Music in the park

Sticking with my goal to attend free fun Chicago area activities this summer we went to a children's concert in the park sponsered by the Grayslake Park District. It was a beautiful summer night and we all had a great time! Here are some photos from the evening..

Daddy took a few of Mommy and MalloryD!!dy..

Trying some of Daddy's drink

A moment with daddy and Jillian...

Mallory loves to give Jillian kisses!

Bubbles, Bubbles, Bubbles

Mallory received a bubble making machine from some friends and we tried it out on a beautiful sunny afternoon. Of course she loved it and I loved taking advantage of this great photo session opportunity!

Here are some of my favorite shots from that day!

Jillian's Baptism

Jillian was baptized on Sunday, June 6th. She was baptized at St. Gilbert's church in Grayslake, IL. It was a beautiful 70 degree day and we enjoyed celebrating with family and close friends!

Here are a few pics from her special day.

Mallory and Jillian before the ceremony.

The Ceremony

Changing into the baptismal gown

 The wonderful godparents: Auntie Kerry and Uncle Chris

The Beautiful Cake from Grammy and Papa!

Another Honchos Show

Hungry Hungry Honchos is Tony's band that he's been singing in for the past decade or so. There are a few things I really love about the Honchos. I love that they play for charity, I love that they DO NOT take themselves too seriously, I love that many of them have been friends since high school and whenever they play they bring together a core group of friends who also have been life long friends of the band....many of them knowing eachother for 20 plus years! It's such a fun group and in the six years Tony and I have been together they very quickly became some of my favorite people to know. I always tell Tony how rare it is to have such a dedicated and loyal group of friends that have known eachother since highschool. From an outsider looking in it's really great to see how much they support eachother and how easy it seems to be for them to keep in touch. It was one of the things I really liked about Tony when I met him: how much his friends seemed to like him and how much he liked his friends....they were undoubtedly like family!! Having married Tony I'm glad I get to be a part of that and was reminded of it as I sang and danced along side those friends at another Honchos Show!

May You Stay Forever Young...

Ever since becoming a parent I've always maintained that every stage of development is fun and exciting. While that still holds true I must admit that these early toddler months are so incredibly endearing that it's quickly becoming my favorite stage thus far. Mallory has such a great disposition ( I know every parent feels that way about their kid) and her personality simply shines brighter each and every day! I literally just want to bottle her up at 22 months and hold onto all her cuteness and wide eyed perspective of the world around her. I know I can't really bottle her up but in an effort to hold onto this stage I thought I would jot down a few of her characteristics at the grand old age of 22 months.

To Mallory at 22 months:

Your face lights up when you see a ball...you love them!!
You absolutely love Elmo. Sesame Street is the first and only (currently) show you watch. It's usually on around snack time so every time I put it on you say "juice, crackers"
When someone new comes in the room you say "Sit down (insert name)". You think everyone comes over strictly to play with you.
Your favorite books are If You Give A Mouse A Cookie, Tumble Bumble, and First The Egg. Daddy buys you and gives you cookies for dessert! You love them of course and say "Cookie Daddy".
Puzzles are your most played with toy.
You like to sing songs but are very opinionated about which specific songs you want to sing...current favorite is The Wheels on the Bus and your favorite part is "The mommy's and the daddy's say sh sh sh".
You like to count and you often count the stairs while we're going up them.
You love to help mommy and your favorite helper job is emptying the dishwasher. You say "Malo help mommy dishes" Oh yea, you call yourself Malo.
I can't believe you are 22 months, almost 23....it just keeps getting better and better!!