Happy 2011!

We will open the book. Its pages are blank. We are going to put words on them ourselves. The book is called Opportunity and its first chapter is New Year's Day.

~Edith Lovejoy Pierce~

Another blast from the past photo....

This NYE photo is from sometime in the '90's. Can't recall exactly which one, but I do know that neither Michelle or I were married yet. Cheers!!!

Holiday! Celebrate!

This year, another baby boy was added to the mix--my newest nephew, Aidan. At three months he is cuter and chubbier than ever! Here are Billy and I taking turns with the little guy....

"the boys"

including my bro-in-law's son, Nate

"the girls"

"la familia"

Thanksgiving group photo

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~ ICE SKATING ~

This year, for the first time ever, Yountville set up a faux ice-skating rink right next to one of our favorite restaurants, Bottega. It was a very attractive set up, with lights everywhere, cozy chairs and fire pits to ward off the chill. One night, we even saw a horse-drawn carriage traveling down the street.

the rink

lacing up

cheese!

Andre with his buddy Ronin and Uncle Junior

buddies

how our family would look with another boy

Yes, that's Andre with a mohawk!

O tannenbaum!

With Auntie Marie in his Xmas PJ's

Christmas Day galavanting

Hope your Christmas was as blessed as ours!

The Greatest Gift Ever

"I believe my best gift was wrapped in swaddling cloths."

Maggie Lindley

Wexford Carol

This past Saturday, the hubby and I went to watch VOENA's "Voices of the Season." VOENA stands for Voices of Eve N' Angels. And as we sat listening to the young choir sing , it did feel at times as if we were listening to the voices of angels themselves. Among the many familiar and favorite songs that were performed, I was pleased to discover a song I'd never heard before and immediately fell in love with, mainly because it evoked the true meaning of the season. It is called the Wexford Carol, a traditional Irish song. Unfortunately, I was unable to find VOENA's version, sung by a young girl named Atea Stefani. But below is a version sung by the Celtic Woman.

Serenity

Loving this peaceful, calm white palette...

Christmas Past

The holidays have come to be a time of reminiscing for me. Life seems to have sped up with marriage and the arrival of my son. And though I still enjoy the holidays, they seem to pass by in a blur. These photos remind me of how fast time flies--the last photo is from fifteen years ago!!

2005

Andre at 6 months

1995

With my dear high school friends--Class of '93

Side by Side

So I was digging through some old photos and found these. I can't help thinking that apart from Andre's fuller lips (which he had the fortune to inherit from his father), he and I look pretty alike. He's less than a year old in this photo, whereas I have no idea what age I am in mine. Interesting...

Tiny Tree

This year, Andre got to have his very own Christmas tree. It's in his bedroom and is decidedly very kid-centric as you can tell by the bright, colorful ornaments. He loves his new tree and looks forward to bedtime when he can fall asleep to the twinkle of its rainbow lights.