America actually DOES have talent!

Seriously, I am so ready to road trip it down to Vegas just to see this man--then I could die happy--most beautiful voice I have ever heard. Every time he opens his mouth I am blown away with sheer awesomeness. 

What I Wore--Rainbow Day!!

Our final color day: RAINBOW DAY!!!

Okay, I know I said pink was my favorite day, and maybe it still is, but I gotta admit--I was totally lovin' rainbow day! Especially since I made this awesome rainbow skirt a while back that was just perfect! 

"Rainbows apologize for angry skies." ~Sylvia Voirol

"My heart leaps up when I behold

A rainbow in the sky..."

~William Wordsworth

"Be thou the rainbow in the storms of life. The evening beam that smiles the clouds away, and tints tomorrow with prophetic ray." ~Lord Byron

With matching watch band of course (my students think I have a billion different watches--it's the same watch, I promise, just different fabrics from my stash):

and we can't forget the Rainbow SONG! Remember that from the good old days? Oh my goodness, it was so much fun to watch Mrs. Ord (MY first grade teacher--she's still there, and still the best!) teach the first graders the rainbow song--it's like going back in time, only better. :)

Red and yellow and pink and green
Purple and orange and blue
I can sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow too.

Listen with your eyes,
Listen with your ears,
and sing everything you see,
I can sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow,
sing along with me.

Red and yellow and pink and green,
Purple and orange and blue,
I can sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow,
sing a rainbow too!

Butterfly

Lys Agnes is my favorite contestant on America's Got Talent--she's beautiful, inside and out, and her audition totally blew me away. She came in, dressed in street clothes, dreads, etc., and I totally expected her to start rapping or sing some gospel something or whatnot--but then she started singing, and it was like nohting I ever could have imagined. I guess she used to sing, but after her fiance was killed in a car accident, she stopped--there is a sad beauty to her voice sometimes--and it's just been such a treat to watch her come back and become what she is today. Check out this clip--it totally made me cry (what can I say, music speaks to me)--she's amazing!

Giveaway ends--TODAY!!!

Remember that GIVEAWAY over at A CREATIVE PRINCESS??? TODAY IS YOUR LAST DAY!!!!  So, if you want to win a pair of my vinyl music record earrings, head over there now and enter--hurry, there are only a few hours left!

GIVEAWAY over at A CREATIVE PRINCESS!

Guess what friends? I'm doing a giveaway of one of my all time favorite items--my vinyl music record earrings! And YOU get to choose which pair--isn't that awesome? I'm a fan of choices myself, and I have a lot for you to choose from!

Do you prefer some cute little post earrings?

Or some funky dangle earrings?

Terri over at A Creative Princess (which, by the way, is one of my all time favorite blogs as well--so cute! I especially love her sunflower theme, because sunflowers are also an absolute favorite of mine) has been gracious enough to feature me on her blog this week--CLICK HERE to go check it out and enter to win some free earrings!!

Vintage Vinyls

My favorite music ever? CLASSIC ROCK! What can I say, I was totally born to Rock 'N Roll! Maybe it's because it's the music I remember listening to as a kid--driving in the car listening to KISS or Chicago's greatest hits, or head-banging to Bohemian Rhapsody or Come Sail Away with my mom--I just love it, and now my little brother's love it too (Bon Jovi and ACDC are playing the majority of the time we hang out together). So, when I came across a vinyl record mold, I just couldn't resist!

Rock and Roll all night with some flaming KISS earrings!

Or some classic Beatles vinyls?

and of course, to honor the great classics we can't forget some awesome Platinum Rock and Roll Hall of Fame Earrings!

Last, but certainly not least (in fact, these are MY FAVORITES!), some Hot Rod Red ACDC Vinyl Earrings:

Rock on friends! :)

My earrings were featured!

Get It Right

I'm a Gleek--who isn't? Anyway... I always love Glee music, of course, but this last episode really hit home for me: I absolutely adore this song. I'll be totally honest, it really got to me:

I Heard the Bells

Today I attended my parents' ward for church (my ward has disbanded until next year), which was actually pretty fun. It's been nearly four years since we've all been together like that--P.S. Carolyn is here!--so it was neat. We sang one of my favorites, I HEARD THE BELLS ON CHRISTMAS DAY, and Stephanie Nielson shared her thoughts about it (yes Stephanie is in our ward), which was really unique, because Stephanie has gone through a similar tragedy, except that she is still here to share her love and testimony with all of us.

