jaimes

We checked out the Grant Park Summer Shade Festival over the weekend. Great little festival in the historic Grant Park neighborhood (also home to the Atlanta Zoo). This was a very family-friendly fest with two stages, one for kids shows and one for the grown-ups. (more…)

Holden at Varsity

Dev at Varsity

Devon the hat maker, Devon the fan maker

Franny Cat in a church hat

The kids and I like to play music in the garage/laundry room. We did this a lot over the summer. One day Devon wrote a song called “I Will Never Stop.” So, I asked her and Holden to play it for me and recorded it on video. Holden played drums while Devon sang.

I asked if I could sing in the band, and Devon shook her head no. But, they did ask me to play drums at one point so Holden could sing backup. He taught me the song, then decided that wasn’t a good idea either. So, they kicked me out of the band. And rightly so. Who wants to be in a band with their mom?

I put together a video for the song, “I Will Never Stop” by Devon and Holden, aka Rock Star Band. I’m pretty sure most parents don’t do a mini-documentary the first time one of their kids writes a song, but that’s how we roll in this household.

Johanna Fateman is a major creator. She lends her voice and synth talents to Le Tigre and produces the band Men. Don’t let the freedom loving, zany dance antics of Le Tigre fool you into thinking Johanna is all play and no game; this mama is one smart cookie who has successfully carved out a career as an artist, business owner, writer, musician and mother. (more…)

There are times when my google reader feeds me nothing but information overload, making me want to run far, far away from all things electronic. But this morning, I had a very good internet day. The kind that leads you to something poignant and powerful, even spiritual.

I stumbled upon this Words video through poppytalk, which led me to the production company called Everynone. I love this website. It’s a video blog of what are essentially mini-documentaries. Not too crazy artsy and not too commercially sappy.

This first video is called Words. It’s a little bit like one of those commericals that makes you cry until you realize it’s for an insurance company, except this one doesn’t end with a company logo. It’s good. Trust me.

WORDS from Everynone on Vimeo.

This one called Parabolas is about the laws of nature. A really beautiful example of how when you open your eyes to something, you start to see it everywhere.

Parabolas (etc.) from Everynone on Vimeo.

And finally, my favorite Everynone production so far, Stoop Sitting. One of the best things about Atlanta is hanging out on your porch and talking to your neighbors. This video reminds me of that.

Everyone Forever Now – “Stoop Sitting” from Everynone on Vimeo.

Star Wars was on TV last night, so we watched a bit with the kids. Here’s the conversation that happened when the kids see Darth Vader enter the scene. (more…)