The Very Last Leg

Nonie and baby have passed their July 31st "due date" (which was moved up from the original August 4th). We've officially moved down to Nonie's parents' in SL, though Keenan still commutes to Logan as necessary for shows (he has people covering him in case of labor conflicts). So at this point we're just biding time practicing, organizing, preparing to move, and hoping baby braves the birth canal before we head out to California in under two weeks! (Nonie may stay back a bit if the events feel too close). More to come soon, we hope... :)

Opera and New Arrival

Nonie and I are getting good at attending the opera. We must really love it, because it's managed a place in our schedule on some important occasions: the day after our wedding, our first anniversary, and ... our second anniversary! Yes, our anniversary was last Friday the 18th. Nonie decided to accompany me to both of the shows for which I ran supertitles: Manon Lescaut (Puccini) and 1776. I'm also playing the orchestra piano part in Into the Woods.

It's impossible to adequately describe the impact Nonie has had on my life in the two years we've been married. Nonie has born the burden of working to support us by teaching violin while I've been in school (student Kristene pictured below).She's a forgiving friend and a faithful companion. She's a good listener. As a brilliant musician, Nonie shares in my enjoyment of music and the arts.

Nonie has now been carrying our soon-to-be-born almost nine months. Marriage has blessed our lives. Happy anniversary, Nonie!

We're proud to announce the arrival of a new member of the family!

Adopted on July 5th, 2008, he was born in 1911 in New York City at Steinway factory. He's a red head, 5'10" long. This piano has come to us at a very reasonable price with excellent personal financing, and is in good condition. Having a piano in LA means that I'll be able to practice at home, which is especially good for days when being on campus would otherwise not be necessary. We were able to finance through our credit union, mostly by freezing some savings, thereby producing a loan with a very low interest rate.

But really, we're more excited for our baby boy, who may come at any moment. Nonie's midwife has told us that Nonie could go into labor at any time!! Nonie will be giving birth at the University Hospital in Salt Lake, with the help of their resident group midwifery practice. The recent arrival of our nephew Abraham Marshall has excited us even more for the birth of our baby. Still no name ... hopefully that revelation will come soon!

One more piece of fun news: I had the opportunity to play Saint-Saëns piece, Carnival of the Animals, with the Utah Festival Opera Orchestra on the 15th. I gave my best effort in preparing and it paid off. Opportunities to play with orchestras don't normally come very often, so this was a privilege. Here are a couple clips from Tuesday night (the first is Fossiles, the second is from the Finale):

Important Cousin Addendum!

In writing that last blog, I neglected to mention that I already have one very cute niece, Lucy, and two very playful nephews, Simon and Thomas. We are so glad our little one has such playmates waiting to befriend him. I loved my cousins growing up, so I'm glad my boy has four all ready for him!!

A New Nephew & A Handsome Husband

We got the greatest baby present for our little boy last week... a best cousin! Just what he wanted. Abraham Craig Marshall joined the family on 24 June at a lovely 8 lbs. 15 oz. Happy parents pictured here:
Here are the proud uncle/aunt/unborn cousin/dad:
For cuter close-ups of little Abe, see the AAa Team's blog. We are so proud of Ariel, who weathered the entire long labor and birth without pain medication. This is what I'm hoping to do, and she has beautifully paved the way. And we are also proud of Andrew, who stuck with her through the whole incredible experience as her partner and needed support. I feel so lucky to have Keenan by my side. He has full confidence in me and shares my ideals about how a birth can be. He has prepared with me and in doing so has gained my complete trust as "labor coach." I bet he could smoothly deliver this baby in a car if necessary...and breech! :) With regard to the decision to birth "naturally," we of course realize that the unforeseen does arise, and we are prepared to have some decisions to make in the moment as necessary. But as to where we are right now, I feel we have prepared well together for this exciting event!

Keenan has also been a pregnant wife's Super Husband. He has supported me in all my endeavors, made me meal after meal, cleaned the apartment, made phone calls I haven't had time to make, stewed over upcoming decisions so I don't have to, routinely rubbed my feet and back, taken and enjoyed a fantastic childbirth class with me, and taken much better care of me and baby than I could by myself. See, here he is feeding me liver for my first time...
We are fast approaching our two-year anniversary, and I couldn't be happier. I hope my little boy turns out just like Keenan.

Baby Dalton

Could this not be my baby? (This is 6-week-old Dalton, our first cousin once removed on Keenan's side...) I don't know if my baby will have red hair, seeing as Andrew, Meredith, and I are the only red heads in our whole huge extended family. I think there's actually more red on Keenan's side, so we'll see what happens. In the end, I definitely don't want to have a family full of redheads (heaven forbid), but I could take a child or two as cute as this one!

Spectacular, Superlative, Sublime.

Keenan had never been to Yellowstone.
So we took a trip, anticipating flowers and sunshine.
And grizzlies.
The first night, we built a fire in the rain/snow, using a thousand matches.
The second night, we built a fire using no matches at all, nor lighter fluid of any sort.
The food was spectacular.
The company superlative. (Amanda not pictured here.)
The scenery sublime. Fortunately, the cold did not penetrate the entire landscape.


For a better narrative, see Adam's blog. Thanks to all those who braved the journey! This was a great memory.