Close to Christmas

My recent blog-silence is due to a few different factors. The semester just wrapped up so I was busy working on my final projects and grading final exams for the class I assisted. Christmas shopping. Spending two days straight baking for a Christmas party (because the first day was a failure). Wrapping presents. Writing thank you cards. And watching Christmas movies.

I'm not complaining  though, it was all fun stuff. In two days, AJ and I will be taking a late train to Connecticut two spend two short days celebrating the holidays with our families before coming back up to Boston with a few family members in tow.

The city has been feel pretty festive lately. After a pad thai dinner on Boylston the other night, AJ and I walked home down Comm Ave. It's filled with lights and we spent the whole walk pointing out pretty Christmas decorations on the exteriors of buildings and noticing lit up trees in windows. We did the same in the North End last night, there are some beautiful wreaths along Hanover. And today, walking down Newbury among Christmas shoppers, it started to snow very lightly and carolers were singing in the distance. It couldn't feel more like Christmas if it tried.

Christmas in Connecticut

My blog-silence over the weekend was due to the fact that, after working for two weeks without a day off, AJ took a few days off so we could spend a long weekend in Connecticut with our families. After a yummy dinner at Boloco, we hopped on Amtrak and got to Stamford around 10. AJ's dad picked us up with Christmas music on the radio and took us to his house where we slept and caught up with AJ's family.

The next morning, I ran some errands with my mom and had lunch with her before we picked up AJ again and headed to Kiwanis Park in New Canaan for our tree! This has been our tradition ever since we moved to CT. Everyone at Kiwanis is a volunteer and the money you spend on the trees all goes to donation. The trees there are all perfect and we usually end up buying the first one we see. This time, we got one that's about 6 feet tall and very full! The volunteers strapped it to the top of the car and we headed to my grandmother's house nearby to pick her up so she could spend the night at our house.

Once we headed home, we realized that the tree was probably not going to make it home so AJ opened the sunroof, grabbed the tree by the trunk, and held onto it that way for the rest of our drive home. It also started hailing at that point so we all got a bit pelted with ice but it's all in the name of a good tree!

We spent the rest of the day decorating the tree and my mom's house while watching Elf. My sister came home from Manhattan, too, to help decorate.

I'm really glad that we were able to go home to pick a tree and help my mom set it up. It's one of my favorite things to do and AJ and I have been doing it every Christmas since we met. I'm glad we could keep it up! I know my mom appreciated the help, too, and it wouldn't have felt like Christmas without picking out a real tree and stringing it with lights!

We had so much fun being home with our families and tried to fit in as much fun time with them as possible. Thankfully, AJ was able to workout his schedule so that we can be home for Christmas, too! We'll head home late on the 23rd, spend Christmas Eve and Christmas Day in Connecticut and head back first thing on the 26th. I know we're lucky that even though we live in a different state than our families, we're still relatively close to them and it's an easy train ride to get home. But we are both so close to our parents and siblings that we feel we can never see them enough! We're very lucky to be able to go home when we can and we are especially blessed to be able to spend this holiday with them.

I hope all of you have great plans for this Christmas!

Happy December!

I love this month. It's so festive and fun and spirited! Every day brings us closer to days dedicated to family and every single day is one to reflect on all the blessings we've had this year. 

This is my first year spending Christmastime in Boston and there are so many festive things to do! AJ and I have already attended two Christmas events, the Faneuil Hall Christmas Tree Lighting and the Tuba Concert in Faneuil Hall. And we have many more planned! If you live in the Boston area, or want to visit, consider putting these on your calendar!

Dec. 1 Commonwealth Avenue Mall Lighting

Dec 2. Copley Square Tree Lighting

Dec. 4 Boston Common Tree Lighting

Dec. 5 North End Holiday Shopping Stroll

Dec 11. Beacon Hill Holiday Stroll

Not to mention countless shows and performances to get you in the spirit! What are your plans for this month?

