A Piano Teacher Once Again

One of these beauties is being delivered to my house tonight and I really couldn't be more excited. A Yamaha U3 is an upright grand, meaning that it has the same rich sound as a grand piano. It's about all that you could ask for in a studio piano, which is exciting for me because it means that I can start teaching again.

If you know anyone in the SLC/Sandy area looking for a teacher, feel free to send them my way. I like my studio to be very personal and close-knit and will only be accepting a handful (10 at the most) of students.

For those that might be interested, here is a little bit about my background as a pianist:

I have studied classical piano since I was six (I also have a decade of voice/ear training lessons under my belt as well as extensive choir experience as both a vocalist and accompanist). I have been lucky to have some amazing teachers including David Glen Hatch, Irene Peery-Fox, and Jeffery Shumway. I studied piano performance/pedagogy in college and have over ten years of teaching experience (I took my first student when I was 14). I spent my high school years performing throughout Western Europe, Asia, and Russia with David Glen Hatch and a group of select students. I also competed on both the state and national level, receiving numerous placings and honorable mentions. Additionally, I won the talent award at Miss Utah in 2002 for my rendition of Franz Liszt's Liebestraum #3.

I enjoy teaching students of all ages and levels. My students perform in three studio recitals each year and also have the option of participating in local festivals and competitions. I offer fun incentives for practicing, meeting goals, and memorizing pieces.

I believe in practicing what I preach. Unlike a lot of teachers, I still consider myself to be a piano student. Even though I don't have a teacher anymore, I continue to practice almost daily and am always trying to learn more and challenge myself. I typically perform with my students at their recitals.

I love teaching and am looking forward to starting again. If you or anyone you know would like more information, I can be reached by e-mail at missabbbya@gmail.com.

Weekend Wrap-Up: Miss Utah 2013 and Some Other Summertime Fun

Last weekend was crazy. It was exciting and exhausting and I found myself experiencing all sorts of emotions and crying all types of tears.

It all came to a head today when my mom called to say that she and my dad wanted give me a very special- and much needed- gift for my 30th birthday, which is coming up in August. My parents' never ending, and more often than not, undeserved, generosity never fails to amaze and humble me. I was so ecstatic after talking to my mom that I sat down and treated myself to a complete breakdown. Then, I made myself clean out the three purses I've been living out of lately. I find that nothing calms a breakdown more for me than a little bit of organization, and if anything in this house needed organizing, it was my purses.

Obviously, I've been busy. If this mish mash of handbag clutter doesn't give you proof, nothing will. 

- - -

I sit on the committee for Miss Nebo, a local pageant open to all young ladies from Utah who would like a title and the chance to compete at the Miss Utah Scholarship Pageant (not to be confused with the Miss Utah USA beauty pageant). I am the talent consultant and blog manager for The Miss Nebo Organization, a position that I cherish and enjoy. 

I was a part of the Miss America system when I was younger (Miss Payson in 2001 and runner-up to Miss Utah the following year) and learned so much about myself from it, as well as countless things about communication, goal setting, community service, and interviewing. Not a day has gone by over the past decade (eek!) that I haven't been grateful for the skills I acquired from pageant preparation and participation. I always knew that I'd want to be on the other end of the system one day and was thrilled two years ago when I was asked to be a part of the Miss Nebo Committee.

This year, Miss Nebo sent two girls to Miss Utah (we had so many try out last year that we were, under the Miss America guidelines, able to name two titleholders), which took place last week. I love both of our girls and was so proud of them as they participated in four nights of intense competition. Both won preliminary talent awards, both were named to the top ten (out of nearly 50 talented, smart, and lovely girls, mind you) and one of them was even named Miss Utah 2013! I was beyond excited for her and can barely wait to see her rock the stage at Miss America this September. 

Harper joined me at Capital Theater on Saturday for the final night of competition (two more things crossed off of our 2013 Bucket List- hooray!). We had a great time cheering for both of our girls and Harper was really happy when one of them won "the big crown."

If ever you are kind enough to take a photo for me, please remind me to remove my Harry Potter glasses.

This beautiful girl is Ciera Pekarcik. Last Saturday morning, she was Miss Panoramaland 2012. Now she is Miss Utah 2013! She is smart, humble, funny, beautiful, and talented. She is also one of the most dedicated people I've ever met- a true symbol of what persistance can do for a person. I love her and couldn't ask for a better role model for Harper. If you want to get to know Ciera a bit better, go here. 

Here is another amazing young lady. Vanessa Watson is Miss Nebo 2012. She was also in the top ten at Miss Utah and received a preliminary talent award. She is an amazing pianist and is as smart as she is beautiful- she is preparing to start medical school and her ultimate goal is to become a cardiac surgeon! I love Vanessa and think that she is an inspiration. 

