Tonight... I Dance!

... well... not exactly. In case you're not on our email list or you haven't heard through facebook, our song, "Your Hands," will be on the Fox show "So You Think You Can Dance," tonight at 8/7c!
This is the closest I'll ever get to being involved in any sort of dance competition. Like my family always said... "short arms, can't jump, can't dance... the curse of the Kellners (my maiden name)." Believe me, you should be glad I stuck with singing :).

Does This Count?

We noticed that Lucy had been especially talkative today. So we pulled out the camera in our hotel room in Corpus Christi and caught her saying her first word.

Kinda Creepy

Dave and I just finished another recording project with Mitch Dane at Sputnik Sound. I usually try to make Mitch a Thank-You gift at the end of our session, (this was the first year's gift, and this was the second) and this time was no exception. I decided to branch out a little bit, and make something that I knew he, especially, would appreciate. So... here is my skull pillow complete with embroidery:
It didn't turn out exactly how I was envisioning (and I wish I had the chance to take a better photo of it!), but Mitch totally loves it! It's so rewarding to make a personalized gift for someone who truly values the gesture. Mitch is the best!

New Haircut!

I was in desperate need of a haircut. I was planning to just go in for a trim, but then I saw this photo of a super cute, super short haircut in Real Simple magazine... ... and it got me thinking. Do I really just want a shorter version of this?


OR.. should I be brave and get it cut like THIS!!!



Guess what I decided to do? It's really short, and it's a huge change, but I totally love it.

Context

Here are many photos to show off our lovely new painting. I realize that the previous post made it impossible to tell how big the second painting was, so I wanted to do a follow-up post. It looks so at home over our breakfast table, no?

Beautiful Things

Dave and I are friends with an enormously talented artist named Elizabeth Foster. We've been looking at her art all week around the studio (we've been recording a new project for the past week and a half... hence the lack of blog posts), and we decided that we'd like some artwork of our very own.

I've been wanting to hang more art around the house but it's hard for us to spend money on things that don't necessarily serve a practical purpose. However, I'm so glad that we decided to buy these two pieces AND I love the idea of supporting a friend of ours in the process. We will enjoy these paintings for years to come and they will bring beauty and joy to our home. I suppose that's a practical purpose, right?

How many times can I say it... I love birds! These pieces were just exactly what we wanted. I picked out the big one, and Dave really liked the smaller one.

We hung the bigger one (it's about the same width as the mirror in the top photo) over the bistro table in our breakfast room, but I don't have a good shot of that. I was holding the baby and trying to get out the door, so I asked Dave if he would snap a few photos. I'm planning to take a few later so you can see the paintings in context, but we'll see what happens...

I love the victrola and the fact that there are little stars hanging from the clouds. It's so whimsical and magical. I told Dave that I now know what I want for my birthday... more Elizabeth art!

Makeup

After talking with a wise lady who is also a traveling singer-songwriter/mom, I decided to get an entire second set of makeup to use when we travel. She also recommended having designated travel clothes and a "performance outfit," for every new season, but I haven't gotten around to that. I'm not sure if I'd be disciplined enough to save a whole set of clothes exclusively for travel AND to have to wear the same outfit on stage for a whole season. I think I would long for some variety. It DID, however, make me realize that when I go shopping I should keep an eye out for clothes to wear on stage.

Anyhow... buying a whole second set of makeup was quite an expensive undertaking, but SO worth it because of the amount of traveling we do. I went to a M.A.C counter at a department store and asked to have my makeup done. Looking back, I wish I would've waited and gone to an actual M.A.C store, because the girl who did my makeup was not as experienced/professional as I was hoping. It was still really fun to get some girl time.

Here's my attempt at a self-portrait of her handiwork. This is the evening look (and don't worry about the little brown spot in my eye... the doctor says it's just like a birthmark):
... and up close: