Family Golf

This past Sunday was the 4th Annual DeVries-Scanlon golf outing. Although the women were invited to play this year, just the guys ventured out for a round of golf. And for those who know Pat- No, he did not play golf, he just rode with for the family time - what a trooper!
The ladies and kids got together at my parents' house a little while before the golfers were finished. It was so fun to watch all of the kids play together - sorry to Kate for Reagan grabbing her - she must be Pat's kid!
Growing up our families spent Sunday lunches and afternoons at Grandma & Grandpa DeVries' house every week. It was a great tradition and really kept our family close. Back then there was nothing open in South Holland on Sundays due to the blue laws. There is only a few things open now, which makes for quiet Sundays in South Holland. Now that we all of our own families and new traditions we don't get together as often as we would all like, so it was great for us to all get together and spend time catching up.
And to add to the excitement, Anthony arrived late carrying a championship trophy from the Griffith 8 year old All Star Tournament!! He is a great baseball player and we are all so proud of him!

Showers of Love

Sunday we were able to celebrate Maureen's wedding shower. On the way to the shower we were stopping at McDonald's to get chicken nuggets for Reagan - chicken marsala is not her thing. As we are driving she says, 'My tummy says it's hungry...and it didn't say please'. It was quite funny.
The shower was great. We were able to see some of Pat's relatives we hadn't seen, and even some I had never met. Maureen was showered with wonderful presents and Bridget served as the MC during the present opening. She provided great comic relief - too bad I didn't get a video of that. Reagan put herself in charge of passing out the Hershey kisses - I have no idea how many she ate herself, but she assured me she wouldn't eat too many so she didn't get a tummy ache. But with her Mulcrone stomach I don't think chocolate can give her a tummy ache. Nola was busy crawling very quickly around the shower - she is getting faster and faster each day.
We are getting close to Maureen and Roy's big day and we are very excited. What a fantastic celebration it will be!

Jump! Jump! Jump!

Whoever invented blowup jumpers was brilliant (and probably really rich by now!). We went to my cousin Brad's graduation party on Saturday and they had a castle jumper in the backyard. When we walked in I knew we would have a hard time getting Reagan to ever leave. It was a great party and we were able to see a lot of my relatives that we haven't seen in a while. Pat was thrilled with the Portillo's food and Nola loved all of the attention. Reagan loved the chocolate cake - I think she had 2 pieces - good thing she didn't find the chocolate chip cookies that her dad was thoroughly enjoying! Reagan and Cassidy just ran and ran and ran - that is, when they weren't jumping. It was so fun to watch Reagan play with her cousins - especially those she doesn't see very often. I am one of 16 grandchildren on my dad's side and I really don't know how many great-grandchildren there are -definitely over 30, so there are plenty of kids to play with. Its really great to have such a large family - it keeps life fun and interesting.
It did take us quite a long time to leave the party (imagine that!). Reagan had to give EVERYONE a kiss and a hug - even people she had never met before. Then I forgot something inside and she went back in with me and gave everyone another kiss and a hug. Definitely Mulcrone and Scanlon blood in our girls - never want to leave a party and always have a great time while they are there.
Pat did get a video from the jumper, so check it out. (this is the first video I am uploading, so let me know if it doesn't work).

Ride for Kids

This past weekend we traveled to South Bend, IN to attend the Indiana Ride for Kids. The ride benefits the Pediatric Brain Tumor Foundation - and my cousin, Nikki has a brain tumor, that she has had since she was younger. For many years (I started going to the ride in 1998 and Nikki's family had gone for several years before then) we went to the ride in Chicago, but the motorcycle group at Faith Church (Nikki's church) now rides in South Bend, so we headed to South Bend. After arriving on Saturday afternoon Reagan and Leo were able to swim for a while in the very cold pool before dinner. We went to eat at The Legends of Notre Dame - a restaurant on the Notre Dame
campus filled with ND memorabilia. After dinner we (some of us) walked around campus - even got to read about 'touchdown' Jesus. Most of the buildings on campus were closed, but we were able to enjoy the perfect weather.
The next morning we headed to the ride. The motorcycles start the ride around 9:45 and return from their 52 mile ride around 11:30. Kids who have/had tumors can ride on one of the motorcycles, but Nikki didn't want to do that - instead she got to ride shotgun in yhe sheriff's Hummer! There were a little over 200 motorcycles this year - only the 2nd year for this ride in IN. (In the Chicagoland ride I think there is 2-3,0000 bikes it really is something to see) We watched and waved as they left and then hung out in the park until they returned. Reagan and Leo were able to sit on a motorcycle for pictures. After all of the riders had returned we headed out for lunch before journeying home. What a fantastic weekend it was. If you want to read more about the Ride for Kids, just check out this link: http://www.pbtfus.org/rideforkids/
Please keep Nikki and her family in your prayers as she is starting a new treatment tomorrow. Prayers for the treatment to be successful and for Nikki to be able to tolerate the medicine. God is able to do amazing things and we look forward to seeing his power work in Nikki!

