Nature: God's Art

In the Autumn, we always try to drive the Alpine Loop when the trees are especially lovely in their display of reds, purples, yellows, and oranges. It is tricky because you have to time it right. The canyon changes a bit before everything else.

We went up the first Monday in October. The canyon was quite lovely. Some of the colors were astounding. However, the actual loop was more yellow than anything. Some people really love the yellow fall colors, but I'm more a fan of the red.

The drive was nice, but the windy roads got to me faster than usual. By the time we reached halfway, I was feeling rather ill. We all got out, and it was freezing. Cold or sick? Which do you choose?

You can see here the lack of fall colors. But the view is still nice.

Tyler got a picture of our crew. Even Pip.

We drove a little further and saw a trail. I was more than happy to stop again. Everyone piled out and walked around while I sat and closed my eyes trying to settle my stomach. Tyler got some fun pictures while they were exploring. You can see why it was cold with a layer of snow on the leaves.

Ivory was happy to keep Pip warm.

Here are some pretty fall colors. What a great variety. 

Tyler let me drive on the way down and the American Fork side seems a little straighter. By the time we were out of the canyon, I was feeling okay again. It is a bummer that I get nauseous on roads. Although if I remember correctly, I think I was trying to read a conference talk for FHE. I can usually read in the car, but not on windy roads. I'll try to keep that in mind in the future.

Studio Art

June has been taking art every semester she has been in Junior High. If you take it all year every year, you can do Studio Art your ninth grade year. Mostly this class is coveted for the ceiling tile you get to do your final year. Only Studio Art kids get to do those. It is a pretty cool distinction to have your art on the ceiling somewhere in the school.

June has loved art and I have loved watching all her creations. When she started Studio Art in the fall, one of the first things they did was have a shirt logo design contest. Everyone made a Studio Art logo and then they voted on which design to put on a t-shirt. I'll save you the agony....June didn't win. However, I thought her design was the best. Well, I only saw her design and the winner, but I liked hers more. I think she heard that her design came in second place, but the top design won by a good margin. Here is June's cute design. I thought it was so creative.

The design they ended up going with was good too. Look for it in the following pictures. The ninth grade class usually does a field trip to the zoo to take pictures of animals and then they draw animals for one of their projects. It is actually quite hard to get a day scheduled for the zoo, and all chaperones have to be fingerprinted to do that field trip. Mrs. Hunter had already asked if I could help since my fingerprinting was done a while ago. But she was not able to schedule the day she needed, so she came up with a new plan. Instead, the yearbook and Studio Art classes combined and went to BYU. I was still invited although I was the only parent on the trip. (The teachers were there too making three adults. It was an easy group of kids though.) The kids behind me on the bus were a little rowdy though.

We started at the MOA and learned a lot about photography in a tour downstairs. June had my camera since she was taking pictures for Studio. But I got a couple in the foyer. I still love the rainbow string up above.

Can you see Hannah? What a photobomber.

After the museum, we headed over to the Cougar Eat and got some lunch. Hannah got Chick-fil-a and was so mad that the lady gypped her 50 cents. She talked about it for the rest of the day. It still comes up, months later, how annoyed Hannah was with that lady who took her money. :) June and I just got pizza...and ice cream of course.

We had a little time outside to kill. These girls crack me up. I love the art crew.

Oh, here are a few more. (If you take one picture, more will come to be in the next one.)

And Christina up close. All these girls make me smile. June has great friends and so many of them do art just like she does.

From lunch, we went up to the Bean Museum. This is where the studio art kids took pictures of animals. All the animals were out and they all held very still for pictures. How gracious of them. June took lots of pictures obviously, but I'm only including my favorites.

This is a numbat. I don't think I knew about this animal, but it is so cute!

I don't know what type of bird this is, but maybe it is related to the peacock. Those purple spots on its feathers are fantastic.

I'm not saying this model of the crocodile is terribly realistic, but I do like the angle June chose for this picture.

Finally, there were a whole lot of monkeys jumping off the stairs outside. I made sure to get a picture of them.

I do like to go on field trips when I can. This was a fun one. Next year I'll go with Robyn too...

Cazanniversary 2017!

We made it another year in the marriage ring. We make a great team, and it is rare that we have to tag our partner to go in for us. We seem to be a well oiled machine. But even machines need maintenance and repair and so we make sure to take good care of our marriage and have a day each year that we celebrate our union. We call it an anniversary. We highly recommend it.

I had just gotten back from Minnesota and was getting into my routine when our anniversary came along. There are a couple things we try to do each anniversary.

1) Plan our dates for the year.

2) Do our photo shoot.

We don't always get them both done on the same day, but that hardly matters. This year we grabbed lunch and went to a park to enjoy the weather and start planning dates.

That selfie in the sun was so bright, we took another because we couldn't see the first one. Seems they both turned out okay.

Our dates last year started well but fizzled out, mainly because of ankle surgery and the busyness of life. This time around we are trying to plan farther in advance. Everything on our list is doable, we just have to make time for it. I guess that is the trick in marriage...making time.

