we're going to kansas city, going to kansas city, kansas city here we come...

Braeden and I went to, you guessed it, Kansas City this weekend to visit my friends Ashley and Rob. I met them at the summer camp I worked at two years ago: Ashley was my co-counselor and her husband Rob was in charge of pottery. I hadn't seen them in almost a year and it was great to see them again. Braeden was excited to meet them for the first time (and vice versa) and I believe that everyone was pleased with everyone else and we were all just one big happy family.

Both Ashley and Rob are attending the Kansas City Art Institute—Ashley for fibers (as in textiles, not the food) and Rob for ceramics. Ashley's recently started participating in what's called Yarn Bombing: here's one of the statues that she's sweater-ed (apparently he had a scarf, too but it's been stolen). She told us that statues are different than people in that they don't really have arms (they sort of just come out of the torso at the elbows) so she had to do some finagling when she attached the knit pieces to the actual statue. I think she did a great job!

I would follow this sweater-clad man to the ends of the earth.

She also told us about this group called Knitta, Please! (best. name. ever.). You should check it out. Especially the one in China where someone covered a piece of the Great Wall of China.

She also wove this scarf—that's right, WOVE, not knit—that is at least 10 feet long. I may or may not covet it slightly.

Since I'd last visited they'd gotten another miniature Schnauzer (before they just had Calvin, the lighter-haired dog) and they both loved the Braeden face. As Braeden says, "Braeden is not a dog person, but dogs are always Braeden people. Also, babies."

He looks sort of terrifying in this picture, but not as terrifying as the other picture that I took.

Here we are with Ashley and Rob! I loff them. Also their great new home. (Check out that sweet-a chandelier in the background!)

I love Ashley's face!

Rob showed us his studio on campus while we were there and was super generous, not only letting us glaze some of the pots he's thrown on the wheel (he's gonna mail them to us once they're fired: I can't wait!) but also giving us a whole box of cups. A whole box! What a man.

This one has his face on it.

This one has Ashley's face on it.

Several of them have this great indentation in it that is perfect for your thumb as you hold it: it's one of the things that Braeden and I fell in love with.

And that was pretty much our weekend. Oh! And we went to church with them on Sunday (The Boiler Room). We literally sang for the whole first hour and it was kinda fun: they had a full rock band in front and projected the lyrics to the songs up on the wall. There were definitely times during the singing that I felt the Spirit and I think that's a beautiful thing.