Stop on by.....

Hello my friends! As you all know I am in the process of fullfilling my dream of having a photography business. The website is in the works as we speak, but in the meantime you can check out my new blog, which will continue to be a link on my website. So... stop on by annamancuso.com and enjoy.

1 2 3... Mama to be... what will the baby be? A baby B or baby G?

 Amber Chambers and family recently celebrated their soon to be addition with a little help from Dr. Seuss. Each table was decorated differently, with love, from a designated family member. The day was filled with riddles and bright colors, sweet smelling candy mystery diapers, and many loving and thoughtful gifts. Amber was just glowing and so were all of her special guests... soon to find out if baby Chambers will be a bouncing baby boy or girl!

                                                    

Love

I couldn't have titled this entry anything more abundant or simple than just LOVE. I met this amazing couple through a great friend. I feel all of our lives have been blessed by knowing each other and I can't wait to see what the future brings for this fast friendship.

This is Love......

Happy Mother's Day

Happy Mother's Day Mom!
~Love Nanner

Tuesday Night Carnival

Wednesday Sunset

French Perfume

The time is almost here..... I can't wait until I can share this  french lavender. There is something so calming about it's essence.....

"Don't Sit Under the Apple Tree"

 Couldn't help but hear,"Don't sit under the apple tree with anyone else but me" playing over and over in my head while I was taking these photos. When I was little, my Granny would sing this song to me and we would dance until my heart was content. Now, I have my own apple tree, and this year it was overflowing with beautiful blooms. You never know.... I may do a little apple tree jig!

Click on the lyrics to listen to my old memory. Enjoy!

Pysanky

Ukrainian Easter Eggs

Kistka (tools for applying the wax)

My first Ukrainian Easter Egg.... Age 8

It has been too long.....

.............It has been too long since I had seen my Granny. Her living arrangements are different now and she is no longer at home. So, my Mom and I went on a small road trip to go and visit. We made sure that she had lots of hugs, kisses, and flowers for Easter. She was so surprised to see us, it was so great!

When we arrived, the nurses had everyone outside enjoying the sun and having a little fun for Easter. Some of the residence were dressed for the occasion sporting bunny rabbit ears!

This is "Speedy" with his bunny rabbit ears. This fella is a speed demon!

Say hello to Vern! Her and my Granny have come to be great friends. They eat breakfast together, play cards, and go for long walks down the hall. Vern is a sweet sweet Lady.

It was so wonderful to spend the afternoon with her. There truly is no better love, than the love from a Grandmother! Happy Easter Grandma.... I love you! 

Sisters

              ~Sisters are different flowers from the same garden~

Pickin' on the Porch

When the sun starts to set in the west, you will find me and my love pickin' on the porch. Well..... you'll find him pickin' and me on the porch (with our cat Ollie) This has become a tradition for us. Every evening after dinner during the spring, summer, and fall you will find us outside. It truly is one of my favorite times spent together. The sun setting, the cat meowing, and my love pickin' on the porch.

Oh Captain! My Captain!

Hand Made

There is nothing I love more than to give or receive a gift that has been made from the heart. So, as a token of friendship I have created something new!

Lucky

For the oncoming of Spring, I have started some new projects. I will be sharing them as they are finished. I'm hoping this spring will bring new and refreshing inspirations and I hope that you all will enjoy them just as much as I enjoy creating them......

This photo was taken of a dear friend of mine almost two summers ago. I can't believe how quickly time goes by. I can't wait to take pictures of her and her little man this spring. I just love the symbolism behind the Four Leaf Clover.....

30 Miles Today

30 Miles today on the bike that puts me at 42 miles so far. I have lots more to go!!!! I need to get up to Ryan's strength. When he rides with me he calls it a "casual" ride. But, it definitely isn't casual for me by any means. Really, honestly, it scares me every-time I ride to see how much stronger he is than me. I hope I can do this!

The Great Allegheny Passage

The training has officially begun. Geared up yesterday and took a nice brisk bike ride. It was the first day of my official training for our long distance journey this summer. My husband and I and some friends will be taking the GAP trail from Connellsville to Cumberland Maryland during a nice two day trip. It's just about 100 miles each way. All of my 50 minute treks on the elliptical every-night and long distance bike trips on weekends, will hopefully get me through this trip. I will be keeping a calendar of my miles on the bike before the trip just so I know I am ready. Our friend told us if we can ride 75 miles in one day then we can definitely do 100. Let's hope he is right! He is definitely a roady! I'm just going to keep telling my self if he can do it, well....... so can I!

Please Pray for Our Brotheres and Sisters in Haiti

God of all creation, as we weep with our family in Haiti, console us.

In this time of crisis, open our eyes to look beyond the disaster

to see Christ in our brothers and sisters in Haiti, as Christ sees us.

Be with us as we stand in solidarity with those living and working in Haiti.

Be with us in our mourning and guide our efforts to feed the hungry, shelter the homeless, comfort the grieving and stand for justice.

With your mercy, sustain us at this time as we continue to work for peace and justice.

Tree Trimmings, Gingerbread Men, and Our Friend Jim

Wow! Can I just say, I now know exactly why our parents would get so excited to decorate the Christmas tree. It was the perfect excuse for them to sip on their cognac of choice, act silly, and listen to great music. Well, that is exactly what Ryan and I chose to do on our Sunday together. It was such a wonderful day! Ryan gets all the credit for dragging out our "life like" Fake Christmas Tree. That darn thing is a pain in the a** every year! He also gets mucho credit for finding us great music to listen to while decorating our fragrant plastic tree.

After a little fluffing of the Fake plastic branches, and the game of twister we played just to get all the male and female lights connected perfectly with their mates, we washed our hands of the sap and invited our friend Jim over for a little extra help with the tree trimming. Jim is such a great helper!

The Family is Growing

Well I woke up to the best news this morning. My new nephew will be here Monday! This had me thinking about my family and how it all begin. Well, it began with My Great-grandfather Basil Samuel Kohut and Teresa Paraskevia Karchut. Both Basil and Teresa grew up in small villages in the Ukraine. They secretly admired  each-other since they were young children playing in the same villages. The Karchut family  had an arranged marriage prepared for Teresa, but it was not to her secret love Basil.  Basil took a leap of faith and came to America settling in Philadelphia PA. While he was here in America,  he sent Teresa letters begging her to come to America. He promised to marry her if she would take the risk and come to America. Teresa convinced her father to give her the dowry money to  buy a ticket to America. The pictures explain the ending to this love story...........

This is the Kohut family who moved to Wheeling and had nine  children. Photo below from the late 1930's

My Grandfather, Peter Samuel Kohut was the only boy with eight sisters, Nora, Teresa. Vera, Anna, Mary, Olga, Irene, and Katherine.

The photo below is from my Grandma and Grandpa's Wedding July 18, 1953. My Grandfather all grown up with his eight beautiful sisters.