Harper thinks Vanessa and Ciera are both pretty cool and I love that. Harper is part of the reason that I volunteer with the Miss Nebo Organization. I love surrounding my daughter with bright, positive, and goal-oriented young women. I love that these women are showing her that you can be beautiful and smart and talented, all at the same time. I love that they are showing her the power of dreaming big and believing in yourself.

- - - - -

Miss Utah wasn't the only part of our weekend. I did a bunch of packaging and shipping for The Sandy Closet and took Harper to Liberty Park. We also attended a water/birthday party and enjoyed a BBQ with Colt and his family. 

Summertime weekends really are the best, aren't they? Harper sure thinks so.

Life has been really busy the past two months. It should slow down a bit now, which is something that I am more than ready for. I don't mind a little chaos but really do love, and need, my quiet time. I need more time to play with Harper, practice my piano, and read my books. I like simplicity and am looking forward to lots of it in July. I'm hoping for time enough to cross several things off of my 2013 Bucket List. I'm looking forward to hiking, experimenting in the kitchen, and doing fun things with my favorite little lady. 

What are you planning for July?

Guest Post: Jen from In a Trance Photography- Tips for Getting the Most Out of Your Photography Session

Blog readers, meet the Jacobsons. 

From left to right: Talon, Jen, Ryan, and Rozlyn

Please try to believe me when I tell you that they aren't models.

I'm so excited about this guest post. Ryan and Jen, the owners of In a Trance Photography, are some of my favorite people. They, along with their darling little ones (pictured above and below), are like family to me.

I know that there are a lot of photographers out there and that finding a good one can be a challenge. It's easy to see from the images in this post that these guys know what they are doing. They are passionate about their work and it shows. I can barely wait for them to take our family photos sometime this summer.

I know what a hassle it is to have professional photos taken. There is a lot of anxiety surrounding the entire process, from outfit choosing to getting ready to the actual photo session. We always want everything to be "perfect" so that we can get "perfect" photographs. I think a lot of people avoid professional photos altogether because they don't want to deal with the stress. 

What I find is that the photos are always perfect to me because I love the people in them so very much. Harper may not look at the camera and give her best smile every time but I always love the photos I have taken of her and usually, it's the randon, quirkier images that are my favorite. 

I asked Jen to give us some advice about professional photos- how to choose a photographer, how to make that photographer's job a bit easier, etc. I know that we could all use a little insider information because getting good photos is so important. I love the photos that I take of Harper personally, but am so thankful for the professional images that I have as well. When I look at them, I don't see the imperfections in my own skill. I just see Harper and I love that. The older she gets, the more I appreciate the photos we have of her as a baby and toddler. I am so glad that I took the time and spent the money to have quality photos taken. 

Father's Day 2013, Recap

We had such a great Father's Day this year. Harper and I spent the morning with my dad before my parents left for home. Then we met up with Colt's family for some Porcupine brunch (so yummy). We came home and gave Colt his gifts (a drill set, some camping supplies, and a few of his favorite treats). and then spent the afternoon visiting Colt's grandpas. The weather was beautiful and it was a lovely day with family.

Harper is learning to write. She insisted on signing all of the Father's Day cards that we gave out with  "her letter and her number." I hope that her dad and grandpas are all enjoying their cards from "H 3."

My dad gave Harper $10 before leaving for Las Vegas. She used it to treat Colt to a Father's Day snow cone. They both got Maui Wowie with cream. Harper was so excited to be "snow cone twinners!!!" with her daddy.

A visit to Great Grandma Rushton's ALWAYS involves feeding the goats that live next door.

We are six for six in our Bucket List goal of taking one family photo each month- it's a miracle!

Harper's First Dance Recital

Harper's first dance recital was last Thursday. It was adorable.

She cried when I left her with her class. One of the other moms had to come find me to tell me that Harper was having a complete breakdown backstage and wouldn't let go of one of the other parents and was even refusing fruit snacks. She hid her face in her arm as she walked on stage but then proceeded to do her entire dance without one ounce of shyness. We'd been practicing at home and she knew it so well. She did such a good job that all of the other girls in her class were watching her for queues!

I didn't get as many photos as I would have liked. Harper was anxious and I was anxious and I didn't want to hassle her even more by trying to get perfect pictures. With Harper, you have to choose your battles. I'd won the hair styling battle earlier in the evening (note the adorable ponytail) as well as the "you can't take a big bag of princess toys to the recital" battle. I figured I'd leave the "pose and say cheese while I take 37 photos of you" battle alone.

Harper's class did a tap dance to "Anything You Can Do, I Can Do Better." Harper was so cute with her twirls and chasses that I could barely handle it.

I was so proud.

