The Mississippi Children’s Museum’s newest summer exhibit, Curious George™: Let’s Get Curious! exhibit will open Saturday, May 20, 2017. Children of all ages will love this peak into the world of Curious George, the inquisitive little monkey who has captured the imagination and hearts of millions of children and adults for 75 years. The exhibit will introduce young children to George’s curious world and lead visitors on a fun, interactive math, science, and engineering-based adventure.

“This exhibit is on a twenty-city tour across the United States and we are very lucky to have it here in Jackson,” says Mary Alex Thigpen, Assistant Director of Communications for MCM. Visitors will recognize familiar characters and places featured in the classic stories by H.A. and Margret Rey and the television series that airs on PBS KIDS®. The exhibit inspires children’s natural curiosity as they explore the neighborhood where Curious George™ lives with his friend, The Man with the Yellow Hat. Children can explore iconic points from George’s curious world and climb into a construction trailer to design and construct a building! Visitors to the exhibit have the opportunity to experiment with physics as they putt through the mini golf course, use wind power to move yard art and wind chimes, or climb into the space rocket Curious George took on his space adventure! “We are thrilled to offer this experience to the children of Mississippi. The Curious George exhibit offers visiting families an opportunity to meet a favorite classic childhood icon and incorporates play and fun with STEM aligned activities,” notes Susan Garrad, President and CEO of the Mississippi Children’s Museum.

Mississippi Children’s Museum members can enjoy a member’s only preview party Friday, May 19th from 5:30 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. Guests will enjoy Curious George themed snacks, a take-home photo with Curious George himself, and hands-on activities including Duplo Structural Building, Stained Glass Painting, and Paper Hat Making. Visitors will also receive a free Curious George book, sticker, and bookmark courtesy of Mississippi Public Broadcasting. Wear your red and yellow and be the first to meet George! Not a member of the MCM? You can join this week before the big event Friday. Members enjoy free admission to the MCM year around, discounts, and a variety of other benefits.

So mark your calendars and make Mississippi Children’s Museum a part of your summer plans and come explore the curious world of everyone’s favorite monkey! The Curious George™: Let’s Get Curious! exhibit will run from May 20, 2017 until September 20, 2017. The exhibit is sponsored locally by Trustmark and Atmos Energy. For more information about the Mississippi Children’s Museum, please visit http://mschildrensmuseum.org/

Music, food, fireworks, and fun for the entire family are all a part of the 36th Annual Pepsi Pops! Rescheduled for this Friday, May, 19th, Pepsi Pops! is an annual tradition for many families. Held at the Ross Barnett Reservoir’s Old Trace Park, families from all over bring their lawn chairs, blankets, and picnic to enjoy a night of great music by the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra. “Pepsi Pops is a great event for family and friends to gather and enjoy the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra play in a non-traditional setting at the Reservoir with a grand finale of fireworks at the end of the show,” said Emily Helm, Marketing Manager at Brown Bottling Group. Park gates will open at 4:30 p.m. and the Kids Pepsi Playground will open shortly after at 5:00 p.m. The playground includes inflatables, games, and activities for children of all ages. The pre-concert entertainment includes the Mississippi Symphony Youth Orchestra, Southern Komfort Brass Band, and Mississippi Swing. At 7:30, the Mississippi Symphony Orchestra will take the stage followed by fireworks for the finale!

The annual “Best Picnic Design” contest will be judged by Barry Plunkett and Bo Bowen, and winners will be announced during the program with prizes donated by Mangia Bene. Forget your picnic basket? Take advantage of onsite food vendors The Manship and Backyard Burgers serving delicious food.

All tickets and parking passes with the May 12, 2017 date will be honored. If you haven’t purchased your ticket yet, there is still time. Tickets are $15 at the gate, $12 in advance, and $5 for ages 4-18. Kids 3 and under are free.

Inspiration Mississippi is excited to partner with Brown Bottling Group to give away an awesome prize package! The swag bag includes: 4 tickets to Pepsi Pops!, a Burlap tote, Pepsi beach towel, koozie, hat, and a case of Pepsi! To enter to win, visit our Facebook page @Inspiration Mississippi.

Grab your blankets, lawn chairs, and picnic basket and join us Friday night for a time of great music, fun, and fireworks!

She is only 12, but is already making a name for herself! Her song, Your Own Kind of Beautiful, was released as a single April 21, 2017. Quiet and humble, she is like any other 6th grader…she enjoys basketball, cheer and tumble, but her love is music. This all began at a young age. “From early on she loved to perform,” her mom, Marley Roberson, says. “She would dance around the house with a pretend microphone.” She always knew she wanted more and to do more. “So many doors and opportunities have just fallen in her lap, in our laps. Things that we knew we couldn’t pass up and as long as she wanted to pursue them, we knew we should. We didn’t want to think down the road, ‘what if we never saw where her voice and love for music takes her,’” Marley continues.

