Alexandra & Mauricio's wedding

After nine looooong years of dating, my aunt Alex and her boyfriend Moe tied the knot last Friday, the 16th! It was a great day to be had. First of all, Mother Nature gave us a real gift. It was warm (almost in the 70s) and clear skies. It made for some great picture taking, as that would be my task for the day: photograph the wedding! I put that baby to good use! LOL.

Alex looked SO happy and even Opa shed some tears (which if you know Opa at all, is truly astounding hahaha). It was very sweet to see and I know Alex was touched. She glowed all day. I love Moe and was happy to see him officially become a part of the family. Not that he wasn't already but you know what I mean. Those two are always so accomodating when I stay with them, whether it be at the house in Pennsylvania or the one in Puerto Rico. Not to mention that one weekend in '07 when we went to Texas together. That day was no exception.

The day started off with a road trip to Port Jervis, where the ceremony would take place at 1pm.

Opa drove.

Chris was in the passenger seat with the directions.

And we were in the back :)

With my bear decorated coffee cup.

Once we arrived in Port Jervis (almost three hours later due to briefly getting lost and having to stop for directions!), we stood around and waited. Crazily enough, we were the first to arrive!

But we became antsy and decided to find something to do. A local directed us to a coffee shop called Port Java. Pretty cute & clever.

But it was soon time to go back because...they were arriving!

Moe was first.

Followed by the bride.

Looking so pretty in her dress! Would you believe she got it for $100 online? Talk about a bargain.

I think this puppy wanted to join in.

After a photo op outside, we headed in.

Alex & my mom (sisters)

The mayor of Port Jervis officiated the wedding.

I missed the kiss by a nanosecond, thanks to the camera freezing up for a bit. But this was their hug right after. Still pretty pissed about that, LOL.

I just loved the back of the dress.

Goofy people.

And we were back out into the sunshine for more photos.

We drove to Pennsylvania (a short drive away) where they have a house and stopped by the lake for photos.

My "Opa is crying?!" shot, haha.

It was a very windy day.

They played peek-a-boo.

Alex's long time friend Brigid came with her two girls, Deirdre and Keira.

She is picture perfect!

After all the photos, we went back to the house for some snacks. The neighbors said hello.

Old school photo of the two!

Representing their countries.

He carried her in, LOL.

Very delicious spread.

Poor Robyn couldn't eat much that day because she had just gotten braces on the previous day. Crazy girl! (I say crazy because she had them already...at the age of 12!)

I love this photo (even though Jonathan is not a fan of it). He was sharing a laugh with Moe's sister, Beatrice. I thought it was very natural & candid :)

I adore Keira! But I think she was scared of Robyn's metal-y grin, haha.

She is just too precious.

Older sis Deirdre is a cutie too.

Down in the basement we found a few random items.

Of course, my mom just had to use the massage table on someone ;-) Jonathan was her victim.

But photo-op time wasn't over. We headed to a nearby waterfall for more photos.

I ADORE this photo. It's even funnier because Moe's eyes are open, haha.

Someone asked us to pose with the flowers. We gave them our best attractive faces, as you can see... -_-

Showing Alex some love.

Sibling shot. Notice the coincedental similar color scheme (blues for me and Chris and oranges for Robyn and Michael.)

We were back in the car in no time for dinner.

Faces of the wedding.

So much love for this cake.

After the dinner, mostly everyone left to head home. However, there wasn't enough room to take Jonathan and I home so we stayed the night. I hadn't done that in forever so it was a welcomed surprised.

The party didn't end there however. We had our own little dance party!

The next morning, after a delicious breakfast, Jonathan and I borrowed the bikes from Alex & Moe and went off for a ride. The weather plus the terrain made for a rough ride at times. We didn't even make it to the main gate, thanks to me almost passing out! So we rode home in time for a delicious lunch. Tante Sieglinde (my Oma's sister) was kind enough to drive us back to Queens.

It was definitely the most low-key and chill wedding I have ever attended, yet what I loved is that it remained a traditional wedding in some aspects. It was a great time to be had by all. I'm so glad I was able to be a part of their special day. Lord knows I had been waiting forever for them to tie the knot! :)

it's a small world after all.

What is the significance of that map, you ask?

I will be walking those very grounds in two months time. June 23rd to 28th...6 days & 5 nights of bliss!! So excited, I can't even put it into words!!!

