Nice Neighbors

Margaux with Melvin the moose!

Handsome boy.

Every night on our walks we bring Margaux by the front yard of some neighbors. They are two very cute, older Italian ladies...sisters we think...who sit out front in their lawn chairs each evening. They love to see Margaux coming and tonite they had a gift for her...a stuffed moose named Melvin! Margaux loved it! Today was the perfect summer day, just the right balance of sunshine and warmth and breeze. Life is good!

Big Heat, Little Pool

Another hot & humid day in Chicago!

She felt the water in her little pool was too cold!

Kisses from momma.

Jasper felt the water was just right!

8 Months Old!

6/24/09

It's all going so fast! Lots of new things lately...in addition to her bottom two front teeth, she is also starting to cut her two canine teeth. She can sit up on her own now, though it is not unheard of that she will topple over if she's not careful! She has babbled da-da-da-da for awhile now and just this past week has started to make the "m" sound and occasionally sings out ma-ma-ma. She continues to belly laugh a lot and she adores Jasper. She goes nuts in her jumper and loves looking at herself in the mirror! We read a lot of books and go on walks and she is generally a pleasure to take out and about. In her spare time she also enjoys putting her finger in her nose! :-)

Father's Day at Arlington Park

Petting another baby goat!

Her jockey picture!

Watching the warm-ups between races.

We wanted to do something fun for Father's Day and so we headed to Arlington Park. I cannot believe that we have never been there in all of the years that we have lived in Chicago, especially given how much Patrick loves all things horses! The grounds and facilities are absolutely gorgeous and the atmosphere of the place is really cool. Every Sunday is Family Day complete with pony rides and a petting zoo. Each Sunday also offers a different theme and craft area for the kids. Margaux is of course too young for crafting, but she is now a Junior Jockey Club member anyway! Todays theme was Father's Day and it certainly seemed like every single father in the Chicagoland area was present...the place was PACKED. We opted to sit on the lawn and have a picnic this time, though sitting in the stands looked fun too. We were able to move up to the fence during the races and see the horses & jockeys up close. It rained a little bit at first (of course) and then the sun burned through the clouds and it turned scorching hot! It was fun placing bets even though we were novices. We look forward to going back again soon!
http://www.arlingtonpark.com/

P.S. Happy Father's Day J.C. & Lonnie!

Momma's Hand-Me-Down

I adore the fabric for it's fabulous 70's motif!

My mom saved some of my old baby clothes and of everything that made the journey, this little romper is my favorite! Maxine fixed up the buttons and it's as good as new! It's fun to see Margaux wearing it.

Taste Of The Wild

We have been feeding our dogs IAMS and Science Diet for years, thinking we were doing right by them. Wrong! Due to Jasper having some tummy troubles and some decrease in shine to his coat, we started to do some research on top quality dog food. (Raw is probably best, but it's not exactly convenient all of the time!) Most dog foods out there are full of "fillers" like grains that are not natural for a dog's digestive system. Taste Of The Wild is formulated only with what dogs were made to eat. They offer three different varieties and all are appropriate for puppies to seniors. Jasper is doing very well with this food and we are thrilled! P.S. They also make kitty food. www.tasteofthewildpetfood.com

A Little Visit

Abbi was too busy with Margaux to look at the camera in both shots that I took!

My dear friend Jodi swung by to visit yesterday while in the area to visit family. She brought her two super-cute and nice kids, Luke & Abbi as well as her lovely nieces, Brianna & Lyndsay. If you knew Jodi and I in college you probably figured we would never produce anything but trouble, but the front row of the picture above proves otherwise! (For now anyway, we'll see what the teen years are like!)

7-month App't.

Saw DrG today for a well baby checkup and everything was great! MVP now weighs 18.2 pounds (68%) and measures 27 1/2 inches long (83%). She received three vaccinations and hardly cried at all this time! DrG said she is the first baby he has met who is allergic to apples and suggested we try baking and pureeing them for her. The next appointment will be toward the end of July. Cannot believe we are already in June! Speaking of which...Happy Birthday Tera!!!