Fall To Do List Check-In

A few weeks ago I wrote a to do list for this October. Since the month is almost up (already?!) I thought it was a good time to check-in and see how I'm doing!

1. Go to Salem. Check! I did this one this past Saturday with AJ, my sister, her boyfriend, and some friends. It was as crazy busy and crowded as I thought it'd be but still worth it the chaos! You can read about it here.

2. Go to an apple orchard/pumpkin patch. Check as well! We got this one done on Saturday as well before going to Salem. We headed to North Andover and spent a few hours at Smolak Farms. You can read about it here.

3. Watch Hocus Pocus. Check, thank goodness! I think I've done this one a few times.

4. Go to the Boston Book Festival. Not yet! But that's because it hasn't happened yet. Hopefully I'll be able to go!

5. Eat Halloween Candy. Check! We ate a few pieces while watching Hocus Pocus because it felt right.

6. Go to the Boston Common Pumpkin Festival. Yup! We did that on Sunday. It was the first really cold day of Fall so we only stayed for about an hour but in that time we got free samples from Davids Tea, free coffee from New England Coffee, and we watched cute kids frolicking in their costumes.

7. Make Kettle Corn with Halloween M&Ms. Half check. I made kettle corn twice this week but I'm saving the M&Ms for Halloween!

8. Eat chili and pumpkin cornbread. Check! Just did that one last night! Yum!

9. Watch Halloweentown, Halloweentown II, and Halloweentown High. Not yet because I don't think it's been on yet but I'm keeping my eye on the Disney Channel schedule!

10. Make an apple pie. Not yet! But my mom and grandmother are coming this weekend so I'm planning to make one for them, especially since I have a whole peck of apples waiting on the counter.

11. Watch Stephen King movies. No, not yet. Bummer. We have two dvds from Netflix right now and if I want to get some Stephen King movies before Halloween I either have to watch them fast and send them back or send them back unwatched.

12. Decorate the apartment. Check! I got a big mum plant from Trader Joe's, a few small pumpkins, and a few decorations are sprinkled about the apartment. I didn't buy the window applications because i don't think my neighbors would appreciate them as much as I do.

13. Get Married. CHECK! I checked off the most important item on the list on October 11th.

To Do List for October

This is a fun month and every year, when October roles around, I want to squeeze as many fun and festive activities into the month that I can. I'm a little worried about doing that this year, you know with the whole wedding and grad school factoring in, but this is the first year that I'll be spending the whole month of October in Boston and in my favorite state, the one that I think is quintessential New England and the most ideal for Autumn. So here's a list, that will be ever changing for the next few weeks, of what I would like to do this October.

1. Go to Salem. We're about 30 minutes from Salem, by car or ferry, and I doubt you could find a more festive place this time of year. We went around this same time last year and it was crazy packed! Witches and people in freaky costumes crowded the streets and there were so many vendors and delicious smelling food stands, it was wonderful but hectic. I was going to bypass this trip this year because of the craziness, but Marina and her boyfriend might be going and we will definitely join them if they do! I won't pass up a free ride to Salem! Plus, it's always fun finding the places where Hocus Pocus was filmed.

2. Go to an apple orchard/pumpkin patch. Again, I wasn't sure I'd be able to do this this year. It's not the easiest thing to get to an orchard from Boston when you don't have a car, but if Marina visits, I will insist on making a stop in Ipswich or Danvers to pick some pumpkins and apples and enjoy hot apple cider and apple cider donut holes.

3. Watch Hocus Pocus. I've already done this a few times in August and September, and I'm sure I'll do it a few more times this month. I find it necessary. Amok amok amok amok!

4. Go to the Boston Book Festival. It's not really festive for Fall, but it's this month, it's nearby in Copley Square, and maybe there will be free books!

5. Eat Halloween candy. Is it bad that I already bought our Halloween candy? I had a CVS coupon that was expiring soon so I bought it way ahead of time! I already poured it out into a pumpkin dish, too. So far we've been able to hold out.