On top of that, with the arrival of the camera this Monday and enjoying taking photos, this has been a fantastic week. Tomorrow is shaping up to be pretty darn good too -- my aunt & her boyfriend of 9 (NINE!) years are getting married! Tomorrow is also my other aunt's 29th birthday!

PS -- I officially love Curtis Granderson. Yankee fever is in full effect!

Easter 2010

I found out I'd be working Easter earlier that week, but that was no fault but my own, since I hadn't checked the schedule. Oops. Looks like I wouldn't be spending Easter with Jonathan's family after all. He was going to Westchester to his aunt's house. I was sad to have missed it but happy to have an excuse to spend it with my family. Fortunately work for me wouldn't start til late afternoon.

Spring time in Woodside.

I had a strange Dora the Explorer sighting on my walk home.

Me & Mom before our traditional walk to Mass. On further reflection, I feel like my outfit could have been more appropriate for where I was going. Lesson learned.

Mom, Dad and Michael in the background. Chris, Robyn & Alex were unable to make it :(

Ah, spring. The lone flower blooming.

This was at my grandparents' house later that day. They had a beyond beautiful display for the Blessed Mother.

Our version of colored eggs, haha. We got lazy this year.

The usual Easter feast upstairs was about to begin.

Mhmm. Easter treats!

Even my mom is an iPhone nut now! (She joined the club a few months ago)

My handsome dad :)

Michael is always the goof ball!

My beautiful Oma :)

But later that day, I ended up seeing Tiffany & Robyn in the city!

All in all, a very pleasant day :)

So there I am this morning, waiting for the Canon Rebel XSi to arrive in the mail, sipping my coffee, when the doorbell rings! Rejoice! I lept out of the seat and ran to the door, all excited. But...

No one was there. Confused, I called out to Jonathan. He took awhile to come down the stairs, which I thought was odd. What was going on?

Turns out. HE rang it! LOL! SO cruel! Of course, he felt awful and kept apologizing. Talk about a prank backfiring! Hahaha. It's funny now but boy, was I pissed!

Besides the arrival of the camera, today proves to be a good day. I am taking care of two dog clients this week, every afternoon, so I have to get my butt out to the Upper East Side. Then Tiffany and I are going to grab dinner at Da Andrea followed by a photo gallery exhibit.

As promised, here's a few pictures from the past few weeks.

The next Billy Joel, perhaps?

Little gangster in his backwards hat :-P

We also had the handsome Ryan over so that his mommy (Lauren) & Jonathan's sister (Erica) could film their part for The Insiders.

I kept Ryan busy outside while they filmed.

Johnny played inside.

He does the best funny faces!

We had desserts galore since Easter was soon arriving.

The following day, we went to Brooklyn. And took Johnny to the park.

Proud uncle.

We went back to the house to play around for a bit.

He's a curious little monkey.

Always a joy being around that kid and his buddy, Ry-Ry :)

spring has come!

How about them Yankees?! Yes, baseball season is back and it is sweeter than ever! They won the series in Boston and I am glad to see Curtis Granderson is doing well. See last night as proof! And speaking of the team, I just ordered this shirt.

My beautiful baby cousin Sierra turns one years old today!

Happy 1st Birthday Sierra!!

So many things have been going on since I last updated. Robyn and I went to see Wicked and I LOVED it. First of all, we were fortunate enough to win lotto, which means we only had to pay $26 for a front row seat. The only downside was we were in left orchestra in the front row so the view was a pain in the neck (literally) but worth it! I wasn't disappointed with anything in the show and would love to see it again. Mandy Gonzalez will blow you away as Elphaba.

We had a few birthday celebrations recently, one for Wilfredo and one for Richie. Jen (Wil's girlfriend) did a great job in setting up a surprise birthday gathering last Monday, the 29th, for him. A group of us got together at Red, a Mexican eatery in Seaport.

And a tribute to Wilfredo's love for Disney World.

On the third (of April), we celebrated Richie's birthday. A small gathering happened over at Connelly's.

Billy, myself and the birthday boy

Matt & Christy, the soon to be married couple!

Then there was Christy's Bridal Shower (which including an adventurous trek to the Bronx), a trip to Brooklyn, a few film shoots, long treks around Manhattan and of course, Easter! Another update to follow! For now, Mother Nature is calling me. What beeeeautiful weather we are having! Can April always be like this?! This makes me even more excited for Monday. What is Monday you ask? The arrival of the Canon Rebel XSi! Yes! My mother was generous enough to order it for me last night. I still cannot believe it.