Under and Lightning

Last night we went to Two Toots Diner in Downers Grove with Christen, Will & Finn. It was my first time at a 'train restaurant' and what a fun time it was! Reagan and Will just loved watching the train bring food to other tables and then to ours. Reagan (being the timid girl she is) didn't wait for the waitress to get her basket off the train - she got it off all by herself. I'm not sure how much of their dinner they ate, but they enjoyed themselves. Meanwhile, Finn & Nola were busy 'sharing' food - otherwise known as Nola holding something out and then Finn taking it - that won't happen too much longer. Reagan and Will finished off the dinner with cupcakes - also brought by the train. And each cupcake was topped with a train whistle - yippee! They each got a ride on the quarter pony on the way out.
As we were driving to drop our friends off, we noticed a very dark sky coming in. We quickly got on the road home (with a very wet stop in the Oberweis drive through for milk). When we got home it was still raining so I told Reagan I would go open the door and then come back for her and then go back for Nola, who was sound asleep. When I got back to get Reagan she was singing - she told me she was singing to Nola so she wouldn't be afraid of the under (Reagan's word for thunder). While I carried Reagan in she told me to sing to her as well - amazing what a little 'Jesus Loves Me' can do to settle nerves. When I was coming back in with Nola Reagan was yelling from the back door - don't forget to sing! It was such a great moment as a parent to watch Reagan looking out for Nola - and keeping her safe from the under!

Our Dancer

Although Reagan is taking the summer off from dance, I thought I would share pictures and stories from her first year of dance class. She started attending Dance Center of La Grange in September and loved every minute of it. Her teachers, Miss Robin and Miss Peggy, were fantastic! How they got 15 2 1/2-3 1/2 year olds to listen and do what they were told was amazing.
Reagan was particularly fond of 'Shoo Fly Don't Bother Me', dancing (aka, running) around the circle, and the Choo Choo Train Song - where all of the dancers would line up in a train and march around the room.
On her birthday, the whole class did a Birthday dance and sang Happy Birthday to Reagan. She even got to wear the special Birthday hat!
On June 14th, Reagan had her first dance recital!! She was so excited and did a fabulous job. Her class danced to 101 Dalmations, so they were dressed as dalmations. Miss Robin dressed up as Cruella Deville - complete with black & white wig and a fur coat. Reagan loved being on stage (imagine that!) and wanted to keep dancing. During the bows, she was waving her hands and shaking her hips - enjoying every minute of it.
After she was done, she got flowers from mom, dad & Nola and some from Grandma Jane & Grandpa John - it was fun to see how excited a 3 year old could be over carnations!
Cassidy, Cori & Aly were there to share in her big day - and now Cassidy is enjoying her own time on the dance floor. Also, our neighbors, Jack & Emily, were they to celebrate with pictures. Reagan is looking forward to dancing again the fall and can't wait until she is 4 and able to take tap - hopefully she will have more grace than here mom did! After 9 months of class, we were so proud to see our dancer having the time of her life on the stage - it truly was a great day!

Happy 4th of July

Today we are recovering from a festive 4th of July celebration. Until I met Pat, my family used to go downtown on the 3rd to watch the fireworks from the lake front. It was a well-orchestrated evening - we would pack up dinner, dessert, drinks and games and head downtown. When we got stopped by a red light on Lake Shore Drive we would all - except for my dad - jump out of the van with all of our stuff. We would then find a place on the lake front and one of us would go back to meet my dad - who would have parked the car very far west (ie, Wells) - and show him where we were. But Pat isn't a big fan of crowds and his friend, Pete, would have a party and then go watch the Park Ridge fireworks - so that is what we have been doing for the past 6 years (the first year we were engaged, I still went downtown). This year just Pat and Reagan went to the fireworks - Nola and I headed home to beat the cold and the bugs. And we go to watch the fireworks on TV - although it definitely is not the same.
In true Mulcrone family fashion, Reagan and Nola did not wake up until after 9:00 on the 4th! Our great neighbors took Reagan with their family to the Brookfield parade and we worked around the house and yard. She had a great time and we were then ready for our party.
Reagan loved being the hostess - no kid was here for more than 2 minutes without her giving them a juice box - and then drinking it herself if they weren't interested. Nola was enjoying herself as well - trying to climb on her friend, Ella and then convincing Grandpa John to take her back outside after I had brought her in. After our party-goers left we headed to the North Riverside fireworks with Grandma Jane and Grandpa John. Luckily, my cousin Alyson lives in the right part of Riverside, so we were able to park in her driveway and walk a short distance. We saw both Berwyn and North Riverside's shows and enjoyed hanging out with our cousins. Reagan was having fun with Cassidy, Colin & Nolan while Nola was content to be held by Ann and enjoy her first fireworks show!
Today we are recovering - or trying to. But so glad that we can start fun traditions for our girls. And I know there will come a year when I will get to take them downtown on the 3rd and I think they will enjoy it just as much as I always did!

Summer Vacation

We just got back from a week-long vacation to Rolling Prairie, IN. We enjoyed a week of swimming, napping and hanging out - couldn't ask for more! The week away made me realize that I want to do a better job of documenting our memories, and since I am not crafty, scrap booking would not be my thing, I decided to start this blog.
We started almost every morning with pancakes on the griddle - carrying on the Scanlon tradition of pancake breakfasts.

Reagan showed off her years of swim lessons at the Y by swimming by herself back from the raft - and swimming alone when the cold water made her mom stay on the sand!

She made lots of friends at the beach - a family of 10 kids really enjoyed playing with her.


Nola taught herself to pull up on the furniture - and walls - so she is everywhere now!


We all enjoyed pancake breakfasts and, of course, nightly ice cream!!
We look forward to many more family vacations - and hope they all will be this relaxing and memorable.