Reylin (Matt's niece)
"oooo"
Reylin, Matt and Ty (Matt's nephew)
My favorite picture of Matt to date
Jamie seriously considering the potato salad entries.
I'm not sure who these people are.
But Sydney is on the left.
Lindsay and Reylin
Sunday, July 25, 2010
Thursday, July 22, 2010
Thomas Jefferson's Monticello 7-19-2010
I was excited to visit Monticello, because I teach this in my Western Art Survey and American art classes. I spend a whole day on it, when I could probably gloss over it in 15 minutes. There is so much to explore here. Jefferson was not only a president, a collector, an inventor, but also an architect (he designed Monticello) among many other things.
Floorplan of the house (bottom center)
and slave tunnels (each side)
The tunnels are below ground so they could go about their
business without Jefferson noticing them.
Interestingly, the slaves were treated as family.
The butler ran the house and was also a slave.
He was later freed in Jefferson's will.
tunnel
bathroom
Jefferson's grave site
Booker T. Washington National Monument - 7-18-2010
Booker T. Washington recalled his childhood in his autobiography, Up From Slavery. He was born in 1856 on the Burroughs tobacco farm which, despite its small size, he always referred to as a "plantation." His mother was a cook, his father a white man from a nearby farm. "The early years of my life, which were spent in the little cabin," he wrote, "were not very different from those of other slaves."... Later, as principal and guiding force behind Tuskegee Institute in Alabama, which he founded in 1881, he became recognized as the nation's foremost black educator. http://www.nps.gov/archive/bowa/btwbio.html
for some reason I have a fascination with birds and their mating rituals - they mate for life
some sort of work station. This was a pretty location, but it was so hot!
100 degrees +. It is an old plantation with a lot of land (of course). Although owned by the nps, they still raise animals here - pigs, chickens, sheep, etc.
Monday, July 19, 2010
Sydney's 10th Birthday Party
apparently, I wasn't very concerned about those who came to the party...headless!
New Orleans
WW2 Museum
Musician off of Bourbon Street - where it is quiet. Unlike Bourbon St.
Our dinner cruise was on this boat. Fun!
Friday, June 25, 2010
Thursday, June 24, 2010
Today, we began working on the front garden. I've been pulling weeds (and poison ivy) for the past month, but this was our first real beginning. We uncovered a bees nest - awesome. I guess they live IN the ground. Poor Sushi jumped a foot and ran for the hills. He's fine.
We pulled weeds, top soiled and mulched. We didn't take a "before" picture of the section we finished, but here are 2 "after" pictures. It was COVERED in weeds. Keep in mind, this is one small section in the front and we have a lot to do before it's finished. I like the red mulch. Good choice, Matt!
Wednesday, June 16, 2010
GIST LIST
1. spending the day with Carrie and her two boys, Jaxon and Anders, at Imagination Station
2. Seeing their faces light up when they discovered something new
3. an evening at the pool - relaxing
4. having the summer off
5. to new surprises
Tuesday, June 15, 2010
First pics of the "spare bedroom"
Some people forget we have this room, because it is currently not in use. I, however, think about it everyday. Here are the first pics...one step at a time.
These three paintings of butterflies are from a series I did in 2002. They hold a lot of meaning for me.
living room new furniture
This room is still a work in progress. We have to figure out how to work the tv, and how to make the cables "disappear." And we need some end tables and lamps - things like that. But I LOVE the new furniture. We have been eyeing this set at Appliance Center for months. We went back last week to buy it and it was on sale. We saved over $300 - and it's what we wanted anyway. It is dark brown, very soft, and kind of like a corduroy texture. It looks much nicer in person, but here are some pictures. Sidenote: I LOVE how it works with the Ben Shahn print.
Thursday, June 3, 2010
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)