is up for a little time outside in the snow on a regular basis, cabin fever will not make a presence at our house! Look at how happy she is.....

Halloweekend!

2011-11-01T13:35:00.011-05:00

Halloween 2011 started for Mallory this past Friday evening. After I got off of work, picked her up from Grandma Dee's, we headed for the Farmington ECFE Halloween Walk. This is the third year we have hit up this free, local event. It was really nice to see all the local business out advertising and learning there are several new businesses opening up this holiday season in downtown Farmington!

On Saturday we headed to St. Michael's in Farmington for their annual kids Halloween Party. Once again Mallory made a bunch of crafts, decorated a cookie (or three) and then took part in a scavenger hunt. The older kids in the parish usually run the show and they did a dynamite job again this year!

We were fortunate enough to have been invited to a kid friendly Halloween party at my friend Rachel's house, here in Farmington. Once we were done at St.Michael's, we headed to Dulcimer Court for more family fun! Rachel had a GREAT party! The kids played and played and played with one another. They decorated pumpkins, made small goodie bags, and just had a great time running around with one another. We were so proud of Mallory to have been as well behaved as she was this evening. Not only was she the perfect guest kid, she was the last one standing. When we left just after 11:00PM, everyone elses kids were asleep! That's my girl!

Thank goodness we were able to take Sunday off. We were all getting a little "halloweened" out. We did manage to carve our pumpkins however.

Come Monday though, Mallory was ready to be back at it! We spent the day getting the house ready for trick or treaters and to go out with the neighborhood kids for trick or treats later on. Grandma Dee and her friend Esmae also stopped by with a special Halloween treat! Mallory's new fuzzy friend is "Spooky" the beanie baby ghost!

We had a flurry of kids trick or treating right after dinner and when Christopher got home from work, we headed out! We went as a group with our next door neighbors, The Stovall's and around the corner neighbors The Williams'.

The kids did great, had wonderful manners the entire night, always saying "Trick or Treat" loud and clear and never forgetting a thank you. Even though we were only out about 1.5 hours, only went up about three blocks and then came back down, we had a lot of fun watching our babies trick or treat with each other, compare the candy they got and having some adult conversations with their parents on the way. We are so blessed to live in such a great neighborhood with such great neighbors who are becoming good friends.

Mallory had a VERY fun weekend and was sad to realize it was over this morning. She brought home just as much candy as we handed out! The bowl is still full! I am so happy we are able to have all the opportunities we have for Mallory to partake in such fun and safe events. Our local community of Farmington has never let us down and continues to come up with more and more holiday activities for us to partake in as a family. It's hard to believe November 1st is already here and Christmas is just around the corner! We're ready tho, and the break until Thanksgiving will be nice, this weekend wore us out!!!!!

Today is Halloween!

2011-10-31T09:00:00.004-05:00

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

LOVE,

MALLORY

The Dentist

2011-10-19T13:56:00.007-05:00

Mallory went to the dentist for the first time this morning. As usual she handled it just fine and did great! I wasn't at all worried as Mallory has taken all of these milestones in her life with ease. She has also been begging us to go to the dentist. We are so proud of her and her ability to adjust to any situation. She was very well behaved for the dentist, listened intently, was very patient and calm. She was also very excited to be there for the first time, but held in her excitement so she could pay close attention to the dentist.

After the dentist worked her magic, Mallory's hygienist explained to her the whole toothbrush, toothpaste, floss requirements and we were ready to go.

It was quick, painless and fun! I know not all of her dentist appointments will be this easy, but this was a good start, and we'll go with it. We are so blessed she was so excited to go and not at all afraid. She sure makes it easy to be happy parents! I have to thank Health Partners for being so good with Mallory and accommodating in general. We are very pleased!

The Pumpkin Patch

2011-10-13T06:32:00.014-05:00

For the third year in a row, we headed to Barten's Pumpkins. We just love that place and this year was no different in terms of how much fun we had. It was actually a little better this year, warm with lots of sunshine. Makes for easy pumpkin picking!

The first thing we did when we arrived was get in line for the free face painting. Ever since our trip to Canterbury Park, Mallory just loves the idea of getting her face painted. Today's choice was a spider....

Next was a free pony ride. The line had been quite long, but for whatever reason, when we headed over to the pony rides, there was only a two kid wait. What a treat! Here is a video of the ride....

Mallory also challenged herself to a gunny sack race. I wasn't sure how she was going to do since the gunny sack was taller than she was, but she did great! Here is a little video and while I understand she falls at the end, this was actually her SECOND time up and down this hill in which she must have wore herself out and finally collapsed. HA!

Barten's is such a family friendly place, totally geared for kids. Throughout the patch they have little areas set up for children to play. As you can see, they built a little play house, a nice backdrop for a fall photo opportunity, pumpkin bowling, bean bag toss and well, I let her tell you the last one herself...

We ended the day (about 1.5 hours total) with a hay ride around the field where the pumpkins grow. We had a great time just relaxing after all that walking, even though the ride was kind of bumpy. Mallory really enjoyed telling me why all the pumpkin misfits were left behind. Like "that one is covered in pumpkin bugs" and "that one lost it's head!" We just love Barten's Pumpkins and all the joy it brings us. Simple, relaxing, FREE family fun!

Just For Kix

2011-10-10T22:11:00.007-05:00

Now that Mallory is three years old, we decided to enroll her in dance. She's been asking for a while now, so we started doing our research and learned that most programs do not have a class for toddlers under three, unless you wanted to do a parent/child class. While Mallory was in Twist-N-Tumble gymnastics, some of the other mom's were telling me about Just For Kix. I started comparing Just For Kix to several other local studios and found they were a little more in our budget, and closer to home. They are a statewide company, but have local classes in Farmington, so I was excited about that. I have also come to learn Mallory's Godmother Kelly also went to Just For Kix when she was a little girl, so that made it an easy choice.

She has one 30 minute class each Tuesday evening. They start RIGHT on time and then for the last five minutes, us parents are allowed in to watch their progress. So far, I've cried every week. She is doing so well and is having so much fun, it's just overwhelming to see her so happy. To top it off, her friend Kallie from school is in the same class! The program is eight months long with December and April being performance months. Mallory will have her first official dance recital on December 17th.

Here are some picture from her first night of dance.

We never have any issues going to or from dance, she just loves each and every moment of it. Even practicing at home. Be sure to check back around Christmas time for some video of her first ever recital!

Alexandria

2011-09-27T20:18:00.015-05:00

One of my friends I used to work with at BPD was getting married in Alexandria, MN on Saturday, September 10th. It was a great opportunity to kill two birds with one stone as Christopher's Aunt Deb and Uncle Mike live in Alexandria. They were so kind to have us as guests in their home, so we were able to spend some much needed time with family AND attend Courtney and Andy's wedding!

We arrived late on Friday night, after a pit stop in Rogers for some fancy dinner at McDonald's. Mallory was super excited to learn her Godmother Kelly and her husband Drew were also going to be there for the weekend. Kelly is Aunt Deb and Uncle Mike's daughter. We hung out for a little while on Friday night, catching up and then it was off to bed.

Saturday morning we started off doing one of the touristy things in Alex. We talked about going to the Runestone Museum, but learned there was a replica Runestone just down the street from where Aunt Deb and Uncle Mike lived. We chose to go to the replica to save time and money. The museum had a cost and the replica was FREE! The replica Runestone sits in a little roadside park with a pretty, little flower garden, a couple of benches and a docking stone. We spent about an hour there, checking everything out, including a spider amongst the flowers!

Uncle Mike has a boat and since they live on one of the largest chain of lakes in the state, we hit the water next. We launched on Lake Le Homme Dieu, took a spin around that lake, saw a bunch of BEAUTIFUL homes and then headed through the channel to Lake Carlos. Took a spin around that lake and then it was time to head in, since Christopher and I needed to get ready for the wedding that evening.

Aunt Deb, Uncle Mike, Kelly and Drew were Mallory's babysitters for the evening. We were so happy they were willing to help out so we could enjoy a night has husband and wife and attend the wedding. When we got home that night, after the wedding, I was informed that Meko, who is Kelly and Drew's husky dog, was Mallory's watchdog. Apparently when they tucked Mallory in for sleep, Meko would not leave the room. Meko stayed by Mallory's side until we got home and assured him it was okay to come out. HOW SWEET!

Sunday morning came bright and early, so after an awesome homemade breakfast by Uncle Mike, Aunt Deb helped a lot too, we hit the links. Uncle Mike and Aunt Deb are avid golfers and belong to two clubs in the area. On this particular day we golfed at the Lake Miltona Golf Club. It was a beautiful morning, one of the best we had all year, making it wonderful for golf. I chose not to golf so Mallory could come along with us and ride in the cart. She was so unbelievably excited to be able to partake, she was so well behaved all nine holes. I think she was worried she wouldn't be able to continue if she wasn't good. HA! We even let her tee off and putt a couple of times. Halfway through the front nine, she started squealing with delight. I went to investigate and there was a baby painted turtle running across the green. That was the highlight of her day. She had a blast, as did we! It was super fun to see Uncle Mike and Aunt Deb totally in their element and just be together as a family.

After the golf club, we had go take in one last Alex staple. We went to see Big Ole. I remember seeing Big Ole when I was in high school, but back then he was in the middle of a pretty busy intersection. He has since been moved to the north a little and now has his own park. Mallory thought he was pretty cool. Naturally I wore my Vikings jersey while parading around down there.

It was a WONDERFUL weekend! I cannot thank our gracious hosts, Aunt Deb and Uncle Mike, enough for their hospitality. A BIG thanks to Kelly and Drew for their company and assistance in taking care of our little Mallory. The weekend was packed full of fun and family, with many memories made for Mallory. WE ARE BLESSED!

Mallory's First Day of Preschool

2011-09-18T15:23:00.006-05:00

Mallory started preschool on Tuesday, September 6th. She is going two days a week to the Wee Tigers program here in Farmington. The week before she started, we were super busy with a schedule change for Christopher at work, Labor Day at the cabin and a wedding to travel for the following weekend. With all this extra stuff going on, it seemed as though her first day had happened upon us and we had totally forgotten about it. It only seemed that way.

The night before was full of excitement for all three of us. I labeled her backpack, jacket and her snacks. We had her take a bath, laid out her outfit, and read a book called "The Night Before Preschool". Mallory had no trouble falling asleep, but we, mom and dad, still had a few jitters.

In the morning we made sure she ate a hardy breakfast and while she was eating, she talked about how excited she was to go to school. I sometimes have a challenge getting her out of her PJ's in the morning and into real clothing, but not this day. She was READY!

Once dressed, we made one last pit stop at the potty and we were on our way.

Because of Christopher's new work schedule, he was able to come with us on the first day so we could make it a family affair. He was a proud daddy walking Mallory into school for the first time.

Once we were inside, near her classroom, we found her name on the wall and saw again who her teachers would be.

