(Dead) into the Fire Swamp

We didn't have any big plans for Memorial Day (Doug had a lot of grading to do), but we did take a walk over to China Lake after lunch.  There's one section with twisty, mossy trees that reminds me of the Fire Swamp in The Princess Bride. I've been wanting to go back and get some pictures. 



We took a friend along--a classmate of Kate's who lives in the complex across the street.



"I'm not saying I'd like to build a summer home here, but the trees are actually quite lovely." 





I am happy to report that we did not encounter any Lightning Sand or Rodents of Unusual Size on our journey.

The rest of the (non-Fire-Swamp) pictures:







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Back home in time for Andy's nap!

Hand, Hand, Fingers, Thumb

Reading with Daddy!



"Dum ditty dum ditty dum dum dum!"

Mother's Day Sunshine

  

Mother's Day pics! We had a lovely sunny weekend, which makes the picture-taking a little tricky. We found some shade. (Those are the neighbor's flowers in the background.)

  
  

Trying to get Andy to look at the camera, I asked him, "Where are Daddy's eyes?" so then he had to point out my eyes. Ack!

  

Kate made this for me at school. Laminated for longevity!

After church and pictures I called my own mom, and then I had a nice long Mother's Day nap!

Castle Set Painting

I got to help with some set painting for the production of "Beauty and the Beast" at Curtis Jr. High. Sylvie Hillsberg, the choir teacher there, is the sister of Patrick Watson, who puts on the multi-stake productions like the Broadway Revue and Savior of the World (with his wife JoLee). I went over to the school and met with Sylvie and got measurements, then went home and designed this on the computer:



The blank spaces are for a staircase and platform. 



Sylvie got the outlines traced on the cardboard and I was able to help with the painting over two afternoons.  There were other people to help too, so I didn't have to do it all myself.  We got the base colors down and then I slapped some quick shading on the columns and railing.  I used the biggest brush they had and was proud of myself for not letting it take too long. 



I took Kate to the 1:00 matinee performance this afternoon.  Here she is playing Triple Town on my kindle while waiting for the play to start.



The backdrop was on six four-by-twelve panes of cardboard, with the castle on one side and the town scene on the other side. The panels were suspended from the ceiling so they could turn them back and forth quickly.



They used Fiona's library, too!



The kids did a great job. I especially enjoyed Lumiere's performance.   Kate was a little less engaged in the whole thing, but she liked the big group numbers. This was the Broadway version, so there were some songs that aren't in the movie, that I hadn't heard before.



I got a line in the program. (They spelled my last name wrong--eh, it happens!)

I've been saying I needed a project.  This was a fun thing to work on for a few days, and fun to see the end result in use!

Children's Day Anniversaries

It's Children's Day! (in Korea.) Time for pictures in the park.

Today is the twentieth anniversary of the day I first arrived in Korea for my mission. (Still can't believe it's been that long.) It's also the fourth anniversary of the day I learned I was pregnant with Andy, which means Andy is the same age that Kate was when we found out we were expecting him. I've been feeling rather sentimental about this.



Kate says, "Do bunny ears on me, Mom!"



Awwww!




Andy gets some help across the stepping stones.



Running to the playground.




We went down to Chung Ki Wa in Lakewood for lunch, and I got some really yummy kimchi jjigae. I brought home the leftovers--judging from past experience, it should be even better the next day!



Andy has developed his own rice-and-kim technique. His concentration is very cute.



We all like kim! I brought four packages and it all got eaten. Yum.

In honor of the occasion, my BYU roommate Trish posted this picture of me opening my mission call:



I was on the phone with my parents in Ohio while opening it. I remember that when it first came I called home and Mom wasn't there, so I had to wait. Oh the torment. Mom talks about how she remembers me reading through it and saying "KOREA??!" It certainly was a life-changing experience. I'm glad to be able to commemorate these occasions, and lucky that my family will indulge my penchant for pictures and Korean food!

Digi Handprint

I needed a handprint for something a little while ago and couldn't find anything I liked online, so Kate and I got out the paint. As there seems to be a shortage of handprint Photoshop brushes, I thought I would share one here.

Click here to download the zip file.

A is for Andy

Andy writes letters on the Magna-Doodle.  He'll write the whole alphabet in order now.  Some of his letters are endearingly wonky.



Last night Doug was writing things like "draw a circle," "draw a triangle," and Andy was reading it and doing it.  He is doing a little better with the talking thing--he chatters all the time, repeating things that he's memorized, but doesn't do much synthesizing to actually communicate verbally.  If there's something we want him to say we still have better luck writing it down and getting him to read it.  He sure is cute, though.  We love listening to him chatter and sing.