A Day at the Park

Just a quick picture from our day at the township park today. Caught Annierae at the top of the slide - just long enough for her to flash a cute little smile then bound down the incline. Grandma and Grandpa joined us to make it an extra special day!

Flower Girl Dress

Just a quick grouping of pictures showing Annierae's flower girl dress for cousin Monique & Kevin's wedding in a few weeks. It needs a couple of minor alterations, but the little one seems very happy with it!

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Easter 2008

Annierae had a wonderful Easter this year. It started with an early morning visit from the Easter bunny, leaving her a mystery Easter basket which included a big, cuddly stuffed bunny this year along with a plethora of confectionery delights. After a few samples it was time to get ready and head to the Easter service at church. Upon returning home around noon Annierae prepared to greet family and friends coming around 1:00pm. As everyone showed up Annierae and her friend Bryson headed off for a quick egg hunt before we all sat down to a delicious dinner. Everyone stayed until late afternoon, and as the sugar buzz wore off Annierae, she was ready to head to sleep for the day, tired out after a fun and busy Easter celebration. Here are a few photos of the days highlights...

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The mystery Easter Bunny delivers a huge basket and stuffed bunny rabbit


All ready for church


Toasting to the scrumptious dinner about to be eaten


Sampling some of the spoils from the Easter egg hunt


A couple more Easter baskets found behind the curtains


Playing ball with Aunt Judy (who's having more fun here???)


And the fun continues with Aunt Pat getting in on the action


A few ink stamps all over to round out the day


A picture from the night before Easter as Annierae gets ready to help mommy decorate cookies


A cute little smile to close the this post

Annierae's 2008 Cabo Trip

Well it's that time of year again, the annual trek to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico to visit Grandma and Grandpa V. Annierae had a great time again this year. She did great with the travel (even though we had MAJOR problems and delays both going and coming home). Daddy let her use a new gadget this year, his Apple iTouch which was fully loaded with all of her Disney movies. She did better traveling that most of the adult family on the trip this year. She spent much of the time in one of the 6 pools or down by the ocean soaking up the sun and fun. And of course Grandma and Grandpa were the ultimate hosts, providing lots of fun and an occasional sitter for mommy & daddy to get a little alone time (thank you Grandpma & Grandpa!!!). It was difficult to come back to the cold, snowy weather, as it was gorgeous and sunny with temps in the upper 70's the entire time we were there. Annierae is already talking about going back next year.

Here are a few photos of our fun time...
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Hanging out on the deck at sunset


Posing with aunt Sue


At the downtown mall checking out a BIG visitor :)


Enjoying a refreshing libation at Cabo Wabo


A relaxing lunch above Sammy's Cabo Wabo


Mommy was not thrilled with her shoulder companion (and neither was Annierae). They were about 3 seconds from freaking out!


Riding on mommy's shoulders while shopping


Having fun in the pool


I was thinking last night about Elvis (a Jimmy Buffett tune)


Annierae and Grandpa having fun


Hanging out at a restaurant watching a movie

Annierae's 3rd Birthday!

Annierae celebrated her 3rd birthday today. She was really excited to see the Candy Land cake mommy made for her. Of course she loved all the pink on it, as she reminds us daily that pink is her favorite color.

We had a little party with her Grandma and Grandpa from Vermont and her friend Bryson and his mom Raquel. Her most special gift came from Grandma & Grandpa. It was a hand-made wooden box to hold her favorite rock collections and other assorted treasures she has. It is absolutely beautiful and she will cherish it for many years to come (she was also quite enamored with the bubble wrap it was packed in too!)

Here are few photos of the day's events...
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Annierae's Second Professional Photo Shoot

Annierae went to her second professional photo session with our friend Dawn Wiltzer of Dawn Wiltzer Photography today. This was almost two years since her first session. It's amazing how she has changed in that short time. Dawn did another great job of capturing the many faces of our little one. She took a lot of pictures and it was difficult to narrow down to the best of the best. A few of our favorite pictures are below (click on any image to enlarge it)

(Note - all photographs are posted with the permission of the copyright holder, Dawn Wiltzer Photography)















If you're interested in a photo session with Dawn, check out the contact page on her website.

Ben & Jerry's

Day 4 of our trip to Grandma & Grandpa's included a tour of the Ben & Jerry's Ice cream factory in Waterbury, VT. Annierae had a great time taking in all the sights & sounds, but by far her favorite part of the tour was the tasting area. The flavor of the day was Mint Chocolate Chunk (Mint Ice Cream with Fudge Chunks) - and that is now one of Annierae's new favorite flavors.

Below are a few pictures taken on the tour (click on each picture to see a larger version)...

More pictures tomorrow from our Thanksgiving day celebration!

Halloween 2007

Annierae had a great time on her second Halloween.

Unlike last year, she walked (ok - ran) the entire way as opposed to being carted around in her stroller. Of course the witches hat and magic wand were promptly handed over to be carried after the first house. She was focused on the bag-o-goodies!

We made it around the neighborhood in record time (which was a good thing because it began to rain about 10 minutes after we got home).

Dad had the honor of accompanying the little trick-or-treater while mom stayed home to hand out candy and photograph some of the cute & creative costumes that presented themselves at our doorstep.

Here are a few pics of the night before pumpkin carving results and her "scary" witch costume...

Playground Fun (and a Favorite Photo)

Hi All,

Just wanted to share a few photos of Annierae having fun at a local playground. The first photo is one of my all time favorites! I took it shortly after I got my new Nikon D40x camera a couple of weeks ago. I liked the way it turned out so much that it's the photo I keep of her on my desk at work. It's had to believe she is just a little over 2 1/2 years old in these shots. She had a ball at the park this afternoon, and certainly did not want to stop playing to go home and take a nap! I eventually got her off the swing with a promise to come back again soon.

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My favorite shot of Annierae!


This was the original photo that I used to crop and create the close-up in the first picture


Swinging away - happy as can be


Selling me some beautiful bark chips :)


Taking time to pose for a picture on the slide