Although I haven't always been the biggest fan of the hymn itself (like Gladys Knight I struggle with LDS hymns at times), I have always absolutely LOVED the words--Longfellow is a freakin' genius in my opinion--and I love any words accompanied by a story, especially the very sad stories that some how end on a peaceful note.

Henry Wadsworth Longfellow rocks because he was a family man and loved his wife, Fanny, more than anything in the world. One day when Fanny was putting locks of her children's into an envelope (they did that back in the Romantic days), she tried to seal the envelope with hot wax and somehow her dress caught on fire. Longfellow threw a rug over her and tried to save her, but she was too badly burned and died the next morning. Longfellow was also burned, so badly that he could not even attend her funeral. Losing Fanny was heartbreaking, as Longfellow described that his marriage to her was nearly perfect and after her death he was "inwardly bleeding to death." (I'm horrible, but how beautiful is that! I want a love like that, just sayin'). That Christmas Longfellow's journal read: "A merry Christmas' say the children, but that is no more for me."

Not long after losing Fanny, Longfellow's oldest son, Charles, ran away to join the Union during the Civil War; as if Longfellow wasn't worried enough--his son having left without his blessing--he soon received word that Charles had been fatally wounded. Basically, his life sucked at this point, but instead of cursing God or becoming angry and bitter, Longfellow simply expressed his grief through his beautiful words: "God is not dead nor doth he sleep. The wrong shall fail the right prevail--with peace on earth good will to men."

This is one of my favorite versions of this lovely song. Merry Christmas. <3

one last breath

Yeah, I should be studying, but you know what? I have been sitting in this chair for Heaven knows how long... hours, days, dare say even weeks. This paper is killing me, slowly but surely. Fortunately death is only a day or so away, so not all is lost completely. I would gladly take on all of your seven testing center finals you are all complaining about--trust me, they are a million times easier, or at least kill less brain cells. Oh well, what can you do; I chose this route, so I will put up with the ulcers that come with it, and in the end I am actually rather proud of myself--if I ever finish. Anyway, yes, I have been sitting at my desk for hours on end for the past two or three weeks working on this theology research project; the only breaks I get are to go to the gym and shower. It's quite the life, let me tell ya.

However, last night I decided to take a few hours off and attend Christian's band concert at Timpview--now that was definitely worth the effort. Their bands are amazing for sure, but this one piece really stuck out to me; just before it started, Sean turned to me to inform me that it was at least 15 minutes long. Great, that's a good 15 minute nap--but there was no napping here, in fact, this piece was so beautiful I ended up crying instead--not out of sadness or happiness, but out of the sure beauty and power that accompanied the notes. I loved it. I don't have a recording, but if you Google it you can listen to it and see how wonderful it is: It's called "Russian Christmas Music," by Alfred Reed, 1944. Reed was commissioned to write a piece of "Russian music" for a concert in Denver to improve Soviet-American relations through premieres of Soviet and American works. Prokofiev's March, Op. 99 was supposed to be played, but they discovered that it had already been performed in the United States just a few weeks earlier. Thus, Reed was commissioned to write a new piece--his first composition for band--with only sixteen days before the concert. Of course, he did it, and in only eleven days--they had four days to learn it. Amazing. And he was only 23 years old. Yup, pretty awesome.

If I don't make it to Christmas next week, a very Merry Christmas now with some wonderful music. <3

Feeling Chills

Kind of cool; according to this article, people who feel chills in response to music are more likely to be open to new experiences. In this study, people high in openness = creative, curious about many things, have active imaginations and like to play with ideas, much more frequently feel chills in response to music. Go figure--that would explain why I am seriously so cold all the time. ;)

http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/12/101207191525.htm

Being Scottish Rocks

AC/DC just made my day--bagpipes and hard rock. I am especially loving the duet between the bagpipes and the electric guitar half-way through the song. Yeah. Awesome.

The singing will never be done

This weekend I attended the BYU Singers and Concert Choir show and was thoroughly enriched. I love music, just in case you didn't already know. It's what makes the world go round. I loved all the pieces--which is rather surprising, I'm not usually so into every one of them, but I felt that the program was extremely well done. However, I will have to pick one particular one out, if only because it is reminiscent of my dearest London Town--it's a song by Dominick Argento, but the poem is by Sigfried Sassoon, a favorite war poet. This is probably the happiest poem I have ever read coming out of Sassoon, haha--yet I still love it. There is so much beauty in these words, I love it! Enjoy:

Everyone Sang

Everyone suddenly burst out singing;
And I was filled with such delight
As prisoned birds must find in freedom,
Winging wildly across the white
Orchards and dark-green fields; on--on--and out of sight.

