Sounds like Music....

First and Last in Life.....

Today was the first day of fall baseball.To prepare for the first practice Josh laid out his entire uniform the night before. The first thing Josh did when he woke up at 8 AM was get dressed- belt, socks and all. Practice wasn't until 11 AM.First time Josh and Matt are going to play coach pitch.
First time Trey decided to sit this season out. Instead Trey chose to start learning how to play the piano. He had his first piano lesson today- from me. He'll have his first real lesson with a woman in our ward in October. His first song book was the same one I first used when I took piano as a child. (Thanks Mom for mailing them to us!) After his first bit of instruction, an hour later he was using correct fingering, counting and plunked out Jingle Bells. If only it will be this easy and pleasant to practice. I am afraid the happiness won't last. First time Josh took the camera and had his own photo shoot.You can tell that the last thing on Brynn's mind was posing for Josh. Her first priority was to get her hands on the camera again!First time I ever found a Star Wars action figure taped to my kitchen cupboard. It won't be the last time Matt's creativity astounds me.

First Blue and White day at school was on Friday. It certainly will not be the last....First group photo at the pool at our second to last time we can swim in 2008. The last day it is open is on Monday (Labor Day).First time Kaitlyn and Brynn wore goggles. First time they swam with noodles.Last time for Josh to get an opportunity to squirt his mom while she takes photos. Kaitlyn gets first place for being the best kitchen helper around. She was the first one to lick her beater full of frosting clean.Our first dance impromptu dance session.Not Brynn's first time dressing herself.Not the first nor last fall of the evening.Kaitlyn first wiggles,then jumps and at last needs a rest!First time I got a break all day! Not the last time I'll be watching the girls 'show' (Baby Einstein's World of Animals) with them. Who could resist one last time to cuddle with these cuties before they go to bed?

First and last, it doesn't matter. It's sharing those precious beginnings and endings with the ones you love that make life complete.

Straight from their mouth....

While running errands in the van with the kids the iPod was blasting songs through the radio. Trey hollered up to me, "Mom, I want to listen to We the Kings next. You can find them in the cauliflower section." Josh exclaimed, "What do you mean cauliflower?" Trey quickly corrected himself, "I mean Cover Flow."

Midnight Sun

I found out today that a partial draft of Stephenie Meyer's novel Midnight Sun was illegally leaked and posted on the Internet. I went to her site: http://www.stepheniemeyer.com/midnightsun.html and found this:

"Midnight Sun: Edward's Version of Twilight

August 28, 2008

As some of you may have heard, my partial draft of Midnight Sun was illegally posted on the Internet and has since been virally distributed without my knowledge or permission or the knowledge or permission of my publisher.

I have a good idea of how the leak happened as there were very few copies of Midnight Sun that left my possession and each was unique. Due to little changes I made to the manuscript at different times, I can tell when each left my possession and to whom it was given. The manuscript that was illegally distributed on the Internet was given to trusted individuals for a good purpose. I have no comment beyond that as I believe that there was no malicious intent with the initial distribution.

I did not want my readers to experience Midnight Sun before it was completed, edited and published. I think it is important for everybody to understand that what happened was a huge violation of my rights as an author, not to mention me as a human being. As the author of the Twilight Saga, I control the copyright and it is up to the owner of the copyright to decide when the books should be made public; this is the same for musicians and filmmakers. Just because someone buys a book or movie or song, or gets a download off the Internet, doesn't mean that they own the right to reproduce and distribute it. Unfortunately, with the Internet, it is easy for people to obtain and share items that do not legally belong to them. No matter how this is done, it is still dishonest. This has been a very upsetting experience for me, but I hope it will at least leave my fans with a better understanding of copyright and the importance of artistic control.

So where does this leave Midnight Sun? My first feeling was that there was no way to continue. Writing isn't like math; in math, two plus two always equals four no matter what your mood is like. With writing, the way you feel changes everything. If I tried to write Midnight Sun now, in my current frame of mind, James would probably win and all the Cullens would die, which wouldn't dovetail too well with the original story. In any case, I feel too sad about what has happened to continue working on Midnight Sun, and so it is on hold indefinitely.

I'd rather my fans not read this version of Midnight Sun. It was only an incomplete draft; the writing is messy and flawed and full of mistakes. But how do I comment on this violation without driving more people to look for the illegal posting? It has taken me a while to decide how and if I could respond. But to end the confusion, I've decided to make the draft available here (at the end of this post). This way, my readers don't have to feel they have to make a sacrifice to stay honest. I hope this fragment gives you further insight into Edward's head and adds a new dimension to the Twilight story. That's what inspired me to write it in the first place.

I do want to take a moment and thank the wonderful fans who have been so supportive of me over the past three years. I cannot begin to tell you how much each of you means to me. I only hope this note will stop all the confusion and online speculation so that the Twilight universe can once again become the happy escape it used to be. After this incredibly busy year, I am now focusing on spending more time with my family and working on some other writing projects.

