Featured on Style Me Pretty Massachusetts

Elyse and Ryan's beautiful Glen Manor wedding has been featured on Style Me Pretty Massachusetts! Yay!!  Check it out here!

Olivia's birthday is not today.....

....but it was on March 22nd, and how, you ask, did I forget to blog such an important event? I'm guessing because my mom brain is filled to the brink with information, both useful and useless, that is bursting at the seams. Plus, her birthday was the day before the opening of The Hunger Games, and well, you know....I'm obsessed. But no excuse, no excuse!! Anyway, do not fret, her birthday was celebrated in Olivia style with a dinner invite from Gramma and Papa, and popsicles brought into her classroom courtesy of little old me! She's seven now, and she's definitely a 30 year old trapped in a 7 year old's body -- sometimes showing a wisdom that's well past her years. Hopefully in ten years she won't think I'm the worst and uncoolest mother ever, so I'll savor the moments that we have now....

This pic was just taken of her this past weekend for the Father/Daughter dance....

Love my Livvie!!

Hello Yellow

If you love yellow, here's some inspiration for you!

Spring Fever

I can feel it. Really. I can feel spring in the air. Ok, so I'm on my knees begging for it, and it hasn't even been a really bad winter. I guess you can take the girl out of the summer, but you can't take the summer out of the girl. And any chance I can get to enjoy some near summer weather, I will take it. I even made my sick kid who's home from school go outside today. I'm feeling one step closer to happy, warm weather.

Ballet love

I heart little girls and ballet :)

It's Avery's Birthday!

I can't believe my baby is five. I know, it's not like she's turining 15 or anything, but five seems like such a big age when you have little kids, especially when it's your baby who is that particular five year old!
Here's my favorite photo of her to date taken last November....I mean, how cute is she?

And just a couple of tidbits to round out this post devoted to my baby!

•Her favorite color is purple, and hopes that we can paint her room that color very soon.

•She looooooves to play Barbies, and has more than you can shake a stick at!

•She takes her shoes and socks off immediately upon entering someone's house.

•She is suprisingly strong for such a petite little girl.

•She's a juice-aholic.

•Strangers come up to us any place, any time to tell her how beautiful her eyes are.

•She's really loud. No, I mean REALLY LOUD! :)

•She loves dresses!

As I write this post, I am thinking I could go on and on all day about her and all her little quirks that we love, but I think I might just end here with a couple of photos taken of her today on her birthday. She got all dressed up, but it was cold outside!:

We love you Avery!!!

Frozen Clam Polar Plunge

Ah, the first blog post of the year.  It was supposed to be a recap of 2011, but maybe this post is even more appropriate.  I'll get to that recap soon enough.  There were polar plunges going on all over the state here on January 1st, but my cousin Ryan, also starring as the groom in Ryan and Laurie's wedding here and here, organized the first annual Frozen Clam (polar plunge) which benefitted the Rhode Island Mentoring Partnership, a non profit organization offering mentoring services to RI's youth.  The plunge had a great turnout and was a big success!  I'm not sure if he bribed all his family members or what, but they all took the plunge too!  On a side note: you could NOT pay me enough money to plunge!  I'd be way more likely to take the plunge if it was held in August.  Think that's a possibility? No? Hmm, well I guess I'll just be offering up my photography services instead then. A lot of our extended family also came to participate in or support this year's plunge....

My cutie nephew James

 Ryan making some Frozen Clam announcements

My Livvie

The National Anthem

Ready, set, go!

My cousin Tess

My cousin Kayla (Ryan's sister)

My cousin Ali (Ryan's sister also) -- I  love her hat!!

Ryan's brothers

Ryan's fam

Matt and Avery

I must admit, observing was fun.  And that's about the extent of my participation in any of these crazy...err, I mean exciting polar plunges!  See you (with my coat, hat and gloves on) next year!