trains, planes and automobiles: RI Air show Weekend

i guess it's the tomboy in me, but there's something about air shows that i cannot resist. i like them almost as much as i like carnivals and festivals! :) i remember years ago my babysitter at the time took me and my bro (maybe sis too, not sure if she existed yet) to the air show and it was such an exhilarating experience.  the rhode island one doesn't fail to delight, year after year, with the blue angels and many other awesome acts on the agenda.  this year we watched it from my aunt & uncle's backyard overlooking wickford harbor and although the day was very grey (and a little rainy), it was just as good as i remembered it!  it was the first time mz had ever seen an air show and i think he was impressed so hopefully we can get back there for it next year.

that weekend i also picked up the sister from the train station.  ahhh how i miss the days traveling to and from ri by rail.  darn amtrak, lower your prices please so i can justify taking the train again instead of driving the dreaded 95 new england corridor!  no pics of the train, so just close your eyes and use your imagination :).

plus marc-o took us for a ride in his car. which had been 'resting' in the garage for a few years but is now back in action...and better than ever!

Click here to view more photos!

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italian fest/feast 2011

i've said it before, but i'll say it again...i LOVE festivals/street fairs/carnivals, whatever they're called.  if there are brightly lit rides and artery stopping food available, i'm IN!  lucky for me there's one such event a block away from my house every year.  all centered around being italian, what could be better than that?!  truth be told, it's tiny, but it gets the job done...and has the best fried dough ever.  i think the fact that they use recycling bins to coat the hundreds of dough balls in sugar must add to the flavor ;-).

just a few shots from the festivities...

Aston - looking like a very serious old man!

the guys hanging out in the ghetto abandoned lot next door

 Okay let me explain the two pictures above...sometimes i get bad ideas and can't stop myself.  this was one such example.  we bought coronitas for the party which are cute/kid sized bottles.  and alexander is so good at getting the guys beers that i figured i'd make him one so he could be like one of the big boys.  for the record, it's only colored water in there, the beer had been dumped and the bottle was thoroughly washed.  plus i basically had to bribe him to take these pictures, he's so good he knew he's not supposed to have 'beer' and didn't want to get in trouble!

Alex & Andrea

Matt & Erin

safety last.

Bridgeport's Polish festival is next weekend...looking forward to eating some fried perogies!

it's been a full circle kinda day.

"A well-lived life leaves beautiful treasures shining on our shores"

this morning i woke with tears in my eyes.  

not a normal experience for me.  

i had had a dream about papa...we were reading cards we had all written to him (that my brain had completely made up) and then i was telling him about my new job that i'm starting on monday.  because that's what papa like to talk about, work.  so that was a bit of a shaky start to the day.

and then i got home - after an equally emotional day at work with the wonderful team i'm leaving - and got a sympathy card from a friend with the quote above.  pretty much seemed like a perfect time to finally post the few pictures from the funeral weekend.  i was planning on taking more, but the line of what's appropriate seemed a little too fuzzy to cross, so here's what i've got to share...

 baby michael looking cute as ever...don't worry, we were just auditioning him for a sam adams commercial, but we didn't let him drink that beer no matter how hard he tried!

sneak peek

in blogging terms "sneak peek" is really code for "i know, i know, i'm wicked behind in my posting"! Aack!

but can you really be mad at  me when there's promise of more of this cute little face to come?! plus his bro, italian feast, 4th of july/21st bday celebration, RI airshow, etc, etc...oy.  i'll get to it once i figure out how to juggle tri training, yoga, new job prep and general summer laziness!

ooh...another video!

have you been watching Le Tour?!  because really cool stuff happens...in addition to all of the crazy cyclists and crashes...



check it out, yo!

look at me now.

i've heard this song 3 times today...not my fave song or anything, but reminded me of this version that my sista shared with me awhile back which i think is highly entertaining:



enjoy!

fountains + fireworks: a night at Longwood Gardens

way back when, memorial day weekend to be exact, my sista came to PA for a quick stay.  we decided to step outside of our normal philly visit mode and check out something different.  we lucked out with her visit corresponding to the first Longwood Gardens fireworks & fountains night and decided it was the perfect way to jump start the summer!  it was a gorgeous afternoon, maybe a little too warm when we were in the fern house, but overall a great day to walk around the grounds and enjoy a night of one of my fave things - fireworks!  but not just any fireworks display, one set to fountains, lights and summer pops music.  Check out a few more pictures here!

kara listening to the sounds of the garden.  those fold up maps were meant for little kids, so of course we had to have some for us.

it happened to be Lilytopia while we were there, so many amazing colors and kinds of lilies...and super fragrant!

love that 'great' and 'swell' are sections of the organ.

felt like we were in some crazy disney movie with all of the colors! 

ta da!