Merdog

Riesling might be afraid of water, but this dog isn't! My parents made this carving for Nate and me for Christmas. And it might be the most special Christmas present I have ever received. My father handcarved the merdog, and my mom painted it. They made one of each of the dogs in the family! What a wonderful present!

Snow Puppy

Riesling loves snow! Nate and I weren't too pleased to drive through a blizzard to get to Boston for Christmas. But seeing Ries's delight with the white fluffy stuff made everything better. It was so funny to see her pounce on the snow - which was up to her shoulders!

Bad Bash 2008

Our annual holiday party was a success! Santa graced us with his presence once again and the fun began. We were also pleased to count some new arrivals among our guests: 6 month old Caroline and 4 month old Owen. We can only imagine what next year will bring!

Dogs in Trees

We spent Thanksgiving in Harrisburg with Nate's family. Fun was had by all, as was demonstrated when we all started climbing the big tree. Even Riesling came up!

Steelers Nation

The Steelers beat the Redskins 23-6. And we were there to celebrate! It was a great game, made better by all of the other Steelers fans filling the stands. Go Steelers!!

Anne & Stu's Wedding

A pants optional affair, Anne and Stu's wedding this weekend was a lot of fun! It was great to see two friends get married at a beautiful setting, on a beautiful day. And I was amazed at how great all the guys looked in their kilts! Lots of dancing made for a fun evening in Stafford, Virginia.

Amy & Will's Wedding

Nate and I were close to home this weekend, at the wedding of Amy & Will. They had a lovely ceremony in downtown Baltimore, then threw a great party at Westminster Hall - the site where Edgar Allen Poe is buried! There was much dancing and fun late into the evening. Congrats Amy & Will!

Happy Birthday NPM!

The Smithsonian National Postal Museum turned 15 this year to great fanfare! We opened our newest exhibit, Alphabetilatly, and threw a huge party. Nate and my parents came down to help celebrate, and I wore my postcard dress for the occassion.

Weekend on the Gauley River

We had a fantastic weekend rafting the Middle and Lower Gauley with friends this weekend! We drove to West Virginia with Chris & Anita, Emily & Andrew, and Josh & Danielle on Saturday morning, rafted all day, and camped out that night. What an experience! I can't wait to go rafting again!

Weekend at Seneca Lake

Nate and I headed up to the Belhurst Castle on Seneca Lake for Labor Day this year with our friends, Mark and Alaine. Our friends Shawn and Becky were getting married on the castle's beautiful grounds!


The wedding was fantastic - and lots of fun! It was great to see so many of Nate's friends from swimming. And to see so many friends on the dancefloor after the ceremony!


Since we were in the area, we decided to visit some of the region's famous wineries. We had a great time with Mark, Alaine, Mike and Lori. We also had some great wine!

We had planned to head back to Maryland on Sunday, but stopped at Watkins Glen on the way home to see the gorge. It was absolutely spectacular - not even pictures can describe how beautiful the waterfalls and rock formations are! The sights made me almost wish I had paid better attention during all those geology classes.

A Weekend in Concord

This past weekend found us in Concord, Ma, for the wedding celebration of our friends Kristin and Mike - and what a party! The reception was held in a big barn. It was great, despite a little rain. Nate and I got some great pictures of the bride and groom having their portrait taken in front of the silo, just before the downpour!


Still in Concord on Saturday, Nate and I met up with our friends Bret and Ashley to see an Allman Brothers concert. What an experience! It was so cool to just sit on a blanket outside at Great Woods, and listen to non-stop great music. There was definitely some interesting people watching too!

Fine Dining

We broke out the fancy china. And the silver. And the crystal. Add some great friends for dinner... and we had our first dinner party! Our friends, Chad and Amy, are close to their due date, so the rest of us turned the party into a little shower for them. Ice cream cake rounded out a delicious menu. Fun!

1st Anniversary Weekend

We still have not gone on that hot air balloon ride. But we did have a wonderful weekend in Woodstock, Virginia, celebrating our first anniversary as husband and wife.

It was so much fun to re-create our engagement, right down to the balloon flight being cancelled during an early-bird dinner! We visited ten wineries, and brought back many new favorites for our wine rack.

Nate's Summer Adventure

Two broken elbows!

It's been almost a month now, and Nate's doing much better. I think he'll even be ready to start driving again on Monday. We were very lucky that the breaks were minor - and that he didn't need casts!