Well trained!

So I'm going through our pictures from the past couple of months because I want to have them developed and put in our albums. Majority of these pictures are from Ryan and Mary's wedding, the Falls, and NYC. There's a picture of Ryan and Mary that reminds me of a picture from Jack and my wedding. I just HAD to post these pictures! All I can say is Dad and Mom Tompkins definitely had these boys well trained :)!!

Another video to share...

Speaking of recent videos, there is one I think you all should see. It's on my other family blog, so I'll just direct you there with this link: http://mtsuarezes.blogspot.com/

You might have to scroll down a couple of posts, but it's definitely a story worth reading! It will give you a small peak into what life is like at the Kaza home :)

Ryan's gymnastics

And here is Ryan's Olympics-inspired trick on the trampoline.

Some videos

Just thought I'd post some videos from the last couple of weeks. Here is one of Ryan dancing with Catherine to some Jack Johnson. Notice how she imitates his dance moves. So cute!

The Latest

Hi everyone, here is the latest from the Mary and Ryan adventure here in VA. It's been an eventful couple of weeks since we last posted an update. I'll try to make this update quick, with a few pictures, of course :)

Last weekend, I went to my sister Tabitha's baby shower with all of her closest friends, at a really cute "tea room" in historic Occoquan, VA. They are a great group; all of them are so interesting, intelligent, and so in love with their Catholic faith! They come from such completely different backgrounds and places, which makes for great conversation. From left to right: Tabitha (due with her 7th), Kristin (expecting #5. Her husband is good friends with my Ave Literature professor, Dr. Curtright. He was in their wedding, actually. I've been able to get a lot of dirt on him from her and her husband Pablo, who Ryan has become friends with), Hilary (5 kids, she is a psychiatrist. Marisa, she reminds me of you because she's so petite, plus she's super stylish), Me (hoping for at least a dozen kids), Christine (4 kids), Anne (expecting #5), and Kelly (adopted oldest son, then a girl, and a boy named Ryan. Kelly is a lawyer who graduated from Harvard, I believe. She worked for Brownback's campaign and on the same day he promoted her to his Chief of Staff, she got a call that her first son was born and available to be adopted. She quit the job to stay at home with him!). Like I said, they are an amazing group of women. A sister picture. When I am out with Tabitha people often think that I am older than she is! That's how young she looks, even after 6 kids.
That evening, Ryan and I went to an outdoor concert at the Nissan Center in Bristow, VA. We saw Maroon 5 with the Counting Crows. Tabitha took a picture before we left:
Here is Ryan enjoying his Heineken during the opening act, Sarah Bareillas. Since Counting Crows is one of my favorite bands in the world, and Ryan doesn't exactly, um, care for them much, I felt bad making him come to the concert. So I kind of used beer as a bribe to sweeten the deal. It worked.
Here is a picture while the sun was setting. The concert went well into the night and we (I) loved it!!

One night Tabitha was out late at her Book Club, and Babu had to study for a test for the Marines, one of many that he needs to pass in order to be up for promotion to Major. So Ryan and I babysat the kids; here is Ryan reading the kids a bedtime story.Another day, Tabitha and I simultaneously had a craving for Five Guys french fries, and so we piled the kids into the car for a lunch out. Here's the gang (plus some neighborhood kids who practically live at the Kaza house).
Here are some more Unlce Ryan moments caught on camera.
Notice how Catherine clutches his hand even while she's watching TV:
The next picture of the hair do the girls gave Ryan inspired me to give Ryan another haircut.
And finally, here is a picture I managed to get of Ryan yesterday when I picked him up from work. That's his office building behind him, and isn't it so cute the way he's holding the grapes I packed for his lunch? So there's the picture update. The most exciting news, however, I have saved for last. Ryan and I are very happy to say that we have found our apartment! After many weeks of searching, we had it narrowed down to 2 apartments in 2 different apartment complexes in the same prime location. This weekend we walked through both of them to make the final decision. We decided to go with the 1 bedroom/1 bath apartment on the third floor, instead of the 1 bedroom/1 bath + den apartment on the first floor of a town-home apartment across the street. It was a tough decision (Ryan really liked the idea of having a den, so he could make it his Man Room) but we think we made the right one. The Man Room will just have to wait, unfortunately. The apartment we are getting has a nice little kitchen, a laundry room with washer and dryer, a dining room, living room, and a wood burning fireplace! We move in on the 12th of September, and we'll post pictures of it then. :)

Finally, last but not least, another piece of news is that Ryan and I recieved a very thoughtful gift this week in the mail: a webcam! We were so excited to get it, and plan to use it often. :) It is all set up and ready to go, so hopefully we will get to see all of the Tompkins family soon, whether you are in Tampa or in South Bend :)

My Trip to the ER

Let me begin by saying that yesterday was quite a whirlwind of emotions for David and I. Emergency room visits are never fun but this one proved to be especially out of the ordinary for us.