Pretty soon the bell rang, Mrs. Aune came around the corner, unlocked the door and we were in! Mallory remembered from her orientation where her cubby was and went right to it. She hung up her backpack in a hurry and sat down to play with her new classmates.

After a few minutes of settling in, we gave her a hug and a kiss goodbye. She was not at all sad to see us go, which was reassuring. Neither of us were too worried, she has been talking about school for quite some time now and was very excited at her orientation. She showed no signs of concern, which made it easy for us to leave her. Because of her readiness, we didn't shed one tear!

Christopher had to go to work, so I went to pick her up alone, and albeit pretty tired (school is now during what used to be nap time), she was happy to see me and full of information about her day. Every day of school since has been a breeze and the ride home is always filled with talk from Mallory about how great of a day she had at school. WE LOVE WEE TIGERS!

Canterbury Park

2011-09-12T20:59:00.010-05:00

Last year we took Mallory to Canterbury Park, but she got sick when we arrived and spent the entire time sleeping in her stroller, trying to break her fever. Poor baby. I wanted to give it another try and since we had coupons for free admission, it felt like a win win situation.

Since it was family day, before the races began, we checked out all the free stuff they have for kids to do. First we played and played on the HUGE Rainbow Play System they have just inside the main gates. An adult could've gotten lost in this thing. Mallory was able to try a tire swing for the first time. She really liked it, and it was easy for us to push her on it. With tire swings all you really need to do is give it a tap and goes round and round for quite a while.

Next it was time to ride the ponies. Not the racing horses, but actually ponies they have there for kids to ride, for FREE! Mallory waited very patiently for her turn. She was old enough and big enough to ride on her own. We were a pretty proud set of parents, and Mallory really enjoyed it. When the ride was over, she took the brush and went to business. I think she had more fun brushing and petting the one pony they had on the side of the ring than she did riding the other ponies.

Once back inside the main entrance, Mallory got her face painted for the very first time! She did great, and even though I had to talk her out of the skull & crossbones and into the fish, I think she was satisfied with her choice. She sat really still for the lady who was doing them, and was quite proud when it was done. She was sad at the end of the night when we had to wash it off to go to bed. I am glad to know she enjoyed it, since it was free, I was happy to give it a whirl.

It was finally POST time. All in all, we lost $4.20. The one race we did win, Mallory picked number 4 and sure enough, she was right. Should've had her helping us bet the whole time we were there.

We had such a fun time for hardly any cost. Even though it rained a little bit, we were able to get quite a bit out of our free admission! Just watching race after race, running around and being goofy with our little Mal Pal. We will for sure return next season!

The Great Minnesota Get Together

2011-08-28T20:43:00.015-05:00

Just like the Dakota County Fair, the Minnesota State Fair has become a family tradition for the three of us. This year, I was VERY excited because the adults had tickets to the Def Leppard concert on Friday night. The last time Def Leppard was in Minnesota, I was 8.5 months pregnant, and was not able to go. They are my absolute favorite rock band and I just couldn't wait to see them in concert.

Our good friends Pete and Jamie came with us for the day and then to the concert that night. Mallory was excited to go, but once we arrived she was a bit lethargic and just wanted to sleep. Very unusual for her, so I was worried she might be getting sick. She perked up a little to eat a few cheese curds, but REALLY perked up when she saw the Giant Slide. Who doesn't love the Giant Slide? Mallory got a real treat, because not only did she get to ride with me and Christopher, Pete took her for a ride too! She was just beaming after each trek down the slide.

Pete and Jamie took off for a bit, this was a good time for us to head to the Kid Way so Mallory could enjoy some more rides. This was after a pit stop for some roasted corn on the cob of course. One of my favorites at the fair! Once at the Kid Way, Mallory was WIDE awake. There were a few rides I had to accompany her on, and then there were a few she was able to ride herself. Either way, she was smiling, laughing and having a great time. Mallory is such a great kid when it comes to this kind of event and environment. She never whines, always waits patiently and I have never seen her shed a tear. She is usually disappointed when we run out of tickets, but she has yet to throw a fit. We are so blessed to have such a well behaved little girl. Mallory and I rode the Balloons together, along with the Bumble Bees. Mallory was able to ride the Animal Train, 4x4 Riders, Water Whales and the Kiddie Ferris Wheel by herself.

After about 90 minutes or rides, we ran out of tickets.

We went in search of Jamie and Pete to reunite. Once we found them, it was time for more food. We were at the State Fair after all. We headed to the French Fries stand. Mallory seemed to have her appetite for those french fries. After she had some num nums in her tum tums, she took a nap. I can't believe anyone can sleep with all that noise, but when you walk around the fair, that's all you see, a bunch of babies and toddlers taking naps in their strollers. Crazy. Mallory napped for about an hour and when she woke up, she wanted to see some animals.

First we checked out some horses, but as Mallory said "I smell like something" which translates to, I smell something, and "it's stinks in here" which means exactly that, we left the horse barn. I have to side with Mallory on this one, the horse barn STUNK. Off to see some cows. The jerseys they have at the State Fair are HUGE! They are fun to look at, but don't provide any other kind of entertainment...until this year. There was one, younger brown cow that was almost smiling at us. He was super cute, and kept giving us this look like he was about to give us a zerbert. I didn't think to grab the camera, well, actually I did, but I wanted so badly to have that moment with Mallory not be interrupted. I have the memory in my head and that's good enough for me!

Onto the Swine barn. Mallory got to see a HUGE sow, and huge doesn't even describe it. She was GINORMOUS! She had just had babies, so we also got to see piglets that were five days old and pet them! Mallory was squealing with delight, ha ha ha.

Before we knew it, it was 5:00PM and Grandma Dee was at the gate to pick up Mallory. She was so gracious to take Mallory overnight so we could go to the concert. Before we could meet Grandma Dee at the gate, we had to get her cheese curds and a pronto pup. It was her request since she was not attending the fair. It was the LEAST we could do for Grandma Dee! I have since found out Mallory ate a few of her cheese curds on the car ride home. Little stinker!

Since this is a blog about Mallory, I won't go into detail about the concert, but I will tell you this much, Mallory's parents (that would be us) had a GREAT time. It was a very good show, worth every penny for the tickets, and we are so grateful we were able to have some us time.

The State Fair has always been a symbol of the end of summer for me, and while that means the snow is soon to fly, we sure took in as much of summer as we could this day. I just love the State Fair and seeing it through Mallory's eyes enhances the experience to a level that is hard to put into words. We're evening thinking of going back for another evening before the 2011 fair comes to a close.

The Dakota County Fair

2011-08-18T20:09:00.010-05:00

Ever since we went to Valleyfair and ever since Mallory saw Despicable Me, she had been BEGGING me to go on a roller coaster. I figured our annual trip to the Dakota County Fair would be a good time to let her ride one. This year I learned the fair has a Military day and Christopher being a veteran, would get free admission and parking. Mallory was free, so once again we only had to pay for me! So lucky to have gone on Military day, we ran into Rebecca (Mallory's old daycare) and her three kids, enjoying their unlimited rides wristbands. They were able to take advantage of more free things since their husband/dad is currently deployed. We got to spend a little bit of our afternoon with them, which was a nice surprise.

Nothing at the fair has really changed, other than the location of things and the addition of some food choices. What has changed for us is Mallory at the fair. The Dakota County Fair holds a special place in our hearts as it was Mallory's first true outing three years ago. She was about 10 days old when we took her to the fair for the first time. Christopher and I were so happy to see her running about and excited to see all the animals, exhibits, rides and goodies. She was very excited to be there.

After stretching our tummy's a little bit, checking out the pigs, cows and sheep, we headed over to the midway. The first ride we went on? The roller coaster of course. Mallory was tall enough to ride on her own, but she opted for me to ride with her. Parents did not have to pay to ride with their children on this ride, so I was okay with it. I had a small change of heart once we got going. I have no clue on on earth this carnival company felt it okay to have adults ride in this thing. I am not a large person by any means, yes I can stand to lose a few pounds, but tall I am not, and my knees were in my chest. You can't really see it in these pictures, but my knees were getting shredded with every bump, twist and turn this thing took. I guess the main thing is Mallory had a BLAST. She was squealing with delight! I guess I look like I am having fun too.

Next Mallory checked out the "fun cars".

We also checked out the big slide, the Ferris Wheel and the carousel too. Last but not least, we had to ride on Blues Clues. She had a lot of fun on each and every ride and we had a lot of fun watching her!

Next we headed over to the farm area. The fair has a small petting zoo with farm animals. We got to pet some goats, pigs and ponies. On the way over we saw Mallory's favorite - CHICKENS!

We also got to try out a real life tractor. I am sorry Dad, I know it's an evil, green tractor, but it was the only one they had. We literally had to peel Mallory off this tractor. There was a line, three boys deep, patiently waiting their turn, but Mallory wasn't giving in. She did NOT want to come down of the tractor. Looks like Grandpa Hauer will have a helper for harvest time!

We finished the day with an ice cream treat from Cold Stone. I actually tried the cookie dough on a stick, dipped in white chocolate and covered in coconut. I learned very quickly my old gut can't handle that amount of sweet stuff anymore. I was a little green afterwards. I think Christopher and Mallory really enjoyed their treat though.

We had a great day, saw some old friends, ate to our hearts content and went home smiling. Thank you to the Dakota County Fair for another year of fun, food and memories!

National Night Out

2011-08-08T22:27:00.013-05:00

For the third year in a row, our neighbor Terrina (with the help of a few others) coordinated a block party for National Night Out. We've really enjoyed getting to know our neighbors better and better through these parties and I for one am living proof these parties work the way they are intended to. I know and recognize our neighbors so much better now, wave and smile when we pass each other and with a better relationship, I find myself more protective of those around me. It's not just my house on the block, it's OUR neighborhood.

Anyway, Mallory had a blast as she usually does at these types of events. I think our block party was unique because the kids had a bike parade. On the Monday before NNO, another set of neighbors and I decorated our kids bikes for the bike parade. We probably went a little crazy, but the kids were so excited they could hardly wait for the next day to ride them.

Once the party started, we instantly had a visit from a Farmington Police Officer, the Farmington Mayor and a bunch of Target employees. The kids were obviously (and a little scary really) the most excited about Target. The employees that came gave out suckers, silly bands and played games with the kids which ultimately ended up with each kid winning a prize. Mallory won a flower and boy was she happy. She just LOVES this flower.

Next we got a great visit from the Farmington Fire Department. They brought a rescue truck, so the kids got to check out the back of the truck with all the medical equipment in it. Mallory had more interest in operating the heavy machinery. The fire department stayed for quite a while, which was nice, as I know they were volunteering their time and had many parties to stop at. Here is Mallory driving the fire truck...

Finally it was time for the big BIKE PARADE. The adults agreed it would be the best to have the smallest/youngest kid lead the parade, since they would be the slowest and wouldn't be left behind this way as all the other kids would have to hold their pace. Well, it just so happens that Mallory got to lead the bike parade. She was so excited to do so and did a great job. While all the kids didn't want to wait for her, she just took her time going from one end of the block to the other. That's a long way for her little legs to pedal, but she didn't stop or give up. She was determined to make it the entire length of the block. Christopher and I were so proud of her.

