All her yammering cracks me up.

Maureen is really flourishing--it has been an incredible few weeks watching her personality develop and seeing her become more independent. Here are a few more videos from the past weeks:


In our last efforts to enjoy summer at our apartment, we dined al fresco and ate spaghetti. Maureen mastered the art of asking for more AND slurping the noodles.



Our friends Dan and Sandy joined us for a picnic at the Morton Arboretum. We ventured into the Children's Garden and found this marble ball/ fountain thing that Maureen loved (it had water on it, go figure that she loved it!) I would argue that the afternoon was probably more fun for us, the adults, wandering through all the kid stuff.



More from the Arboretum. Maureen the rule-breaker--



And this one is just fun. All her yammering cracks me up.

Tupperware Party

I've been a bit concerned that some of the videos we take just come across to you, the reader, as "another baby video" despite how funny it may be to Joe and me. Grandpa Don says this is far from the case, so I will do my best to update a bit more. Plus, things are pretty exciting 'round the house now that Maureen is moving so much. Speaking of, she took a single step over the weekend. It was exciting.

Maureen loves to play in the tupperware drawer as I do dishes, but it caught Joe and me off-guard when she climbed into on her own:

A summer of weddings and giggles

This past weekend was Anne and Phil's wedding--an event we'd been excited about for well over a year. It was so wonderful to take time off of work and head North for a long weekend of festivities. I remember thinking when they'd gotten engaged that our baby would be ten months old. It is incredible to me how much she's grown and become a tiny person.

Sadly, we left our camera at Joe's parents' so I don't have many pictures from the weekend, but here are a few from the past months:

My cousin Bridget was married earlier in the summer.  Here is the beautiful bride escorted by her dad.

We were attempting a family picture here, although I kind of like that my dad ended up in it too.

Maureen crawls...on Grandma's car.

Maureen found the perfect thing for her "western" themed outfit for the rehearsal dinner.
Oh Fleet Farm, you have everything!

Joe took this one on his phone as everyone was scurrying to get ready for Anne's wedding day.
 A seemingly quiet moment--I love it.

Lately Maureen has acted like she's ready for bed, so we attempt to put her down, but she gets a serious second wind--I swear she's gone batty. Here is an example of her entertaining herself.


I LOVE this laugh. She doesn't laugh like this very often--a real baby belly laugh (if there is such a thing). It really tugs at my heart to see the two of them playing together and laughing so much.

We're still here!

As it just so happens we DO still exist, although the lack of posts to this blog seems to say otherwise.

Maureen is crawling like crazy and I'm convinced she'll be walking on her own pretty soon as well. She's been a go-getter even from day one and something simple like leg strength isn't going to keep her from marching across the room.

She's also doing a lot of yammering, has been eating solid foods, asking for more, and clapping. I was able to capture it all into one video:



And here are a few more from the past month:

(Our attempt to deter Maureen from touching the TV and other devices by placing a board in front)

2011 Spring Thaw

Click here to view these pictures larger

Maureen's first Easter

We spent Easter weekend with the Stirtons. It was beautiful. Dreariness all week (alas, such is this unending winter) followed by warm and sunny on Saturday and Sunday. We went to the Vigil Mass and I was so impressed with all the kids (including my own) through the long and late-night celebration--but it was worth it. Food and wine followed for the hours afterward and into the morning.

We decorated eggs.

And smoked salmon.

(which was de.lish.ious.)

And told stories.

We went to the Vigil mass, filled with anticipation.

We hunted for baskets,

and upon finding them we promptly yelled, "Christ is risen, Alleluia!!"

And ate candy.

We took a family picture of our respective families.

Ours was perfect on the first try.

The Stirtons, however, needed a few attempts.

Happy Easter!!!

Royal Wedding Consultant

Now that the hubbub has died down, I will come out with it--Yes. Kate Middleton did in fact consult me about her wedding dress. She wanted to know all the fine details of my own wedding day to ensure that her wedding attire would be fitting for such a royal day.

Now you know.