For the past couple of days, I had noticed some slight pains or discomforts in my chest, or should I say "dull pain" as categorized by the hospital staff. I didn't think much of it; I attributed it to heart burn. However, what I experienced Monday evening gave the ER doctor some insight into what might have been occurring. While I was working out on the elliptical machine at the gym, I noticed I was having to work harder than usual. My body felt worn out sooner, and my breathing felt harder. I wondered, "What is wrong with me? It has only been a few days since the last time I worked out!" Several minutes later, I felt what seemed like an electric current go through my body from my pelvis to my chest. It nearly knocked me off the machine! I thought this was very strange, but hearing stories from other expectant mothers, I hopefully thought this was the moment of implantation. Regardless, I continued my work-out and then noticed the level my elliptical machine was at: 7!! I usually do not go higher than a level 4!! No wonder I was so tired! So of course this was yet another reason or excuse to shrug off the "dull pain", the tiredness, and the electric current.

However, much to my dismay, the next day my body gave me no other option but to listen to it. Tuesday morning I was sitting at my desk at work doing mundane tasks when I felt my lungs tighten, and my breathing shorten. I suddenly had to concentrate on breathing: "Breathe in, breathe out"! Because of my nature as a drama queen, I thought I was over-reacting and just needed to calm down, get up, and take a sip of water. As soon as I stood up, I felt fatigued. I knew at this moment something was wrong. After a few minutes of unsuccessfully trying to give myself a pep-rally, "Marisa you are okay, you can do this, just breathe", I realized I needed to call my doctor, especially considering our family history. Unfortunately, the only advice they could give me was the inevitable: Go to the ER! So I interrupted my boss and let her know what was going on. She immediately jumped up from her desk and told me to go to the hospital. She and another co-worker offered to drive me home so David could bring me to the hospital. At this moment, I understood why God had led me to this job. :)

On the drive to my apartment, I attempted to call David a few times. He was not answering. Once we got to the apartment, he still had not answered the phone so I figured he was either on the toilet or in the shower. Due to my breathing conditions, my boss and coworker did not want to me walk up two flights of stairs to get David, so my male coworker, Stephen offered to knock on the door. Well since David was in the bathroom, as I correctly guessed, he did not answer the door. My only other option was to give Stephen the keys to our apartment and pray David was not laying/walking around or sleeping in the nude. Fortunately, he was in the shower with the door closed but Stephen gave him quite the shock when he knocked on the door and announced his name. David's immediate reaction was: "What the h*** is a man doing in my apartment!!" (Thankfully, he didn't say this; only thought it.) But all of this was very humorous later on when David told me that just minutes before he got in the shower, he WAS walking around in the nude, and had contemplated leaving the door opened while he showered!

A few minutes later, David came downstairs and drove me to the hospital. After arriving at the hospital, I was admitted a few minutes later and the routine began: I put on the hospital gown, and the nurses asked my symptoms, and took my blood pressure, EKG, and a X-Ray of my chest. At this point, my breathing had settled down, but I was feeling some "dull pain" again on the right side of my chest. I thought this was strange since my heart is supposedly on the left, but "some people are weird and have their heart on the right side" as one of the nurses informed me.

While I was getting my X-ray done, the doctor came in, and since I was not there he began to chat with David. And I mean chat. David did tell him what was going on with me, but by the time I got back in the room, they were already buddies. They were talking about philosophy and theology. Supposedly, our doctor had gone to Notre Dame, was a conservative Catholic, and was fascinated by the fact that David was studying Moral Theology. Once the doctor realized that I was back in the room (and the reason we were there and paying a $150 copay I might add, haha), he rightfully gave his attention to me. After talking to him for a few minutes, I realized why God had led us to this hospital. Our doctor, Mark Walsh, is an amazing physician. He made me feel very comfortable and confident that he was there to help me, not do a few tests and get me out of the hospital for the next injured body. Plus, he was Catholic! I could voice my concerns but also hopes that I was possibly pregnant. I did not have to worry about not being taken seriously or looked down upon for being young, happily married, and wanting to have children. He was actually encouraging us to have kids, and also thinking that I might be pregnant based on my symptoms. He told me that he was very glad I came in because unlike an injury to the arm or leg, you cannot rely on another limb when it comes to your chest cavity. As a result, he wanted to do blood tests that tested everything. He wanted to rule out any problems with my heart or lungs. He warned me that we might walk out of here not knowing exactly what the problem is, but knowing what it isn't. (I actually felt like a Catholic version of House (from the TV show) was sitting in front of me.)