We had a WONDERFUL time with out neighbors, their kids and the public safety personnel from the City of Farmington. We're looking forward to next years NNO party, and are already starting to plan our bike parade decorations.

Mallory's Third Birthday

2011-08-02T21:55:00.010-05:00

We decided this year to have a friends birthday party for Mallory. A Tinkerbell Birthday Party at her request. It was the best decision we ever made. Mallory had a BLAST and I think all of the kids that were in attendance had fun too! We had a total of eight kids, nine including Mallory. It was the perfect party and I wouldn't change a thing. We started the party with the kids playing on Mallory's play set and running around the back yard. After a little while we had Mallory open her presents. She was overwhelmed with them all. There were several times we had to remind her to finish opening the present she was currently working on before she started a new one. All of her friends and family were very generous. She received all kinds of new toys and a lot of her current favorite "Squinkies".

After presents we went inside (because we were all melting) to have cupcakes and ice cream! The kids enjoyed white and chocolate cupcakes with girlie sprinkles from the Farmington Bakery and a scoop of vanilla ice cream. It was a great chance for the kids to hang out for a little bit in the air conditioned house and play with some of the new toys they gave Mallory. Christopher also put together the awesome new doll house Mallory got from Grandma Dee.

After the treats, the kids got their party favors which were light up flying discs. I guess it was a good thing I waited to the end of the party to give out the favors of flying discs, because they are more like CRAZY flying discs.

Mallory has been playing with each of her new toys all day long every day since her party. She is in HEAVEN. She is also very fond of her new Bronco Rider Christopher and I got her for her play set. We had such a magical day. It was an omen of some type since her Tinkerbell balloon she had for her party said "Have a Magical Day!

Three Years Old

2011-07-31T08:38:00.003-05:00

HAPPY 3rd BIRTHDAY MALLORY!

You are the brightest star in the sky!

WE LOVE YOU!!!!!

Bowling Babe

2011-07-19T12:50:00.010-05:00

A big thank you to the Father of Five for the link on his Facebook page which brought to my attention a summer of FREE bowling at AMF Bowling centers. Actually the credit should go to Kevin at Daddy's Fish Bowl. He brought it to FOF's attention who in turn posted the link. Mallory has never been bowling before, so I figured the best way to find out whether or not she will like it, is when it's free! I've been waiting for a time that both Christopher and I could take Mallory bowling so we could both watch her partake in it for the first time. I guess the Minnesota State shutdown came at a good time, and I didn't feel the least bit guilty going out for the day, since it was FREE!

Off we went to AMF City Limits on a Tuesday afternoon. There was only one other teen aged couple bowling, so we practically had the alley to ourselves. Mallory was SUPER excited to try it. She was hands on the whole way. Even though the six pound ball was a little too heavy for her, she insisted on carrying it all by herself. Once she allowed me to show her how to use the finger holes to help her carry it, the game was ON!

We tried bowling with the ramp.

We tried bowling without the ramp.

We had lots of fun watching her. She was a ball of energy the whole time, and even though it only took an hour for her to play two games, we had an ENTIRE afternoon of smiles and laughs. Here are a few more pics of Mallory enjoying her first bowling experience.

Thanks again FOF and DFB! If it wasn't for you two, I am not sure this would've happened this summer. She's been asking to go for a second time and I am certain when we get that rainy day, that's where you'll find us. YAY FOR BOWLING!

Valleyfair

2011-07-07T19:45:00.014-05:00

With Christopher's family in town from Texas, we were looking for something kid/family friendly for all of us to enjoy for the day. With the suggestion coming from Texas, we looked into Valleyfair. I instantly said no, thinking there would not be enough for Mallory to do, considering the cost, but I was convinced we could still have a good time, and well, they did just open Planet Snoopy.

When I started looking at the schedule and general info on their website, I learned that Veterans and Active Duty military would be free for the 4th of July weekend. This was great news since both Christopher and his brother are ARMY Veterans. Not only were they free, the rest of us were discounted at half price. Mallory, being under 3, was free, so for the low cost of $28.00, the three of us, along with Christopher's Brother, Sister-in-Law and their two kids, spent the 2nd of July at Valleyfair. Here is Mallory, so ready to go, with her cousins.

Once we arrived, we were met with a pretty nice surprise. Mallory, at 37 inches tall, was big enough to ride several rides with a parent companion. So we took on the Scrambler right away. She LAUGHED the whole time! I knew we were in for a great day!

Some of us decided to try out the Extreme Swing (Christopher wimped out) and boy was it worth it. This is easily my new favorite ride at Valleyfair! I know it's been there a few years, but we didn't catch it until now. (We are in the middle, I am wearing a green striped tank top, screaming my head off).

After a lot of walking and a bunch more rides, we decided to take a ride on the Minnesota Valley Railroad Train. The kids just loved it, and it was a nice break from all the walking in the heat.

Then it was off to Planet Snoopy. Nothing but ride after ride for the little tots. We checked out everything we could, a few on her own, and a few with mom or dad. Even though we had to wait in a few lines (not many really, the park was pretty empty, surprisingly enough), Mallory did a great job waiting her turn. She was a very patient little girl, and handled all of it very well.

She really enjoyed these little race cars. She was squealing with delight as we whipped around the corners. I would like to think she was having fun, but I think her squeals came from the fact that I was overwhelmed with this ride. It looked so mild from the line, but once in, it was CRAZY fast and quick around those corners. Even so, Mommy and Mallory had a great time on this ride!

Planet Snoopy was super fun for the girls and just the right amount of rides. There was even more for the little ones to explore when we headed over to the area near the Corkscrew. There is a little section there, just for kids as well. There is also The Monster and The Ferris Wheel, which we also enjoyed. I think this was Mallory's favorite part of the park. She was able to ride all of the rides herself (even though she rode a couple with her cousin), she was on top of the world. I will let the pictures speak for themselves...

We ended the night at Steel Venom, this one is for the adults, but I think Mallory was ready to ride it anyway. She LOVED watching it go roaring by, and got super excited when we took this picture, thinking it was the real seat.

For those of you that know me well, you remember that I worked at Valleyfair for a few years in the past. I never knew how much fun this park really was. I mean, we went a few years ago (before Mallory) and we had a good time, but nothing compares to this trip. As a family, we bonded, laughed, I cried (of course), and had such a wonderful time, I did NOT want this day to come to an end. I am speechless about how well behaved our kids were. ALL THREE OF THEM were perfect children. Not one meltdown, not one begging child, not even one tear. It was an amazing day, I will never forget. I don't think Mallory will either, she's been talking about Valleyfair ever since.

Building a Bridge

2011-06-23T20:19:00.005-05:00

Last fall we purchased a used Playstar play system from Craigslist. You can read all about that little adventure by clicking here. Since spring we have been watching Mallory indulge in her very own backyard swing set/playground. The neighborhood kids really enjoy coming over and playing on/around it too, and since everyone in our neighborhood is 5 and under, Christopher and I took a long, hard look at the play system, to see how we could make it a little more toddler friendly for a while.

On the far north end of the system is a small climbing wall. Once to the top, there are series of rings to get you over to the clubhouse. Mallory is way to short to even reach these rings, and much to young to have the strength to hold on to them all the way across. None of the neighborhood kids have any problem climbing the wall, including Mallory, but not one of them can get across to the clubhouse on the rings. Here are a few before pics...

We decided to build a bridge. It was not a very hard task, just took a little while to get all the supplies. Once we got home from our never ending search for a kid friendly watering can, Christopher got to work. After getting the planks for the bridge measured and cut, after a quick run to the Ace Hardware for longer screws, and after some serious math to figure out the length of rope needed to make the sides of the bridge, he was done. It only took a few hours, and wham! Mallory had a "new" more toddler friend play system. Not only did he build a bridge, but he added a few "rocks" on the climbing wall, hung the rings so they are not hanging in the kids faces as they cross the new bridge, and I put bumpers (cut up neon green swimming noodle) on all the cross pieces around the clubhouse.

Now all that is left to do is stain it. I have been ready to do that for three weeks now, but mother nature has other ideas. The neighborhood kids just love it. They can play freely now and not have to rely on us to help them across the rings! The best part is the bridge is a temporary fix, nothing too major or complicated so when Mallory is old enough and big enough to use the rings, we just burn the bridge. HA HA!

I got a little gardener

2011-06-14T19:40:00.004-05:00

As most girls her age, Mallory is into pretty little flowers. She just loves anything and everything that has to do with flowers. Her daily outfit better have a flower on it somewhere, if not, she doesn't want to wear it. This spring Mallory was very excited about planting flowers at our house. I had been talking about it for a while, and how she could help me, however, the weather didn't cooperate, so we didn't get to it until as of late. She had to be very patient. About two weeks ago, we took a trip to Pahl's Market and picked out our perennials for the season. Mallory chose Geraniums. She was a great help with planting the Geraniums and has been a good gardener every since.

As a parting gift from the City of Eagan, my co-worker gave me a Gerbera Daisy. They are one of my favorite flowers, and for those of you who remember, they were our wedding flower as well. I want to make sure I take very good care of it, and keep it for as long as I can. Mallory has been a great help with the Gerbera. She checks on it every day and waters it with her watering can as to not "hurt it".

It's fun having a green thumb in the family. I am not one and eventually kill just about every plant or flower given to me. Hopefully this is a trend that she keeps as she gets older, so she can teach me a thing or two. It's so fun to watch her take care of her flowers.

Memorial Day 2011

2011-06-03T20:18:00.012-05:00

First off, mommy (me) has Mono. Nice huh? I was feeling really run down last week, and with symptoms of strep, I found myself waiting for two hours in urgent care on Memorial Day morning. When the strep test came back negative, the doctor suggested a blood test, and WHAM. What was supposed to be my first week on a new diet, to get summer swimsuit ready, has been a week of rest, rest and more rest. Oh and some vitamin C too. With that being said, we tried to have a Memorial Day weekend at the cabin anyway.

This year was going to be especially fun because Grandma and Grandpa Hauer got a new pontoon last fall. A 20 foot Sun Cruiser with bench seating, MP3 player stereo system, and a TOILET! It's actually a small corner of the pontoon, which can pop up with a curtain, so if you had to go, you could. The toilet itself is like a camping toilet, nothing with running water. Even so, very, very cool pontoon. Here is daddy and Mallory, ready to for it's maiden voyage!

Once it was in the water, I got a HUGE wave from Mallory and they were on they're way. Across East (Big) Jefferson, through the channel and on the way to the cabin on Middle Jefferson. Dad and I secured the trailer and headed back to the cabin from the public access, to wait for the captain and his first mate.

Pretty soon, we saw them coming along the shore, and with another big wave, they were at the dock, getting ready to set up on the lift. We didn't get to take it out for another ride, well mostly because the weather was not favorable, and I was feeling terrible.

