FUN FROM OUR FLORIDA TRIP...

Hi all! Things are settling down around here, and I finally had a chance to upload some pictures from our Florida trip. It's alot of family stuff, but hopefully you won't get too bored sitting through the little slideshow I put together. The trip went wonderfully, and couldn't have come at a better time for us. Caroline was great during both flights (with the exception of a little meltdown prior to take off as we left Washington), which I totally have Dora the Explorer to thank for that! I told the people around us that they had a choice - to listen to the muffled sounds of her DVD, or to our daughter having a meltdown for the duration of the flight. Thank goodness we were all in agreement that the DVD was the way to go...

It was a fabulous vacation, not just with family, but with friends, too! Many of our friends from our beach house days in Dewey Beach, DE also made it down for the weekend, so it was sort of a getaway with the adults/family vacation all rolled in to one - which was perfect! We even found a local dive bar in Ft. Myers Beach called The Beached Whale, which we dubbed Dewey South, as we seemed to find ourselves there two nights of the trip. Even though they weren't serving Starboard Specials or Captains in blue cups, it had the makings of a good story right from the start.

All of the wedding festivities were so much fun. We first had a rehearsal dinner at a restaurant called Snug Harbor, overlooking the sound. Then it was on to The Beached Whale. We had all day Friday to head to the beach and pool, followed by a sunset cocktail reception at Gulf Shore Grill, a Gulf-front bar and restaurant. The wedding was Saturday morning, with a mid-afternoon reception at The Lighthouse, followed by sunset cocktails back at our resort, The Pink Shell (which I would highly recommend to couples or families). We spent the last days of the trip just relaxing with the family before heading home on Tuesday. It was such a nice time!

So, as mentioned, here's a little montage from our trip. REMEMBER: Stop the music player to the left of this screen before playing so that you can here the sound!!!

Make photo slide shows at www.OneTrueMedia.com

PARTY-PLANNING MADE EASY...

Here's Caroline on her first birthday this past Summer -

a seemingly small event to plan. Wait until she gets older

and she actually knows what's going on...

This morning, I got my daily newsletter in my inbox from Urban Baby. They had an article about planning the perfect Easter party for kids, with a great link I wanted to share with you. It's for a party-planning site called Peppers and Pollywogs, which is a place to get all kinds of really fabulous ideas for different kinds of parties - from birthdays for kids of all ages, to christenings, to holiday parties for everyone. The site is particularly great because it's sorted into sections that include "goodie bags," "invitations," and "music suggestions." You also can browse vendors by city (if you are interested in hiring one), or email a request for help to come up with an invitation rhyme (albeit for a fee...). As stationery designers and co-owners of Penny-Bear Printing, my partner Christy and I deal regularly with parents who are planning events for their kids. I think Peppers and Pollywogs is an awesome resource for all of us!