So the nurses came in and began the blood tests, all five of them! Next I had to give a urine sample. After these tests, they hooked me up to a heart monitor, and all we could now was wait and pray. We were not too worried at this point. (The doctor had told us that the worse case scenario was that I had a blood clot on my lung, which was deadly. He said he was not expecting that though considering my age and health, but like he said before, he wanted to rule things out.)
We were talking and laughing, sharing stories, and just enjoying being together, even if we were in a hospital room. We also were imagining the possibility that I was pregnant, and how funny it would be to one day tell our child, "You took Mommy to the ER." haha. We would never forget it.

A few hours later, one of the nurses came back in, and told us that I was going to have to have a CAT scan of my chest because one of my blood tests had shown elevated levels of an enzyme. She said this could be caused by over 500 things, ranging from a high intensity work-out and stress to a blood clot in the lung. She said the doctor would be in shortly to explain it to us. At this point, David and I began to worry a little bit but still not too much. Once the doctor came in, we began to fear. He was very serious. He told us I was not pregnant and the news about my enzyme level. He said that this is rare for someone of my age and health. He wanted to do to the CAT scan because he wanted to make sure there was nothing there. He left. The reality hit me. I could be dying. Our mood suddenly changed. I started to cry thinking about how I was not ready to die. David and I just began our lives together, we had not had a family together yet. I was not ready to say goodbye. David just held my hand, and told me not to worry and he loved me.

Several minutes passed until the doctor came in again. This time he brought with him print outs from the computer of the human anatomy, and his hopeful theory. He showed us that the muscles and nerves are so closely intertwined in the chest area, and he thought that I could have possibly pulled a muscle exposing a nerve. He said this would be the reason for my pain on the right side. He was hopeful, and this provided some comfort for David and I as I was hooked up to an IV and transferred by bed to the CAT scan room.

If you never have to have a CAT scan, you are not missing anything. You lay on a bed that has a big round machine around it. Then the nurse or CAT scan technician hooks up a dye to your IV that allows your organs to show up more clearly on the test results. This dye, once injected into your blood stream, causes you to feel like you are boiling in your own body. This intense hot flash starts at your head and flows down your body causing the sensation of peeing your pants once it gets to your lower area. At the same time as you are experiencing the sensation of boiling point, the nurse pushes your bed underneath this big round machine that spins around you, flashes lights, and tells you: "Hold your breath" and then a few seconds later "Breathe". If I did not know better, I would think that this machine was controlled by aliens, and I was being abducted by one.

When the test was over, I was rolled back to my room to wait for the results. A few hours later, the nurse who revealed the high enzyme level news, finally became the bearer of good news: my test was clean!! No blood clot in my lung!! Thanks be to God, and all your prayers!

The doctor came in for the last time and confirmed the glorious news! Although I was not pregnant, I was content to know there was still a future for David and I to someday be parents, and at the very least enjoy the beautiful blessings God has already bestowed upon us: each other and ALL of you!! The doctor thinks I pulled a muscle and exposed a nerve from over-exerting myself in my work-out on Monday. He said I could return to my regular lifestyle but to call him today to check in. And before he left, he told David and I to pray for him, and that he has hope in the future of the Catholic Church because of couples like us. Finally, he gave us rosary key chains. Like I said before, what an amazing doctor! And such a blessing.

In conclusion to this long story that is filled with so many emotions, I am feeling good today. I do still experience some discomfort on the right side of my chest, but it is nothing to worry or whine about. Thank you for all of your prayers!

David and I love you all very much, and cannot wait to see you all again. This experience has taught us how precious time is, and how short life can be. So we pray that everyone will continue to stay healthy and well so that we may be able to thoroughly enjoy your presence and love.