I totally cried.

My Dad.

My dad.

Oh boy. My dad is an emotional topic for me.

There are really no words to describe how I feel about him. He is the kindest, most generous, most supportive, and most amazing person that I have ever known. I have honestly never met a person who doesn't like him and I've had countless people tell me how much they admire him and/or that they can never repay him for all that he has done for them. I always tell them to take that and times it by about a million and then they will know how I feel about this Italian golfer from Los Angeles.

I love my dad and look up to him. He is my hero.

I am thankful every day of my life that he adopted me. I don't know what you guys believe- hell, I don't even know exactly what it is that I believe most days- but I know, without doubt, that his coming to Utah, meeting my mom, and taking me into his heart and life was no matter of coincidence. This man was meant to be my dad.

Harper took this photo of my dad over Mother's Day weekend. I love it- I absolutely love it. If there is anyone who loves and looks up to my dad as much as I do, it's Harper. Nobody makes her face light up like her Papa Jack does. Seeing the two of them together is one of the greatest joys I have ever known. She and I both love this man. Our lives are better because of him. 

Happy Father's Day, everyone. I hope that your day was a good one. 

A Quick Catch-Up and a Hard Goodbye

Oh, hey there.

I promise that I didn't forget about my blog. Things have just been so crazy. Work is crazy, Harper is crazy (so are her emotions), it's Miss Utah season, Harper's dance recital is this week, my parents are coming to town (an event that always required an anxiety-ridden cleaning marathon for me), and I've been trying to get The Sandy Closet up and running.

Speaking of my new instagram shop... I love it. It is seriously fun. Whitney and I joined forces and have had a good time trying to make something of our little shop. We have already sold a handful of things (shirts and dresses and leggings and purses, oh my!) and we are so excited to go thrifting tonight and find some more cute inventory. Have you checked us out yet? If not, find us on instagram under TheSandyCloset. We just reached 500 followers (there is a giveaway to celebrate!) and have been listing a few items each day.

Life is seriously so busy. I love it. But I hate it, too. After next week, things should (knock on wood) slow down a bit. They need to, because Harper and I have some 2013 Bucket List stuff that we would like to do. I just bought our tickets to the Thanksgiving Point Princess Festival, which is happening this month. It's going to be great! Visiting Thanksgiving Point is on our Bucket List this year and I can't think of a more perfect event to get us there than The Princess Festival. I've been waiting for it to happen again ever since we missed it last June.

Colt has been busy, too. It's softball season, which means he's gone every Wednesday. I keep meaning to go to his games but always have something going. He is also playing on a golf league at work and preparing for hunting season. His 2012 hunting story is featured on a prominent hunting website and he's pretty excited about it. I told him that I'd share it on here, despite the fact that he let one of his friends edit it and not me. Duh. That's like me going to someone else for batting lessons and expecting him to be like, "Oh cool. They are probably know more about baseball than me, even though I played professionally and all..." Anyway, if you'd like to know how he got his buck last fall, go here. 

Now, about the goodbye that I mentioned in the title to this post...

We had to euthanize Zowie (Colt's family dog- the other adorable little shih tzu in my life) over the weekend and it was really, really hard. We lived with Colt's parents for a while and I fell totally in love with Zowie. She slept with us every night and spent a lot of time with us when we were around (she never acted much like it but I think she really loved Hazelnut).

Zowie turned 15 this year. She had a long and good life but recently, her health was declining quite rapidly. She lost her hearing and most of her sight and got to be pretty wobbly on her little legs. Then last week, she developed some pressure sores (like bed sores). Since she was sleeping so much each day, there was no hope of ever healing them so my mother-in-law called and made the appointment. We have known that it was coming for a while now but I still cried when Colt told me. Calli, Kenzie, and I took Zowie to the vet (Colt was really upset and just couldn't go- he's got a really big soft spot for dogs and Zowie was his special favorite). I went back on forth about going but finally decided to because I felt like Zowie needed as much love and support with her as possible during her last hour of life. Hazelnut is my first pet and so I'd never been through anything like this before. It was hard. They told us to flip a switch when we were ready for the vet to come in and administer the medicine. I don't think a person is ever ready for that. I certainly wasn't ready to say goodbye but tried to be strong because I knew that it was the best choice.

In the end, I was glad that I went. I'd cried most of the day before and all that morning getting ready and was nervous for the appointment because I just didn't know what to expect. The staff was really kind to us and after everything was said and done, I felt really good about everything. The process was really peaceful and I felt happy that Zowie didn't have to be in pain anymore.

