Sandcrawler

Connor has wanted a Star Wars Lego Sandcrawler for over two years. We haven't bought him one because they cost $140, so he's been saving his Christmas and birthday money. After his birthday this month, he finally had enough to buy one, so we ordered it online and it arrived this week.


He spent the whole day Saturday building it, and finished it yesterday. Brad estimates he spent at least 12 hours total over two days. That's focus!

Gold and Silver and Sunshine

Here's a sneak-peek at Gold and Silver and Sunshine, an upcoming documentary on the making of Dig Out Your Soul.

For a die-hard Oasis fan like myself, this is a must-see. And, at over eight minutes long, it's packed with interesting interviews and great footage, not to mention oozing with cool. It's also fun to hear that Manc accent that sounds like a mouthful of marbles.

It appears that the documentary will only be available as part of some limited-edition deluxe packaging, so I hope I can get my hands on it.

Heroes

Ethan and Dylan playing Guitar Hero for Wii.

The Guitar Hero is Ethan's, and the Wii was a combination gift for the boys' birthdays. So far, it's been a big hit.

Fall Parade

Connor and Brad enjoying some parade shenanigans. Dylan was too old and cool to partake in the fun for this photo. (He's almost 10, you know.)

Song of the Moment

"The Shock of the Lightning"

Here's the first single off the new Oasis album, Dig Out Your Soul, which drops on October 6. I'm not crazy about the video, but the song rocks. It's not really a true "Song of the Moment" because I'm not listening to it constantly, but I know I will be when I finally get my hands on it.

The band played this song at the show we attended earlier this month, and it was absolutely pummeling. Love it! Take four minutes to enjoy a terrific new Oasis song.

Noel Gallagher

On September 7, Noel Gallagher was attacked while playing onstage with Oasis in Toronto. (Click ahead to about 1:15 for the actual moment.)

CRAZINESS.

This guy somehow eluded security and made it onstage. As you can see in the video, Noel fell hard on his monitor. After a 15 minute delay, the band returned to finish the show.

The sad part is that they had to cancel two shows because Noel has been ordered on bedrest to heal a cracked rib and torn ligaments. This idiot's momentary rash act left loads of fans out of a concert and a tour crew out of work. At least Noel's kept his sense of humor: "Nowt down today, droogs," he wrote on his blog. "Spent all day in bed suffering from my severe tickling at the hands of that drunken Canadian who, it transpires, is a grown man of 47 years!! (And I thought I was the oldest person at our gigs!)"

Also of interest, as of this posting, this video has racked up almost 1.5 million views. This incident even warranted mention by the media. I've had three friends call to make sure I'd heard about it. Sadly, yes.

Happy Birthday, Connor

Look who's seven!

OAAAAAASIS!

The day finally came - Oasis concert in Winnipeg! Here's the story, Morning Glory.

Brad and I hit the road Monday morning, Labor Day 2008. The closer we got to Canada, the thicker the Manitoba license plates got. By the time we hit the border, the cars were lined up 30 deep and five lanes wide. This made for a 45 minute wait; however, once we got to the gate, it was quick.

Once we got into Canada, it took me awhile to adjust to kilometers ("Wow, these miles are just flying by!), and then the rain came. I've never seen INSANE RAIN like this. Good thing Brad was driving because I was panicking.

We did finally arrive at the MTS Centre in downtown Winnipeg, zoomed easily into a parking lot ("Seven dollars, please. Yes, we take American cash."), and found our way down to the basement where we had a reservation at the Exchange Restaurant and Beer Market. Yummy $16.95 buffet meal and Stella on tap.

There were two opening acts. Matt Costa played a 30 minute acoustic set. It was pretty good but didn't bowl me over. Ryan Adams and the Cardinals then played a smokin' hour-long set. His dry sense of humor was funny.

Oasis played a short, 18-song set, which sounded AWESOME. It wasn't too loud and the sound quality was clear. I had seen the setlist posted from the previous stops on their Canadian tour, so we knew what they would play.



The timing was right, all the pieces fell into place, and the stars aligned to make this event happen for me. I'll always remember this quick trip and this terrific concert experience.

Climbing the Walls

Lately, Connor can't walk through a doorway without climbing it. Dylan went through the same phase, and it will pass. Either that, or he'll put his foot through the drywall.

Becoming Jane

Here's a clip of one of my favorite scenes from Becoming Jane, starring Anne Hathaway as Jane Austen and James McAvoy as Tom LeFroy.