Love always,

Marisa & David

Uncle Ryan

Maybe I am a bit biased, but I think Ryan and my niece Catherine playing together is one of the cutest things on the planet. She is completely in love with him and says "Uncle RYyyan" in the cutest voice imaginable. She talks about him all the time when he is away at work, and when he arrives home she drops whatever she is doing and rushes to him. She loves to repeat everything he says in her crazy Catherine voice, and obeys every word he says. Tonight I had my camera ready to capture their routine as they played together. Here she is imitating him getting into the tickle position. Then the tickling begins!

She's also learned how to tickle Ryan:
She loves her horsey rides.
But especially loves flying to the Superman theme song:
I just had to share the pictures.
Catherine sure loves her Uncle Ryan :)

And the answer is...

...yes! I just wanted to put up a quick post to let everyone know that I heard back from the Renaissance Montessori School: and, thank goodness, they made me an offer. I am going to be working as a teacher's assistant, and I am super-excited. I feel like it's kind of the best of both worlds; I'm not diving right into teaching a full classroom by myself, which might be a little intimidating. Instead, I'm going to be able to assist all the teachers throughout the day and gain a lot of experience. So, I'm very happy that it came through and that I can now zero in on the prime locations for our apartment search. Wish us luck! Or better yet, say a prayer for us.

We'll keep you "posted!" Get it? Har har har :)

Howdy

Hello Everyone,

I'm at work early right now and since I'm training, I have to wait for my boss. But I wanted to tell ya'll that I love you and I'm thinking about you guys. Mary and I can't wait to see everyone again ...may the force be with you. Aslan is on the move. *Rooooooooar*

The Virginia Tompkins :)

Wow, it's so great to see everyone posting on the blog! We love reading everyone's updates and hearing the latest news. Ryan and I have some news for all of you; which you all probably know by now. Ryan received a job offer, which he accepted, from FedSources. He started working with them this week, as a Market Intelligence Analyst. He was assigned to the Army division, which is one of the most important ones, which means they expect a lot from Ryan! It is really remarkable, what Ryan did: he was here in VA for only a few weeks, and managed to pull off multiple interviews and get a job offer. In this economy, that's an incredible accomplishment, and I'm very proud of him! Thank you all for your prayers as well, we definitely can see God's hand in all of this.

The job is in McLean, VA, which is not as far in as DC, but will require some commuting. Today we started experimenting with the public transportation to figure out the best way for Ryan to commute to work. Hopefully we will figure out the perfect combination of bus and metro routes so Ryan will be able to travel inexpensively while I can use the car.

Speaking of which, we also bought our first car, a 2001 Elantra. I know what you're all thinking; way too extravagant and showy. But you know me and Ryan, we are very image-conscious people and that's how we roll. We hope it will last us for a while, and allow us to have very low car payments in the meantime. We'll be sure to post pictures on the blog soon.

As for me, I had an interview with a school here in Manassas, called the Renaissance Montessori School. It went really well, and I should hear back from them this weekend. I am really hoping it works out, because it would be a big thrill for me to work in a dynamically Catholic educational environment, and get some teaching experience!

So now that Ryan's job and the car are taken care of, I've begun apartment hunting. It's been a little disheartening so far since 1 bedroom 1 bath apartments are very expensive it seems. Also, the prices go up the closer you move towards Ryan's job and the city. We are beginning to think it might be a good idea to stay in Manassas after all, especially if I end up getting the job at the school I was able to find some nice apartments at a good location for Ryan's commute, and I have been doing walk-throughs and comparing prices. We'll see how that goes.
I have not taken many pictures recently, I'm sorry to say. Here are some of the most recent; beginning with our trip to DC last week. It was a fun evening since it' was Ryan's first time there.We also got to see Babu's office at the Navy yard. Here is Babu drilling Ryan, like he drills witnesses in court.

We explored the National Museum of Natural History. Ryan was very excited to see the dinosaurs!

My favorite part of the museum was the Gem and Diamond section. Here is the Hope Diamond:

We treated ourselves to an IMAX movie, since I have never been to one. The show we were able to catch was "Sea Monsters"...when we first got in, and were handed the 3-D glasses, Ryan kept saying "What are these stupid things for? They never work! I'm not wearing this!" and then spent the whole time squealing and jumping at the 3D sea monsters that seemed to swim out of the screen into us!