6. Go to the Boston Common Pumpkin Festival. This one I've never done or even heard of before but in my quest to find festive activities within the city limits, this popped up! It looks like it's mostly for kids, but I'm sure there will be pumpkins and pumpkin flavored baked goods so I'll be there. For those interested, it's in the Common on the 19th from 4:30-6:30.

7. Make Kettle Corn with Halloween M&Ms. AJ and I love putting M&Ms in our popcorn and I thought it'd be fun to make kettle corn for a movie night on Halloween, since apparently I'm too old to trick-or-treat on Beacon Hill. I already bought the M&M's, they have peanut ones that are Fall colored I guess, and others that are supposed to taste like candy corn!

8. Eat chili and pumpkin corn bread. I already bought both so this will definitely happen at some point. I also want to drink a pumpkin beer.

9. Watch Halloweentown, Halloweentown II, and Halloweentown High. This is a given and one of my favorite parts of October! These movies remind me of childhood.

10. Make apple pie. I already did this when AJ's family visited but there's no such thing as too many apple flavored food in the Fall! I should do pumpkin pie too, but my mom always makes apple pie and it's easy for me to follow her recipe.

11. Watch Stephen King movies. I don't  feel like there are really any good, scary, and well-made Halloween movies out there in the world. But there are two Stephen King movies, which are thankfully available on Netflix (not to stream though—boo), that are kind of Halloween-y. Rose Red (which is super long and you have to order two DVDs on Netflix for) and Salem's Lot. The former has a haunted house (and Marnie from Halloweentown) and the former has vampires (the scary kind, not the Twilight kind). I'm insisting, much to AJ's unhappiness, that we watch both this month.

12. Decorate the apartment. This is already mostly done. I have a festive wreaths, two small pumpkins, two small white pumpkins, mums, and a few other decorations I've been given. But I really want to get those sticky decorations you can put on windows so that the people walking down Charles outside can see—although I'm not sure if the building or neighborhood allows that. Also, I need more pumpkin smelling candles.

And one more reason since 13 is a good number for October.

13. Get married. This is the only really important thing on the list and the only thing that I will, without a doubt, be doing this month.

Happy October!

I can't believe it's already October! But I'm oh so happy it is. This is my favorite month. I love the leaves and the cool weather. I love seeing pumpkins and gourds for sale at markets. I love the feeling of a new season and I love the yummy foods that come into season. Sweet potatoes, butternut squash, apples (Honey Crisp especially), apple cider donuts, and tangerines. It all tastes like Fall and it is my kind of comfort food. I added some pumpkin pie spice to my oatmeal this morning, just in celebration of this new month!

Today, Boston is cloudy and rain will be imminent all day. Yesterday was wet and chilly. The next few days will be the same but I like it. After a heatwave this past weekend, this really feels like Fall!

As you can imagine, AJ and I have been really busy lately. Every weekend there has been something keeping us busy. After we got back from our quick trip to Connecticut, AJ's family came for the weekend. This past weekend, my mom, godmother, cousin, and sister came to visit for the night and it was great! It's always fun having family around and they do so much for us when they're here. Plus, school and work take up just about all my time but I'm really enjoying my classes! I'll post more specifically on school later.

A few other fun things to note, it is now mine and AJ's wedding month! It is extremely crazy how quickly time has gone by since we started planning. It's so soon! And we're very excited and everything is coming together just perfectly.

Also, today is AJ's first day at his new job here in Boston! His start day had to be delayed due to the extremely slow processed of becoming licensed in another state but—the day is here! I just some him off this morning. I am so proud of him and can't believe how much he's done and how far he's come since the day I met him. He's amazing and I hope he really enjoys this job. I can't wait to hear from him and hear all about his day, but I have to leave at 5:30 for class tonight so I might just miss him!