Everyone's voice was suddenly lifted;
And beauty came like the setting sun:
My heart was shaken with tears; and horror
Drifted away . . . O, but Everyone
Was a bird; and the song was wordless; the singing will never be done.

April 1919

Siegfried Sassoon (1886-1967)

Swan Lake

There are so many things that I got to do in London, it continues to amaze me. Here's another: hey guys, you bored? Wanna go see SWAN LAKE tonight? Seriously? Heck yes. Off to the London Coliseum for the Mikhailovsky Ballet rendition of Swan Lake.

Front row balcony seats--BEST SEAT IN THE HOUSE--in my opinion.

Siegfried left much to be desired unfortunately (Sister Seely said the only way he could have gotten that part was his height); Derek in THE SWAN PRINCESS is much better, haha. However, the jester and Odette were absolutely wonderful, and it was a great show, and now I can say that I've seen the 28 fortes of Odette--and yes, I even counted them out loud to make sure she did all 28.

Intermission? How about some ice cream? Yes, feel free to do the math: there were only four of us.

But you have to understand something here--IT'S ICE CREAM!! and it was a fairly LONG show.

We may have got carried away a bit... but that's what we did at shows--intermission means ice cream. Duh. :)

Portobello Road

Saturday: Up early for a trip down Portobello Road. That was insane--so many people on such a small street! But it was fun, and they very truly do have anything and everything, just like the song! I even found a guy selling bird whistles, so of course I had to get one, and man, they are just as hard as the kid in the Disney movie makes them seem--I'm sure Christian and Sean could get them to work within seconds, but I had some trouble. I was singing Portobello Road the rest of the day. Love that song.

Portobello road, Portobello road

Street where the riches of ages are stowed.

Anything and everything a chap can unload

Is sold off the barrow in Portebello road.

You’ll find what you want in the Portebello road.

Rare alabaster? Genuine plaster!

A filigreed samovar owned by the czars.

A pen used by Shelley? A new Boticelli?

The sniper that clipped old King Edward’s cigars?

Waterford Crystals? Napoleon’s pistols?

Society heirlooms with genuine gems!

Rembrandts! El Greco’s! Toulouse-Letrec’os!

Painted last week on the banks of the Thames!

There’s pure inspiration in every creation.

No cheap imitations, not here in me store.

With garments as such as was owned by a Duchess.

Just once at some royal occasion of yore.

In Portobollo Road, Portobello Road

The fancies and fineries of ages are showed.

A lady will always feel dressed a la mode

In frillies she finds in the Portebollo road.

Can you tell what they are singing?

Listen close--it made me laugh.

There was an entire store full of old sewing machines--you would have loved it mom--It was awesome.

“Burke’s Peerage;” “The Bride Book;” “The Fishmonger’s Guidebook;”

A Victorian novel, “The Unwanted Son;”

“The History of Potting”, “The Yearbook of Yachting,”

The leather bound “Life of Attila the Hun.”

Portobello Road, Portobello Road

Street where the riches of ages are stowed

Artifacts to glorify our regal abode

Are hidden in the flotsam in Portobello Road

You’ll find what you want in the Portebollo Road.

Tokens and treasures, yesterday’s pleasures

Cheap imitations of heirlooms of old

Dented and tarnished, scarred and unvarnished

In old Portobello they’re bought and they’re sold.

and I even found a WWII gas mask for Elein, just as she requested--seriously, this place is full of wonders! It's very interesting, that's for sure.

Portebollo Road, Portobello Road

Street where the riches of ages are stowed

Artifacts to glorify our regal abode

Are hidden in the flotsam in Portobello road.

You’ll find what you want in the Portobello Road.

Feed the birds, tuppence a bag

That's right--I fed the birds--on the steps of Saint Paul's in fact. Beat that. Livin' the Disney dream--the bird whistles on Portobello Road, the Merry-Go-Round in the park, and feeding the birds. Oh yeah. :)

Early each day to the steps of Saint Paul's

The little old bird woman comes

In her own special way to the people she call,

"Come, buy my bags full of crumbs;

Come feed the little birds,

Show them you care

And you'll be glad if you do

Their young ones are hungry

Their nests are so bare

All it takes is tuppence from you

Feed the birds, tuppence a bag

Tuppence, tuppence, tuppence a bag

Feed the birds," that's what she cries

While overhead, her birds fill the skies

All around the cathedral the saints and apostles

Look down as she sells her wares

Although you can't see it,

You know they are smiling

Each time someone shows that he cares

Though her words are simple and few

Listen, listen, she's calling to you

"Feed the birds, tuppence a bag

Tuppence, tuppence, tuppence a bag"