Here is a very un-flattering picture of me. And no, I'm not pregnant, I promise!
Here is Ryan at the top of the Old Post Office, the 2nd tallest building in DC.
There was also an arcade inside, so we took a break to kill some bad guys.
After a delicious dinner at an Italian restaurant in downtown DC, we went to a comedy club to see my cousin Vin, who was doing a stand-up routine. It was fun to watch the amateur comedians, but especially fun to cheer on my cousin Vin (it was his first time ever!). He was great.
On the weekend, we had the house to ourselves. So, while Ryan took care of some business on his lap top, I went shopping for ingredients for a special dinner. I even got wine from Walmart (just $2.57!) and made Chicken Parmesan. We wanted to celebrate the new job and the car in style. Afterwards, we watched a movie, and since it was my turn to pick, we watched West Side Story all the way through. It was great. Ryan loved it too, I'm sure :p
So, as you can see, Ryan and I are doing well in Manassas. It's been great to be at the Kaza house as we work on getting a place, they really are excellent hosts and, if you have the means, I highly recommend joining us here. We also love the fact that we've gotten such quality time with our neices and nephews, and feel very blessed. God is definitely taking care of us, in His mysterious way. Life is good!

J & C Update!

So it's been exactly a month now since, well, we slept in the airport I guess - but ultimately arriving home after spending a great time with everyone in New York! Here's what we've been up to. As much as we didn't want to get back to work, we found it easier than coming home from a Sanibel vacation. This is probably due to our everyday lives being a much slower pace than NYC!

Jack and I are doing well. Jack's business is growing more each day. I am so proud of him - he is great at what he does and more importantly, he loves it! It can be stressful at times because the first couple years are so difficult. It just takes patience and faith. Please keep us in your prayers!

As you probably know, my family has a disaster occur in their home. Long story short, it rained in the house causing water damage to the kitchen, part of the living room, master bedroom, and girls bedroom. If you look closely at this picture, you can see numerous buckets of water attempting to collect "the rain" (do you see the water pouring from the lamps?).


It is a blessing that the insurance company is paying for the repairs! Since they will be remodeling the layout of the kitchen, this hallway will no longer exist (removing this will open up the kitchen). This is the only time my parents allowed the kids to write on the wall, which actually started with my dad writing "I love my wife".


No more wall... or kitchen! This is from a different view, but the wall was where that vacuum is sitting.

This is a picture from the front door - demolition day! Michael is standing inside "the kitchen". My dad put up a wall so you won't be able to see the kitchen from the front door.

A wall!


This is the most recent picture. Wednesday, Jack and I went over to help paint the kitchen. There is no longer a closet on the wall all the way to the left in the picture; that used to be the hallway leading from the living room to the family room/kitchen. The door in the middle of the picture leads to the living room/front door.


This was from demolition day. I had my younger siblings over to keep them away from the house while my mom and the boys destroyed it. John Paul asked my parents why they were "breaking" the house! Here's a picture after Jack had his fun with the sledge hammer. He was pretty tired... and he didn't smell too good.


Here are the kids having fun in our pool! We had a great time, but after about 8 hours, I was hearing the "I'm bored, what can we do?" Our home isn't "kid friendly" yet!


Stephen is still working on the smile WITH the eyes open! And Therese is being a goof!


Random picture, but Newt Gingrich was at my office a few weeks ago.


Jack and I have gone galactic bowling from 11-2 a couple times now - we have a great time!


My acrylic nails glow in the dark!!


And the newest news is... Michael has a girlfriend - Aubrie!! He's going for the older woman ;) she's closer to my age than his! She moved here from New Hampshire to join the Police Academy. He's very happy and we're happy for him!


Hopefully you made it to the bottom of this post. That was more than I was planning on posting! Jack and I will be going to Sanibel from September 13 - 20. We received a free week due to the construction that occurred during our visit last year. We're looking forward to relaxation! Pray that it won't storm during that week!! Oh and Marisa... Jack and I won't be coming up for Thanksgiving :(! I would have made the apple pie though! I can give you the recipe!! I hope everyone is doing well. We love and miss you all!

