Art in The City

Summer time is a great time to experience the arts. Not only are there many opportunities at the local fairs and festivals and farmers markets, but there is also the big daddy of them all, the Utah Arts Festival.

This has gotten very large over the years, from the small thing it was in the early 1980's to now. This year one of my fellow writers and talented artist is doing a demo there with her group of painters. Hazel Jensen will be demoing oil painting. She does great work, so you should go and check her out.

I am looking forward to the state fair, as usual. I love going through the exhibits and seeing all the different talents. Of course I spend most of my time in the fine arts building, but I've also gone through the other ones where they had the quilting (as I mentioned my friend had entered there) and the photography building. There is some amazing work out there.

The funnest one to go through is the craft section, the articles in there people make up is hilarious as well as enlightening. There are so many gifted and talented people in the world, it's simply amazing to see the abilities showcased in all the different exhibits.

If you don't feel up to the state fair, all the different counties have fairs as well. We like the county fair because it's free admission...grin. It also doesn't charge for submission of pieces to the fine arts.

They have a building that is filled by the senior citizens. It's so wonderful to see the work they do and the crafts they share and teach. I think if someone doesn't have a grandmother, they should contact one of these women to have them teach some of their skills -- lots of it is a lost art. Who teaches young women (or men) how to crochet? Knit? Cross stitch, needlepoint or tatting?

I was taught how to embroider and crochet by a grandmother, though she wasn't mine. I didn't even particularly like the lady, but I was grateful to learn how to embroider and crochet, both of which are art forms in and of themselves.

I have tried to teach my daughters and pass down these skills, and a couple of them enjoy them, but it's a hobby, nothing more. I remember when these skills used to be something that enriched a woman's life...a way to decorate an otherwise sparse home.

The art festival is the weekend of the 26th through the 29th, at the downtown library. The state fair is September 4th through 14, and the county fairs are at various times through out the summer. Searching through the internet will give you information and times on all of them. It's a good family outing, a good way to mingle with your neighbors (even those on yourldsneighborhood.com!) -- you'll never know who you'll run into, or what new thing you might try. The Neighborhood is fun to explore too. Have you taken a tour yet?

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Return to the Neighborhood

They're Gone!

I'm not sure if I'm excited or not. My three oldest still at home, left this morning for a three day Single Young Adult camping trip up at Bear Lake. It's going to be REALLY quiet without them. I'm hoping they have loads of fun, make new friends, and don't get burned within an inch of their lives...sigh.

I didn't hover over them this time. I didn't pack a single thing. If they don't have it, it's their own doing. I have to remind myself that they are old enough to know what they need and what to do. right???

Anyway, so now it's just the three youngest and my hubby and me. I'm thinking it's going to be much simpler in some ways, more frustrating in others -- because those little boys LOVE playing with their older brother, especially the video games. I just aren't as good as he is...grin.

Hope everyone else is having a great month. I can't believe June is over half gone already...and no painting worth speaking of! ARGH. Okay...I'm going to knuckle down today and get some work done. I won't have as many distractions, right???...right.

Father's Day

Okay...remember my post about Mother's day and how my hubby was stressed out but the day went well anyway???

Sigh.

Let's contemplate Father's Day. I spent most of the afternoon telling my two oldest sons to stop arguing, as my dear hubby spent most of the afternoon getting the coals ready to cook dinner since we'd run out of gas for our grill and the burner had to be replaced (was his fathers day present from me...).

I was ready to shut them all in their own rooms and lock them in. We ended up eating outside on the lawn under the willow tree, and it was wonderful. The ribs turned out delicious, and the cobbler was tasty...so it ended well, but for a while there I was tempted to send him on his own little picnic so he could have some peace.

What is it about mother's and Father's day that brings out the worst in the children?? I just don't get it. They didn't even get up and make breakfast for him. My one daughter made it after we got home from church, but the other children wouldn't even help unless dragged.

My oldest daughter was the only one that got him anything, and I was pretty much ready to disown them all.

Well...at least he knows I love him. sigh. I'm looking forward to our anniversary next week...it should be nice and quiet and wonderful....hmmmm

That is if we don't melt from the heat first.. sigh. Good old summer is officially here.

I'm READING -- don't bug me

Well, I'm signing up for the Summer Reading trek. I don't usually sign up for these things because I don't have time during the school year when I'm working to read as much as I'd like. I figure I hope to have more time now, but that could be wrong -- I guess we'll see.

So...my list for reading this summer...

The 13th Reality -- James Dashner
Far World, Water Keep -- Scott Savage (ARC -- Blog tour! -- more to come, grin)
Fool me Twice -- Stephanie Black

I don't have the list handy, so I'll be adding to it later. I'm excited...

Oh, What do You do in the Summertime?

Well -- today is the first day (well, school calendar wise) of summer. I informed my 12 year old son that it wasn't official until the 21st, and he gave me this confused look. I love making them confused -- at least I do it often enough that I must enjoy it...

He's the one holding his nose in the photo above -- we were at one of the smelly pots at Yellowstone that year. That's a trip we probably won't be making soon, gas prices being what they are.

