Lately: The Arts and More

September means that our calendars are full once again -- sports, after-school activities, Scouts, plus the never-ending homework keep us all busy! In spite of our full days, we're trying to make the most of our weekends and getting out and enjoying time together as a family. Here's a peek at what we've been up to lately:

Mass at Holy Rosary downtown

Henry found a leaf-footed bug on his window one afternoon. We watched it lay eggs! 

An evening walk with Ruby -- now that she's been to training, the boys can actually walk her without getting pulled down.

My book club met at our house last week (we discussed A Man Called Ove and feasted on Swedish meatballs and other treats from Ikea). The timing worked out perfectly because it was WUES spirit night at the Rice football game, so Gene took the boys to the game. The kids were able to walk onto the field and high-five the players.

Dinner and a book at the game

Last Saturday, we visited two art museums. At Houston Center for Contemporary Craft, we explored the the Best If Used By exhibit. This piece, Sugar Bucket, is a sugar-encrusted bucket that is decomposing and melting over time.

This green tree frog was not part of the exhibit but he grabbed our attention anyway!

Next up, we visited the Blaffer Gallery to see the Matthew Ronay exhibition.

Ronay's sculptures, created out of gouache, wood and colorful dyes, are surreal and intriguing.

After lunch, we poked around some antique stores and discovered that the boys are big fans of antiquing.

On Saturday evening, Gene and I got gussied up for the Houston Symphony's opening night and gala dinner. The concert was wonderful and we spent a lovely evening with friends.

Dessert included a chocolate oil derrick!

And finally, on Sunday afternoon, we took the boys to see author Nathan Hale, who spoke as part of Inprint's Cool Brains! series.

If you aren't familiar with Nathan Hale, he is the author of the wildly popular Nathan Hale's Hazardous Tales series of graphic novels. He was one of the most entertaining authors I have heard, and he kept us all in stitches for most of the afternoon.

What have you been up to lately?