Lantigua Update

Unfortunately, we have no pictures to post because my camera is malfunctioning, but thought it would be better than nothing to post a written update on how David and I are doing in the land of Notre Dame. :)

The summers here are beautiful with days in the 80's, and nights in the 70's. This summer we really enjoyed going to the 9pm Mass at the Basilica on Sunday, and then praying the Rosary afterwards at the Grotto. It is nice to be able to be outside after dark and not have to worry about being eaten alive by mosquitoes. :) We have also enjoyed learning how to play bridge again! We have friends here at Notre Dame who love playing bridge and want to make it a tradition here, so they have taken it upon themselves to teach those who are willing to learn. David and I are among the self-chosen few, and although it has been frustrating at times, we have thoroughly enjoyed it! It reminds me of the times we use to play at home with the cheat sheet/table cloth. We are really hoping to be able to play with the family next time we are all together. I think the next time may be Thanksgiving when the Tompkins in Tampa come up to Indiana. Everyone is welcome! Ryan and Mary, you are only 6 hours by car away, I believe , so if you are able, we would love to have you as well! You all will love Thanksgiving in Indiana....all the leaves will have changed colors and we might possibly even have snow! It will really feel like Thanksgiving! And I have volunteered Dad to make the turkey, Mom to make the stuffing, and Christina to make the apple pie (even if you are not coming, Christina, you can send it with the family, LOL), and we all know Thanksgiving would not be the same without these irresistible goodies!

Ok, since I am now drooling on the computer thinking about these delicious goodies, I think I should move on to the next update before David kills me for damaging his laptop.

As some of you may know, and possibly all, David and I have really been praying and discerning about some possible future big changes in our life here at Notre Dame. We just ask that all of you keep us in your prayers as we are continually seeking God's will, guidance, and grace.

Also, please pray for David. He is suffering right now from what I believe is a combination of the flu and migraines. Thankfully I was able to stay home today to take care of him, but there is only so much I can do, so I just ask that you all pray for him.

I hope everyone is doing well! We love you and miss you all! We are hoping that our camera will be working soon we can post new pictures. Until then, we look forward to seeing and reading the updates!

Love always, Marisa and David

Pat and Emily's Wedding!

Hey Everyone! Just trying to make a habit of posting a blog update whenever I upload pictures from my digital camera. Ryan and I took a lot of pictures this weekend, since we went to our good friends' Pat and Emily Richardson's wedding in Alexandria, VA. We left extra early to meet up with Steve and Krista for breakfast, so it was a day long party full of good company, drinks, and baby-holding! But before I post those pictures, I thought I'd back track a few days. I think this is really cute picture of Ryan with Mary and Elisabeth at their swim team's award ceremony. They sure do love their Uncle Ryan.

I also thought these would serve as "before" pictures, since Ryan and I both got haircuts this week, as you will soon see.
This is what kept us company while I was cutting Ryan's hair. There's never a dull moment in the Kaza house! Here is Ryan all dressed up for another interview in McLean, VA. Ryan and I are in the process of searching for our first car, as you might know. Tabitha had told us about one of her friend's dad, who happens to LOVE searching for good deals on cars; it's his life-long hobby. He actually has the USA record for most cars bought ever by one person, I think. He really likes to buy cars, but only at really good deals. We met with him this week, and it turns out he is pretty much the Santa Claus of car-searching. He is helping us out so much; not only with the inside scoop about the best dealerships, car websites, and local mechanics, but with what car would be the cheapest for us while also being dependable and good with gas mileage. On top of all that, he let us borrow his Corolla for the weekend, and would not take no for an answer. Here is Ryan and the Corolla; note the Dunkin' Doughnuts coffee. We thought it completed the working-man look:
Now for this weekend's pictures. After breakfast with Steve, Krista and Ava, we still had time before the wedding started, so we were able to go to an Irish festival in downtown Alexandria in the meantime. Here are Ryan and Steve "pre-gaming it" with some Guiness:
Krista and I: this is also the first "after" picture of my haircut. I got bangs, which take some getting used to...but Ryan likes them a lot and that's all that matters!
Mr. and Mrs. Patrick Richardson!
Steve and Ryan with the groom, during the cocktail hour at Maggiano's.
With Emily, the beautiful bride!
I had so much fun with Ava! She was very well behaved the whole day.
A litte Ave Maria reunion going on at our table. We had a really fun night!
I think Ava is smiling here too!

Ryan and I at the reception:Another, ahem, happy couple.
Krista and I in our husband's jackets, since it was a little chilly where we were sitting!
Best buddies, Ryan and Steve. It was good to spend time with Steve and Krista again!
And there you have it; the Ryan and Mary picture update, haha. Now, where are everyone else's picture updates? We want to see them! Talk to you guys soon, we miss and love you!