Last month, I completely neglected this blog and—even though this month might be busier than last—I don't want to let that happen this month. My favorite month. I love blogging and I don't want to let this slip away and get lost in school and work. I'm going to work hard and try hard to keep this going and keep it interesting!

Posts on books, food, and school will be coming!

September Update

I've been neglecting my blog again! I hate when this happens—and it seems to keep happening—because once I go a few days without blogging, it becomes even harder to get back into it! But I'll try to now.

The past few weeks have been buys ones for us. Two Sundays ago, AJ went back to CT for an appointment he had and stayed there for 5 days until I met him there. I went back on a Thursday after class and stayed until the following Monday morning. While there, I had a few appointments to tie up some wedding details and spending time with the people I missed. On Monday, Mom drove AJ and me back up to Boston. I brought quite a few more shower gifts and more clothes to have here at the apartment so it took me a little bit to unpack, not to mention I had a lot of homework to get done over that weekend.

We had a few days to get settled back in and then this past Friday, AJ's parents, siblings, and grandmother came to visit! We spent this weekend showing them around the Public Garden and Boston Common, eating at Quincy Market, going to Mass, eating Upper Crust Pizza on the roof, and spending time talking and hanging out together. It was really fun and it's hard to believe that the next time we'll see them it will be at our wedding! Which is 20 days away, by the way. Crazy!

AJ's family just left about two hours ago and we promptly fell asleep watching football. Tonight we're going to a Black Keys concert and tomorrow we'll be back to our normal routine. It's crazy how quickly the time is flying by.

I hope everyone had a great weekend!

School So Far

Like I mentioned a few days ago, my first day of grad school went really well and it was really exciting! Since then, I've come to start to grasp how much work this semester, and probably the rest of my semesters as a grad student, will include. Not to mention...I got the TA job! I'm so, so very excited about that. I really want to have the opportunity to teach at the college level after grad school and I feel this is a great way to get experience, not to mention I'll be assisting a British Lit class in which we are reading some of my favorite authors and novels.

Plus, I've only had one out of my two classes so far and the work from one class alone feels like a big amount! I already talked about my homework for this week, and I just received the first story I'll have to critique for workshop on Wednesday. Now I've added a bit more work with the TA position—I am currently making my way through Book I and II of Sir Thomas More's Utopia, which is an essential read for a British Lit class, but I don't have it with me and I have to read it on my computer so it can be a little straining on the eyes. Regardless, as long as I'm reading or writing, I'm usually happy!

On My First Day as a Graduate Student

And what an eventful day it was! It started the same as any other with an early morning trip to the gym and plans to sprawl out on the grass of the Boston Common to get some sun. But, no, that did not happen. Instead, as I killed time on my computer waiting for it to get just a bit warmer, I received an email from a literature professor, following up with my application to be a Teacher's Assistant. I scheduled a time to meet with him, then regretted scheduling the interview for four o'clock, giving me five hours to think and worry about it.

But luckily, we did some stuff to take my mind off it. Around 11, AJ and I went to Brattle Book Shop. I picked up a short fiction anthology, edited by Joyce Carol Oates, and The Marriage Plot by Jeffrey Eugenides, for $3 each!

From there, we walked over to Boloco at their Commons location where it was free burrito day! Neither of us have tried Boloco before, but every time I walk by I'm tempted to try everything! Their shakes, salads, bowls, and burritos all sound delicious and—with it being free and all—we decided it was the perfect time to try it out! The line was kind of long but we were there before noon and the line only got longer after that. AJ got a chicken teriyaki burrito and I got the chicken tikka masala burrito. They were both delicious and (we each got a small burrito) the perfect size. We will definitely go back to Boloco—it's free burrito day at their School St. location in two weeks. 