We were able to do some "fishing" on Sunday morning from the dock. I use " " when I say fishing, because Mallory's Dora fishing pole came with a plastic purple fish for practice and she has never really wanted to take it off. So she goes "fishing" and catches a little purple fish every time. Whatever works, she's having fun.

After supper on Sunday, I made the decision to head home. I was feeling more and more terrible by the hour, Christopher and Mallory were a little bored, and truth be told, I was longing for my own bed. We packed up and headed back to Farmington. That was an okay decision, because the neighbors were having a Memorial Day Party in their garage, so after transferring Mallory and me to bed, Christopher was finally able to enjoy the long weekend a little.

Memorial Day turned out to be pretty fun, even tho I just found out about the mono, I was able to sit and watch Mallory play, play, and play some more with the neighborhood kids. She had a BLAST playing on the Slip and Slide, giving it a try for the first time! She was so excited to be a part of it all, she kept running in circles screaming "I'm having so much fun!" It was great to see her enjoying life and friends.

Lucy is one of our next door neighbors, she is five months older than Mallory. They have become pretty good friends, and really enjoy each others company. They decided to make a Cheetos buffet, all on their own.

BESTIES!

Even though I was sick, and we didn't get to have our Memorial Day weekend, start to finish, at the cabin, it turned out just fine. We all had a good time, and Mallory seemed to grow and mature a bit. Watching her on the Slip and Slide, playing with all the neighborhood kids, and partaking in some picnic fun, was a bit overwhelming. We seem to be at point with her now where we can converse with the adults, while the children "go play". Unreal. I will leave you with one last photo that totally says KICK OFF TO SUMMER!

Can I play on the Puter?

2011-05-15T20:32:00.007-05:00

I know most parents who read this blog, have kids and their kids use a computer. Not a big deal for them anymore. Even so, I am floored by this:

Mallory will be three years old at the end of July and she has no trouble navigating her way through certain things on the computer. She plays games on Disney Junior and Fisher Price, while watching her favorite clips from various Disney movies on You Tube. I used to have to set up each page for her and then she would be fine for a while on her own, but I no longer have to do that. I just need to find the web page in question and she knows what to do from there.

Sometimes she gets caught up with the mouse, pushing it to far off the mouse pad, but other than that, she is very computer literate. She understands what "click the mouse" means, even though I don't remember ever telling her what it mean. She just knows! I suppose this is a good thing, as computers will be a major part of her life. Almost everything is web based these days, and once she is in school, having Internet access will be essential for Mallory.

She truly enjoys her computer time, as do I. It gives me a little bit of time after dinner to do the dishes uninterrupted, and watch her learn. Nothing beats watching Mallory learn.

Happy Mother's Day

2011-05-09T09:21:00.013-05:00

For my third Mother's Day, Mallory and Christopher gave me a heart shaped locket necklace and Grandpa Hauer took us out for brunch. Along with Grandma Dee, we headed down to Belle Plaine, where we enjoyed a massive spread of food at the Valley View Golf Course along with a free mimosa that was EXCELLENT!

Mallory was the picture perfect child, full of hugs and kisses for everyone! She enjoyed her brunch and ate all of the watermelon from the salad bar! Seriously, they had to refill the fresh fruit after we went through. After brunch, we sat around chatting and that is when I realized, although my family is small, they are all I ever need. Good, bad, happy or sad. They are my family and I love them so very, very much. It was such a great time together.

Usually for supper, Christopher cooks and I clean up. It's a deal we made years ago when we were first married. Last night however, I didn't have to clean! I got to enjoy a glass (or two) of Sangria after supper and Christopher washed the dishes and put everything away. What a treat! What a mellow, totally wonderful, wouldn't change a thing, kind of day!

PCRA Rodeo and the Minnesota Horse Expo

2011-04-30T10:56:00.004-05:00

Grandpa Hauer won some tickets to the 2011 Minnesota Horse Expo, which also included two tickets to the PCRA Rodeo. He was gracious enough to give them to Mallory, so off we went. The even was held at the Lee and Rose Warner Coliseum on the State Fair Grounds, Friday April 29th. We didn't get to take in as much of the Expo as we would have liked due to time constraints and the fact it was windy and raining a little bit when we arrived. Because of the weather, most of the stands had closed up shop.

I can't remember the last time I went to a rodeo, but I am fairly certain I have seen one, I think when I was in grade school maybe? Christopher said he saw one in Colorado when he was a kid. Because both of our experiences were so long ago, this made for a perfect family event!

Mallory was VERY excited about seeing the horses, calves and bulls. She was the star of our section and row, roping (ha ha) others into her enthusiasm. Unfortunately she is still afraid of the flash on our camera, so we have not been able to get very many pictures of her lately. We had to sneak this one in....

It was a lot of fun, watching the cowboys do their thing, it made us realize this is one tough sport! I was a little worried it might be too violent for Mallory, but the only part that was a little harsh was the Calf Roping and the Steer Wrestling, but after the first Calf was roped, she said loudly "let's watch another one!" So, we did and we had a great time as a family! Thanks Grandpa (Dad) for the tickets and for thinking of us. It was a lot of fun to try something new!

Happy Easter

2011-04-24T08:10:00.000-05:00

Happy Easter

Love,

Mallory

Coloring Easter Eggs

2011-04-23T08:13:00.006-05:00

Last night Christopher and I helped Mallory color Easter eggs for the first time. Unfortunately we're going through a spell in which Mallory does not like the flash on or camera, so taking pictures is difficult and we have to be sneaky.

She did pretty good, but lost a little interest about half way through. Even so, we had a lot of fun trying different concoctions of dye and using the egg wraps. Over all, I am pleased with how they turned out.

The best egg was done by Christopher. It looks tie-dyed and both Mallory and I thought it was really cool!

Shhhh, the baby is sleeping!

2011-04-04T18:24:00.003-05:00

I was scolded this morning because I was NOT being quiet and all three of Mallory's babies were sleeping.

She set this up all on her own. So cute and too funny!

Baking Cookies

2011-03-25T14:55:00.006-05:00

Christopher likes to use the snow blower, so he is usually the one working on the ends of the neighborhood driveways after the plow goes through and ruins all the hard work you just did. Our wonderful neighbors brought over a thank you for that snow removal the other day. It was so nice to receive something so thoughtful. Included in the thank you was a Barnes and Noble gift card and a toy cookie baking set for Mallory.

I had no idea how seriously she would take this cookie baking, but she is having a lot of fun with her new toy, while being serious about baking. HA!

Two years ago for Christmas, Christopher and I got Mallory Elmo's Restaurant. You can refresh your memory about it here. I wasn't aware that this particular Restaurant could be used for said cookie baking as well, but it can and it's being used! Here is a little run down of how Mallory "bakes her cookies".

1. Remove the dough from the tube.

2. Slice off said cookies and place them on the cookie sheet.

3. Take the cookies and put them in the oven. (In this case, the cookie sheet does not fit in the oven, so she puts them under the oven) Don't forget your hot pad!

4. Wait for them to bake, when the timer dings, take out the cookies. Again, don't forget your hot pad!

5. Serve the cookies with your spatula!

Here is a video of Mallory baking cookies....

I could watch her do this over and over again! My absolute favorite part of this is Mallory using the hot pad. I just can't get enough of it! I am so glad our neighbors were so thoughtful and included Mallory in their thank you. She just LOVES baking cookies!

Eagan Community Center and The Blast

2011-03-06T14:49:00.005-06:00

Almost six years ago, Christopher and I got married at the Eagan Community Center. I have been wanting to partake in some of the activities it offers ever since then. Now that we have little miss Mallory, I finally have the excuse to get over there.

Monday through Friday they have pre-school open gym which includes time in The Blast. The Blast is a smaller version of Adventure Peak, which we have also been to this winter. Friday morning, Mallory and I got an early start and after a pit stop at Target for a few household items, we headed to the ECC. For three dollars, you get unlimited access to both the open gym and The Blast for two hours. What a great deal! We started with The Blast...

Things were going well until Mallory got herself into a little area she couldn't get out of on her own. She got a little scared and started to cry, but as soon as I came to the rescue, she mellowed out and enjoyed the ride down the curvy slide to the bottom. After recovering from her wrong turn in The Blast, we headed to the gym to run around and see what they had available there. Along with several different kinds of balls to play with, they had hockey sticks, nets, bowling pins and soft kick balls. Mallory really enjoyed the bowling pins, and decided to throw a few frames.

I should mention as had a nice surprise while we were at the ECC. Grandma Dee and her friend walk there every day, so we were able to spend a little time with her while we were there as well. What a great treat as she played hockey with Mallory for a little bit! Thanks Grandma Dee!

We had a great morning, and I couldn't be happier with the amount of fun you can have for such a reasonable price! I am certain we will go again!

Gymnastics 2.0

2011-03-03T22:34:00.007-06:00

Here we go again, another round of Gymnastics started for Mallory last night. It's the same class as our last session, with a few new faces and a few repeats. She's been talking about it all week, and could NOT sit still last night waiting for the class to begin. The biggest difference this time around, Mallory was one of the "big kids" in her class, last time she was one of the youngest. She's a natural born leader and went first every time.

Our teacher last night was one of the Farmington High School Gymnastics assistant coaches. His name was Nick. He did wonderful with all the kids and Mallory just loved Nick. She was following him around like a little girl with a big crush and for one of the few times in her life, she actually sat still and listened to his directions. It was really sweet.

When he kids finish a particular event, they are to stand up straight and tall, put their arms up in the air and say TA DA. Most kids will say it, but Mallory SHOUTS it. She had so much fun, and Christopher and I both really enjoyed watching our little gymnast last night. It's only been eight weeks since her last gymnastics session ended, but she seems to have really grown between then and now. She can complete all of the required moves and events with ease and she listens. We are looking forward to Wednesday nights for the next two months!

Happy Valentine's Day

2011-02-14T10:56:00.002-06:00

HAPPY VALENTINES DAY!

LOVE,

MALLORY

Edinborough Park

2011-02-13T15:47:00.006-06:00

After a "perfect timing" invite to enjoy breakfast with the Hammerberg's at The Original Pancake House in Edina, we decided to head to Edinborough Park for the morning/afternoon. We've been there once before, but Mallory was too small to take part in the main attraction called Adventure Peak. She's not to small anymore! We spent almost the entire two hours there crawling up, over, in, through, down, around, under, behind, and on top of everything and anything inside this monster. See for yourself.....

The other time spent there was in the kid friendly open gym, where they have all kinds of bouncy balls, scooter chairs, a bounce house and traffic cones to play with. Mallory didn't waste anytime getting to business on the scooters. She was happy to be pushed around by me, while I got a "workout" in and then she took on the role of the "big kid" and pushed Evan all over the place.

We had a lot of fun watching the kids play, and playing with the kids! I can't believe how big they are getting. I know that's a bit cliche of a statement, but I am totally serious! These kids are growing like weeds and while Mallory is starting to become a little girl and coming out of the toddler stage, we get to stay in tune with it, because Evan is right in the thick if it. Old friends, happy kids = good times!

