Picnic with Tbone & Bekahmae

Tbone, Bekahmae, Abby
Originally uploaded by andy white.

Well, the past couple days have been just soooo gorgeous, that we called up local Carp buddies, Tbone & Bekahmae for an impromtu picnic.

Abby was thrilled and we had a great time soaking up some rays while we caught up with our pals. Ofcourse, we let Tad snap some pix with our little "point and shoot" and the results were incredible. Besides the one sample here, you can see more picnic pix RIGHT HERE on my FLIKR page.

gooD TiMEs guiTAR

Jordan & Hannah
Originally uploaded by andy white.

Last night was the school talent show. I always look forward to this, not only because there's so many fun acts, but especially because it's an opportunity for my guitar students to showcase their hard work. Well, this year was no exception. It always amazes me how well they do in front of a large crowd! It certainly is fulfilling for me to see how far each student has come...this keeps me going for another year. There's nothing that quite compares to seeing a child's face light up after their performance! You can see their satisfaction, knowing that they put in soooo much hard work, and it paid off! Sharing the gift of music is a one of life's most important treasures. It's a privilege for me to be a part of it.




Check out a 2 minute "gooD TiMEs guiTAR" movie from the talent show excitement...

Seriously...Goofing Off

Silly Faces #1
Originally uploaded by andy white.

Sometimes Abby and I just love to be super silly. Here's a recent sample. There's some more examples RIGHT HERE on my FLIKR page. She is really great at playing and good fun lately. One of her favorite games right now is hide-n-seek. I'm trying to teach her to not always hide in the same place or pick the spot that I JUST hid in. I'm not sure were getting anywhere, but she loves it so that's all that matters.

In a couple weeks, I'll be heading to Sea World with my 3rd graders. Good news is, Ange and Abby get to go down with us this year! We can't wait to take Abby on the train! There's no doubt that the choo-choo has long been one of her favorite things in the entire world. Lately, she's been suggesting that a train ride be one of her rewards for cooperation. "Hmmm, good idea Abby. Maybe some day." If she only knew!

Music stuff continues to go well. SBCC album has almost sold out of all 500 copies! Wow! Didn't see that coming but it's satisfying to know that all the hard work that went into the production is actually getting plugged into people's ears. Also, CLARK has a gig this Friday at Legends this Friday night. Hope to see you there for some good music and good times.


Lastly, I just want to wish a Happy Mommy's Day to all the great moms out there. You all amaze me...I have been loved beyond measure by my own Mom and I see her amazing legacy being passed along now when I observe my wife and my sister tirelessly give of themselves the way my own mom always has and continues to do. Thank you wonderful moms in my life. You bless me. :)

Abby & Friends

Abby & Sydney
Originally uploaded by andy white.

I'm sorry for the lack of updates. Life has been going full tilt lately. I'll get back to it...

We were gone on our annual church retreat last weekend...good times. Over 300 albums sold. Yay for IJM! Yay for SBCC. It feels great to know that the album is being put to use...

Before that, we had a great Easter. Be sure to check out the latest photos of Abby & friends RIGHT HERE . See ya soon!

"We Have a Hope" CD Release!

I'm pleased to announce another album release from Good Times Studio!

Santa Barbara Community Church musicians have recorded a CD of original recordings and arrangements. All proceeds from this album are to be donated to International Justice Mission. Learn more about this organization at www.IJM.org. You can listen to a "mp3 sampler collage" of the album RIGHT HERE.

One of the songs, "Rejoice", was penned by my lovely wife, Angela White. If you'd like to hear it, click on REJOICE and take a listen at the good times studio myspace page. Remember, 100% of the money goes to charity! You can buy the album in the lobby at SBCC or by clicking the "Buy Now" symbol below. I'm not sure why, but you'll have to scroll down a little to get to the "buy now" button...

Big News! Big News!

We didn't buy a new car. Nope. And no, we're not going on a trip to Europe, although that would be pretty fun.

If you want to know all about the big news, you'll just have to click on over to ANGELA'S NEW BLOG. Once you get there, you can read our latest news and even click your way to a new video related to our BIG news. Don't worry, I have a link on the left to Angela's blog...you can keep tabs on how well she keeps up with me on updates!

Photo at right by Tad Wagner .

We're Back from San Jose

Goofball Cousins
Originally uploaded by andy white.

We just got home from a fun Spring Break trip to San Jose! I posted new pictures from the trip RIGHT HERE. It's late and there was tons of highlights, so I'll try to just jot down a few here:

--> We celebrated Angela's 35th birthday with lots of food, gifts and fun! She's the proud owner of new outer and under garmets, and the Apple Airport Express

--> Abby & Nolan had tons of fun cousin play time together.

