5-4-07

Jess spent the night last night (all kids under one roof!) and this morning I taught her how to cut mats. We spent all morning and half the afternoon cutting mats and mounting her photos. Aza helped out when I left for the gym. Here's a photo of the two of them on my messy office floor finishing up the dozen or so photos we prepared for the "final exam" on Monday.

5-3-07

Today I drove over the mountain and picked up my daughter. We loaded the minivan full of her stuff from the dorm. I cooked crawfish etouffee for dinner, and made strawberry freezer jam afterwards- eight jars of it! That should last a while.

5-2-07

OK, this is Mittens. She's like 17 years old or something, and she loves to stand on my lap while I work. And dig her claws into my skin. And wake me up with a cat-scream at 5:30am wanting water from my bathtub. I'm SO glad Aza is coming home tomorrow because Mittens is always calmer with her big sister at home.

5-1-07

This May Day I remember Lily, lost to us three years ago. I thank her for her gift, her most precious gift to us.

4-30-07

Today, after picking Squirt up from lacrosse practice, I took these three photos of flowers in my front yard. A peony ready to bloom into pink tissue. Phlox in a mound. A perfect dandelion head with azaleas for a blurry backdrop.

4-29-07

This is the view from my front porch, where I sat today reading a very long paper called "Art and Artifact of Children's Designing: A Situated Cognition Perspective". It was a beautiful day for reading outside.

4-28-07

I finished stringing my Nana's pearls and wore them for the first time today. She's been gone since 11-11-87. Twenty years, almost. She was with me today though.

4-27-07

The JPJ Arena where my old band, Metanoia, played tonight.

4-26-07

My old band is playing tomorrow at the huge arena in town, and they asked me to take photos and film the setting up process, and the concert tomorrow. Corona was the beverage of choice amongst band members this evening.

4-25-07

I decided to learn how to re-string pearls since the ones I inherited from my Nana nearly 20 years ago have been broken since then. Here I've successfully knotted the first few. It's not so hard after all! (See my wedding ring? It's a melted down and re-designed, hand-made reincarnation of my old ring. Now Dan and I match.)

4-24-07

Today I got back to normal life, and sitting in the parking lot waiting for my son to finish up lacrosse practice, I snapped this photo of the band room door of his school. I spent countless hours waiting in the car outside this door for Aza to come out after band practices.

4-23-07

This is the New Orleans Art Museum, which was unfortunately closed today, so I couldn't see the George Rodrigue pieces I was yearning for.



And after leaving the closed art museum, I let my rental car do some wandering and checked out the town of Metarie, Louisiana.

4-22-07

Today I got to tour LSU! I'm spending the night with Jennifer from Auburn. We went to a play this afternoon, and out to dinner at a catfish restaurant, and went on two walks around the beautiful garden district neighborhood. Tomorrow I drive to New Orleans to see the new exhibit at the art museum, then fly home to the foothills of the Blue Ridge.

4-21-07

My Grandmother's back yard: Live oaks, spanish moss, and shrimp boats on the canal.

4-20-07

Serene scenes of Lake Arthur, Louisiana, and a crawfish restaurant I plan to dine in tomorrow.

4-19-07

Here's some photos I took out the window of my rental car while driving over the
Atchafalaya Swamp.

4-18-07

My first NARST presentation- here I am all dressed up, wearing my mother's black linen skirt. The presentation went well, and our paper was well received.

4-17-07

Walking around the French Quarter in New Orleans.

4-16-07

I arrived in New Orleans today- and with my telephoto lens, took this picture of a boat on the Mississippi River from the 30th floor of the hotel.

4-15-07

This is Aza's fish. The fish got a new abode today- a bigger flower vase.

4-14-07

I got over 25 requests on freecycle.com for this lawnmower. It went to a lady named Tammy. Freecycle is a great way to give away things you don't need to people who need them.

4-13-07

Dan and I walked today on the trail around town. We hiked on a new section neither one of us had been on. It was quite beautiful. Here's a lovely river shot.

4-12-07

Today I realized that after over two months of running, that I AM A RUNNER.

4-11-07

My office got messy again.

4-9-07

This is my friend, Igor. We have been in grad school together for three years now. People think we plan these things, but we often show up for class wearing the same "theme". Today it was pink and jeans.



I have another photo of us from a our first year when the theme was blue polo and khakis. I think great minds just think alike!

4-8-07

Me and my girls. Jes came over with her wet hair pulled back in a pony tail, so I offered to give her a hairdo. It came out quite curly, but we had fun. Drats, I told Aza that I'd put hers in curlers too, but forgot and now she's gone back to school. I miss them both all the time when they're at school. We had a low-key Easter with simple food and lots of laughter. Dan thinks we're from outer space, what with the kooky things we talk about. I sent Jes back to school with some old cookware from the basement, and Aza back to school with a long hug to last her four more weeks.

4-7-07

Can you believe this? I woke up this morning to SNOW in April in Virginia. Amazing. It was beautiful, but didn't last long. What a special treat.

4-6-07

My orchid finally bloomed! It had been dormant since September of 2005, and now it is making me smile. It was a gift from Thessa at my very first art show... Maybe it's speaking to me.

4-4-07

This is one of the many colored azaleas in my mother's back yard. Her garden is just blooming with color. I love Auburn in April!

4-2-07

Kate and I can both tie our hair in a knot!

4-1-07

My office in Auburn for a few days, on the breakfast room table I studied at all through college.