fiddlehead fern.

Here is a picture of a bouquet my mom and I just put together for a bride's wedding portrait. She is getting married in November, and we are so looking forward to this job because of her excellent taste in flowers. She has pretty much given us carte blanche in designing her reception. It will consist of almost one hundred glass square and rectangular vases scattered about with both single blooms and multiples- all surrounded by hundreds of tealights. It is going to be modern, gorgeous, intimate. The bouquet pictured above includes several bunches of ranunculus, about ten tulips, macarana spray roses, freesia, and exquisite (and rare, as we have discovered) fiddlehead ferns. The fiddleheads are such odd specimens- slick brown shoots that curl at the ends into a perfect spiral. These had to be flown in from Hawaii, and were available only in a very limited quantity.
I am quite excited about the momentum our business is gaining. How great it would be to continue working at something that I love so much and am so passionate about. Go Posy!

anniversary.

Last Thursday marked four years of marriage for Michael and I. Those years have flown by so quickly- probably because they have been so terrific. My husband is my favorite person in the world, and I look forward to at least 60 more years... Here is a grainy snapshot taken of us just as our dear friend Bobby announced us as Mr. and Mrs. at our wedding reception.

all partied out.

Sorry to contradict my last post, er; but this is SO this years shot of Henry that I'll be including in my christmas cards.
p.s. click on the picture to see all of that drooly glory.

a new era.

Henry's "birthday week" came and went with much fanfare, cake, and many, many helium balloons. He got some really beautiful things, including lots of wooden toys and a gorgeous handmade quilt sewn by his aunt and godmother. As I've been reflecting on the past year, it feels almost like I turned "1" too; my first year as a mommy. Wonderful, tiring, sometimes stressful, sometimes lonely. It was hard to leave my job behind (and my selfishness). Since I spent the last year devoted entirely to Henry (for the most part- I devoted a great part to Mike, but I am forever devoted to him), I have resolved to spend a little more time on me. I have stacks of collages to finish off, and countless other projects waiting to be brought to fruition. I said this blog wasn't a "mommy blog", but it sort of became that way. These pages will still naturally contain a lot of Henry, but hopefully now more of other stuff, too. Cheers, friends!! And happy 30th to old t-bird, too.

Happy Birthday!

Today is Henry's first birthday. He was born September 13th at 2:15 pm exactly one year ago. Happy Birthday, baby!

thankful.

Tonight, after cleaning the house for some guests I'm expecting tomorrow (I do clean the house usually, just not when expecting guests... but especially when expecting guests- my secret is out); I finished framing some photos and wrapped up Henry's gifts for his first birthday. Suddenly I felt an enormous sense of accomplishment and happiness... I thought: "I did this, I really did it!" On the eve of the eve of the one year anniversary since my labor began (and lasted for days), I can enjoy the fruits of my labor -and be as thankful as one could ever be.

goodbye, hello.

A very dear friend of my family's passed away unexpectedly this week- a man whom my parents, brother, and I have been very close to for the past twenty-eight years. I have been feeling very melancholy over this for the past couple of days. Tomorrow afternoon we will attend his funeral, and then a couple of hours later I will be attending the wedding of some friends that I sort of "set-up" a while back. A day of sadness, a day of joy. You will be missed dearly, Mr. Frey.

the old country.

Today I got the ultimate treat of a bambino-free relaxation day- a trip to the amusement park. My brother and I spent the day riding the roller coasters over and over again at Bush Gardens. It was especially cool to go and spend the day there with him, as we went often as children and it was fun to relive some old memories. Funny how we remembered some of our old fears and observations and realized we shared many in common-i.e., "will that big saw in the log flume slice me in half?" And how excited we were when we met that magic mark on the height stick and were tall enough to ride the Lochness Monster with our dad. For anyone who hasn't yet experienced the Griffon- you must go. Immediately. We rode it at least three times, and I still wish I had waited to go a fourth time. It is the smoothest and most thrilling roller coaster of all time. An amazing feat of marvelous engineering, it dominates the park with it's beautiful blue serpentine coils. You must check it out. Thanks for a great time today, Thom.

beach blanket bingooooo.

Our impromptu labor day beach party. Exactly one year ago I was pacing around the neighborhood over and over and over again, trying to bring on labor. September 2, 2006 had been my official due date. The eleven days that followed were very long, and dragged on mercilessly. What a celebration it is this year, to enjoy Henry on the outside of my body. What a celebration it is, to have such great, dear friends.

ciao, spaghetti!

A true italian!! Henry is showing his sicilian roots. His ancestors must be so proud.