--> We had a great visit with Abby & Nolan's "Great Grandma Bridge" who was up from Hemet, CA.

--> I enjoyed some great backyard fun with Matt and my Dad. While the kids played outside for what seemed like an eternity, we wisely took advantage of the outdoor time...we played mini-ball HORSE, drank some Fat Tire and BBQ-ed some steaks.

--> My birthday was extended from 2 weeks ago with some sweet gifts! (new stylin' clothes and some music gear moola...thanks guys!!)

There was so much more so I'll just wrap up by saying we love our family and the good times together!

One last note...check out a recent Clark review HERE.

Abby Loves to Sing

It's official...Abby is a full blown recording artist. She stepped up to the mic and delivered the goods. Ok, so she doesn't exactly have a tour lined up or any major label interest yet, but she sure loves to belt it!

I've been waiting for her to say, "I wanna sing in the microphone Daddy." Well, today, my wish came true. Sure, it was nap time, but we postponed it for a quick recording sesh...I mean, with me on Spring Break and all (oh yes,!), it was a perfect time.

Well, you can download her 6 minute medley HERE.

Happy Birthday to Me!

Boat Snugglin'
Originally uploaded by andy white.

So Saturday was my birthday...my best present is seen here in this picture! It's hard to beat good times with Abby for a present. If you wanna see more cute pix of Abby, your time has come! Just CLICK HERE and you'll be whisked away to Cutetropolis.

For about a 10-day stretch, we had BIG TIME trouble with Abby obeying...especially at bed time. Unfortunately for my darling wife, I was in Vegas for three of those days. (Love you!) But we've divised a new system. It adds up to this: 1 spanking + TONS of love, encouragement and INCENTIVES! For the last 5-6 days, it's working! We're pumped, because it was starting to get crazy! At the climax, Abby jumped out of bed 30x and rammed her head against her door so much that we had to remove her door handle.

Well, we're happy to report that her door handle is back on and she's voluntarily cooperating. True, she doesn't EVER want another "ow-ie on her bottom" and she loves that she can now earn sweet stuff by getting 10 precious points on her little white board. Once she reaches ten, she gets a fun "outting" such as a boat ride on "Little Toots" or a trip to the Merry-Go-Round or Baskin Robbins. We're amazed that somehow, by God's grace, it's working.

We're thankful. Abby has always been super sweet and a really easy kid. The sweet part never went away...but the easy part was starting to get to be hard to remember. We're back to pretty much a cake walk with pure cane sugar now though. phew....

In addition to new ABBY PHOTOS, I've posted some new scenic photos HERE .

Vegas Baby, Vegas!

A strong chin...
Originally uploaded by Bet on Red.

I'm back! Back from a great trip to Vegas to celebrate my buddy Brad, back from a nasty flu virus, and back to reality! It feels swell to be back...let me explain.

My faithful friend of fourteen years, Brad Lounsberry, is getting married this June. Brad and I went to Westmont College together and found ourselves living in the same room or suite most of the time. I knew then, that he was the type of quality person that I would want to be friends with for the rest of my life. Thankfully, I know this will always be true. Sadly, we only get some serious hang time once or twice a year. The amazing thing is how we're always able to pick up where we left off. Even more phenomenal is how I have become a close friend to many of his friends who live in various parts of the country.

I'm thankful. In fact, we were all SO thankful for Brad this weekend, that we decided to truly share our affection for him by providing him with some "unique" outfits to wear in four of Vegas' finest casinos. Our hope was that instead of just a dozen bro's adoring Brad, thousands of casino dwellers would cast their gaze in his direction. Well, news flash...IT WORKED! I took the liberty of documenting the occasion. However, I must warn you, unless you appreciate men's European swimwear (Speedo's), this photo show might not be for you. However, if laughing at a dude in crazy, public humiliation (all done in the name of Christ's love of course!), then this might be for you! Click HERE.

Yes, sadly, I did come back from my trip for one measely day of work and then proceed to toss my cookies. Serious 180 from PURE FUN to NO FUN. Oh well, the good news is, I did finish the mixing and mastering of the SBCC album before I started blowing chow. So, it looks like the album will out by mid-April now. After about 9 months in the making, I am relieved and excited. Thanks to everyone out there for contributing to the compilation. The songs sound great!

How's Abby? Cute as ever. She's been a little combatitive with bed times but I think we're making headway. We've found that "special outings" can be highly motivating! :) More news and Abby pix to come soon...and she'll probably be found in skirts only. She refuses pants these days.

