From the Yard

Well, not our yard. These photos are from the home we rented in San Francisco. It was a fabulous oasis in a big city. As a desert rat, I was mesmerized.

RePIANO

July is Artown in Reno, a month long celebration of the arts in Northern Nevada. This year, city councilman Dave Aiazzi spearheaded the RePIANO Project. Fifteen recycled pianos were artistically embellished then placed in random outdoor locations around the city.

My kids were giddy playing the piano their granddad found at Newlands Circle Park in Old Southwest Reno. It is the artistic creation of Susan Morris, a local mosaic artist. Ever wonder if Reno is a great place to live? Just look at the expression on my daughter’s face for the answer. Words can’t express the joy of finding a piano in a park.

For more about the project, I’ll let Dave Aiazzi and Susan Morris tell you in their own words:

Helpful Links:

Artown RePIANO Project
RePIANO on Facebook

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Reno Revealed is a weekly feature highlighting artists, boutiques, non profit organizations, events and fun stuff to do around the Reno/Tahoe area. If you have a special request for a future feature, please email me. I’d love to hear from you!

Next week: Road Trip! San Francisco with kids.

Project365 | Week 29

It’s week 29 of my Project365 on Flickr. We are in San Francisco for a quick family getaway. Later this week, I will be posting about the wonders of San Francisco with kids. Until then, here are some photos from our adventures.

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What’s a Project365? It’s a personal commitment to make photography an everyday event. Essentially it’s a photo a day for a year, forcing me to slow down, learn my camera and see the world with an artistic eye.

On Vacation

I will be out of the studio beginning today, Thursday, July 22 through Tuesday, July 27. All orders will be processed next Wednesday and Thursday. If you have a question or special request I will be answering emails sporadically throughout the week.

We are headed to San Francisco for a family road trip. I will be updating my Flickr and Twitter accounts with fun photos and tweets from our week. I hope you will stop by!

Truckee River Rafting

Reno residents know the last two weeks in July are the hottest of the year. Thankfully we are spoiled by the beautiful Truckee River. It is Lake Tahoe’s only outlet, winding 140 miles through Truckee and Reno to Pyramid Lake. Its clear, cool water is unbeatable on a hot summer day.

Last Sunday we headed up to Tahoe City for a lazy day of rafting. When I say lazy, I’m not exaggerating. We rented a raft, plopped ourselves in the river and let it carry us five miles to the River Ranch. Technically speaking, this section of the river has some rapids. They were just enough to excite the little ones in our party. I suspect this may vary depending on the amount of water being released from the Tahoe City Dam.

The river was filled with families playing in the shallow sections, looking for beaver dams, having squirt gun wars and just enjoying a day together. After our 2 hour float, we hopped on the bus provided by the rafting company and headed back to Tahoe City for lunch. We all walked away happy. The kids were begging to come back next week and the dads were grinning from ear to ear. As a mom, I had a great time and relished the fact that there was very little prep. I packed sunscreen, hats, water and squirt guns and my job was done.

If you bring your own raft, be sure to have two cars or be prepared to hoof it back to Tahoe City. There is a great bike trail along the river. If you have your own raft or tube and want to stay closer to town, there are several rafting spots in Reno. A favorite hotspot is on Mayberry Drive near the Patagonia Outlet. The water is much faster there and isn’t little kid friendly. It attracts more of a singles crowd than Tahoe City. Whichever rafting spot suits your fancy, be sure the spend at least one summer day floating on the beautiful Truckee River.

Helpful Links:

Mountain Air Sports (raft rentals)
Truckee River Raft Company (raft rentals)
Top 10 things to see and do in Tahoe City
River Ranch Lodge

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Reno Revealed is a weekly feature highlighting artists, boutiques, non profit organizations, events and fun stuff to do around the Reno/Tahoe area. If you have a special request for a future feature, please email me. I’d love to hear from you!

Next week: Road Trip! San Francisco with kids.

Stationery Line | Giraffes

Throughout the summer, I’ve been revamping and adding stationery lines based on our best selling note card sets. This week: Giraffes. This sweet giraffe was drawn by my mom for a custom order and he (or she) has become our best selling item.

I offer personalized note cards, thank you note sets, shower and party invitations and new this week, photo birth announcements. Each is available in our 12 color combinations. Our giraffes are a big hit for families with twins. Each design can be customized with two giraffes.

In addition to what you see, I am happy to customize additional paper items for your celebration. The last image includes a book plate I created to accompany a recent shower invitation order. The hostess is asking her shower guests to bring a children’s book with an inscription. To avoid the issue of duplicate books and potential returns, guests were asked to write their inscription on the book plate and tuck it in their book.

