Announcing Mr. and Mrs. Joe Fanaro!

This past weekend I had the pleasure of being a bridesmaid in my longtime childhood friend Melissa's wedding. It was a beautiful day and as you can see the bride looked particularly beautiful! Many of you know Meliss and Joe so I wanted to share some of the pictures. Maddy attended the ceremony at St. Vincent DePaul church with her daddy, and was a quite a good girl. She didn't make one peep the whole time. I was nervous she was going to see me walking down the aisle and yell ,"mommy," but there was none of that. I have never been in a wedding downtown and this is the 7th wedding I have stood up in so it was really fun. The trolly was a great time, the pictures we took in Lincoln Park Zoo are going to be awesome, the food at the reception was great, and everyone danced the night away to a variety of fun tunes such as NKOTB's Covergirl. Oh and I almost forgot to mention that at 11:00 p.m. because the Hyatt Lodge reception hall is located at the McDonald's headquarters in Oakbrook, they came out with platters full of cheeseburgers for everyone and passed them out as the waitresses danced around in their cheeseburger hats to Cheeseburger in Paradise by Jimmy Buffet. Overall, it was a great wedding and I wish Melissa and Joe all the best in their future together!

Maddy's 1st Day of School

Ok, well it is really daycare but we are calling it school. I dropped Maddy off around 10:00 a.m. yesterday morning for her very first day at, Ready Set Grow, a new daycare that just opened up in Darien. Her teacher said she had a great first day playing with the other toddlers, making her very first art project with fingerpaints (as see above hanging proudly on our refridgerator), singing songs and dancing. Mommy was most worried about Maddy laying down and actually sleeping, but she took a nap for an hour and a half which isn't bad at all for her first time sleeping on a cot. She needed some encouragement when it came to eating, in fact they had to help her use the spoon, which is kind of funny because at home she doesn't allow us to help her with anything! She is very capable of using the spoon and fork on her own so I think she has them fooled, at least for now. Overall I think it went really well. Joe said she was really exhausted when he picked her up and went to bed right at 7:00 p.m.. She must have been tired because this morning she didn't wake up until 8:30 a.m., talk about a good nights rest!

Petey's Shower

Yesterday was a fun day as I spent the afternoon at Ela's baby shower. Petey got a lot of fun stuff and I think that mom and dad have their work cut out for them getting everything organized and ready for his arrival. I cant wait to see his nursury when it is all done, because knowing Ela and her good taste, it will be super cute! Maddy was unable to attend the shower as she spent the afternoon with Joe, but I did show her a picture and try to explain that Auntie Ela has a baby in her tummy. That concept I am fairly certain is not yet understood. But Katie Drain was there and seemed to understand to the best of her ability what it was that we were actually celebrating. Congrats to Ela and Paul, and oh, I almost forgot to mention that the food was really yummy and today I am kind of wishing that I had taken some home with me!

Let's Hear it for the Boys!

Yesterday I found out some very exciting news that our good friends, Tracy and Cory, will be having a baby boy come December! We are so happy for them and can't wait to meet their new little bundle of joy when he arrives. I have a feeling that he and Peter Baio will be good friends since they will be born so close in age. Just like Maddy and Camryn!

One more month of being 1

Now that it is August it just dawned on me that Maddy only has one more month before she is officially two years old. I cant even express in words how fast this year has gone by and how much she has grown. It really is amazing what one year does in the developmental process. Well, I think Maddy loved being 1, and I think she will love being 2 too! Now when I ask her, "how old are you going to be?" she says, "two!" She really is such a big girl.

Daddy and Maddy

Everyday I ask Maddy, "are you mommy's girl?" and her reply is, "no daddy." And then I say, "your a daddy's girl?" and she says, "yes!"

Camryn's B-day Party

Auntie Ela was nice enough to just e-mail us some pictures she took at Camryn's second Birthday party. Maddy had so much fun playing with Camryn! I think her favorite part though was that she got her very own ice cream cone. She is a girl who loves her sweets! Now we are counting down the days to Maddy's second Birthday. Invitations should be arriving soon!

More Pudding Please....

Maddy had chocolate pudding for the first time as a reward for eating all her dinner the other night. As you can see, she thought it was yummy!

Say Cheese!

Maddy's Cheese face is priceless. It makes me laugh out loud everytime she does it! And the fact that she yells, "Cheese," at the same time is even more funny.

Long Beach Indiana

As some of you know Joe and I were on vacation last week, not gone on vacation somewhere, more like home on vacation. Anyways, one of the days we went to Long Beach Indiana to Joe's sisters in-laws summer home. Maddy had a blast hanging out with all her big cousins again. She also loved walking with her daddy on the beach, eating cookies with her auntie Debbie and playing in the sand and water.