One Year Ago....

She came into our life a year ago today and we didn't know just how much joy and love she would bring. She is truly the greatest gift we could ever have and I feel so blessed to be her mommy. She's not our little baby anymore, she's growing into a toddler! I am so excited to watch her learn and grow. We'll always be there holding her hand along the way!

"You'll fly away....but take my hand until that day and when they ask how far loves goes, when my job's done you'll be the one who knows." -Dar Williams

This is the outfit she'll wear for her first birthday party!

Mallory's First Birthday present from mommy and daddy!

A Little Bit Of Old Town

Once in awhile, if we’re lucky I believe we can stumble upon a place that truly makes us be in the moment, and truly makes us think this is where I’m supposed to be. That place for me was The Old Town School of Folk Music. I discovered The Old Town School in the summer of 2000 when I became a guitar student there and then went on to work at their Music and Theater camps for several summers. During those years I met wonderful people, saw countless performances, learned guitar, and made life long friendships. Every Tuesday night after class all the students would convene in the concert hall for one big jam session, strumming collectively to the music of Bob Dylan, Joni Mitchell, Neil Young and other folk legends. I was there the night of September 11, 2001. Classes were cancelled but we all gathered in the concert hall playing songs like Helplessly Hoping and This Land is Your Land while we tried to comprehend the horrific events that unfolded that day. I remember performing on the stage there with my fellow coworkers during the end of the camp session. I remember meeting friends for coffee at the cafe before class. I spent many a summer day teaching kid’s improv games during Theater camp. There truly are endless memories that this place brought me. This past weekend I experienced little bit of old town while at my good friend Naomi’s wedding celebration. I was reminded of how special that place really was to me as I saw my friend and reminisced with some old friends from the school. I’m not sure if I’ll ever have another Old Town, I think much of the experiences were derived from a combination of where I was at in my life coupled with the good fortune of meeting all the great people at that time. However, what I can do is to take those experiences and remember. Remember what brought out that feeling of never wanting to be anywhere else. In doing so, perhaps I’ll bring a little bit of old town into my everyday life and all the while I’ll never forget what I was given. This Blog entry is dedicated to Naomi and Claire.

Old Town At Night

My music camp kids in the concert hall

Naomi and me in Wells Park during camp, summer 2002

Naomi and me at her wedding celebration

Early Summer Fun...

I hate to say this but once again it's really been much too long since I've had time to post in my blog!! Any sort of extra time I get without baby I've been using to study for a class I'm taking this summer. I always have ideas for things to write about or photos to post but finding the time to acutally do it has been the challenge. Here's some photos of some fun activities Mallory has participated in this summer....Great America, The Beach, Fireworks and Grant Park.....there's sure to be more fun to be had and hopefully post/write about!!