Wednesday, January 08, 2014

Chem labs today!


My undying gratitude goes to Minda, who has seen to it that my scientifically-challenged daughter gets at least a little exposure to science!


Monday, January 06, 2014

24 hours in Houston

Avery and I just returned from a whirlwind trip to Houston. Boston University held regional auditions for their summer workshop in Tanglewood at the University of Houston. Kathryn and Hank were nice enough to let us stay in their house, so we went up the day before the audition.

We barely put down our stuff, before Avery made a beeline for the grand piano in their living room.


Eventually, I pried her away and we walked over the the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, where we saw the Age of Impressionism exhibit, including paintings by Degas, Renoir, Monet, and Manet.

After some fun getting locked out of the house for a time, we made it back inside and practiced unlocking the door enough times that we felt brave enough to go out for dinner. Despite the fact that we are decidedly not Tolkien fans, somehow we ended up at the Hobbit Cafe for dinner.


After eating, we stopped at a record store so Avery could browse. Records are her newest infatuation, so passing by one on the way home from the restaurant felt like fate!



We managed to get back into the house easily (whew!), and we settled in for the Downton Abbey premiere. In the morning, we got up bright and early to head over to the University of Houston for the audition.


It's a very competitive workshop, and shockingly expensive too, so actually going this summer is a long shot. Still, it was well worth the experience of auditioning in a more pressured atmosphere. Avery handled it with grace, and even managed to have a little fun with it!