After that, all I had left to do was get ready for my interview and class. I changed into the most grown up outfit that was conducive to the sweltering heat. My shirt had birds on it but the skirt was J. Crew so I figured it worked. I went to the meeting, was there a little early, and talked to the professor about the job. It sounded great and he gave me a little assignment to do—grade a student paper—to see how I work and he invited me to sit in on the first day of class, which I did this morning. I felt surprisingly old, even though I was an undergrad just a few months ago! But I did feel pretty lucky to be taking a British Lit class for free! I haven't been offered the job yet, but fingers crossed!

After the interview, I ran home quickly, changed into jeans, ate a quick omelette for dinner before over packing my schoolbag with books, paper, a laptop, and lots of pencils and hurried back out to school. My class was on the 11th floor of a building on Boylston. I was in awe when I walked into the classroom, one whole wall was made of windows, giving me the best view the Common, the State House, Beacon Hill, and beyond. I was very distracted during class. 

Some of us were early and some other students filtered in just after 6 so we spent the first ten minutes or so doing a free write on the prompt, the best time of day. We didn't have to read it or share and it was a great way to start the class. I'm usually terrified of in-class free writes but this one came pretty easily for me! There are 12 of us in class, all of different ages and stages of life. Some people have been writing for a long time and are very experienced in workshops and some others are relatively new to fiction writing. 

The professor, Daphne, was wonderful and smart and made everyone feel comfortable. After the free write, we went around the room a few times to introduce ourselves, talk about our writing background, and who were our favorite authors to read. We went over the syllabus, which told us all how much work we will have, and made a schedule to workshop our fiction. We then read a great short story and had a discussion on it for quite sometime. The class is supposed to last from 6 to 9:45. Last night, we left class around 8:20 and I was in bed by 9:30 and I kept thinking to myself 'I would still be in class if this weren't the first day.'

We were assigned two short stories, one by Chekhov and one by Grace Paley, to read and prepare for discussion, two student stories to read and write critiques on, and we each have to write a 3-5 page story or story fragment which takes place all in one scene. I'm glad we have smaller writing assignments on top of the short stories we will write for workshop so that it doesn't feel like we only have to write twice a semester. My first short story is due for workshop on September 17th!

I'm looking forward to next week's fiction workshop and this coming Tuesday I will have my first day of my other class called Teaching College Composition. 

Boston Has Been Good To Us

 We've been here for a full week now and have enjoyed our time to the fullest. There's a lot to do every day and we're taking advantage of it! Here are a few perks from our time in Boston so far:

I had my orientation this past Thursday and had some down time between events so I wandered over to Brattle Book Shop, one of my favorite places in Boston and a book lover's heaven on earth. While browsing the outdoor shelves, I came across the above book which you may recognize from past posts about my love for Elena Ferrante (are you sick of it yet?). I don't know how that copy ended up there—it's not available in the US until September 2nd. I checked the copy, flipping through pages and looking for any signs that it might be an advanced proof and as far as I could tell, it's the real the deal! At the end of the day I came home, told AJ about it and where it was, and the next day it was sitting on the kitchen table with a new mug as well. I'm still reading Russian Winter (I'm over halfway through and loving it!) but as soon as I'm done, I will jump right into Those Who Leave and Those Who Stay. 

This is AJ in his element. He's a big Manchester United fan and it just so happens that the same year we move here, a bar on Beacon Street becomes the official bar for Manchester United watching in Boston. AJ was excited to have a fun place to watch the games and even though we're not bar people, I thought it would be an experience. However, because the games are played in England, the time difference means that many games are first thing in the morning. So, at 7 am yesterday morning we rolled out of bed and made our way down Beacon Street for a 7:45 game at the bar, Crossroads.

We had breakfast sandwiches, potatoes, and coffee while watching the game among other rowdy fans. The man who organized the game watching at Crossroads introduced himself to us and said he liked having a community of fans together for games. It wasn't too crowded and it was very laid back, probably because it was so early, and we had a great time! I'm sure we'll be back for more games. 