Zowie was one of the first things Colt and I ever talked about. We bonded over the fact that we both loved a shih tzu. She was the first thing that Harper ever giggled at. She was my favorite part of visiting my in-laws (sorry, Kenz). I remember meeting her for the first time. She was totally uninterested in me and my high-pitched doggy voice. The second time around was different, however, because I went to Colt's house with a bag of treats in my purse. Little Zowie and I were pals from that night on. I loved her like she was my own and I'll never forget her.

I never realized how hard it is to say goodbye to an animal that you love. It makes me scared for the day when I have to go through it with Hazelnut, who I love so much that it feels like she's a part of me. I'm just glad that she is only 6 and that we have a lot of good years ahead of us.

A New Series and A New Shop

I have a couple of new projects in the works and I'm excited to share them with you guys.

1. A New Series

First off, someone read on here that I love classic movies and messaged me for suggestions. While I was trying to recall all of my favorites, it occurred to me that it might be fun to do a series on old movies. 

I grew up with older parents (my dad turns 70 this year!), which means that I was introduced to a lot of classic music and movies. My mom and I used to stay up late watching old films together. Our movie marathons are some of my favorite memories and I'm really glad that my she introduced me to Doris Day, Audrey Hepburn (before she was trendy, mind you), Rock Hudson, Greta Garbo, Clark Gable, Cary Grant, Vivien Leigh, Deborah Carr, Tippi Hendren, and young Sean Connery. 

Just this week, I watched Camille, a black and white film from 1936 that starred one of my biggest lady crushes of all time, Greta Garbo. 

Greta Garbo was so beautiful and mysterious. I love her Swedish accent. Robert Taylor, another favorite of mine, played opposite her in Camille, a story about a Parisian courtesan torn between love and money (I don't want to say much more because I don't want to give anything away!). 

I love this movie- the plot, the cast, and the costuming is all wonderful. 

I will always love classic movies. I watch one or two each week (usually recorded from TCM) by myself (I probably don't need to tell you that old Hollywood is Colt's kind of thing) and can't wait to share some of my favorites with Harper. Until then, I was thinking of sharing them with you.

What do you guys think? Would this be a good series? 

2. A New Shop

Classic Hollywood isn't my only obsession. As you know, I love to thrift. I started last fall and have had so much fun finding treasures. I've thrifted shirts, skirts (all types, from party to grandma), jewelry, shoes, jackets, sweaters, and books. 

Cute, right? This isn't even the tip of the iceberg, either. I take my obsessions seriously, which is both a blessing and a curse. 

Anyway, a lot of thrifters have instagram shops. They find treasures, take photos of them, and sell them right from instagram. I myself have purchased numerous delights from instagram thrift shops. It's really fun, actually. A thrifter posts an item and the first person to comment with their Paypal e-mail address wins the sale (curse whoever won the baby Ug booties no more than 10 seconds before I finished typing my comment!).

Some shop owners even take suggestions before they go thrifting. They will ask if anyone is looking for a specific style or size and will then try to find it for them. All payments are done through Paypal and I am happy to say that I've never (knock on wood) had an issue with an instagram shop. Most of the thrifters I've "met" are super sweet and take good care of their customers by answering questions and shipping items out quickly.

Okay. Enough babble. Long story short: I've loved being on the shopping end of instagram thrift stores, and that makes me think I might like the other end as well. I started a shop account tonight. It's called thesandycloset (joyfulcloset and abbyscloset were both taken). I hope to post a few items to it tomorrow. I'll be selling thrifty finds for women, children, and men, and I'll always be open to requests (for clothing, shoes, jewelry, and books). I'll also be posting items from my personal closet.

If you have instagram and you're interested, go ahead and follow along (Diligent Joy customers will get a discount- I'm not sure what it is yet but I'll let you know when I get it all worked out). I'm excited to see how this goes. From what I figure, the key is gathering a following of good customers. That might take a minute for me because I've never been good with popularity contests (probably because I'm awkward and nerdy) but I'm going to give it a try. Wish me luck! 

Watermelon Girl

Harper is a girl that loves watermelon. She loves it so much that she would choose it over candy, ice cream, and cake (smart girl, that Harper).

On Sunday evening, we cut the first watermelon of the summer. Harper was literally jumping up and down with excitement as I pulled a knife out of our kitchen drawer. I'm pretty sure that she ate a good pound of juicy, drippy watermelon before I even finished slicing it up.

How grown up is she looking lately? Seriously.

Right before our eyes, Harper has become a kid. There is absolutely no toddler left in her. She is all kid: freckle-faced, curious, and silly, overflowing with more questions, emotions, and energy than either of us knows what to do with.

She's exhausting, but I love her.

Her first dance recital is next week and I can barely wait. Her class had photos last week and I couldn't get over how tall (and cute!) she looked in her costume.

Harper and the other little darlings in her class are the only people I know that can make zebra print and neon look good together.