Saturday, December 11, 2010

Do Jump!

Molly and I don't always get to have "girl's only" time, so when my tennis friend, Kim, e-mailed last night with a generous offer to go see Do Jump! today, I couldn't say "no." In fact, I said, "yes" without yet securing a babysitter for Keenan (Kevin was working)--That's how much I wanted to go! Having never seen a production of Do Jump before, I wasn't sure what was in store for us, but had heard rumors that the shows were very good. And the rumors were true! From the pre-show, money-soliciting tap-dancer, to amazing jugglers, aerialists, and entertaining actors/dancers/acrobats, Molly and I were laughing, clapping and singing (the crowd was included in the show as well) throughout. The fun was comparable to Cirque du Soleil, but in a more intimate, smaller-scale way. So enjoyable! Briefly I wished that I had brought Keenan, but then I quickly remembered that Keenan can't sit in a seat for more than 10 minutes! Some day, my boy. Maybe you can have a "boy's day out" with dad who was very jealous that Molly and I were going to go see this amazing show without him. Sorry Kevin!

Thursday, December 9, 2010

Memories

I was looking for a ring toss game for work tonight when I accidentally came across this. When we were kids, we used to love playing Skittles when we went to visit Grandma and Grandpa Compton in Roy. They kept it down in the basement along with a mini-pool set which was also very entertaining. Now that I look back, I also remember a ping-pong table which was not useable because it was covered a foot deep with paper (e.g., newspaper, magazines). Grandpa I believe, was a hoarder which kind-of explains my dad's difficulty throwing (or recycling) "paper" away: like father like son.

Anyhow, those are some good memories--memories I am still making because I love to play games now as much as I did back then :)

Saturday, December 4, 2010

Songs of 2010

The family and I don't listen to enough new music to be able to create a top 10 songs of the year list. We were lucky enough to just get seven. So, here is the Mattias' family top seven songs of 2010, in alphabetical order

1. Animal by Neon Trees
Marin introduced this song to the family. She was a little leery of having the kids hear this song due to it's lyrics. But now whenever Molly or Keenan hear this song on the radio, they ask for the volume to be turned-up so they can sing along with it.

2. Dogs Days Are Over by Florence and the Machine
This song just wants to make you dance. If you haven't seen the Youtube video of the baby in the car seat dancing to this song, you might want to check it out. Love the hand clapping and drumming in this song.

3. I'm Awake Now by Ricky Skaggs and Molly Skaggs
Heard a snippet of this song on NPR, came home and found it on their web page. After playing it a few times, Marin came upstairs to find out what song I was playing. It is a very soothing song that would probably put you to sleep, if it wasn't so good. Sorry I couldn't find a link for this song on Youtube.

4. Just One Dance by Caro Emerald
If I had to choose an album of the year, I would pick her album Scenes from the Cutting Room Floor. The whole album is great, and this song is my favorite off the the album. When driving in the car, Molly will ask for this cd to be played. When your kids request music you like, it must be good.

5. King of Anything by Sara Bareilles
Being from Humboldt County didn't hinder Sarah's chances for making this list. This song makes me think of spring; and spring is a great time to be in the Pacific Northwesrt after a long, gray, wet winter.

6. Little Drummer Boy as done by Pink Martini
This standard holiday classic is a good song to begin with, but you add the Pink Martini touch and it just makes the song so much better.

7. Turn off this Song and Go Outside by The Lonely Forest
This band had my top song of 2009, We Sing In Time. They came back again this year and released another great song. A Pacific Northwest band that knows how to rock.