Timpanogus Orchestra Oct 2015

We are always up for a good cultural experience and always wanting to expose our kids to these things.  When I found out about the Timpanogos Orchestra was doing a Halloween performance I just knew it was to best way to introduce kids to the symphony.  Anyone could come dressed up in their costumes if they wanted and the entire orchestra was dressed up in their Halloween costumes. 

It started out with them wheeling Dracula's coffin out on stage.  He came out and got the music started.  They did classic Halloween songs and Harry Potter music score.  After a few songs all of the sudden the orchestra started playing the Imperial March and Darth Vader came onstage and force choked Dracula along with a few other members of the band.  It was so theatrical everyone was on the edge of their seat.They invited anyone with a light saber or a Star Wars costume to parade around the stage while they played more musical score from Star Wars. After the concert was over there was trick or treating in the lobby with candy cookies doughnuts and drinks. The whole night was defiantly one to remember and  I will reiterate THE BEST way to introduce children to the symphony.  Gone are the notions that the symphony is boring.  I highly recommend it. 

So You Think You Can Dance Dec 2015

My sweetie surprised me with one more year of "So You Think You Can Dance" tickets.  I am grateful he is willing to suffer through 20,000 screaming girls just to please me.  My favorite this year was the robot dance with the girl from  Utah.  Maybe that's why I like this shoe so much,  we actually have quite a few people from Utah make it onto the show.  A little Utah pride you might say. In any case its always fun to relive my glory days as a dancer

Christmas with the Mormon Tabernacle Chior 2015

Scott Ellie and I were able to attend the Mormon Tabernacle Choir for the annual Christmas concert.  We try every year to get tickets to this concert.  Its a lottery system where you have to ask for them and just see if you get them.  It doesn't matter what kind of connections you have, because we have tried we even know 2 people in the choir and that never panned out.  This year turned out to be our lucky year.

I was most impressed with the organ player.  He was amazing!!! His fingers and feet were just flying.  Having tried playing the organ before I can't believe how incredible he was.  The choir and dancers were good too.

gingerbread houses Dec 2014

This year we did our first ever gingerbread houses with actually baking gingerbread from scratch.  I found a recipe online along with some templates.  The trick of course is roll and cut out the templates on the cookie sheet.  That way there is as little movement as possible and it wont warp.
The kids and Scott all got to decorate their own houses.  Scott turned his into a church.  We really had a lot of fun making these.  Sure it was a lot of work to mix, bake the gingerbread, make the special icing, prepare, the foundations and put it all together. but it was one of those moments where we were brought back to the family togetherness that Christmas always seems to bring about.  We had the music playing and it made me think of simpler times.  That maybe I could give my kids a taste of that wonderfully simple tradition that they could savor and tuck away for times when they are older and needing a sweet memory.

Trans Siberian Orchestra Nov 2014

We decided to check out the transiberian orchestra one more time.  They were playing the album that we really like so we wanted to see it live.  Our seats are pretty good right in the center and as usual the light show was pretty entertaining.  It is like going to a rock concert though, really loud with weird people and I might be getting a little too old for that sort of thing.  I was a little disappointed in the one song that I just love from them with the children's choir.  They used a bunch of adult singers instead and I felt like it really took away from the how special the song is.  It just wasn't quite the same without the angelic voices of children.  Aside form all of that the musicians really are amazing.  Their stamina alone is impressive and of course one only really goes to see Transiberian Orchestra for the light show. 

Chalk the Block Sept 2014

I hemmed and hawed over whether or not to be an artist in chalk the block in Provo.  As much as I wanted to do it family calls for sacrifice, and this year I had to sacrifice my opportunity to participate in this awesome display of art.  I am hoping the next year I will be able to fit it in without it adversely affecting my family.  Because I wasn't able to be in it I did make everyone come with me to check it out.  We had Scott's sister and her family with us and thankfully they were pretty compliant.  I am truly amazed at some of the work these people created. The hard part is the scale of everything, its actually more difficult to draw everything in such a large scale.

My favorite is the women with the elephant, so impressive.  I know I am not up to this level but I have to start somewhere and I think it would be such a great experience. 

They had a live band for this event and they were awesome!  Their tone was great and they had a wide range of songs.  My boys danced and danced.  Peter tried out his little break dance moves wowing the crowd.  I must admit I do love that my kids are quite confidant, it will serve them well in life.  I just hope that as they grow up people don't steal that confidence away from them.

After admiring all the art we ate at Toucano's a delicious Brazilian restaurant.  Once we had our fill we headed home off into a beautiful sunset.  It was almost like Heavenly Father wanted to show that he too can create beautiful works of art.  It was a great day!