TRIP TO ST. LOUIS

Last week we took a quick trip to St. Louis, Missouri for an audition that Andrew had with the St. Louis Opera Company. He was originally going to go with other people from his program but they ended up canceling so I got to go along for the ride!! It was really fun!! Neither of us had ever been there before so we looked up things that we could do and places we could visit; like going to the Zoo, going to some historical Lewis & Clark sites, and going to the Gateway Arch. But, our plans were foiled by really cold and rainy weather so that meant that the Zoo was out along with the Lewis & Clark sites. So even though we didn't get to do as much stuff as we originally planned we had fun going to the Gateway Arch, going to a museum, visiting the very first church built in St. Louis, and driving around and exploring the city. Here are a few pictures of our adventures....

The Gateway Arch



I know this looks like a porta potty but it is actually the little "pod" we rode in to get to the top of the Arch! It was sort of like a gondola but really tiny, Andy had to hunch over so he didn't hit his head!! When they were building the Arch they couldn't use a traditional elevator to get to the top because it was on a curve, so they combine the technology of an elevator, a train, and an amusement park ride and came up with these "pods"!

Mommy and Grayer riding in the "pod"

Daddy and Grayer riding in the "pod"

The view from the top of the Arch



This is the Church that we went to. More pictures below!

The family at 630 feet in the air


This is a mural of the Arch. It's cool because it compares the height of the Arch, 630 feet, to other famous buildings and structures, so you can see how tall it really is! If you click on the picture you can see off to the left is the White House which is 70 feet. And off to the right is Old Faithful which erupts at 184 feet, and Mount Rushmore stands at about 500 feet.

This is the inside of the Church

It had the most beautiful ornate organ, this picture does it no justice!

Okay, I guess there were more than a few pictures -- sorry!!!
Oh and in case you were wondering Andrew's audition went really well!! We don't know yet if he will be hired, so we'll keep you posted!
HAVE A HAPPY THANKSGIVING EVERYONE!!!

Come to the Opera!!

Andrew delivered an amazing performance in the Opera this semester. I love to watch him perform and see him come alive on stage!!! He puts in so much work and I am so proud of him. The Opera they performed this semester is called, The Crucible which takes place in the 1600's and is about the Salem Witch Trials. Andy played the part of Reverend Hale, and he did a fantastic job!! It gave me the chills to watch him!!
I wish that all of you could come and see for yourselves how amazingly talented he is! Okay now I'm bragging but I can't help myself, my husband is the Greatest!! I love him!
Here are some pictures of him and the rest of the cast.
The last picture is of Andy with his voice teacher, Andrew Wentzel.
Enjoy! Don't you just love the wig!?!

Andy's Transformation!!

So on the first day of this semester Andy went to class and his Opera Director forbid any of the men to cut their hair. The opera they did this semester was The Crucible which is set in the 1600's, a time when the men wore their hair at their shoulders. So Andy's director, not being the smartest man, thought that he could get away with not wigging the men for the show by having them grow their hair out.
Needless to say, Andy obeyed and painfully grew his hair out for the semester hating every second of it, and in the end it did him no good because when he went to the dress rehearsal they wigged him anyway! Boy was he mad!!!!
(Just a side note, they had to wig ALL of the men in the opera because of course nobody's hair can grow 10 inches in just 2 months.)
So to make a long story short the morning after the show Andy wanted his hair off. So we cut his hair, and let's just say he is much happier now!!!
We took some before and after shots...
He has never had his hair this long before.

Curly in the back

And this is now... much better!

What's Wrong with This Picture!?!

After breakfast one morning I was washing Grayer off at the sink and when I went back to wash off the table, there was a new occupant in his high chair!!! I guess Hermione wanted some breakfast too!!! Silly Kitty!!