Two Days in Helena

We went to Helena to celebrate the wedding of my cousin John and Jenny who we adore, but I am sad to say we walked away without one picture of the bride and groom! They looked great. You will just have to trust me on that! The mass was beautiful. The reception was a blast, and we always love to hang out with the Ruffatto family. There is never a dull moment with so many Italians around! Too bad we didn't really take many photos of the rest of the family. It seems that our attention is focused almost entirely on our adorable niece and nephew. We can't get enough of them! We met everyone for lunch when we got to town. Actually, we were surprised to discover that Ali and Brent were right behind us as we were coming down the pass into Helena. Talk about perfect timing! Mom and Emma seemed to enjoy their lunch together (pictured). After lunch we had a belated Christmas gift exchange in the hotel because some of us couldn't be there in December. Keenan seemed to love the musical maracas that we gave him. He loves music of all kinds and thoroughly enjoys making noise. . . I mean making a joyful noise unto the Lord! Follow the funny progression of photos as Emma discovered her Christmas gift. Kudos to TJ for his great photography. We gave Emma an MP3 player, but it took a moment for her to figure out what it was, to react with joy, and finally to attack us with hugs of gratitude! I think it was a hit! My friends Jen and Jim from Carroll College had a baby in January--Amelia. Fortunately, Ameila was being baptized during our two days in Helena, so we squeezed that party into our schedule as well! Congrats John and Jenny and Jen, Jim, Matt, and Amelia!!