"subtext" 2010 Dallas Video Association 24hr. Video Race

This year I joined an incredibly talented group of folks to take part in a 24hr video race. The idea is teams receive a theme, prop, location and line of dialog at midnight and then have 24 hours to write, shoot and produce a short video. This year the theme was acceptance, prop -cell phone, location - fast food joint, line - "is that all there is?" My team consisted of two photographers (I was one of the two), a director, an audio/music producer and three actors. We also had a B-team on location in England waiting to shoot some bonus footage if the story called for it. Once we had our story worked out, we started shooting. We shot through the night and began editing by dawn. Due to some technical hiccups we didn't get all of the UK footage in time to include it in the judged video but we made it to the finals and ended up taking third place in our category. Here is the final video we planned to shoot with the missing UK footage added. We may never know if we could have placed higher with the final video but we had a great time making it and the team plans to do something again very soon. Hope you enjoy the video we made. Please share it with your friends.

This is Subtext...

Harper's first shiner

It was bound to happen... just a matter of time, but it still makes this momma's heart hurt to see my sweet little girl with her first shiner.

Harper was playing in our bedroom early Saturday morning and having a great time until she slipped. The good thing? There was something in place to break her fall. The bad part is that it was the side of our platform bed. She cried, I cried. Motrin, nursing and cuddling saved the day.

This cart was Harper's birthday present from us. It's a nifty little toy that will grow with Harper through three stages! Thankfully, she really likes it! She loves to get in it so she can go for rides around the house, push it around and put toys and other random objects in it.

Harper, her daddy and their guitar

Harper loves music. Every time she hears it, she does a little dance and it’s the cutest little wiggle I’ve ever seen. We want to encourage her love for music as much as we can, so most evenings after dinner we have a family drum circle. Robin plays the bongos while Harper and I play the maracas. This weekend, Robin decided to throw another instrument in the mix so he bought a guitar for the two of them. He does the chords and strums or helps her strum. It’s cute and completely warms my heart. Here are a few pictures from their first session…

Snow!

It was beautiful. And she thought so, too– as long as she was watching it from inside her nice, cozy and familiar home. I managed to get one shot before she let me know loud and clear that she’s just not a snow girl — yet.

Nasher + Jaume Plensa = Brilliance

I immediately fell in love with the genius of Jaume Plensa upon opening the door to the Nasher Sculpture Center. His show, Jaume Plensa: Genus and Species was installed so perfectly that I immediately renewed my lapsed membership so Harper, Robin and I could revisit the exhibit as many times as we have energy for while it is still here. It's just that brilliant. I am eager to see more of his work, but for now, I am grateful for the Nasher bringing his insight to Dallas.

29 Palms

Twins I and II

Nasher scavenger hunt goodie bag. She isn't quite ready for art scavenger hunts, but I'm looking forward to helping her with many in the future!

Watching the endless rain...

My model

I’m a huge fan of Three Yellow Starfish. I ooh and aah over the bloomers, petti skirts, pinnies and hats every time I see Margaret and her line at a craft fair. I’m also surrounded by cute babies, so I contacted Margaret to see if I could help her out with some product photography. She currently has a photographer, but agreed to let me try my hand at showing off her style. So, Harper and I warmed the house on this cold and rainy day and played like it was summertime.






If you get a moment, visit her Facebook page or blog and give me props once she posts the pictures, or better yet, shop for the little girl in your life at her Etsy shop! Hopefully you’ll see many more Three Yellow Starfish product shots in the future!

Harper's walking... almost!

January 12, 2010

Where did the time go?!

We're behind! Way behind on our blog. One of my goals for the New Year is to catch up and keep current for you, our friends and family! For now, I'm posting pictures, but I'll go back and add text as time allows.

We love each and every one of you greatly and hope to see you soon!

Much love,
Crystalyn, Robin and Harper

Harper's First Christmas

Harper's First Christmas from Christopher Roberts on Vimeo.