Once they noticed she loved music as much as she did, they found a voice teacher in Brandon, MS, for her to work with. If anything, it was an outlet and an activity she enjoyed. Her voice teacher, Winona Costello, helped to develop her voice and at the age of 8, she went with a group of other kids taught by Costello to the IMTA Camp and Competition in New York City. “At this camp, they would practice and perform and perfect their talent. There were kids from all over the United States that would come to this camp,” Marley says.  She enjoyed it so much that she went back the following summer at the age of 9. The kids there would audition for people in the music industry. “These industry people were on the lookout for the next rising star,” Marley smiles. “They are looking for voices that can be trained and many go on to sign record deals as their voice matures over the next several years. That’s the ultimate goal as you participate in these camps, to get noticed and to hopefully sign with a label.”

Over the next couple of years, Elam continued to take voice lessons. She loved singing and performing and wanted to continue it whether anything came from it or not. In the spring of 2016, they received a call from a talent scout. “I was actually in the carpool line at First Presbyterian Day School where Elam and her 2 brothers attend school.” He had heard her perform at IMTA when she was 9. He remembered her and her unique voice. “We were completely floored! We never thought we would get a call. You put in the hours and do the work and go to the camps, never knowing if you will hear back. You don’t want to ever get your hopes up and get ahead of yourself,” continues Marley. From there, everything began to fall into place and happen very quickly. An audition was set up with the Director of A&R for Disney Music. Next, she and her mom and her grandmother flew to Miami, FL, to audition with the President of One One 7 Entertainment. He loved her voice and began working with her. Last summer, she spent time in Nashville working with Matt Bronleewe, a music producer and writer. “I would take my notebook of ideas into the studio with me. From there, we would talk about my ideas and that’s where the songs would come from,” says Elam. “I went back in September to record the 4 songs that were written and then heard them for the first time in December,” she continues. “It was surreal to hear them and to hear my voice with the lyrics. The time, effort, and energy that I had been putting into singing was beginning to pay off.”

A release party was held Friday afternoon, April 21st. “The support from friends and the community has been amazing,” says Elam. “My friends came, brothers and sisters of my friends, and it was a lot of fun!” Marley continues, “She has had a great experience so far and has learned so many life lessons. She knows how to interview, how to handle rejection, and time management.” Elam has continued her school work and extracurricular activities while juggling her singing on the side. When asked what she wants to do when she gets older she immediately replies sing!

Your Own Kind of Beautiful is a song about being yourself. “Be true to who you are, stand up for others, and follow your dreams.” Elam is doing just that. She knows that this opportunity gives her a platform and she hopes that through her music, she can encourage other young people and give a voice to others that are struggling to find their way.

Over the next few months, Elam’s 3 other songs will be released. The songs stem from her notebook of ideas…things she struggles with as a young person, things she knows others struggle with also. She wants to inspire other girls to follow their dreams, but never lose sight of who they are.

You can download Your Own Kind of Beautiful on iTunes and follow her on Instagram: @elamroberson, Facebook: @elammusic, and Twitter: @elamroberson.

The Cedars will host a reception Thursday, May 11, showcasing its latest art exhibit “Spring,” part of the Four Seasons of The Cedars Visual and Performing Arts Series. The exhibit will hang through June 2, 2017. The exhibit will feature work by artists Ginny Futvoye and Mitchell Ammons Walters.

The Four Seasons of The Cedars Visual and Performing Arts series began as an avenue to raise funds to maintain The Cedars. Four art exhibits are offered each year and this award winning series has grown to be one of Fondren Renaissance Foundation’s most popular endeavors drawing 400-500 art lovers to each opening night. The exhibit features new and veteran artists’ work.

The reception Thursday, May 11 is free and open to the public. A portion of all of the proceeds from sales of artists’ work goes to the continuing maintenance and restoration efforts of The Cedars, Jackson’s oldest residential home circa 1840, which celebrated 175 years in 2016.

The “Spring” exhibit will hang through June 2, 2017. Gallery hours are Tuesday – Friday, 10:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m. The exhibit is made possible by First Commercial Bank and Fondren Renaissance.

{Bride}  Candace Hare
{Groom} Kyle Smith
{Hometowns} Candace - Raymond, MS | Kyle - Byram, MS
{Wedding Site} Bridlewood of Madison- Madison, MS
{Reception Site} Bridlewood of Madison- Madison, MS
{Bride’s Bouquet} Queen Anne’s lace, lavender roses, succulents, white and green hydrangea, lavender spikey, lavender lepto, and white garden roses
{Bridesmaid Bouquets} Lavender roses, succulents, white and green hydrangea, lavender spikey, and lavender lepto

{How did the two of you meet?}
Kyle and I have known each other since high school. When I was in 8th grade and played on the high school's girls' soccer team, he was actually our ball boy! We both went to Mississippi State University, had classes together and tailgated together, but we were always just friends. After Kyle graduated college, he moved to Indiana for a job. Two years later, his job transferred him back home. He joined my gym May of 2014. (He always says he joined because he knew I was a member there) We went on our first date June 27, 2014 and have been together ever since!