Where Have I Been?

V Abby
Originally uploaded by andy white.

Sorry that I have not been posting for a while. I have been trying to make a deadline for a recording project. Every free moment has been tied up, but I promise to keep this blog alive...just sit tight. The SBCC album will be mastered on Tues so it won't be long before I'm back at it.

Here's a fun picture from a recent coffee break with Abby. I also stuffed a few fun gymnastics pictures in my FLIKR photos RIGHT HERE .

The respones to Tad Wagner's photos have been overwhelming. Don't worry, we'll be ordering some prints for friends and family. If you have not yet enjoyed the slideshow from the Tbone photo shoot, CLICK HERE .

"Tbone" Tad's Photo Shoot

abby-13.jpg
Originally uploaded by tbone805familyphotos.

We had the privilege of a photo shoot of Abby with our good friend Tad Wagner. As you will soon see, "Tbone" has an amazing gift with the camera. A big part of his results have to do with his patient, gentle way with kids. Abby was so comfortable and relaxed throughout the shoot. You can check out a slideshow of these beautiful, candid pix by CLICKING HERE.

In addition to the photos, we captured a hilarious video today. You might wanna bookmark this movie for whenever you need a laugh. Abby has really been into "The Horsey Song" (aka William Tell Overture). Well, today she requested it, while in her underwear! She proceeded to grab her "trumpet" and her stuffed pony...okay, text just doesn't do this justice. CLICK HERE or use my movie link on the left and check it out...

Family Fun & Clark CD Release Party

Cousin Nolan & Uncle Matt
Originally uploaded by andy white.

My whole family came to visit last weekend. It was tons o' fun. We made a beach run and took a bunch of fun pix. Click here to see the new pictures in all 3 of my FLIKR albums.

My family came down this particular weekend because they wanted to catch the CLARK CD Release Party. If you'd like to read about CLARK, you can read a recent article from the Santa Barbara Independent by CLICKING HERE.

Abby hosts V-Day Party!

Cute Girls
Originally uploaded by andy white.

I’ve got some new pictures up HERE. Abby had all her 2-year-old buddies over for a Valentine's Day party on Tuesday. It was pure good times. Angela had the condo decked out with hearts and streamers, etc. The cupid-crew was decked out in their favorite red and pink attire as they crafted valentines for their friends, sang love songs on the lawn and pounded cup cakes in the name of love.

Although I missed the party because I was at work, I did try to join the holiday fun. I brought home a small potted plant for Angela. As I walked in the door with the gift in tote, Abby ran up to me and yelled, "Oh wow Daddy, you brought me a present!" I locked eye contact with my trusty parental partner...she KNEW the gift was for her, but graciously gave me the nod to pass it on to our adoring 2 year old. Abby proceeded to adoringly sniff the plant and smoother me with hugs and kisses. I instantly became a ginormous fan of the holiday. Thanks Angela...what a great woman, eh?

Speaking of Angela ruling...check out all these ridiculously cute pictures she gave me for Valentine's Day by clicking HERE.

Abby's First Theater Experience

Hi George!
Originally uploaded by andy white.

I can think of so many of life's firsts. My first Coke. My first day of school. My first 2 wheeler. My first soccer trophy. My first crush. My first slumber party. My first trip on a plane. My first car. My first date. My first day of college. My first (and only) wedding. My first child. So many eye-opening moments. On paper, they're nothing more than every day experiences. But when you are living them for the first time, it's almost as if time stops and you realize that your view on the world is different now. You have the knowledge that this new thing is cool...really cool.

Today was one of those days for Abby. Sure, we talked it up big because like all good parents, we manipulate and bribe in order to get a desired response. Well, needless to say, Abby agreeably jumped through our "cooperation hoops" and earned her precious cinematic initiation. In short, she loved it. Massive vibrant colors…glowing animation…altogether a mesmerizing experience. I'm sure it doesn't hurt that her entire room is decked out in "curious" decor, and she has about 27 stuffed George’s.

The movie was great…Will Ferrell was hilarious as the “Man with the Yellow Hat” and Jack Johnson’s soundtrack was refreshing. However, I must confess, I spent much of the movie watching Abby, not George! I couldn’t help it. She was giggling and grinning throughout the flick. It was a joy to see my little girl having the time of her life. Seeing her happy has become one of my favorite passions. Click HERE to see some photos from the film day. Abby’s first theater day. My first day taking her to the theater. We’ll be back.

New Clark Photos & More!

Clark
Originally uploaded by andy white.

