Twilight Preview

Me and all the girls under 16 years-old are excited for this movie to come out in December

Baby Doll gets a check-up

Little S took Baby Doll to the children's health fair at the local children's hospital last week. It is a huge event with dozens of health-related activities and prizes for the kiddos. AND, each child can bring along a doll to go through the "clinic" for a check-up and shots.

First, Baby Doll gets weighed in.

Next, Little S helps take her blood pressure.

Then she gets her ears checked.

Finally, the shot...Little S nervously holds Baby Doll's hand.

Yes, Baby Doll gets her shot in her behind.


The Fire Department and Police were at the fair, too. Hopefully, this is the only time in her life Little S enjoys the view from the back of a police vehicle.

Art Weekend

I'm a fan of the San Francisco graffiti artist Barry McGee - work pictured above - and we went to a show of his at a local museum over the weekend.

I was a T.A. for an art class at BYU when he came and spoke as part of the visiting artist lecture series (D came to the lecture and became a McGee fan as well). His lecture was the most memorable of the series - my first exposure to the theory behind many graffiti artists (not all of them, some are just vandals.)

During his lecture McGee discussed the interesting relationship between graffiti artists and the general public - something an artist exhibiting in a gallery or museum does not have because of the small portion of the general public that enters the museum. The immediacy, both of production and removal, of graffiti art was something I had never thought about - and how different it is from an artist working primarily in his studio.

He also discussed the complexities of living in urban centers - the pressures and constant stream of imagery, primarily via advertising, that is part of urban life. For many, graffiti is an outward expression or release of those pressures - a voice.

Anyway, Barry McGee is a giant in the contemporary art world and I love reading his interviews. Some of his graffiti friends consider him a sell-out because he left his graffiti roots and entered the mainstream art world, but McGee continues to champion the "artists of the street" and expose the many complexities of art production and consumption.



We went to the McGee show with our artist friend Carleton Christy. D and I have been friends with him since our undergrad days at BYU. Carleton got his MFA at Long Beach and teaches drawing and printmaking at various colleges in SoCal. One of his works hangs in Little S's room. At lunch, Carleton gave us a gift of 2 of his recent works! I'll post pics later - we love them and are going to get them framed for D's office.

The Vegas

We spent mother's day weekend in Vegas visiting D's parents. It was a nice, relaxing weekend. Highlights of the trip for Little S were Grandma's toy room and the pool.


The pic above is the view out our sunroof while sitting in traffic on the strip Saturday night. D and I hit the strip for a late dinner out on the patio at Mon Ami Gabi in the Paris hotel. The restaurant is across the street from the Bellaggio fountains.

Mon Ami Gabi serves one of D's favorite dishes in the whole world (that's saying a lot - he's eaten all kinds of food in many countries) - steak with a special French butter-mustard sauce and fries. mmm. D first tried the dish in Paris and when he discovered that it was served authentically in Vegas (very few things are authentic in Vegas) Mon Ami Gabi became one of our favorite restaurants.

Happy Mother's Day

Here's to all the moms! I have a fantastic, talented, inspiring mother. It is only after I became a mother myself that I came to appreciate her skill at mothering and the personal endeavors mothers (and fathers) choose to give up so they may stay at home with their kids.

One of the greatest gifts my mother gave my siblings and I was the gift of music in our home. I remember pounding the upper keys of the piano while she practiced the hymns for church - how she was able to ignore the pounding of the kids and continue playing shows her patience as a mother. I also remember banging wooden spoons on pots and pans and marching in circles as she practiced "Called To Serve". In addition, she was my accompanist as I studied the violin - it was a great opportunity for us to work together. Thank you, Mom!

Above photo by the great Rodney Smith.

D and Little S and I are headed to Las Vegas for the weekend to visit his parents.

Happy Mother's Day!

Wish I was in Provo for this:

The Beehive Bazaar is this weekend in Provo. Check out their blog to see pics of items from various vendors. I think I went to one of their earlier boutiques a few years back. Awesome, unique stuff.

The Great Escape

That's what we're calling Little S. Last night was the first time she climbed out of her crib in the middle of the night (she tried once a few months back, but after crashing to the floor, she didn't attempt again). She decided to wake me up at 12:30 and scared me speechless! After she was back asleep in the crib, I couldn't fall back asleep 'cause I was worried she was going to startle me awake again!!