Last night we went to Mass in the North End at St. Leonard's church. This weekend, the North End is celebrating the feast of St. Anthony so we knew there would be a lot going on down there. After Mass, we headed down Prince Street to Thacher Street where the original Regina Pizzeria location had set up an outdoor patio for diners to eat al fresco and watch the people milling about the food stands that had been set up in the streets. Of course, there was a line but I really wanted to eat there and we decided it was worth the wait. While in line, the procession of St. Anthony made it's way down the crowded street. There were trumpets and drums and people pinning money to the ribbons around St. Anthony's likeness. 

Our wait in the line was probably 30 minutes long, seating was limited, but the line moved faster than I thought it would. We ordered a crostini appetizer that was delicious and split a small pizza that had chicken, mozzarella, and peppers. Regina's Pizzeria is well-known in Massachusetts and has been in business since 1926! Their crust recipe is 80 years old and is probably the best pizza crust—it's crispy but not too thin—and the mozzarella is the best I've ever tasted! We both agreed the pizza was perfect and we'll be going back for more soon!

We could've stopped eating after the pizza, but the streets were filled with tempting smells from all the food stands set up around us. The most tempting smell was fried calamari. AJ bought a plate of that while I opted to buy myself a dessert of fried dough bites, covered with melted butter, honey, cinnamon, and powdered sugar. They were delicious, but not as good as my mom's pizza fritta. We walked among the heard of people and listened to the music that a local band was performing—they sang old school Italian songs as well as current pop songs so it was a fun mix! 

The smell from the cigar stand added to the feel of the night. Pizza and pasta and fried seafood were available at most food stands and there were plenty of cannolis being eaten from Mike's Pastry's stand—not to mention the huge line that was at Mike's real location on Hanover. 

Our last stop was at a drink stand where already drunk vendors were selling mixed frozen drinks in keepsake mason jars. I got a banana daiquiri and AJ got the piña colada. The prices were steep, $12 each, but you got to keep the jar and get a free refill. We listened to a bit more music and I sang along as the band played Che La Luna before calling it a night and walking back home to Beacon Hill. 

It was a fun night and personified the fun times I had hoped for while living here, and it's still only our first week! And what a great weeks it's been. Soon I'll be starting school and AJ will start working his new job and real life will set in but I have a feeling that, while living in Boston, doing something we've hoped to do since we started dating, it will never really feel like real life. 

Life Lately

We've been in Boston for just a few days now and we've already managed to squeeze in quite a few fun activities and a lot of necessary ones! Here's a rundown of what we've been up to!

On Monday we

stopped by Marshall's to pick up some bathroom essentials and hair clippers for AJ
split a Tom Brady sandwich from DeLuca's on the Charles River Esplanade
grocery shopped at CVS
lifted weights at the gym among far too many meatheads
ate pasta, salad, and chocolate chip froyo from Richardson's for dinner while catching up on Dateline

On Tuesday we

went back to the gym (earlier to avoid the crowd)
tried to blowout my hair and failed miserably
grocery shopped at Trader Joe's and accidentally bought cashew butter (what?)
(I) got school mandated blood work done to prove I am immune to the chicken pox. AJ got to wait for me and listen to me whine all morning
took the T and bus to South Boston—new for me—so AJ could go to his new workplace for a drug screening. He peed in a cup, I waited for him at the beach
ate deliciously marinated chicken and undercooked sweet potatoes for dinner

Today I want to soak up the sun by sitting on the roof with a good book. There are only so many days left to tan before the cold sets in up here in New England! Also, I have to go back to Trader Joe's to return the cashew butter and buy olive oil. And more sweet potatoes. I could eat those for every meal.

On Thursday I have my grad school orientation! The nerves set in back in June but I'm looking forward to getting started and seeing what this is all about.

Bridal Shower

Last weekend, my mom threw me a beautiful bridal shower! She had wanted to make it a surprise but when so many people are involved, little slips are bound to happen here and there! So I kind of knew I was having a shower and I guessed it would be our last weekend in Connecticut but the people that came, the festivities involved, and the beautiful gifts I was blessed with were all surprises to me!