Clark, my "ambient folk" band, did a photo shoot with our foto-friend, Greg Lawler. He is insanely talented, so, the results were impressive. I have posted a few, which you can go see HERE.

I have reorganized my FLIKR photos into 3 groups. I think in the long run, this will serve my purposes better. Go check out the new pix, including this one of Abby enjoying a "Headphone Day" during the Super Bowl...(probably the opposite reaction of Matt Steele...congrats Steelio!)



Lastly, I have added several old & new photos to a "Music & Art" gallery set. Enjoy.

Beach Playground in Winter!

Beach Playground
Originally uploaded by andy white.

We live in a great place. Our daughter can visit a beach playground in January and not freeze her patooty off. Trust me, this is a good thing. You don't really wanna be caught dead or alive without your patooty! Anywho, there are more pictures from Abby's happening playgroup RIGHT HERE .


As I look at this picture, I realize that Abby is getting old. Seriously, I think she is growing up at some sort of record speed. It's crazy! In case you're wondering, I think she looks gorgeous in this shot. Ok, you probably already knew I thought that, but it's good to be clear, ya know!?

So the Steelers versus the Seahawks this weekend, eh? Who's watching the Super Bowl? (Post some comments down below folks!) I for one must admit, I've trailed off in my football interest ever since my Niners went South a couple decades ago. Those guys really put the UCK in SUCK these days. I can't even stand to watch. But hey, I'll be tuning in this weekend to hopefully catch a good game, or at least some good laughs with the commercials! If you must know, in honor of my buddy Matt Steele, I'm pulling for the Steelers! Go black and yellow! (Sorry Dad...I know you've been waiting for your Seahawks to make a Super Bowl appearence for eons...)

Well, take good care everyone...and don't forget to post a comment for everyone's pleasure reading.

Curl Girl

check out my curls
Originally uploaded by andy white.

I have added several entertaining photos of Abby in curlers or with curls. Go to my FLIKR page to check 'em out! (link is on the left). Make sure you're fully prepared for heavy doses of cute!

In other news, Clark (my acoustic-ish, rainy day music band) was on the air Saturday. We were on WNYU in New York. Our song, "Lost", from the "Here Comes Tomorrow" album, was on a morning show called Pop Anonymous. We have met a promoter through MySpace that really believes in the album and is pushing it everywhere that he can...for free. So we very much appreciate the extra plugs. Stay tuned to your local radio...you just might hear Clark!

In addition to playing with Clark, I'm also dying to get back to my full band, Widescreen Reason. My buddy, Matt Steele, who drums in the band, has been fighting brain cancer. He's had a rough couple weeks, so I appreciate your prayers of healing for him. I know he'd love to be done with radiation and get back to fun things like jamming with the band. Get better soon Matt!

Big Girl Bed

Big Girl Bed
Originally uploaded by andy white.

As promised, a picture of Abby in her new new "Big Girl Bed". There are several other new pictures of Abby in her new sleeping arrangements on my FLIKR page. Don't worry, they're all cute and you can check them out if you CLICK HERE.

I've also finished a new home movie from this year's Christmas Tree Hunt. It's called "Christmas Tree Hunt 2005". Check it out. You'll laugh, you'll cry, you'll wanna eat popcorn. All free citizens are invited to go watch the movie at my Putfile page which is RIGHT HERE. (**Side Note...I just checked my video page...either I've gone deaf or the audio is down...let me know what you hear...or don't hear.**)

Yahoo for MLK! Yahoo for 3 day weekends! Abby and I had an invigorating bike ride this morning...who knows what other ambitions we'll stumble upon this weekend.

KCPR Radio hosts Clark Live!

Here's a fun pic from Clark's KCPR radio gig yesterday!

We played for about 45 minutes on the air yesterday. Thanks to everyone who tuned in via their radio or their internet connection! The radio show helped boost our CD sales for Silent Film Records. It was fun to play in a quiet room and imagine the 10's of thousands of listeners enjoying the tunes...or maybe just 10! Anyhow, it was a fun time for all and we even got to grab dinner with my parents after the show! Don't worry, if you missed the show, we should hopefully be receiving a recording soon. Ofcourse, you could always order your own copy of the Clark album here.

In other news, Abby is now sleeping in a "Big Girl Bed"...can you believe that? So long crib...on to the Toddler bed! It's pretty cute how excited she is about it. It's actually kind of nice to not have a jail cell between you and your cute kid. it's much easier to sneak back in for one more good night kiss this way (which I'm a pretty big fan of...) I'll try to post a picture of Abby in her new bed this week.

til we meet again...have a great week...