--Stephenie"

What a horrible nightmare this must be for her. I hate to publish a post before I edit and rewrite and make sure it is just so, and here an unfinished novel that will be read by thousands upon thousands of people has been splashed across the Internet. Yes, this is a violation of her rights as an author, creates a huge loss financially if the book is never completed and published and was just so morally wrong. I can't imagine how frustrated and hurt I would feel if I were in her position.

I think it was very generous of her to allow her readers to find a copy to read with her permission. This was very gracious. At the end of her post on her website, there is a link to access the 264 page manuscript. While you can not print it out to read, it does allow you to save it as a file. I think I know what I'll be doing for the rest of the weekend.....

Halloween Heaven

When the air begins to cool and the leaves start to change the first thing that comes to my mind is Halloween. I love this holiday. I can't get enough of the scents (pumpkin and cinnamon), the decorations and I really love the costumes. Imagine my delight when I received a catalog last week from http://www.chasing-fireflies.com/. They have the most exquisite array of children's Halloween costumes I have ever seen. I only wish I could buy them all....

Pirates Swim Team 2008

Josh, Trey and Matt had a great swim season with the Pinnacle Pirates. While we were in Utah the team had one last meet. They won, making the Pirates undefeated for the 2008 year. We also missed conference swim and the closing banquet. The boys got their trophies and t-shirts when we returned to Lexington. We are already looking forward to next year!

New Orleans: Katrina

Three years ago today Hurricane Katrina made her mark on the north and central Gulf Coast. It was the costliest and one of the five deadliest hurricanes in the history of the United States. It was the sixth-strongest Atlantic hurricane ever recorded and the third-strongest hurricane on record that made landfall in the United States."The effects of Hurricane Katrina on New Orleans were catastrophic and long-lasting. As the center of Katrina passed east of New Orleans on August 29, 2005, winds downtown were in the Category 2 range with frequent intense gusts, and tidal surge was equivalent to about a strong Category 3 hurricane. Though the most severe portion of Katrina missed the city, the storm surge caused more than 50 breaches in drainage canal levees and also in navigational canal levees and precipitated the worst engineering disaster in the history of the United States. By August 31, 2005, eighty percent of New Orleans was flooded, with some parts under 15 feet of water. Most of the city's levees were broken in one place or another. These breaches were responsible for most of the flooding. Ninety percent of the residents of southeast Louisiana were evacuated. Despite this, many remained (mainly the elderly and poor). The Louisiana Superdome was used as a designated "refuge of last resort" for those who remained in the city. Many who remained in their homes had to swim for their lives, wade through deep water, or remain trapped in their attics or on their rooftops." -Wikipedia

While the political news has taken center stage today, my mind has wandered to New Orleans. As I type they are bracing for yet another monstrous hurricane in the Gulf Coast region. There is a near even chance that Gustav will once again pound this already damaged city.

If you had asked me about Louisiana three months ago, I would have said it was a state I had never visited and would love to go there one day. Then an unforeseen opportunity arose in May. Rich had submitted a paper to the international Society of Nuclear Medicine (molecular radiology) and was asked to present his findings at their annual conference in New Orleans on Father's Day. After a few phone calls to dear friends who kindly agreed to watch our little brood, I purchased a ticket and would be joining Rich on this adventure. I was thrilled to hear Rich speak and I couldn't wait to explore a new city with him. I did a bit of online research and called my brother and his wife who had spent a week there a few years ago. I was ready.

It was an intense whirlwind trip. We were only gone from our home for 36 hours. After the small bit of drama on my part (left my beloved camera home!), it dawned on me that this was the first time in four years that I had left the kids behind to travel alone with Rich. How lucky was I to be with my best friend, no kids, be there to share in his presentation, enjoy the sights, foods and sounds of a unique and strange place.

While I had expected a bit of history and intrigue once we arrived in New Orleans, the prevailing feeling that over powered me was sadness. This was a place of heartache. As our plane made its descent to land at Louis Armstrong International airport, I gazed out the window trying to see the city from above. The first thing that caught my eye were the cement grid of sidewalks, streets forming a neighborhood. There clearly were foundations, but the home were missing. They simply were not there. They had all been utterly destroyed in the storm. The sight made my stomach lurch. It looked like a war zone. As we landed, just past the end of the runway I saw a huge shopping mall that was boarded up and vacant still three years later. These were my first images of New Orleans. It was hard to believe that after so many months it was still in such disarray.

We hailed a cab and as we neared the city, my heart raced as I spied the Superdome in the distance. We exited the freeway and drove right next to it. All the images of the people waiting, suffering and in despair filled my mind from the news pieces I had watched on TV during the Katrina aftermath. It gave me chills and a lump formed in my throat. This wasn't quite the place I had envisioned. While the scenery was lovely, if you looked closer you noticed broken windows, boarded up buildings and nearly empty streets. It brought to mind Will Smith in the movie I Am Legend. Where were all the people? Yes, it was Sunday, but it had a vague feeling of a ghost town. Don't worry the trip was not all gloom and doom and we packed in so much in our short stay (I think you can sleep when you get home!), but the city made an impact on my heart. While I still think of New Orleans as a seedy and wicked town come Mardi Gras, it was a place full of culture, music and people who lost much of the magic- that spark that it was known for- back in August 2005. In the Big Easy, Katrina is one name that will never be forgotten or maybe even healed from.