I was kicked out of my mom's house on Saturday afternoon and told to sleep at my grandmother's. Meanwhile, my mom, sisters, family friends, godmother, and AJ's parents were all at my house getting things ready! On Sunday morning, AJ picked me up from my grandmother's and took me to church. Apparently, we had to kill time before going to my house so we drove aimlessly for a bit before heading home.

making an entrance

When we walked in the door, I was amazed at all the hard work and planning that my mom and family had put into the day. The house was filled with people spread out between the family room, kitchen, and living room. There were decorations galore and delicious food that exemplified the bridal brunch my mom had planned because she knows I love brunch.

Mom even planned the food to represent me! There were plenty of munchkins from Dunkin' Donuts, because those are a childhood favorite. Cinnamon raisin bagels with cream cheese. Rosemary chicken and honey baked ham. Chocolate covered strawberries. Croissants. Quiche. Fruit salad. And she made mini pancakes on a stick, garnished with a blueberry. My stomach is growling as I write. Plus, there were mimosas and iced tea.

After everyone had enough to eat, the men that came (AJ, his dad and brother, and some cousins) retreated to the basement with a few bottles of wine while the ladies moved into the living room to open gifts. First, everyone went around the room to say how they knew me which elicited kind words in Spanish from AJ's grandmother, tears from my grandmother, and laughs from those who chose to share stories.

All of our guests were extremely generous and thoughtful in their giving. I was overwhelmed with appreciation and the feeling of being so loved by so many people all at once! In all honesty, I was more touched by the number of people who came and helped so much than by the gifts themselves.

too beautiful to eat!

Once all of the gifts were opened, we hurried to the cake! My mother-in-law made the cake. It was three tiered and she made the flowers to match those on the invitation for my shower! The bottom layer, which was quickly devoured, was a vanilla cake filled with cream and raspberry jam. The second layer was chocolate with Nutella filling, and the top layer was chocolate cake with coconut and dulce de leche filling. It was to die for! Everyone asked to take a piece home.

Along with the cake were the cookie trays. Cookie trays are a tradition in our family, they are made for every baptism, first communion, wedding, and some birthdays too. My mom's cousins pitched in and did lots of baking for the cookie tray and oh my goodness were those cookies amazing! There were so many different kinds, too! My grandmother made magic bars (AJ's favorite) and biscotti, some plain and some with cherries. My sister's godmother made chocolate marriage cookies and pignoli cookies. My grandmother's friend made anisette cookies with icing and sprinkles. My mom's cousins made almond biscotti and butterfly cookies. My godmother's daughter made butterballs and her delicious and addictive chocolate chip cookies—that is one recipe I'd do anything to get! All the cookies that did not get eaten are now sitting in my mom's freezer! Maybe post-wedding I'll pull them out for a treat.

As for the favors, my mother-in-law made adorable cupcakes for everyone to take home and my godmother specially ordered chocolate hearts from my favorite store, The Chatham Candy Manor. The Candy Manor has always been a special place to us and she knew I'd love that she thought of it!

It was a wonderful day filled with love. I could not have imagined a better bridal shower! Keep reading for more photos from the day!

Mom had this made, now we can keep it in our apartment!

my sister Sarah, Mom, me, my grandmother, Marina

my amazing mother

everyone blew bubbles while I cut the cake. marina stood on the table to get a better angle

photo credit to AJ. he took this while we killed time outside before the party

my moms and grandmothers. I'm so blessed with these ladies!

cake and photos

the most important women in my life, mom and sisters.

when we first walked into the party. my left eye gets super squinty when I'm really happy

marina's longtime friend, Katelyn, who has been a maid of honor many times before and therefore made my ribbon bouquet

my pretty sisters

and with my new sister!

of course

my sweet godmother