Giraffe designs are available through our website and our Etsy Shop. I welcome requests for customization. Please contact me anytime.

Project365 | Week 28

It’s week 28 of my Project365 on Flickr. I’m learning to do black and white conversions in Lightroom 3. I love a great black and white photo, but I’ve never been happy with mine. That can only be remedied with Practice. Practice. Practice!

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What’s a Project365? It’s a personal commitment to make photography an everyday event. Essentially it’s a photo a day for a year, forcing me to slow down, learn my camera and see the world with an artistic eye.

Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival

I love Reno in the summer. There are so many fun and unique things to get out and experience. My favorite summer event, hands down, is the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival. The festival takes place every July and August in the sandy amphitheater at Sand Harbor.

The amphitheater is surrounded by towering pines, granite boulders and gorgeous views of the Lake and the eastern Sierra. The setting is to die for. Everyone arrives early to enjoy dinner before the show. You can pack your own cooler or order a gourmet meal from Shakespeare’s Kitchen. Scheduled for this summer is The Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) and the Sand Harbor Music Series.

I’ve been to the festival 19 times in the last 21 years. (Those darn newborns kept me home in 2003 and 2005.) I was 16 the first year I went. The theater was sold out, so my friend Cheryl and I kicked back on a granite boulder, watched the sunset, gazed at the stars and listened to A Midsummer Night’s Dream. This year, Pete and I sprang for comfy cushioned adirondack seats. Every year, be it rock, sand or adirondack, it has been a magical experience.

We saw The Complete Complete Works of William Shakespeare (Abridged) last Saturday night. I can honestly say, it was the funniest play yet. It was brisk, engaging, and laugh-out-loud funny. As a Shakespeare lover, I enjoyed every minute. As someone who tolerates Shakespeare for the sake of the marriage, my husband loved it, too!

In their 38th season, the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival is only running one play, but they plan to add more in the years to come. In our current economic times, professional theaters are struggling to keep their doors open. Many independent companies are banning together to survive the difficult times. This is director, Charles Fee’s inaugural season. He is also the artistic director for the Boise Shakespeare Festival and the Great Lakes Theater Festival in Cleveland. By sharing our resources, mounting an assertive capital campaign and spreading the word about the value of the theater, our beloved festival will survive.

So tell your friends. Go see the show. Forego that new pair of jeans and donate your savings the festival. It’s time we all go out to support the theatrical gem that is the Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival.

Helpful Links:

Lake Tahoe Shakespeare Festival July 9 – August 22, 2010
Sand Harbor Music Series Mondays + Fridays durning the LTSF

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Reno Revealed is a weekly feature highlighting artists, restaurants, boutiques, non profit organizations and events from around the Reno/Tahoe area. If you have a special request for a future feature, please email me. I’d love to hear from you!

Next week: Rafting the Truckee River

Alphabet Walk | Q

Piper Toth of One Sydney Road is hosting an Alphabet Walk and Blog Hop. You know how much I love a photography challenge. Plus, let’s face it, I’m a big fan of the alphabet. I took my camera on a little ‘Q’uest for the letter Q. Technically speaking, my walk was more of a stroll around our house. After several crazy-busy days, I was grateful for a ‘Q’uiet evening at home. I hope you enjoy it as much as we did!

For more alphabet fun, be sure to visit all the bloggers and photographers participating in the Alphabet Walk. The banner graphic is courtesy of Katrina from Pugly Pixel. Thanks Katrina!

Happy Birthday, Kate!

Today is Kate’s fifth birthday. Her artistic soul and infectious smile bring me joy everyday. I never imagined I’d be the mom of a little girl, but as it turns out, Kate is my dream come true. I’m inspired by her limitless imagination, innate feminist spirit and the simple fact that she is one smart cookie.

To celebrate her birthday, here are five fab things I love about my sweet girl. They are not the top five. They are not the only five. They are in no particular order.

• She is a passionate artist. She’ll paint/draw/collage ten pieces a day. It would be more if she didn’t need to eat and sleep.
• With the dog by her side, she’ll spend hours exploring the yard. Her purses are stuffed with flowers and rocks. Plus she won’t let her daddy come home from Costco without flowers for me.
• She has the best laugh I have ever heard. My husband will back me up on that one.
• She is a natural athlete. She could scale a chain link fence at 18 months old.
• She can and will advocate for herself. Whether it’s her brother picking on her or a random teenager who borrowed her fishing net, Kate knows what she wants and knows how to get it.

Happy birthday, Kate-y Bug! I love you more than a giant box of Sharpies.