Swimming Lessons 2011

2011-01-20T18:17:00.003-06:00

It's winter and being stuck inside with a case of cabin fever is the norm in the Great State of Minnesota. With us being no exception, we are once again looking for activities outside of the house to partake in. Anytime we can find something that is fun and gives Mallory a chance to learn on top of it all, we'll take it. This is the case with Swimming Lessons. This is Mallory's third series of lessons. This time we are registered with the Red Cross certified lessons through Farmington Community Education. This is a perfect way to get the combination needed to cure the winter blues.

We've only had two sessions so far this time around, and unfortunately the pool water temperature is quite cold. This makes it hard for Mallory to stay interested because she is so focused on being cold and doesn't want to try any of the skills they are trying to teach. She is too busy clinging to Christopher or I to stay warm.

I am starting to think this will be the last time we enroll her in Community Ed lessons. While they have been really good for us so far, I think Mallory has gotten all she can from these sessions as they appear to be repeating themselves. They also do not have a class advancement until she is four years old. That means at least two more sessions/years of the same style class, learning the same skills she already knows. I believe we will be looking into a private swim school from now on, or until she is a little older. Either way, she usually has some fun in the pool, the instructors are wonderful and patient and Mallory always takes great naps on the days we have lessons.

Go Gophers Go!

2011-01-10T22:39:00.010-06:00

I've been a big fan of the Gophers Women's Basketball team for a few years now, and I usually try to get to at least one home game at The Barn during the season. Christopher is not a fan of basketball, but is very understanding of my love of the game, so he suggested I take Mallory to a game with me. I took his suggestion and off we went. It was on Wednesday night, January 5th against the Iowa Hawkeyes.

Mallory had a BLAST. She was in excitement overload when we first arrived. What toddler wouldn't be? The band was blaring, there were cheerleaders jumping around all over the floor, and the teams were warming up. Lots of movement and noise, she didn't know where to look first! We found our seats, got situated just in time for national anthem. Once the anthem was over, we sat and waited for the game to start.

During the first break in action, Mallory was checking out the scenery and making friends with our neighboring fans, when there he was. Standing tall, dark and furry in the shadow. He pointed at her, she pointed back and the connection was made. Goldy the Gopher was less than 20 feet away. Mallory was a bit stunned. She wasn't quite sure what to make out of this furry creature who had just befriended her. They had a silent interaction, blew kisses to each other and then it was over. For the rest of the night, she was VERY aware of Goldy's whereabouts.

The game carried on, Mallory enjoyed a popcorn and cookie treat, and we watched the girls play basketball. I could not and still can not believe how much Mallory actually paid attention to the game. She was shouting out the numbers on the back of the jerseys, the ones she knew anyway. She was like a color commentator. She was telling me all the girls actions, like "look, girls running" and "I see a ball, now it's in the air".

The half-time show was such a treat. It was a youth group called the Alexandria Aces, and they were like the Harlem Globetrotters. It was CRAZY how good these kids were. I was frozen just watching all the moves and antics. They must train really hard because they were really, really good.

Because the seats around us during half-time were empty, Mallory had a little bit if walking room, but she didn't do any walking, she just stood there watching the Aces do their thing.

The best part of our evening was towards the end, when the cheerleaders throw small basketballs out into the crowd. We stood up, mother and daughter, started clapping our hands and screaming loudly and sure enough, we were able to catch the eye of one of the cheerleaders, so Mallory got her very first basketball, or "bak - est- ball" as she calls it.

She was so proud. I think she would've slept with it, if I let her. It was amazing seeing Mallory enjoy the game and everything that comes with a college sporting event. She took it all in and then some. She seemed to really enjoy herself, she was a perfect little angel the entire time, and I was a proud mommy. Even though the Gopher's lost the game, it was fun anyway. I didn't take her to see a victory (although it would've been nice), I took her to bond and to enjoy something together at mother and daughter, and boy did we enjoy it, and each other.

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year!

2011-01-02T18:37:00.016-06:00

This post is late because it's been a really busy couple of weeks, not just for me, but for everyone. It's the holidays after all! So with that excuse I will begin to fill you in on Mallory's Christmas and New Year.

Grandma Dee was going to be in Cancun (lucky duck) over Christmas with Uncle Scott, Aunt Cindy and their kids Hunter and Mackenzie, so we needed to celebrate Christmas with Grandma Dee before she left on her winter vacation. She invited us over to her place, the week before Christmas, for dinner and PRESENTS! This would be Mallory's first opportunity to open presents for Christmas, so once we informed her that is what she would be doing, that was all that was on hr mind. Good thing we opened presents before we ate dinner, I don't think she would've have been able to wait.

From Grandma Dee Mallory received a Furry Frenzie Scoot and Scurry City, and a Leap Frog Tag Junior, along with four books. She had a blast ripping open her presents, building her Scoot and Scurry City with Daddy and cuddling with Grandma Dee. It was a nice way to kick of the Christmas week. Oh and we've been told, Grandma Dee had a GREAT time on her Christmas vacation!

Christmas Eve was just the three of us, so we ventured out to Roseville and had dinner at Joe's Crab Shack. We had a lot of fun, just the three of us, as a family. Christopher and I had talked to Santa to see if he could stop by our house early, while we were gone to dinner, since we were going to be up very early on Christmas Day, and on our way down to the farm for church first and then Christmas. There was no way we would have time in the morning, before we left to open any presents he may be leaving for Mallory. Santa said he would check his list, and as long as Mallory was on the Nice list, he would stop in early for us.

So, we left out milk and cookies for Santa, hoping he would drop by. He didn't disappoint! When we got home, Mallory promptly advised us that Santa had come indeed! She was speechless, literally speechless. She just stood and started at all the presents and then quietly asked us if they were for her. Yes Mallory, Santa brought all of these presents for you, have at it! She got everything she asked for, especially her number one item, a Pillow Pet.

On Christmas Day, we headed to the farm for Christmas with Grandpa and Grandma Hauer, Uncle Dustin and Aunt Katy. After a beautiful Christmas Day Mass, catching up with some relatives and a nummy Christmas dinner, we got to the presents. Presents, presents and more presents. But first, Mallory got some salon quality service from Uncle Dustin. Mallory got a Princess Fairies Salon Set from Rebecca (daycare) and just loves playing salon. We were happy to let her take advantage of, I mean play with Uncle Dustin for a while.

From Grandma and Grandpa Hauer, Mallory received a VTech laptop, two Pocoyo DVD's, Toy Story 3 on DVD and a pop up book. We had so much fun, opening presents, playing with new toys and just being together as a family. Even though the day was relaxing, it sure seemed to fly by and before we knew it, it was night time and we were heading home. Mallory didn't nap on Christmas Day, so I figured she would head to bed earlier than usual, what I didn't think would happen was Mallory fell asleep in the car about two miles down the road. Out like a light, holding onto her "puter". Sure sign of a good day.

Within a few days, we were upon the new year. Since the weather was a little uncertain, we opted to stay home, just the three of us, to ring in the new year. How did we celebrate? We turned Mallory's crib into a toddler bed, per her request. She LOVES her new bed, especially since she can get in and out of it all on her own. She just seems to really enjoy her latest "big girl" transition. I, on the other hand, was a little sad. Happy for Mallory, but a little sad inside that she is growing up. I guess that's to be expected.

On New Years Day, we made a day trip to Rochester. We did a little shopping, had some lunch and then did some sight seeing downtown Rochester, from the car. It was COLD out! One thing we had to take advantage of, even if it was kind of cold out, was this beautiful sundog in the sky. I have never seen anything like it in my lifetime. Mallory just loves rainbows and was over the moon with this sundog staring us back in the face all afternoon. Just gorgeous.

I would like to think this was a sign of things to come for us in 2011. Simply gorgeous, beautiful, natural wonders coming our way. Whatever path we are on, this is how it will end. Sunny, colorful and peaceful.

Holidazzle

2010-12-19T21:47:00.007-06:00

We waited until the last possible night, be we made it. Tonight we headed downtown for the final Holidazzle parade of 2010. This is not Mallory's first Holidazzle, as we went in 2008, when Mallory was five months old. We used to go every year, but we missed last year due to the weather. Every day we had planned to go, it either snowed, or was below zero temps. Tonight wasn't so bad, it was cold, but in the teens, so it was doable. We took the Metro Transit Light Rail train, which Mallory loves. She is always very excited to ride the train, can you tell?

We did a little sight seeing when we got to Nicollet Mall, as the parade didn't start for another hour and it was too cold to wait outside the whole time. We decided to hang out in Gavidae Commons, because they had a Caribou Coffee and a HUGE Christmas Tree.

Once it was parade time, we headed out into the cold and picked out our spot.

We watched with anticipation, and even though we couldn't feel our fingers and our toes, it was so much fun watching each float go by, all lit up and festive for Christmas. Mallory's favorite was The Wizard of Oz.

The parade only lasts about 25 minutes, which is the perfect amount of time for a toddler in these kinds of temperatures. Even so, Mallory did great and was VERY excited to see Santa at the end. Here she is, shouting SANTA while watching him approach atop Christopher's shoulders.

We had a great outing as a family and hopefully started a fun family tradition for us. Everything Christmas related this year so far, has been super fun with Mallory. She is at the perfect age, starting to understand Christmas and everything that it means. She is very excited to see what Santa brings her and talks about Santa, Rudolph and Frosty the Snowman everyday. It's been really fun watching her take it all in, and tonight was no exception!

Brunch in Lonsdale

2010-12-06T11:35:00.006-06:00

Our good friends The Rotter’s invited us to their new house in Lonsdale for brunch this past Sunday. We were more than excited to go, since I have not seen their new house yet, and they have a daughter, Jules, veryclose to Mallory’s age. Jules and Mallory have had a few play dates together, so we know they enjoy each other. Not only was Jules going to be there, but a few other couple friends of ours, and their children as well. All in all, brunch totaled nine adults and five kids. It was a lot of fun!

The kids played and played together, ate together, and played and played together some more. Mallory was wiped out afterwards, but even so, was still talking about it a day later. She had a lot of fun dancing around with all the kids, playing one on one with Jules, and again with all the kids downstairs, where there were all different kinds of toys. Mallory also showed some interest in the piano at their house. I know what kid wouldn’t like to bang on something that outputs noise? What I noticed, even with all the toys laying around, and all the kids running around, Mallory kept sneaking back into the front room of their house, where the piano was to “play” some more. I wouldn’t be surprised if she wants to learn to play the piano when she gets older, but boy oh boy, if her genuine interest in the piano at Rotter’s house is any indication, I am going to have to start saving up my pennies now.