Some of the things scheduled for this upcoming year are glass blowing, a mini trip, a motorcycle class, and shooting pool. I'm very excited.

For the rest of our anniversary, we went and got a couples massage. I don't mind a good massage but Tyler really loves them. I'm happy that he is happy. And I'm glad I didn't get stuck with a guy this time around. We had two women masseuses. Much better.

We went to see Victoria and Abdul. I certainly do not know much about Queen Victoria. The movie was very interesting, although possibly not as factual. I love Judy Dench. She reminds me a bit of my Grandma Pat. I sure wish my kids could have met her. (My Grandma, not Judy Dench.)

We did our photo shoot another day when we had more time. I actually went to the same area where I took June's pictures because it was so lovely. I think we are still a pretty good looking couple.

I think this one is going on the wall. It is my favorite and a little different than the others we have had. Always good to mix things up.

Eighteen years. Not bad, huh? Tyler likes to say that our marriage in an adult now. It took us a while to grow up. But however you look at it, we have had a lot of fun along the way.

39 ish

Welcome back to the present. As per my goal, I am trying to keep up with current events. There is nothing major happening right now except...our birthdays!!

Actually, that isn't major either. As I've gotten older, I've cared less about my own birthday. I usually will accept any excuse to go out with friends (but that is true all year) and I will often buy myself something I want. Happy birthday to me.

I've always kept my birthday and Tyler's separate, probably from some futile hope to keep mine special. But it usually just means two cakes and more work for me. So this year, I apologized for all my selfishness and asked if we could just celebrate together. Naturally Tyler was game. I think he was able to breathe a sigh of relief. Now he didn't have to pretend to plan anything.

We were going to choose a day in between our birthdays to party, but ironically, the only days we had time in the evening that week were MY birthday or HIS birthday. So we just settled on his.

However, my day was still special. The littles made up some songs and dances for me. They are so cute. I wish I had recorded the second one. They changed the words to a song and it was so cute.

Tyler and I went to lunch for my birthday. We tried out Chubby's because we had heard good things about it. The scones were delicious, but it was too heavy for me. I actually felt a little sick in the evening. I think I would not recommend it.

I made the girls play games all day. Well, at least Robyn and June. We had such fun. I won my fair share and lost a few too. Especially when we played Speak Out. I never win that game. I don't think my mouth is big enough.

For dinner, I chose grilled cheese because I like them and they are easy enough that the girls can make it for me. Look at my cute silverware. They love me. That must be why the knife is pointed right at me...

Now fast forward a few days for the birthday boy. I was out shopping and ran across this creepy cupcake. I actually thought about buying it and putting it in the place of Birthday Bear to see what the kids would do. But my good mom side won out.

Tyler wanted steaks for his birthday and didn't mind cooking them, so I was totally on board. Oh, it snowed on his birthday, but that didn't stop him from making world class steaks.

I made some pina coladas the night before so we made them again but added mango this time. I like the original more. Man, they were thick. You could turn them upside down and they just sat there.

When dinner time came, we had extras with us. No worries, the more the merrier. And amazingly, I had bought just enough steaks. Well...one steak isn't really enough when Tyler makes them, but we all were happy with what we got.

Plus, it saved room for cake. I made a 'Better Than Anything Cake.' Yum. And because we were going to celebrate when we were the same age, I got these candles.

It was three candles. So Tyler and I each blew out the candle on our side. Just so you know, it isn't easy to blow out only one candle, but we each did it. Impressive.

And then we blew out the last one together. I'm so lucky to have this guy by my side.

We bought Snake Oil for the family and played it that night. We came up with some great products. June and I only did well by pooling our cards and picking out what we liked. (Technically cheating, but hey...it was my birthday...sorta.) Together we came up with some great things like the 'Urge Bowl,' and the 'Bacteria Shell.' I think this game would be better played in pairs.

Check out some of our gifties. I got myself some new nylons. I got a pack of six pairs of different fancy black ones. I wore one pair on Sunday and got so many comments. I really love them.

My mom sent me car hooks. I love those too. I already use them all the time. Now, if I could just get the kids to leave them alone...

And Tyler got some more gun stuff. Bet you can't guess where he is going soon. Yep, right back to Front Sight. But he will be well outfitted.

As you can see, we had great birthdays this year. I am most happy that I have good health and a great family.

p.s. Mom Cazier sent me a card and some money for a new dress. I haven't gone shopping yet, but it is only a matter of time...

That's My Favorite Pizza Fart (Piece of Art)

While I was editing my pictures, Ivory came over and upon seeing the Spoonbridge and Cherry she said, "That's my favorite pizza fart." It took me a minute to figure out what she really said. Mumbling...sometimes frustrating, sometimes hilarious.

Let's go back to the beginning though. At least the beginning of that day. It was Tuesday in MN. We wanted to go to the temple, but apparently the only session they had was at 7pm and we already had plans in the evening. Crazy that they only had one session. I guess it is a small temple and the demand isn't high on Tuesday.

So instead we went to Minneapolis and checked out the Sculpture Garden and Walker Art Center. The Sculpture Garden was very cool. We went up the hill first. The art is a little more interactive up there. The first thing we came to was an underground room. We walked in and sat down.

