For a few years now, my oldest daughter Bre has been trying to convince me that I'd love her style of music if I'd give it a try – particularly if I'd give her favorite band (introduced to her by Josh), The String Cheese Incident, a chance. I love all sorts of music, but never actually listen to any, because I prefer the sound of peace and quiet (which usually sounds like a pot of coffee brewing and perhaps a DVD of Lark Rise to Candleford playing on the set in front of me-and-my-stitching).
However, a few months ago I found myself saying "sure" to her invitation to join she and Josh at Red Rocks in Colorado, and up until the day I left, I was pretty much a nervous wreck over it. What if the night lasts too long and I can't stay awake? What if I'm surrounded by hooligans who start body surfing? What if I can't find a quiet spot to stitch in? WHAT IF THERE'S NO COFFEE?
I'm here today because I survived it. And not only did I survive it, I had one of the best nights of my life! Bre and Josh were the most accomodating, fun adult couple to hang out with, and as I was getting dressed this morning, I was bummed that I didn't buy a concert tee shirt to put on.
Here are Bre and I in the hotel room before the show:
And with Josh:
When we arrived at Red Rocks Ampitheater, I was amazed at how beautiful it was!
(If you follow Bre on Instagram, you'll remember that she won that really cool Kelly Moore camera bag/backpack that she's wearing.)
The sun was very hot and very hazy, but Josh warned me not to complain about the heat, because as soon as someone does, the sky opens up and the rain falls in bucketloads, and then it's freezing the rest of the night.
We walked through what's known as "Shakedown Street," because that's where lots of vendors sell their wares – jewelry, tee shirts, art work – and Bre's koozies! She had some made especially for the weekend, and she sold tons of them!
(Josh was her koozie caddie, reaching into his backpack and refilling her handfull when she'd run out.)
(I love how talented she is… for those of you who have gotten one of my little lip balms in a class kit, she helped me design those as well!)
I bought these crazy pants to wear to the show, as well as the necklace I'm wearing (which has a clay pendant of the SCI logo), but as soon as the show was over, I gave them both to Bre. She was happy to adopt them, as they're much more her style than mine. (But it was fun wearing something out of the ordinary for a change.)
These two are so fun to hang out with! This was before the show started. (And by the way, Katrina mentioned once that Josh looks like a young Matt Lauer, and I have to agree!)
Incidentally (see what I did there?), Josh is a very calm, laid-back kind of guy. He's always soft-spoken and pleasant, and I was planning on sitting by him for the most part while Bre danced the night away. However, as soon as the band members walked out on stage, I was jerked out of my comfort zone by a never-before-seen Josh that one can only describe as the mildly wild sort…
I need my cross stitch, I need my cross stitch, I need my cross stitch….
Truth be told, I never laughed so hard! These two were an absolute joy to watch, the way they danced and had so much fun, singing along to the songs they love and stopping frequently to see if I was still breathing.
What a fantastic night! The music, the food (hot dogs, Philly steak sandwiches, and lots of peanut M&M's), and the friendliness of everyone there; young people, old people, and lots of children, all having the same wonderful time I was having.
But best of all, I got to spend time with my girl. My sweet, talented, artistic, music-loving girl.
Thank you for a wonderful time, Bre. I love you. And I love Cheese.