These moments are good for her, Christopher and me. I am always so happy to see any and all of her learned skills being used. It was great to see her participate in all the different songs we sang as a group, playing with and reading books, and showing of her skills from gymnastics. She even showed two of my girlfriends, who happen to be dance instructors, how she can “tap”. Mallory does not take dance classes yet, but she goes along with Rebecca and Charlotte (daycare) to watch and loves to show off her ability to “tap”. She basically shuffles one of her feet back and forth, and every now and then puts a little kick in there, but either way, it’s fun to watch her show off. Both Marisa and Amanda were “impressed”.

When it was time to leave, Jules was sad, but we promised her a play date in the future. I really enjoyed watching all the children playing with one another, and gazing around the room at the parents we’ve all become. When I turned thirty years old, I was depressed and a little “lost”, then Mallory came along, and I no longer feel lost. My life has complete purpose now in the form of my daughter and my family. There is nothing I cherish more than watching Mallory being Mallory.

Meeting Santa

2010-12-06T10:17:00.003-06:00

This is the second time Mallory has met with Santa Claus, but this year was much better than last year. If you remember, last year Mallory wanted the balloon Santa’s helpers were giving out after meeting Santa, prior to meeting Santa, so she was less than excited about having to wait for her balloon. She ended up sitting on Santa’s lap, giving him a little hug, but after she got her red balloon. You can read about last year’s meeting with Santa here.

On Saturday, we headed over to Eden Prairie Center so Mallory could meet Santa Claus again and discuss her wish list with him. She was very excited about meeting Santa this year and practiced her wish list in the car ride over to Eden Prairie.

After some play time and shopping in the mall, we headed over to The North Pole and were pleased to learn we were first in line to meet Santa. Once Santa arrived, Mallory’s face just lit up with excitement. Christopher carried her over to his lap, and albeit a little scared, she stood there with Christopher, me and Santa. To ease her concerns, I told Santa what I wished for Christmas first, and then gave Mallory her turn. Santa asked her very nicely if she was a good girl, to which she quietly replied “yes”. He then asked her if she would like to talk about what she might wish for Christmas. She stood there a little while and then said real softly “pillow pet”. Santa needed a little reassurance from me he heard her correctly, but once he understood, he showed real interest and started asking her more about the pillow pet.

I asked Mallory if she wanted to sit on Santa’s lap to tell him about the other items on her wish list. She said “okay”, and up she went. He picked her up and sat with her so gentle like and sweet. He was so great to her and kept saying she was a very sweet little girl. Once situated with Santa, I stepped away, but I heard her tell him she also wanted “Tinkerbell”.

Christopher and I were so proud of Mallory. She did a great job waiting for, talking to and meeting Santa. She was proud of herself too. She gave him a big hug, a high five and a fist pump when it was all said and done. He was a GREAT Santa, true to his form and he smelled like peppermint. I am so pleased with our experience from start to finish, not only that, but we made a wonderful memory too!

Cookies by Mallory

2010-11-18T13:47:00.010-06:00

Since Thanksgiving weekend was going to be two days longer for our family, and we didn't have to pack everything into a two day time span, we decided it was time for Mallory to take part in her first cookie baking process. I figured the best cookies to bake and decorate would be "old fashioned" sugar cookies.

On Saturday I mixed up the dough and on Sunday we dug in. After learning I had run out of flour making the actual cookies, we had to improvise for a location to roll out the dough that wouldn't be too sticky. I learned wax paper works just as good as flour and it's less messy! Mallory was very hands on during the dough prep part, and couldn't wait to use the cookie cutters!

We cut out around five dozen cookies and while some of them didn't make the trip to the pan without peril, we still had plenty of cookies to bake! Once they were all done and cooled, we were going to decorate, but Mallory said she was tired and well, truth be told, she already had her bath, so I was less than interested in getting her all messy again. So, we put off the decorating until Monday.

Tonight was the night, Monday was here, and I think I was more excited to decorate these cookies then Mallory was. We started out with the frosting, and then Mallory had at it with the sprinkles. I am certain she ate more sprinkles than she poured on the cookies, and in reality, she did more dumping than pouring, but either way, she had a lot of fun decorating our cookies. Of course she had to try the cookies to approve, and while her fingers appear to be a permanent shade of blue, I think overall she had a great time and did a wonderful job!

The First Snowfall

2010-11-14T10:08:00.003-06:00

Mallory woke up to a winter wonderland yesterday! She was excited to look at the snow through the windows of the house, but was less than interested in going outside and playing with it. Christopher had promised her a snowman if it snowed, but once we got outside to play in the snow, it was way to wet to let a toddler go running around in it. She was not as excited anymore. Even so, she truly enjoyed watching it come down and had some fun checking it out on her own.

Happy Veterans Day Daddy!

2010-11-11T18:24:00.007-06:00

Christopher served in the U.S. Army from 1989 to 1997. Since today was Veterans Day and he was off from work, Mallory and Christopher came to Prior Lake and we had a lunch date. The best part was his meal was free. Thanks to Applebees for giving Veterans a free meal today!

It was great seeing all the proud Veterans out and about today, displaying their pride in this country either through a bumper sticker, license plate, hat, jacket or sweatshirt. We even saw one gentleman putting his name on the list for a table at Applebees with what appeared to be his original U.S Navy enlistment records. The folder was older than me, but this gentleman held it tight, and held it high, he was proud. I am proud too, of my wonderful husband, for his years of dedication and service to his country. Mallory is proud of her daddy too. I even got her to say "Happy Betrans Day". Close enough!

Halloweekend

2010-11-01T20:54:00.011-05:00

We started Halloweekend out at the Farmington Halloween Walk at Boeckman Middle School. It was free, and Mallory had fun, but the hour long wait to get inside was hardly worth the ten businesses that partook in handing out about 15 pieces of candy total for Mallory. Like I said, Mallory had fun, so that's what counts, and she was a very good little girl while waiting in line! Fifteen pieces was more than enough for her, and it was her Chicken costume debut, so it wasn't a total waste!

On Saturday we headed to St.Michael's for the kids Halloween Scavenger Hunt. Along with the hunt, we enjoyed burgers, hot dogs, chips and goodies. There weren't as many kids as I thought there was going to be, but that was okay because at every station of the scavenger hunt, Mallory got about ten pieces of candy, rather than one. We also played some games, including "Twister" and made some crafts like a pumpkin face, pumpkin bracelet and an owl. Afterwards we drove over to Harmony Lights in Lakeville to watch a pretty cool display of Halloween lights to music, which Mallory just LOVED! Sorry, I was so mesmerized by the light show, I completely forgot to shoot a video of it.

Once Sunday came, I kind if felt a little Haloweened out, but got a second wind in the afternoon to take Mallory out for her first time Trick or Treating! She was so excited to go, and thanks to Grandma Dee, we were BOTH able to take her and still have someone at the house to hand out candy. The neighborhood was buzzing with the largest amount of kids we have ever seen to our area. We opted to take her wagon, which was a good choice, since after about the 5th house, Mallory sat down on the curb and sighed, saying "I'm Tired"! We kept going in the wagon, making a few more stops and then headed up to the Kreiling's for a very special treat. At Kreiling's house, Mallory got to help Craig hand out the candy. She really enjoyed being his little helper, but taking a few minutes in between kids to enjoy a piece of candy from her own pumpkin bucket!

Once we got home, she had to check out her loot. Once she went to bed, we checked out her loot! You know, to make sure everything was edible, it was most certainly not to steal any of her candy!

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!

2010-10-31T07:48:00.004-05:00

Love

Christopher, Krystal and Mallory

A Swingset in the Backyard

2010-10-14T10:47:00.023-05:00

For Mallory's second birthday, we wanted to get her a backyard swing set. Once we started doing some research we learned we would have to save up for a while before we could afford to get a decent one. We wanted to be sure the one we purchased would be small enough for her to enjoy now, and big enough for her to enjoy it in the years to come. Christopher has put a lot of time and effort into researching which play set would be the best for our situation, and had pretty much settled on purchasing the Playstar system from Menards. That is until I had a conversation with my dad about buying a used one.
.

To be honest, I was leery, and very against buying a used swing set. You just never know with anything used and I wanted to be sure the apparatus my daughter and her friends were going to be crawling on and over and under and through, would be safe. My dad put my worries to rest with his comment of "I got screws and a drill for that Krystal". I love my Dad.

So onto to Craigslist I went. I wasn't sure if I was going to find anything, when all I saw, over and over was "RAINBOW PLAY SYSTEM GENTLY USED - $5,000". Okay, I know all about the Rainbow Play Systems, their quality, their reputation, but if I had $5,000 laying around, sorry Mallory, it would not be put towards a swing set. I found a couple of listings, here and there, for a swing set, jungle gym type product, in our price range, but they were all old, dingy and in pieces. I kept checking back, and all of a sudden, there it was, "Jordan, MN, five years old, probably a Playstar System from Menards, in good condition, used play system. You disassemble, cash only". WOO HOO!

Off we went, Dad's truck, trailer and our friend Pete in tow, to help with disassembly and transport. I was even more pleased when I saw the system in person. It has been well taken care of and the previous owner actually added the canopy onto the system himself. The disassembly took some time, but were were able to get the system on to the trailer in a few major pieces and off to Farmington with no major problems. Oh and Mallory got to jump on their trampoline while the guys were working.

Here is the play system as it sat in the previous owners backyard.

Here are few pics of the disassembly and loading it onto the trailer.

Ready to roll!

All in all, the move went real smooth, with no snags or issues. Once we got the system home, we had no real plans to put it together right away, we just wanted it in our backyard, so we can work on it one day at a time. Well, Sunday rolled around it was nice enough outside, Christopher and Pete took to it, and ta da! We have a "new" play system in our back yard for Mallory!!!!!

She was ready to give it a whirl and enjoys it very much. She calls it her "park" and cried when we told her it was time to be done playing and go inside. Even though it was raining out, she wanted to play and play. I feel like we were very fortunate to have found such a nice play set for Mallory and hope she and all of her friends enjoy it for years to come!

The Pumpkin Patch

2010-10-11T09:13:00.004-05:00

We couldn't have asked for a better day to head to the pumpkin patch. It was such a nice morning, with the sun shining bright, what a great way to start the day! This is the third year in a row we have headed to Barten's Pumpkins just outside of New Prague. They have a HUGE selection of pumpkins (over 6000) and are family run. For two weekends in October, they have Family Fun Weekends which consist of several different games for kids to play. Here Mallory is shucking some corn.

After the corn, Mallory decided she wanted to ride the pony. What was so great about this pony ride? There were two ponies and both were being guided down and back on a path, rather than round and round a track. Mallory LOVED this pony ride!

We played and ran around amongst all the pumpkins, and took turns playing the bean bag toss, but it was time to head out for lunch so Mallory picked out her very own pumpkin and headed to car, demanding to carry it all on her own.

It was a quick stop, but so fun! The place was buzzing with excitement. Nothing buy happy families running around and having a good time! Thanks Barten's!!!!!

