Three on Thursday: Tulips

Watch: "Lost for Words"

Watch: "Gulp"

Behind the scenes:

Watch: "Full Moon Silhouettes"

Watch & Listen: "Build Your Kingdom Here"

Watch: "The Lost Generation"

Watch & Listen: "In Canada"

Watch & Listen: Story of My Life

sap·py
/ˈsapē/
adjective: sappy; comparative adjective: sappier; superlative adjective: sappiest

1. (North American informal) excessively sentimental; mawkish.
2. (of a plant) containing a lot of sap.

********

I admit it, sometimes I can be sappy. This song and video is sap through and through. I...

   ...love the music to this song (shhh, don't tell anyone).
   ...love the story line.
   ...love the drawings and cinematography.
   ...love the impish smile on the girl that reminds me of my Sprouts'
         smiles.
   ...love the reminder of a moment when caught in the rain with my
        spouse (remember that, EK?).

Watch: Misunderstood

I have several thoughts about the following video, but will post them at another time so as not to influence your viewing pleasure.



Here's the full length "A Harris Family Holiday":

Watch & Listen: Chicago's Magical Piano

"Papa, can we watch the magic piano again?" asks the youngest Sprout repeatedly. He especially likes the angry man scene and Santa shushing the piano. See for yourself:

Watch: The Bear and the Hare

I watched this advert video over on Scott Kelby's blog this morning. The animation is beautiful, the story simple yet meaningful (a writing lesson here somewhere). Watch first, then continue reading the post:



While I thoroughly enjoyed the advertisement, it was the behind the scenes video that blew me away. The combination of 2D drawing and 3D sets was simply stunning. I had no idea that lasers are used to cut out figures. Note the care and craftsmanship with which the sets were created. And did you see what they used to film it? A DSLR! Watch the behind the scenes video, "Once Upon a Time":

Watch & Listen: A Hallelujah Christmas

Watch: WestJet Christmas Miracle

Advent: O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

Isaiah 11:1-3a

1 A shoot will come up from the stump of Jesse;
   from his roots a Branch will bear fruit.
2 The Spirit of the Lord will rest on him—
     the Spirit of wisdom and of understanding,
     the Spirit of counsel and of might,
     the Spirit of the knowledge and fear of the Lord—
3 and he will delight in the fear of the Lord. (NIV)

O Come, O Come, Emmanuel

1 O come, O come, Immanuel,
   and ransom captive Israel
   that mourns in lonely exile here
   until the Son of God appear.

   Refrain:
   Rejoice! Rejoice! Immanuel
   shall come to you, O Israel.

4 O come, O Branch of Jesse's stem,
   unto your own and rescue them!
   From depths of hell your people save,
   and give them victory o'er the grave. Refrain

6 O come, O Bright and Morning Star,
   and bring us comfort from afar!
   Dispel the shadows of the night
   and turn our darkness into light. Refrain

7 O come, O King of nations, bind
   in one the hearts of all mankind.
   Bid all our sad divisions cease
   and be yourself our King of Peace. Refrain

Tune: VENI EMMANUEL (Chant); Translator: John Mason Neale (1851)

Listen: 10,000 Reasons

Watch: Toy Boats

I needed to take a break from lesson planning, so went to Vimeo and typed in "time lapse" in the search box. I scrolled through the resulting videos and came across "Toy Boats", a tilt shift video shot in Sydney, Australia. I like toys, I like boats, so I clicked on the video link and watched the short film. I like the miniature look created by tilt shift (whether using a tilt shift lens or done in post). Enjoy!

Listen: Help Me Find It

Watch & Listen: "Great Are You, Lord"

Watch & Listen: Home

I'm sure by now that at some point you have seen or listened to the Piano Guys online, on disc or via iTunes. The Sprouts have a favourite video as do my students. Recently the Piano Guys released a video of an arrangement that incorporates two wonderful compositions. The main theme the Piano Guys borrow for this arrangement is Home, a song performed by Phillip Phillips (who gets lots of airplay in our home). The main theme is interspersed with a motif from Anton Dvořák’s New World Symphony (a favourite work of mine). You might recognize that theme as Going Home. Enjoy this interpretation:



Phillip Phillips sings "Home" here.

Josiah's favourite Piano Guys video here.

My students' favourite Piano Guys video here.

More about the Piano Guys at their website here.

Watch: Man's Best Friend

I'm not ashamed to admit that this made me cry.