Autumn Colors

I have dragged Pat all over the state and to a few others to see the leaves this fall. He has been so sweet to put up with me. You never know when the leaves will be at the best or when they will fall off. This year the trees didn't all change at once. It was interesting to watch the changes each week and to see how two of the same type of tree would change at different times. 

I love autumn.

Norman Rockwell

Pat and I took a drive to the Norman Rockwell Museum in Stockbridge, MA. I've slowly been collecting things to do on the weekends while the weather is still decent. I knew the fall colors would be starting to pop out.

Norman Rockwell was introduced to me by my parents when I was younger. He has a way of capturing American everyday life so well.

Here is one of my favorites:

Here is one of Pat's favorites:

We got to learn about Rockwell's process of painting. He was very meticulous about the angle of the faces and the colors he chose. He never just painted. If he was working on a large canvas and felt it just wasn't right he would paint over it and use it for a different painting. There were several versions and drafts of every single piece. If you get the chance to go see an exhibit or the museum you should check him out. He had a career that spanned over 60 years and 4000 works.

Here is sneak at the fall colors we saw:

The colors are only getting better! More to come!

Dirk & Judy's Visit

Dirk & Judy were in town to depart for a fall colors cruise. They came in a few days early to see NYC with Dave & Joni and Bill & Kathy. We spent a day with them in the city before they departed and some time after their trip.

We went down to Ground Zero and walked around. There were some guys selling pictures of the towers before and after. They had some where you could see the other buildings left in relation to the towers. They were so tall. I can't wait for the memorial to be done so you can go see something. The construction is cool but there are not that many points to see it from.

The cruise group went to Billy Elliot so Pat and I had a few hours free and decided if we could go and see a show. We settled on Wicked partly because it started later and partly because it is always fantastic. We got super close seats! (My camera battery of course died right as we got to the city so no pictures of this part of the adventure) After the show we walked around and ended back up in Times Square to watch Utah State beat BYU on the huge jumbo screen!

The next day the cruisers headed off on their trip while Pat & I  went to The Frick Collection.This is one of my all time favorite museums in New York. As a private collector Henry Clay Frick collected many paintings, sculptures, and pieces of furniture. He had this huge house built as well. When he died he donated the house and all the artwork and turned it into a museum. It is small enough you can walk through in a few hours. There is lots of different pieces of artwork from various time periods and masters. Even the house its self is a piece of artwork!! The carvings in the archways and inlaid marble in the floor is amazing. Click here for a virtual tour of the home.

Besides the house, my favorite pieces is a sculpture by Houdon.

Madame His

(Click to enlarge)

It is amazing to see her in person as well as in the photograph. This was created in 1774/75. Houdon made it seems as if she was just frozen in time just a second before. Her hair looks as if it is just dropped on her shoulder and the curls look so soft and delicate. Her clothing just falls in the right way and looks as if she just was turning around to talk. Simply stunning.

Go here and here to see two other pieces of his work.

When Dirk & Judy got back from the cruise they headed up to Connecticut to spend a few days with us. They hadn't seen many colors on their tour since the weather had stayed warmer so we decided to head into the heart of Connecticut  to see if we could spot a few leaves. 

They were just starting to pop out. We drove to Blue Jay Orchards, my new favorite pick-your-own farm. We got there on the perfect day. The orchard was buzzing with people. They had a whole new section of trees open to pick from. They also had kettle corn, a pumpkin patch, and hayrides.

Pat thought I was crazy for wanting to take a ride behind a tractor to pick up 3 pumpkins when we could go to the grocery store and get some. Plus at the store you never find any good handles. We may not get a lot of seeds out of these 3 but they sure look cute on the porch!

The next day we headed up to Mystic. We thought the aquarium up there sounded really fun. They have the largest outdoor Beluga Whale tank.

This is the boy whale. He is playing with a piece of felt. Their sense of touch is in their tongues so the trainers give them something to play with to help develop their senses. At least that is what we are told. I was fun to watch him play - as soon as you get over the feeling he is going to choke himself.

Pat & Judy petted the stingrays. One of the rays got excited and splashed water all over Pat.

(You can see Dirk in the background thinking about sticking his hand in)

We saw the seal show. We learned that the sea lions are working for the Navy. Pat thought we needed to come up with SLLL - Sea Lion Labor Laws  - just so they don't get over worked.

We saw jellyfish. These ones glowed red.

We saw the handlers feed the penguins.

After we drove into Mystic to get some food, watch the bridge go up and down (no trip to Mystic is complete without it) and headed home.

We had such a fantastic weekend! Thanks Dirk & Judy for coming to visit! We loved to have you guys here!