The art for this room is simply to look up. There is a hole in the top and you view whatever the sky is doing. I have to admit that is an interesting idea for art.

The area is lovely. There is great architecture around and it was such a nice day, although a little chilly. I didn't see much of Minneapolis, but it seemed like a clean beautiful city.

Art is cool, but strange. There are so many things out there that make me wonder what the artist was thinking while they made a certain piece. Many things I do not like or would not consider art, but to each his own. Like these drippy worms on the lawn.

At least you could touch them. They were slipperier than I thought.

We wandered down to the central garden. It was really fun to walk around and look at all the different pieces. We played my favorite art game of "Name that piece." Sis. Cazier and Sis. McPhie played along half-heartedly, so I'll just name some of these fun pieces.

Does this make my face look slimmer?

Two Faced

Oobleck Tornado

Tin-man Prototype

Dr. Who #14

I can't do noses

There were some iconic pieces that most people would recognize.

This central part of the garden was not interactive. There were many signs that told people to NOT TOUCH THE ART. Well, I didn't think the pedestal the rooster was on was part of the piece. However, when I leaned against the rooster's stand, an alarm went off. A security message played telling me to cease touching the art. Oops. I gave everything else a healthy distance. Ironically, the next piece over was a giant swing that you could sit on. I didn't.

Here's Ivory's favorite 'piece of art.' You probably recognize it.

This horse was pretty cool. It looked like it was made from pieces of drift wood, but it was really bronze, painted to look like wood.

I'm still not sure about this reflection wall. There were several walls. Some you could see through, other showed you a reflection? I'm sure it is deep.

Inside we had lunch before going to the museum. There was an artsy-fartsy cafe where I had a grilled cheese with apple slices in it. It wasn't too bad and the chips were excellent. (Large and homemade.) We rested in the foyer for a bit. They had rocks to sit on. They were pretty cushy rocks. Grandma was using one to stretch out her back. I don't think she knew I took this picture. (Hee hee.)

The art in the Walker Center was so weird. Super strange. I'm not sure I really liked anything. Here are a few things that caught my eye.

There was a gallery with Katharina Fritsch's work on display. She is the same artist who did the Blue Rooster. She does simple shapes and often changes the colors.

What do you think of this heart? Maybe something you will give your Valentine this year?

These rats with their tails in a ball made me think of Gregor the Overlander.

In another section of the museum, there was a wall of butts. It was just the same picture of someone's back end over and over again. Vicki almost didn't notice it. She couldn't tell what it was right away. That made me laugh.

Also funny was when we were on the elevator and Vicki told some guy on the 9th floor that he looked, "High up here." I just shook my head. She doesn't seem to notice when she says things like that. It is amusing.

We had a chance to drive around and see a few buildings. We stopped at a Catholic Basilica. We went inside and it was amazing.

In the evening we met Pres. and Sister Barney, the mission president and his wife. They were very nice. They took us out to eat and we stayed at the mission home that evening so we would be closer to the airport in the morning.

I remembered that I had taken a picture at the mission office, but with Mom's phone, because mine was running low on batteries, probably from using my GPS all day. Sis. Cazier was nice enough to send it to me, so here you have it. Left to Right (Bro. and Sis. ? I don't remember their names, but they were fairly new to the office. Sis. Hileman who had been in contact with Mom for weeks. It was fun to meet the face behind the voice. Sis. McPhie. President Barney and Sister Barney and the one and only Sister Cazier!!)

In the morning, Sis. Barney made a delicious breakfast and then she and the President had to leave for a long day of traveling and interviews. Their mission is very large and they travel all over.

We only had to go to the airport. Previously, I had done almost all of the navigating, but I decided to let the ladies take a shot at it. After all, I was leaving so they would have to do it themselves anyway. I almost made it without helping. They had put Terminal 2 into the GPS, but I needed to go to Terminal 1. As we got to the airport, you could see signs for Terminal 1, but Sister McPhie was stubbornly sticking to the GPS directions despite my telling her that it was taking us to the wrong place. Mom was sticking with what Sis. McPhie was saying. It was comical. They were headed for the wrong exit and I sat there saying over and over, "Don't take this exit. Keep going straight." I felt like I was talking to myself. Vicki pulled over and practically stopped in front of the exit before she finally decided that she could continue on to Terminal 1 instead. (They did manage to get home that evening without me, although I hear it took them a while.)

But we made it to the airport. One more picture with these ladies. I had such a great trip. It was so fun to hang out with Mom and travel with her. I think she is an easy traveler. She is going to be amazing on her mission. She has such a generous heart. She makes friends easily. She will do a great job sharing the gospel and her testimony.

I was stopped in security for taking rocks on board. It isn't my first time being stopped for rocks. I need to stop taking them on planes. I spent a lot of time reading but eventually I made it back home. And look who was waiting for me.

The kids were happy to see me and I was ready to jump back into my regular routine, but I am so glad that Vicki let me take her to Minnesota. I will always have fond memories.