This was such a good movie that I watched it twice in one weekend. Well, I'm a sucker for literary-based period pieces, for Jane Austen, and for James McAvoy. Check out his smirk as he turns after the "horizons must be...widened" line. Mmmmm.

Back To School

School started today. Hard to believe we now have a first-grader and a fourth-grader. They both had good days, except that they couldn't walk with their friends to school because Dylan's still in his knee immobilizer. Oh, and Connor came home with hives. We joked that he must be allergic to school. Hope it passes soon.


Here's Connor in his classroom, which happens to be the same room as he had last year in kindergarten. I think he was a bit disappointed about that, but they had to move the kindergarten classrooms over to Corpus Christi this year because Northridge didn't have space for full-day kindergarten.

One hundred seventy-nine school days until summer vacation!

Mind the Gap

This was Connor a few weeks ago...


...and here he is today.

The tooth fairy got a "two-fer" last night at our house because Connor lost both his top front teeth yesterday. He looks so different, and he's even got a bit of a lisp. He could do a perfect rendition of "All I Want For Christmas Is My Two Front Teeth."

Arty Smarty

Dylan attended a lot of camps this summer, including a week-long art camp at Theo Art School. He came home with loads of projects and artwork using a variety of different media. Here are some examples.











We think these are pretty awesome, and I'm definitely getting the snowman framed.

Leggo My Lego

Dylan went to Lego Robotics camp last week with his good friend, Connor, and had a blast.

They worked together on several projects, and did really well for their first time using the Robotics software. Hopefully, Dylan can get into his First Lego League team at school this year.

Half-Blood Prince

Warner Brothers has released the trailer for the next Harry Potter movie, The Half-Blood Prince. Oooo! The movie will be released November 21.

I just recently finished re-reading all seven books, and they were terrific. My first time reading them was with Dylan, so I didn't get the whole story when he read to himself. He's also re-reading them all, currently almost done with book six. Yesterday when we were out, Dylan said he wanted to get home so he could read his book. That's how engaging these books are. And, quite exciting, Connor asked me to start reading them to him from the beginning. How great that our boys can be so into reading.

Scottish Charm x 2

Here's more James McAvoy for those of you who aren't familiar with him. This is from his last appearance on the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson, who, by the way, is hilarious! I try to catch his monologue every night. He's a naturalized US citizen from Scotland, and these two are great together.

Anyway, the clip at the beginning is from Wanted, which I really enjoyed. It had been awhile since I'd seen a truly R rated film, full of violence and language. I usually don't like stuff like that, but this was great. There was also just a hint of fantasy, like the bending-bullet scene in the clip. Angelina Jolie plays an awesome badass, too.

Go JFK!

Cindy Clough and I

I got back late last night from Brainerd, where we gather every August for the Just For Kix Directors' Convention. It's busy, fun, and exhausting, but also rejuvenating. I return home from convention all fired up to start another season of dance.

I like catching up with all the friends I've made in the company over the last 12 years, and I always come away with improved dance technique and new teaching methods. My favorite part of Convention is the dancing. We can take up to six workshops, with an entire dance taught at each, and I love the challenge of the difficult ones. However, a few years ago, I started to feel my age. It's getting tougher keeping up with the twenty-somethings, but it's still a blast for me.

Song of the Moment

Here's one for you whilst I'm away at Just For Kix Convention. "Troublemaker" is one of Connor's current favorite songs. When it comes on, he does a perfect pogo. The lyrics are hilarious, the beat irresistible. Take three minutes to enjoy a super fun song by Weezer.

Great Scot

James McAvoy is my new celebrity obsession. He's been in several movies in the past few years, but he's been under my radar until just recently. What a terrific character actor!

He played Mr. Tumnus in Narnia...


Brian Jackson in Starter For 10


Dr. Nicolas Garrigan in The Last King of Scotland


Max/Johnny in Penelope

Thomas LeFroy in Becoming Jane

Robbie Turner in Atonement

Wesley Gibson in Wanted

What a cutie! More to come...

Owl Post

This was the scene just outside our bedroom window yesterday morning when we opened our blinds. I've never seen an owl before, so it was pretty exciting. An owl perched on our trampoline! They're huge, and their necks really do swivel all the way around. It hung around long enough to poop on the tramp, then flew off to a dead tree in the neighbor's yard.

And here was the scene when we opened the blinds this morning. TWO owls perched on our trampoline! It's such an exciting novelty that I didn't mind too much that they both emptied their bowels on the tramp before they departed.

It was starting to feel magical, like the scene in the first Harry Potter book where the owls are trying to deliver Harry's letter of acceptance to Hogwarts but Uncle Vernon won't allow it, so the owls multiply.