Gymnastics

2010-09-28T10:28:00.010-05:00

We enrolled Mallory into Farmington's ECFE Twist and Tumble Gymnastics class fall session. We've had two classes so far (one night a week) and Mallory LOVES it. We will get a total of seven classes. I am quite impressed with it. I had no idea they would be doing so many different activities. I figured they would run around the floor a little bit, and do some flips and somersaults, but boy was I wrong. Miss Lynn (Farmington HS Gymnastics Coach) is so patient with the toddlers and has all kinds of great ideas to keep them interested. Another fun part of this class, is it's toddler and parents, so I get to partake as well. It's fun, but I realize I am way out of shape!

During the class they start with an assembly line style event. Each toddler takes their turn rolling down an inclined mat, with the assistance of Miss Lynn. Once at the bottom, there are series of hoops or lines to jump through or over. Then to another mat in which you kick your legs up while balancing on your hands. More jumping and then to the end in which the toddler get to toss a couple of dinosaurs into a little net. Mallory just walks them up to the net and sets them in there, but hey, that works for her. There are periodically mats shaped like a shark or a star, in which she stops, puts her hands up and says "TA DA!" Here is a video of Mallory, taking her first run at gymnastics...

The second part of the class is held on the stage of the old gym/auditorium, with the balance beam being the focus. They have three different height beams set up, and the toddlers get to try walking the bean straight, sideways and stepping over little animals. It's super fun to watch them concentrate, and well, Mallory will do the task in front of her, she HAS to hold my hands.

The last part of the class consists of the vault. It's basically a big runner rug the toddlers run down, jump over a few soft obstacles and then bounce off a spring board onto a big pillow like pad, with the help of Miss Lynn. Mallory's favorite is definitely the vault. She loves to run anyway, so this gives her a chance to expand some of her energy, and do something she loves, with a little bit of a challenge.

I guess it's a good sign at the end of both classes, Mallory is crying because she doesn't want to leave. She talks about "gym sticks" all week long, and just lights up when we arrive for class. She is a very good listener and tries everything once. Some of the obstacles are a little hard for her, but at least she tries and will only improve! At home Mallory is saying she wants to try a somersault and she wants to "do beam". So far, she's digging it, and so are we!

Minnesota State Fair

2010-09-01T19:48:00.007-05:00

The Great Minnesota Get Together, would we miss it? NEVER! We headed out the morning of opening day, and took the express bus from the Mall of America to the fairgrounds. Mallory was very excited to ride the bus, until we got to the park and ride and she saw the light rail train. Then she wanted to ride the train. Ahhh, the exciting mind of two year old.

Once inside the gates of the fair grounds, we headed right for the pronto pup stand. Mallory had a bite of mine, but decided she didn’t care for mustard. Oh well, on to the french fries, and like years past, they didn’t disappoint. Hmmm, french fries and pronto pups, that’s a good breakfast for a toddler, right?

After getting some num nums in the tum tums, we headed to the Birds of Prey show, held outside of the Department of Natural Resources building. We have seen bits and pieces of this show in the past, but have never sat down early enough to catch the whole show. Mallory really enjoyed all the different birds they brought out for us to look at, and she even had a vulture fly right over her head, to the trainer. She was oooing and ahhhhing through the whole show, and it still talking about the baby screech owl. We figured Mallory would enjoy walking through the animal barns, since she is so into animals, and we were looking forward to it too, since it is not something we usually do. Well, we got through the horse barn okay, and after petting a few pretty horses, Mallory decided it was nap time. She fell asleep just fine in her stroller, and so Christopher and I checked out the cow barn, and then to look at merchandise in the coliseum. Once I realized the Farm Girl/Boy stand did not have any clothing I couldn’t live without, Christopher and I headed to the food building to enjoy some adult food, while Mallory snoozed.

Two servings of State Fair Mouse Trap Cheese Curds answered the cravings as they always do. Man, those are the BEST cheese curds around! Now in search of something sweet, Christopher and I shared a raspberry covered funnel cake. It was a little over cooked, so not the best piece of fair food we ate. Oh well, it’s all about the experience, right?

Before you knew it, Mallory was awake, and for those of you who have asked if she still needs to nap, the answer would be yes. She only slept for about thirty-forty minutes, and while we still had a great afternoon, she was always a little tired. She enjoyed herself, and we enjoyed her too, but if you have kids, you know what I mean.

As a family we opted to rest our feet and try out the Sky Ride. Mallory just LOVED the Sky Ride. She could see EVERYTHING from up there and was sure to tell us the names of all the sights and sounds. It was a wonderful break from the crowd, and nice to be just the three of us for a little bit.

After the Sky Ride, we headed to the Kidway for Mallory to enjoy some rides. As usual she rode the carousel, but also tried Winky the Whale.

We all rode the Ferris wheel as a family, and this still seems to be her new favorite ride. That is until we went over to the Giant Slide. I rode the Giant Slide with Mallory last year, but this year, she was waaaayyyy into it! She went down once with me, and if you watch this little video, you’ll see what happens next.

She went a second time with Christopher. Mallory loved the Giant Slide!

We walked and walked, and walked some more, until we came upon the KQRS stand at the fair. Nothing like watching your two year old daughter rock out to Back in Black by ACDC. I am not sure what her new moves are all about, but she had a BLAST dancing around up there.

More walking, and a little more shopping and then it was time to go up in the Space Tower. It was the perfect time of day, and there was no line, we got on right away. Mallory really enjoyed the fact it went around and around. I can’t remember the last time I was on the Space Tower, and Christopher thought for him, it was since he was in middle school. We all had a great trip up and back down, and basically seeing it through Mallory’s eyes, made it all worthwhile!

The sun was starting to set, and the day was getting long. Our bellies were full, but not bursting, so we headed for a signature last move and got our bucket of Sweet Martha Cookies. Once we were out the gates and across the street, we knew it was the right time to head home. Our feet were beat, and our butts were more than happy to take a seat for the ride back to MOA. Mallory hammed it up on the bus ride home, keeping the other bus passengers entertained and saying over and over “it’s getting dark out.” I thought for sure she would crash once we got in the car, but she stayed awake the whole ride home, talking about her day. She mentioned the Giant Slide, the Ferris wheel, french fries and seeing the horses. Once we got home, cleaned up and changed into our PJ’s, she was OUT. She slept until 9:30 the next morning. That sure was nice for me, as I also got to sleep in a little and recover!

I was looking forward to this year at the State Fair since Mallory could not walk last year; it was more of a sightseeing adventure for her. This year, she was able to partake in so many different aspects of the fair; it was a delight being there with her. We ate to our hearts and stomachs content, and we already can’t wait for next year. Well, maybe we just need to go a second time this year, there are five more days of the Minnesota State Fair!

2 Year Wellness Check

2010-08-24T20:52:00.003-05:00

Two years, come and gone, just like that. We found ourselves going to the doc for Mallory’s wellness check, and realized we have only had to take her to the doctor for something other than wellness, twice in her two short years. That’s pretty darn good I would have to say, and the doctor agreed.

Mallory’s appointment went great, albeit 20 minutes later than scheduled, she didn’t mind running around the room in just her pull – up. We even went and used the potty once while we were waiting!

Mallory is a very healthy little girl. She is still long and lean and the doctor finally agreed, she will probably stay that way. Developmentally she is a little ahead of the game, and showed off a few of her skills for the doctor, like counting to twenty, saying hippopotamus, which comes out HOMANUS, and even rolling her belly!

Here are her two years stats:

Height: 2’ 11 “ = 77th percentile
Weight: 23 pounds 9.6 ounces = 11th percentile
Head: 47.5 cm = 48th percentile

We had to suffer through two different sticks this time, and while Mallory handled them as you can expect a two year old to handle shots, her legs tensed up real hard between the two shots, causing a lot more pain for the second one, and some stiffness in the days to follow. I have never seen her sit so still on the couch to watch Baby Einstein. She didn’t move at all, her little legs were so sore! Mallory also got the seasonal flu mist and that also went just fine, since there are no needles associated with that vaccination. The nice part it, we are all done for a whole year! Unless of course, something unusual happens and Mallory actually catches something!

Some other fun two year updates include Mallory’s vocabulary. It’s really intense with a lot of words, and the formation of sentences. Her favorite one right now happens to be “It’s really nice outside”. I know she’s just repeating what she hears, but it’s impressive to us since it’s the whole sentence and not just a word here and there.

We have also been without baby gates for quite some time now, but even so, Mallory has been handling the steps even better as of late. She always holds onto the railing, or our hands, and can go up or down alternating, instead of one at a time. Probably because of her long legs!

One other huge accomplishment this summer, is swimming. I am sure you all know from reading this blog, we enrolled Mallory in swimming lessons for the first time, about a years ago, right after she turned one. She participated in a second session this past winter, and while I was going to put her into a third one at the end of the summer this year, we opted to wait until winter. I think she would be bored. She is a good little swimmer, and proved it this past weekend. Christopher has been swimming with her all summer at Grandma Dee’s pool, and while they started out playing on the steps of the pool, they have graduated to swimming in the pool with a life jacket on and Mallory goes all by herself. She will jump in all by herself, and doesn’t freak out if she goes under water. All that proved good exposure when she went swimming “by herself” in the lake this past weekend. We took the pontoon to the middle of the lake, dropped the anchor and in she went. Life jacket on of course, and we were right there also, but she had no qualms about taking a dip in the lake. Both days she swam for about 1.5 hours straight. Christopher had a huge smile on his face, while I had a tear in my eye.
Everything about Mallory and this whole experience so far as been truly, truly amazingly wonderful. She is a top notch kid, with great skills that are just getting better and better. We are very lucky and blessed and over the moon with Mallory!

Elko Speedway

2010-08-17T20:37:00.003-05:00

We actually stayed around Farmington last weekend and enjoyed some local activities, and I gotta say, what a great weekend to do so. The weather was PERFECT for some summer fun!

On Saturday night, we went to Elko Speedway to watch some races. This is Mallory’s first time attending anything quite like it, and while she has always adapted well to any even we take her to, I was a little worried this time. I had no idea how she was going to react to the loud noise that comes from the racing cars. We bought her some ear protection and I was hoping because I was also wearing some, she would too. Well, I was wrong. We tried and tried to get her to wear them, but she would just remove them and start to cry. Oh boy, now what, we’re here and she won’t wear the ear protection. Ahhh, not to worry I guess, when she saw a bunch of other little kids wearing them, she WANTED them on. I even had to convince her it was okay to take them off when the races were over.

We enjoyed our treats, nachos and popcorn, and when the races started, Mallory was ready! Her eyes were bouncing back and forth, round and round while the cars whizzed by. She was pointing and clapping, shouting out RACE CARS! She also enjoyed seeing the ambulance, or as she called it “AMNOOLINT”. This came after I convinced her it was NOT a fire truck.

We watched qualifying rounds, short races, long races, a quick break with a charity race, and then it started to rain. Not hard, not long, but just enough to cancel the rest of the night. Right when the Nascars were about to come out for their 30 lap race. I was bummed, but it was a good night anyway, and we got to see lots of fun races, spin outs and even a few crashes.