{What is your proposal story?}
Kyle wanted to take me out for an early birthday dinner because we had plans on my actual birthday. He decided we should try a new restaurant and made reservations at The Gathering in The Town of Livingston. As we were walking up to the restaurant, I mentioned the Livingston Sweet Shoppe next door and Kyle asked me if I wanted to go before dinner, I naturally, said yes. When we walked in, the owner asked what brought us out for the night and Kyle told him we were celebrating my birthday. He led us straight to the popcorn and started giving me samples of different flavors. As I’m eating the popcorn (my appetizer, right?), I heard someone beating on the glass front door. I turned to look and I saw my entire family waving at me through the windows. I was super confused so I turned to Kyle for an explanation and there he was on one knee holding the most beautiful ring! **Que the water works** Both of our families rushed in cheering and that's when I noticed our friends were there watching through the windows too! What was really cool, Kyle got my brother in law to set up his go pro and it videoed the whole thing! We all went to eat at The Gathering where there were balloons, signs, cakes, flowers, and gifts. It was the most incredible thing.

{What inspired your wedding and reception locations?}
As soon as we got engaged, a family friend mentioned to me a new venue that was in the works of being built! She told me that they already had a similar location in Hattiesburg, MS. The very next weekend I went to The Barn at Bridlewood in Hattiesburg to check it out and I instantly knew that if Bridlewood of Madison were to be anything like the original one, that it would be absolutely perfect! I booked Bridlewood of Madison that day and the venue hadn’t even started to be built yet! It was so exciting (and sometimes nerve-racking) seeing the entire process of the venue being built from start to finish! Marcus, the co-owner, was so patient with me every time I would ask to come see the progress! He was truly wonderful!

{What inspired your color scheme/theme/flowers?}
I wanted something springy, whimsical, romantic, and a little vintage. Purple is my favorite color and green is Kyle’s favorite color so I just chose soft purples and greens and went with it!

{How did you pick “the dress?”}
I went to two different dress stores in Jackson. I liked everything but didn’t love anything! My mom and I decided to make the trip to Mimi’s Bridal in Laurel, and found the one! I had been avoiding strapless dresses the entire dress shopping process and I ended up loving a strapless!

{What’s your favorite unique accessory? Is there a story behind it?}
I have two- The first is a blue crystal bunny (our last name is Hare) that my older sister attached to her bouquet in her wedding 6 years prior. The second was my “something old” which was my mom’s diamond bracelet!

{What was your favorite part of the wedding planning process?}
Honestly, my favorite part of the process was when all the details were finalized! Haha- I am a very indecisive person so, wedding planning was harder for me! Thank goodness for Kyle, my mom, sisters, and best friends because they were a lot of help! Also, I am very thankful for our wedding coordinator, Meredith McCullough, who took all of my planning and ideas and turned them into reality the day of our wedding! She totally got my vision!!

{Besides the actual wedding, what was your favorite moment of the wedding day?}
We had to have our rehearsal the morning of the wedding because our venue was booked the Friday night before. One of my favorite moments was being with Kyle, our family, and wedding party in a calm, casual *no makeup* atmosphere eating breakfast together before the rehearsal. I know people say its bad luck to see your groom before the first look or wedding ceremony but it just felt right! Another favorite moment was our letter exchange, first look, and gift exchange! It was such a sweet and special time that Kyle and I got to have before the group photos and wedding started!

{What was your favorite surprise detail/moment about your wedding day?}
I was surprised that it didn’t rain!! The entire week leading up to the wedding had an 80% chance of rain for the wedding day. We were planning for an outdoors ceremony which had stress levels a little high! It sprinkled that morning and then the weather was perfect for the rest of the day! The Lord answered all of our prayers!

{Your favorite picture from the big day?}
One of my favorite pictures was the one of me and Kyle kissing and our wedding party cheering in the background!

{The picture that represents the two of you best?}
Probably the one of me smashing wedding cake in Kyle’s face. He told me after, that he hadn’t planned to do it and didn’t think I would either. I totally caught him off guard and it was awesome! We are very playful and love to laugh and have a good time so I think that one represents us well!

Vendors:

Photographer: Brian Flint Photography
Weekend Coordinator: Meredith McCullough/Stella & Co. Events
Dress: Mimi’s Bridal
Bride’s Jewelry: Mom’s diamond bracelet
Headpiece: Molly Gee Designs
Hair: Memrie Haguewood at Luxe Salon
Make-up: Janell Vandevender
Bridesmaid Dresses: Alfred Angelo
Tuxes: Men’s Warehouse
Videographer: Take Two Video Pro
Venue: Bridlewood of Madison
Rentals: Eventful
Florist: Fresh Cut
Catering: 4Top Catering
Bar: Char Bar
Band: The Dantones
Bride’s Cake: That Special Touch
Groom’s Cake: Kyle’s great grandmother made mini fried pies and pound cake
Print Material: Invitation and monogram- Love Supply Co
Car Service: Trolley - Phoenix Limousine