Family Party

Here are a few pics from when Jared's sister was in town and one of the other sisters graciously agreed to host.  The hostess claims she had a hidden agenda to get help putting up their new basketball standard but her husband managed it before anyone could get there.  It is always fun to have the old folk, the tiny tots, and the yet to join the family all together to talk and laugh.

  Some of the kids here aren't family, it seems that in their neighborhood one house is as good as the next one to hang out.  We didn't mind these little party crashers at all!  It looks like a very child friendly place to live.  And then there were popsicles.  It seems like these things have been around since the ice age (pun intended). 

There is always someone interested in a pickup game.  There are plenty of tall people on one side of the family so this bodes well in a competitive game.  Then again, if you're playing against 8 year olds, it's more about having a good time.  Someday Jared's side of the family really wants to create a volleyball team to enter tournament play.  It would require some travel since so many of the players live a good distance from each other, two in Utah, one in Colorado, one in Arizona and one in Idaho.

Trees & Tulips

As part of my Master Gardener certificate I have to do 40 hours of volunteer service.  I signed up to spend a lot of time at the Thanksgiving Point Tulip Festival.  Monday was my first day and it was very busy.  I was at the door greeting guests and handing out maps.  Later I was posted in the garden.  It was lovely.  Then Wednesday came.  I was outside for the whole 2 shifts, nearly 7 hours.  It started with rain, then a couple hours of sunshine, then a violent hail downpour.  After that the weather was drizzling and cold.  I left early once I started shivering.  The tulips that were opened were a bit hammered but the many ones yet to open should be fine.  I'm going back tomorrow and rain is in the forecast.  I hope the weatherman is wrong.  I did get this shot while the sun was out.

I really love being outside working as soon as it starts warming up.  Over a week ago we helped take down and clean up some trees at the old log cabin.  It was a smooth operation, my brother ran the heavy equipment which lifted the "loggers" to the tops of the trees.  Several family members helped by breaking down the large limbs and running them through a chipper.  My uncle on the tractor moved the large pieces that will become firewood. We benefitted by getting 3 pick up truck loads of mulch which we have tilled in to the garden - thanks to dad on his tractor.  And my sweet aunt bought our declicious lunch from Kneaders.  Wow - their turkey cranberry sandwhich is delicious and their cookies are some of the best I have ever had.  There are still a couple of huge trees by the old house which need to come down, the city has said they will remove them.
  We're wondering when they'll be getting to it.

Not So GREEN Today

Over the past couple of years we have tried to keep a tradition going that Amy participated in growing up. Her grandfather had a small orchard and every year they pruned the trees to prepare them for another year of producing fruit. All the pruning created a large pile of branches that needed to be discarded. So, they lit the branches on fire and had a hot dog roast. An "old-school" practice for sure, beginning before green waste disposal or wood chippers were handy. Of course, we followed city regulations and kept it very safe with hoses nearby!

In our neighborhood Amy's family designated their last empty lot in our cul-de-sac to put our "green" waste. Some of the neighbors and Amy's dad contributed to the pile. Today we torched it and had our own neighborhood hot dog roast. We also ate fresh fruit salad, homemade potato salad, and smores. One of the kids at the party had a great idea of stuffing a square of chocolate into the middle of the marshmallow to help it melt. Genius! It was the perfect day for the event. The weather was beautiful and the company of family and neighbors was enjoyable, we LOVE where we live. It is amazing how much better a hot dog tastes after it has been cooked on an open fire.

Volleyball

Over the years I have enjoyed playing volleyball. Unfortunately our high school did not have a men’s team, but in college I enjoyed playing co-ed volleyball on an intramural team which won first place. That same team then decided to enter a volleyball tournament in Moab where we didn't do as well. Since then I have had a hard time finding others to play volleyball with. Each ward I have been in I have attempted to get people interested and have not had any luck. My little brother invited Amy and I to watch him play in a tournament at the University of Utah. He played for the Weber State club team. This was the first time I saw in person a team play at such a high level. They had set plays which they seemed to execute with ease. At that point I desired to play more volleyball. Two years ago when we moved into our home, I again expressed an interest in playing church volleyball which no one else seemed to be interested in. Then, one day after church a neighbor said that he and his cousins played volleyball once a week at a church house and he invited me to play. To my pleasant surprise they were quite good. They used hand signals to call plays similar to what I saw my brother's team do. Since then every winter I have played volleyball with them and have enjoyed every minute of it.

I Love Springtime!

This weekend was beautiful weather - great for planting and hot air balloons.  We have noticed balloon pilots have been out more during the cool mornings and clear days we have had.  This balloon was new to me - it has an interesting metallic gold in the design which made it stand out even more in the sky.  It floated near our home for a while and then landed in a neighborhood down the street.  Naturally, the kids in the area flocked to see it up close.  I have never been in a hot air balloon myself; I used to have nightmares about them.  Maybe someday. 

I ordered some vegetable seeds this year and Saturday I planted them in a mini-greenhouse tray.  Last year I grew some large bottle gourds from seed.  Now I'm trying to grow some small gourds called goblin eggs, a mix of large gourds, pumpkins and watermelons.  For the first time I am trying to grow heirloom tomatoes, one called Big Rainbow and one called Sweet Tangerine.  I also planted a hot pepper mix, sweet pepper mix, and a Chocolate Cherry tomato.  When the ground is ready, which is still a week or two away,  I am going to put in some sugar snap peas and spinach.  When I went to a local store to get some seed starter trays, they had pansies with huge blossoms and also some intensely bright primroses.  I couldn't pass them up, probably because I am so eager for the change of season.  This is a photo of the primroses, the coral colored one is my favorite.   I planted them in a shady spot next to our front steps.

March Madness

Is there a better month than March for college sports?  So many games played in just one month.  Typically I do not fill out the NCAA brackets but rather root for any Utah college (Go Aggies!) and all of the underdogs.  I enjoy watching a team that is "supposed" to do well get beat by a team that was "supposed" to loose.  This year however, I decided to fill out a bracket since my work is giving a plate of cookies to whom ever picks the most correct wins in the NCAA tournament.  The cookies would be nice, but I still would rather watch a team get upset in the tournament especially if it is Duke.  Let the games begin!!!

Ma and Pa painting

I thought I would show you the progression of a recent painting.  I've seen other artists videotape themselves while creating a painting so I thought I'd try it, using still photos since I don't have a camcorder.  The following painting is 24" tall by 18" wide, done in oil on canvas.

Here is the very loose indication of the figures' general size and pose.  From here I will continue to redraw and refine the shapes to make them more specific and careful.

The way I like to paint I tone (spread a thin layer of paint) the whole canvas and then use a rag to lift out the light shapes.  This method requires working fast and completing the lightest areas in one sitting.

Here I add shapes and values in the background.  For some reason my students usually like to put this part off until the last minute.  So, practicing what I preach, I try to get to the handcart and distant trees fairly early in the process.

Having never stopped to periodically take photos of a painting while I work, I later realized that the progression is a bit uneven between photos.  Especially in the beginning I find that I'm too busy concentrating to stop.  The most detrimental mistakes are made in the beginning so I try to work carefully and continuously.

Here I begin to put more detail in the cowboy's pants and rope as well as the cast shadows in the grass.

At this point I am adding definition to the woman's clothing and hair.  You may or may not have noticed the overall color shift - I did.  This is because I was losing natural daylight and relying more on my studio light. This painting was done in under two hours, and it's amazing how much the light changes in a short time.

This is the painting as it sits in my studio today.  I haven't decided whether I want to paint over it in full color or keep it this sepia look.  There are several areas that still need attention, but it's a start.