I HIGHLY recommend this place to anyone with kids. It was so much fun, full of activity and very inexpensive.

Turning Two

2010-08-05T21:47:00.007-05:00

Saturday, July 31st Mallory turned two years old!

I could go on and on about how I can’t believe it’s been two years already, but any of you that read this blog, and have had kids, know how quickly that time goes by, so I will spare you the ranting.

We had a very good time at Mallory’s birthday party, which was held in our backyard. Grandma Dee, Grandma and Grandpa Hauer, and the Kreiling clan were also in attendance.

Mallory had so much fun running around with Charlotte and Sophia, checking out her balloons and just being a two year old. After some nummy food, Mallory started to open her presents. Last year Mallory was crazy busy all over the place and ripping paper like nuts. This year, she sat very contently waiting for each present, and carefully unwrapping the paper. Oh, and with each present, she said softly “Happy Birthday”.

She got all kinds of fun new toys. I pair or princess play shoes, a princess CD player, an ABC bag, a fishing pole w/puzzle, Yo Gabba Gabba DVD, some clothing and a FIRE TRUCK! Hands down, the Fire Truck is her favorite. Who knew?

After presents we had birthday cake. We practiced hard on blowing out the candles, but only practiced with one, so who can blame her for not knowing she had to blow out the second candle too? No smashing of cake this year, my little lady used a fork to enjoy her very own cake. I gotta say, I LOVE the Farmington Bakery. They always do such a great job with what I ask them to do, and of course the cake was very good.

We ended the evening playing with her new toys and watching her new fish swim around the tank. Christopher and I gave her a two gallon fish tank with one yellow guppy and one orange guppy. They still do not have names, but soon enough. She is very aware of her fish and is sure to check on them each night before bed, and each morning when she wakes up.

Thanks to all who attended, for all of Mallory’s presents and for a fun filled memorable afternoon!

Kolacky Days

2010-07-29T19:40:00.006-05:00

The hype and build up before is always so intense, and then bam, it’s over. Just like that. Another Kolacky Days done, with plenty of memories made and tons of fun had.
We started out the weekend at the cabin getting ready for Friday night. I attended the Kolacky Queen pageant and Christopher spent some time with Mallory at the park, enjoying a Czech Meal Deal, Taco in a Bag and some beer. They had a great time together as father and daughter, while I sat, stressing out at the pageant and waiting for the new Kolacky Queen to be crowned. I was so very happy to see our good friend Cassy Kubes get the title. Her grandma Delores worked with my mom in the kitchen at MLHS for many, many years, and her mom Shelia (Delores’s daughter) spent a few years in there as well. Cassy will make a great ambassador for the city of Montgomery, and she’s cute too. WAY TO GO CASSY.

First thing Saturday morning, we headed into to town to watch the kiddie parade. We saw our friend Marisa and her daughter Jules, and our other friends Valerie and her daughter Lily.

We even got to hang with the newly crowned Kolacky Royalty for a little bit. Cassy played with Mallory and I got to reminisce a little bit.

I also enjoyed my second helping of dumplings and gravy that morning, and then it happened. Mallory saw the kiddie rides and it was downhill from there. Valerie and I headed over that way and let our little girls enjoy themselves on a set of swings, fish that go up and down while going round and round, and a set of horses. They had a lot of fun together, and needless to say, were not too happy when we made them leave. I guess I just ran out of money, at $3.00 per ticket (yes, $3.00 to ride that thing each time), my wallet was getting empty quickly. Here are a few pictures, followed by a video of Mallory riding the "fish ride".

Saturday afternoon was spent walking up and down Main Street, checking out the car show. It was a beautiful day, but hot in the sun, so we headed back to the cabin (our headquarters for the weekend) for a little nap and some real supper. Uncle Dustin and Aunt Katy came out for the afternoon and grill master Dustin cooked up some burgers, hot dogs and corn on the cob. Mallory loves corn, but has never eaten it directly off the cob before. She wouldn’t even try, until this time. She looked around the table and saw Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle Dustin, Aunt Katy, Mom and Dad all eating corn on the cob, so she promptly said “I wan sum corn cob, I wan sum corn cob”. She did great and ate three pieces!

After supper, Uncle Dustin grabbed his guitar and did what he does best. Mallory LOVED listening to him and clapping along with the song. He even let her strum the stings, in which the hollowed out sound made her giggle. Here she is, bonding with her uncle.

On Sunday we hit the parade. Mallory was pretty mellow for this one, mostly because she had a dum dum sucker in her mouth the whole time. She actually sat in her parade chair for most of the time, and only got up to applaud what else, the FIRE TRUCKS! We went back to the park when the parade was over for our last and final helping of dumplings, taco in a bag, cheese curds and beer. We watched Mallory dance a little bit to some polka music and then it was finished. Back to the cabin we headed to pack up and head home.

I love Kolacky Days; it has such a huge part of my heart. I plan my whole year around that weekend and I am hoping to make it as much of a tradition for Mallory as my parents and grandparents made it for me. The food is great, the people are familiar and the fun never ends! I am already counting down to next year’s Kolacky Days!

Pan - O - Prog

2010-07-22T20:46:00.006-05:00

Taking a break from our regular weekend adventures to the cabin, we decided to hit up Lakeville’s City celebration known as Pan – O – Prog. After nap time, we headed over to Lakeville, found a sweet spot to park, in the shade at city hall, and helped reserve our spots for the parade in front of the fire station. My good friend Sarah and her husband Todd (both high school friends of mine) live in Lakeville, and were also going to be in attendance. We were lucky enough to spend the afternoon with them!

We headed downtown to see what was happening. We stopped for some fresh lemonade, a corn dog and we ended up running into another friend of ours, Crystal. Crystal works at Belle Ami salon in Lakeville and does both mine and Christopher’s hair! She happened to have her daughter Danika with her, so it was a fun pit stop for Mallory too!

After an hour or so of checking things out, we started back towards the fire station to be seated for the parade. When the police car came, Mallory was very excited as she could hear the marching bands were next. Here she is marching in anticipation of their arrival…

Candy, candy and more candy was gathered. Mallory thoroughly enjoyed her BLUE RASPBERRY dum dum sucker, can you tell? I can’t believe she even went to sleep after all the sugar she had. So fun watching her playing with the other kids, participating in all the events, and MARCHING!

To our surprise, Christopher’s friend and co-worker Adam was in the parade representing the Farmington Fire Department. After the parade, we got a personalized tour of Rescue 1. Mallory had a BLAST checking out the “FIRE TRUCK”. On a side note here, Mallory LOVES fire trucks. She thinks any truck with a blinking light on it is a fire truck. Tow trucks, maintenance vehicles, a car with its signal on, all fire trucks in her eyes. Anyway, she was checking everything out, when she found a flag on the seat in the back. What a great symbol of freedom, a little girl, holding an American flag, in a fire truck. Even Mommy and Daddy got to have a little fun!

It was such a great day, the weather was wonderful, we spent some time with old friends, and were treated special by our very own Farmington Fire Captain, Adam. We are so lucky and very blessed to have such wonderful opportunities surrounding us.

Fireworks

2010-07-19T19:29:00.004-05:00

Another Independence Day has come and gone, but hey, this year was so much more entertaining for us. Mallory actually stayed up late to watch some real fireworks.

On Friday before the 4th, we went to Elysian for their 4th of July Celebration and saw some great fireworks over Lake Francis. Mallory has never seen “up in the air” fireworks, and waited patiently with Daddy. Once they started she was overjoyed! Lots of clapping, squealing and laughing followed. Although the skeets were pretty bad, we enjoyed the display and got another “first” out of the way.
During the day on Saturday, we took a few pontoon rides, and while Mallory is usually the navigator of said rides, on this particular weekend, she was more than happy to be my snuggle buddy. I wasn't going to argue with her.

On Saturday night of the weekend, we stayed at the cabin and enjoyed the pack of fireworks Grandpa Hauer picked up for Mallory. There was a large assortment of fountains, sparklers, showers and even some firecrackers. We all hung out, ooooing and ahhhing as we worked out way to through the pack.

On the 4th of July, a lot of the residents on Lake Jefferson shoot off fireworks. It’s so great because we basically have our very own show, right off the end of the dock. Mallory was sure to catch these too, this time sitting on the swing with Grandma and Grandpa. There was more ooooing and ahhhing, clapping, squealing and even some dancing.On Monday we headed home, tired but very fulfilled. I am pretty sure we enjoyed the fireworks this year, twice as much as years past, because we were watching them through the eyes of our own child. Amazing.

Meggan and Marc

2010-06-30T19:35:00.005-05:00

My cousin Meggan married her main man Marc last Saturday, and we were lucky enough to attend. Actually I was very excited to go, as we don’t get to see that side of the family to often anymore. I also wanted to watch Mallory and see how she would be have in this type of environment, as this would be her first wedding.

The wedding celebration was being held in the Andover/Ramsey area, so we had a bit of a drive to make. It actually worked out pretty good, Mallory was able to get in the short nap she needed on the way up and was in perfect order for the rest of the day.

The ceremony was beautiful and simple. The pastor had some very good advice for the special couple, and everyone in attendance was moved, you could just feel the love in the room! Mallory did great, calling the bride a “princess”, she was always very aware of the “princesses” whereabouts, as she filled her face with grapes. Grapes and church go hand in hand with Mallory. After the ceremony, we headed to the park for the reception. Meggan and Marc rented a pavilion at Rum River North Country Park. Let’s not forget, it was warm on Saturday, and the humidity, well, it was tropical “normal” for a Minnesota summer. Even so, the reception was fun, and low key. We all had a great time getting caught up with family and conversing. And then it happened, the DJ started and Mallory went crazy!

This girl did NOT leave the dance floor the entire afternoon. The only break she took was during the dollar dance and even then she danced with the groom twice! Once with cousin Laurie and once with me.

Mallory danced along with everything from The Electric Slide to I Gotta Feeling by the Black Eyed Peas. I have always been a pretty big wedding dance fan, and generally do not leave the dance floor once it’s begun, but this time, I was stumped. There is a newer dance out there called The Cupid Shuffle. I have heard of it before, but never done it, so I have to be “one of those people” that stand in the back of the group to watch for a bit and then go. Once I had it down pat, Mallory tried it too. The dance goes to the right, to the right, to the right, to the right, to the left, to the left, to the left, to the left. Now kick, now kick, now kick, now kick, now walk it by yourself, now walk it by yourself. Our camera battery was running out, but here is a short video of Mallory doing the kick part of The Cupid Shuffle.

I am so bummed we couldn’t get more of a video, she tried so hard to follow along, it was great! She stole the show, everyone there was in love with Mallory!

Once we were home, we had a quick bath, snuggle time and off to bed. That’s until the sirens went off and put us in the basement for some time while the storms rolled through. Mallory was definitely worn out after that, she slept till 9:30AM on Sunday morning. We had so much fun with our family and dancing we were trying to figure out where we could take Mallory for more dancing fun like that. If anyone has any ideas or suggestions, we’ll take em.