New Orleans

Rich and I had such wild Father's Day together. We spent his special day in New Orleans. Thanks again to Erik & Jonni and Branden & Tiffany for watching our kids so we could go. We didn't worry a moment about them because they were in such capable hands. In the previous post I talked about my feeling of the city regarding Katrina and its current state. This post is just about the trip. While it was rushed, I couldn't think of too many other things I would have tried to fit in. I have no plans on returning, but I was very grateful to see it and experience it for myself. It also was just so fun to get away with Rich and see him in his medical element. I was really proud of him for the hard work he and his attending had put into their power point presentations and talks. There was a tiny bit of drama, but that always adds depth to the story. I had to get through the panic and despair of leaving my camera home. By the time we landed in Atlanta for our layover, I realized that my camera phone and my soon-to-be purchased disposable cameras would have to do. (And they didn't end up to badly.) There also was the short bit of fear as we ran from our streetcar stop to the hotel trying to get Rich to his presentation on time (which we did with ample time to spare.) I guess you could say we were just making memories. So here goes our trip in pictures.10:30 AM: Land in New Orleans. I loved all the Society of Nunclear Medicine signs covering the airport. Conventionsare HUGE for the economy of the city.While there were so many businesses boarded up and buildings still empty, there is growth and hope. The city's theme is: Renew, Rebuild, Rebirth. We checked into the hotel next to the convention center, scoped out the conference, listened to two lectures and then hit the town for a bit of sightseeing before Rich's talk.We went past one of Emeril's restaurants, and saw a lot of crawfish for sale.We grabbed some Mardi Gras souvenirs and masks for the girls.

We walked along the Mississippi River and enjoyed sharing a shave ice.
We waited on Bourbon Street to catch a street car.New Orleans historic St. Charles Streetcar travels over 13 miles from Canal Street, through the Garden district, past Loyola, and Tulane Universities and Audubon Park (the zoo). New Orleans St. Charles Streetcars, like the equally famous San Francisco Cable Cars, have been declared moving national historic landmarks. Streetcars have been running along St. Charles Avenue for over 165 years. New Orleans Garden District was settled in the 1850’s by successful entrepreneurs — the “nouveau riche” of that time. They built large, elegant mansions exemplifying many architectural styles, including Greek Revival, Italianate and Queen Anne Victorians. My favorite part: Disneyland's Haunted Mansion is supposed to be set in New Orleans and there were many similar styles!One other interesting note: As I rode the street car I noticed there were Mardi Gras beads in one of the trees. Upon further inspection they were in nearly all the trees, and on buildings, power line, etc. They sparkled and shimmered in the sunlight reminding you of why people flock to New Orleans in February.4:45 PM: Back to the SNM convention. Rich did a great job presenting his research about PET scans in non-small cell carcinomas in the lungs. I didn't dare snap a picture with my phone while he talked. I took this just when he finished.After, Rich changed out of his suit and I made a quick call home (Kids: Have you bought us anything? Josh: I only want a Braves t-shirt from the Atlanta airport. Trey: I DO NOT want a t-shirt!) Remember Forrest Gump? With the presentation checked off we were in hot pursuit of gifts, sights and food. We walked through the French Quarter towards the French Market. There we found my favorite part of the city by far. Beautiful buildings and a Cathedral.

Saint Louis Cathedral, also known as the Basilica of St. Louis, King of France, has the distinction of being the oldest continuously operating cathedral in the United States, first established in 1718, is the cathedral Basilica in the French Quarter of New Orleans. Located next to Jackson Square, with its statue of Andrew Jackson on horseback, and facing the Mississippi River, the St. Louis Cathedral is one of New Orleans' most recognizable landmarks. It is often used as the backdrop for newscasts and political speeches featuring the city of New Orleans.We stopped by the Original Cafe Du Monde and purchased French Beignet mix to make at home. We ended the night walking along the river and eating some of the best seafood I have ever had. How did I get so lucky?
6:15 AM the next morning: packing and checking out. As we drove to the airport in our taxi, I noticed many, many strange looking cemeteries. (Found this photo online.) In New Orleans they bury their dead in above ground tombs. New Orleans high water table and below sea level elevation prohibits below ground burial. It's the only major U.S. city below sea level. It does have a creepy vibe. No wonder Ann Rice owns homes in New Orleans and many of her fictional stories are set here.While it's good to get away, it's great to come back home. I missed these guys. And I was happy we didn't disappoint them with their new treasures. (Josh: new t-shirt, Trey: Webkinz)

Life is good.