Every year from the time I discovered there was a world outside of diapers and bottles and had children in school, I have had a project for them to do during the summer. One year it was painting. We went to the neighbors yard and painted the sunflowers that grew in large stalks along her fence. She loved the company, and they actually liked doing it.

One year I had them write a story in a notebook. I only had one that really took off with it, although most of them still like to write. I guess we'll see.

Last year it was weeding in the garden to earn Nintendo time... I know, the standards have sure shifted.

I haven't come up with anything yet this year, and my hubby asked me last night if I had a list of things for the kids to do or if I was just going to wing it. Right. As if I wanted to contemplate the looming summer months any sooner than I had to? He's somewhat jealous, you see, although it's more a mix between jealousy and relief. He's jealous that my job has me off in the summer (though we'd LOVE to find something that paid all summer long...) while he has to work, and relief that it's me getting to deal with the kids all day and not him.

Don't get me wrong -- he loves our children, he's the one that worries about them when we go on dates or short weekends and leave them at home. It's a very endearing quality. But he knows what summer gets like. There have been times in the past that I've called and begged him to come home early before I strung them all up by their toes, confined them all to their rooms for the rest of the summer, committed Hari Kari or something like it.

This summer is going to be a change, and it's going to be hard. Our oldest son goes to boot camp, and won't be around at all. Our next oldest son is working at the local amusement park so he'll be gone most of the time, and our two daughters that are still home will be working and going to school part time.

That leaves my youngest two sons with the benefit of having mom be on their cases all day and trying to encourage thoughtful behavior. sigh. It's usually a struggle to get them doing chores and some kind of homework so their brains don't atrophy during the summer months.

My 14 year old is autistic. What this means to the average person, is that he's not real good in social circles. He'd rather do what he wants to do, regardless of what anyone else wants to do. He is also very artistic. He can copy things that amaze you. His favorite thing is enlarging maps from books. He loves maps.

I'm thinking this year perhaps I could get him to enter something in the fair. He might be willing, he might not. I guess I'll have to see. I know he has it in him.

My 12 year old, doesn't really care about art, though he has done some great work in school. I'm thinking my project this summer will be for them to create something that they can both enter in the county fair. It will give them time to do more than one thing, if they aren't happy with their first creation.

This way I can get them to experiment with all the different types of medium -- this could really be fun! I can just see Randy with acrylics...well, maybe not. This will definitely be something we'll be doing OUTSIDE. We'll have to hook up the cd players so that we have nice inspirational music playing and both of them wearing large OLD shirts that can be tossed when they're done.

Speaking of music...have you visited the neighborhood juke box? This is soo cool! I was excited when I found it, because I love music, and listening to it while I write or paint is just an extension of heaven...grin. Anyway, I love the choices they have, and that not only can you listen to music on the computer, but if you are a musician, you can get your music to the site! Talk about promotion!

My favorite section is the instrumental, and today I'm listening to Fireflies. Hmmmm... Check it out -- It's great stuff.

Anyway, back to summer and art and fairs. I'll let you know how the project goes -- and I'll post pictures so you can see them. It should prove interesting. I'm hoping I can convince Randy to paint something other than a map...

Return to the Neighborhood.

Labor Day...the beginning of Fall

We have a discussion in my house with our eldest son that Fall doesn't start until the calendar date. I've told him several times, that as soon as the temp finally falls below 80, we are looking at fall. It's not going to be this week, probably, since the forcast is 90's or 80's, but it's coming, and the nights are getting cooler, which is all I ask for!

I love three day weekends. We all get to sleep in, we all get to hang together, (especially me and my hubby-which is my favorite person to hang with anyway)and we have a BBQ and enjoy the last vacation day of the summer.

When I was growing up in California, the last official day of summer was Labor Day. We all knew school started the Tuesday after, and partied like mad that weekend. (well...partied as much as you can when you're LDS and don't do all the typical things associated with partying...LOL) We knew that there was a long stretch of time between that and our next day off, which was Thanksgiving. Then it was a shorter break between that and Christmas, which we got two weeks off for. Then we had a day in February, and then spring break sometime around Easter, usually the week before or after. Then we had to wait till Memorial Day to celebrate summer again.

I look at my kids schedules now, and they have at least one day off a month, seems like. While they don't get the long stretches of break like I did (unless they were in year round school) they get lots of little breaks. It drives me crazy. Who said school had to start the end of August? What good do those three days do?? And this year, they don't even get a spring break. They have a Friday and a Monday and that's it.

It's a good thing I'm not in charge. LOL

Anyway, one of my favorite seasons is on the way and I can hardly wait for the leaves to start changing!!

Enjoy the last day of summer, I know I will.

Summer Days of Pain

Well...my son likes to call Summer the 'time of torture'. This, because that is when we have a large garden, and everyone has to contribute to the care and weeding of it. (as well as the planting, etc.)

We got on his case for it, but I can see his point. We spend the winter in the house watching movies, reading books, and generally working on the house. It's much more laid back that summer work, and much cooler.

Now he has to be outside in the 90+ temp and pull weeds, and plant seeds, and spray his brothers with the hose...

Such torture. I'm watching it right now...sigh. Anyone want a teenager?