Dress Rehearsal

Each year I dress the girls up in their Easter dresses and we head down to a park. I like to take a few photos of them before a holiday because, well, sometimes a holiday can just 'get away from me'.

I also like to see how the shoes worked out, how the hair bow choice actually looks, etc. Sometimes I make changes or adjustments.

This years changes: (1) I wanted to change Anna's whole dress. I pictured it so pretty on her but behind my big camera lens it just didn't do anything. (2) For sure, Abigail's hair needed to be braided. (3) Some kind of necklace on Anna if she really wanted to wear that dress on Easter. (4) Not enough photos of Anna. Remember to take more of her on Easter!

I love these non-Easter, but Easter photos.



Changing right before my eyes.



But still little.



I thought you'd like an up close of the smocking.











I love them!

Traditions

There are things we do each and every season or holiday that make it feel right. Dying Easter eggs for sure is one of those traditions for us.



I love to set the table pretty and make it sweet.



Big girls. But not too big to color eggs!



















Fun. Fun. Fun.

Good Friday

I love my rich heritage, deep faith, catholic roots. Wishing you all a blessed Holy Week and Easter!

(and a special thank you to my friend Billie Jo for her Rosary tea party idea... it was wonderful)

The Day I Took the Technology Away

Last night I scooped up all of the tablets, laptops, itouches, and phones.  I put them in a box and slid it under my bed.

Yes, I did.  Charges too.



But then we had so much fun. Little one outside doing 'spring clean up' in the backyard. Giggling and laughing with her daddy. I couldn't even get her in the house!





And gosh! I didn't get a picture! But Anna took everything out of her closet. She reorganized, cleaned and was so pleased when she was done! She found lots of things in that closet of hers that had been long forgotten!



And after dinner we had time for roasting marshmellows.







I found this on my nightstand.





LOVE!

Newport, RI

Scott and I were just chatting tonight about how blessed we are that no matter what direction we travel in for two hours we can be somewhere wonderful. Two hours to NYC. Two hours to Boston. Two hours to the mountains of New Hampshire. Two hours to the quaint towns of Vermont. And two hours to Newport, Rhode Island.



Newport is often called the "city by the sea". It's a very old New England town. Charming, filled with history, sailboats, ocean, shops in old New England homes.



It's yacht-filled harbor hosted the America's cup, a renowned annual sailing regatta, for many years.





Down by the waters edge are old cobblestone streets and wonderful shops. (and restaurants)









We had the most lovely lunch here, a restaurant right on the water.













Newport is also known for the Gilded Age mansions lining Bellevue Avenue, some of which are now museums. The most famous is The Breakers, an 1895 mansion patterned after a Renaissance palace.





We toured The Breakers. It was wonderful. They had a self guided family tour and I loved watching Abigail listen and look up when they told a story about a ceiling or something in the mansion.





I think especially for Abigail, this tour was so enchanting because we recently saw the new Beauty and the Beast movie.  She lingered in front of this stair case and I can only imagine she was waiting for Belle in her yellow gown to float down those steps.







The family tour was filled with wonderful stories in each room. Lots of fun facts and 'just enough' of the history of the mansion.



She was so excited "we get to go upstairs!"







It was such a wonderful day together. Sunny and 70 (after a snow day my favorite weather on the planet)



They loved seeing the children's playhouse!



And you can't go to Newport without a stop at the Newport Creamery!



Loved this day with Scott and my girls!