Saturday, May 25, 2013

This Is A Kitten Post


All kitten. Nothing but kitten. And some kitten admirers, but mostly just kitten.













We call him Wash. And Mister Fu. Also, Mysterious Fu.

Friday, May 24, 2013

{this moment}

A single photo - no words - capturing a moment from the week. A simple, special, extraordinary moment.
A moment I want to pause, savor and remember.

:: Inspired by Soule Mama ::

If you're inspired to do the same, leave a link to your 'moment' in the comments, for all to find and see.

Tuesday, May 21, 2013

How We Faire

A Merry Band of Makers, after fifteen hours of Maker Faire awesomeness.

~16 maker, thinkers, tinkerers, artists, engineers
~From Flagstaff, So Cal, Santa Cruz, and San Luis Obispo
~16, 8, and if your brakes fail en route- 24 hours, on the road

This was easily one of our most challenging journeys to get to the The Greatest Show and Tell on Earth, and I cannot deny, there were several times I was ready to turn around and head home. And yeah, when the brakes fail on your RV, you pretty much start making it a plan to get everyone home, safely. But, we had a lot riding on this particular Faire, and so we just kept doing our best, moving forward, and, somehow, it came together.

There we are... absent friends in our hearts, at the end of an amazing day. It was after ten o'clock, and we were still celebrating and feeling the rush of inspiration and energy that comes from sharing STEAM ~Science, Technology, Engineering, Art, and Math~ with tens of thousands of enthused, talented, curious, fun people.

After our very first visit to Maker Faire, in 2010, we knew we had to be a part of the Maker movement, and so we started a Young Makers Club. It fits with our interests in FIRST, and robotics, our love of inventing and creating, our passions for playing and sharing. We are happy that every year since that first visit we have encouraged more people, new people, to come to Maker Faire Bay Area.

This year, Max was a first time presenter at Maker Faire. It was amazing. He was amazing. I cannot wait to share some highlights from his demonstrations. And, our youngest Maker, Maria, returned with new lessons in wool felting. She was patient and dedicated to sharing her interest and skills, and a lot of new wool felting enthusiasts were born, thanks to Maria!

I'll be sharing more... more thoughts and reflections, more pictures. And I would like to add something, here... I want you to feel inspired, and lifted. I admit, sometimes I see amazing, beautiful places and activities on the Internet, and there is a moment of envy, of feeling left out. If you can't come to a Maker Faire, if you missed this time, if you're trying to get to a Maker Faire... I want these posts to include you, to be a sharing experience, and I hope they encourage you, too. Because the Maker movement, the DIY community, FIRST, and STEAM education are growing, and spreading, and you can be a part of it. I hope the fun we had, the experiences we share, motivate you, encourage you, inspire you, because we would love to see you at Maker Faire 2014!