Praying mantis

Nice series Alissa! This would be a very nice addition to the Marvelous Mantids of the North East mission:
http://www.projectnoah.org/missions/1573...

I am pretty sure this is a Chinese Mantid rather than a European Mantis (Mantis religiosa). European Mantises come in solid green or solid brown but don't have the brown with the green edge. They also have a distinctive black spot that is often ringed in white on the inside of their front legs near where they attach to the body, which yours is lacking.
http://bugguide.net/node/view/554740

You can see that area in the second photo of yours.