He is Risen Indeed!

Today a colleague of mine discovered that the stock market is closed on Friday due to it being Good Friday and the exclamation was “pretty soon it’ll be Easter!”  This was followed by, “Easter is this Sunday?!”

As a Christian I forget that the meaning of holidays like Christmas and Easter are not the same for everyone.  Our Easter activities include egg hunts, but those things are always second to our celebration of our Risen Lord.  Friday is always a somber day as we reflect the death of Christ on the cross.  At a former church we always had a candlelight Good Friday service and it was requested that we not speak as we leave the church. 

It was this practice that made the death of Jesus so very real.  It helped me, a child of God in 2015, to remember His sacrifice, His horrible, torturous death on the cross for me.  Many people wore black and it was akin to a funeral. 

Then Sunday morning, in our bright Easter clothes, we would celebrate.  We would rejoice and be filled with the hope of His resurrection.  The celebration of Easter is so sweet!  It made real Psalm 30:11-12:

You turned my wailing into dancing;
    you removed my sackcloth and clothed me with joy,
that my heart may sing your praises and not be silent.
    Lord my God, I will praise you forever.

Today was a reminder of what sin has made this holiday about:  bunnies, eggs, baskets and new clothing.  None of those things are bad, unless they are a distraction from Jesus’ death and resurrection.  As I look at this holiday, I see how powerful the weapon of distraction is.  It weaves its way into our thought process, our traditions, and our hearts.  It takes away what was once God’s. 

I’m in the midst of preparing for a women’s retreat and the topic is distractions.  My eyes have been opened to the reality of what this means in our fallen world.  My heart grieves. 

My prayer for this Easter is that people will see Christ, His love through His death and resurrection.  My God will turn my wailing into dancing and my grief into joy.  For He has overcome this world (John 16:33)!

My Twi-Heart is Happy

This weekend, between Disney on Ice (posting pictures soon), cooking a memorial dinner for some friends who lost a family member much too early and church business, I had time to see Breaking Dawn Part 2.

I love the books.  I love them so much that I've read them at least 5 times.  I do think they get a little bizarre at the end, but they're sci-fi, that's what happens.

You can imagine my trepidation about this movie.  There is a child that is...less than human. 

I was blown away with how well they did it, how well they honored the book and how they ended the series.

I still refuse to watch the Twilight movie.  It was a shame to the series.  These last 4 movies make this very old Twi-hard very happy.

We Have Apparently Entered the Negotiation Stages of Arranged Marriage

On Monday Zoe went to church with grandma for a quick VBS meeting.  My mom and I are the directors of VBS, so we'll be living at church the next couple weeks and "quick" is a relative term!

Anyway, Zoe was at church and Ben's mom works at our church.  Ben just happened to be dropped off that day and he was very worried that Zoe was mad at him.  Zoe and I had agreed that the best thing to do was to treat Ben like we always do and just be a friend.  I'm so proud of my girl.  She went right up to Ben, started talking about who knows what and they ended up playing together for 4 hours.  No mention of the dreaded engagement talk, just two friends playing and laughing and having a great time.  At then end, he even thanked my mom for "her patience" because he knew she had been wanting to leave for the last 2 hours.  Score a point for Ben and his thoughtful heart.

Yesterday, we were at church again and Ben's mom was there, but no Ben.  As Zoe and I left, we said hello to her and went on our way.

Fast forward to last night, Grandma Lily ran into Ben's mom at dinner.  I guess when she got home, she told Ben she saw Zoe and his first question was, "did she ask about me?"  I have to be honest, that little question just makes me smile. 

I guess the real reason that he said "NO!" was because Zoe mentioned something about him living with us.  That, unfortunately was a HUGE deal breaker to a 5 year old.  Quite honestly, I'm glad he can keep his wits about him when asked major-life changing questions by a cute girl.  Score another point for Ben.

He told his mom that he does want to marry Zoe, but she'd have to move in with his family.  He's thinking he'll ask her on Sunday to marry him. 

Now we have entered into negotiations for a fake marriage.  Do we need to have a couple fake goats and some rubber chickens to sweeten this deal?  I feel a little unprepared.

Only 1/2 Crazy

My resolution this year was to run a 1/2 marathon.  I've been training since March, since January and February are known as The Great Illness of 2011.  I'm loving running.  My friend Linsday has been training with me and we planned on doing the Coeur d'Alene Half Marathon. 

Because I'm also a huge planner, I called on my friend Brooke to help me with my training.  She's a professional walker and has done more marathons and 1/2 marathons than I even know.  She put together a training schedule for me and I stuck to it as much as I could.  She even flew up here from Portland to do the 1/2 with me. 

I've got two, crazy friends who like to torture themselves just like I do.  It's also nice to know that your kind of crazy has company.

Here are Lindsay and I before the race.

We run at about the same pace, we've trained together on our long runs and have found some beautiful country that we never knew existed around here.

The Cd'A half is a fairly flat course that ebbs and flows along the lake.  We figured this would be a great event for us because we can run flat, we aren't so found of hills.

Linsday and I ran it, while Brooke walked it.  We ran the first 6.5 miles will absolutely no problem.  We walked for a bit to drink water, but beyond that, we ran.  It felt great.  Right after the 1/2 way point, we were coming back and seriously 10 minutes behind us was Brooke.  Apparently she either walks at a jogger's pace or we run at a walker's pace.  I'm not sure which it is!

Around mile 10 my knee told me it hated me.  Literally.  I think I heard it scream.  I needed to walk for a bit and stretch it out.  Lindsay ran on because we have a rule to not hold the other person back.  I stretched out my knee, saw Brooke was only 8 minutes behind me and started doing my fast walk or as I like to call it, "my spring training with Oprah" walk.  It's mainly because when she was training with Bob Green for her marathon, she talked about walking once. 

Thanks to God, Oprah and my Powersong I finished.

Like 9 minutes later, so did Brooke.  She got a personal record of 2:57 for walking 13.1 miles.  She walks a 13:51 mile.  Linsday came in 9 minutes before me.  Aren't we sweaty and cute?

I even had my own personal cheerleader.  She came in her cheerleading costume, with pom-poms and everything.



If you had asked me on Sunday if I would do another one, I would've told you that my marathoning career was over.  By Monday, I was ready to sign up for the next one. 

Brooke informed me that by doing a 1/2 marathon, I'm now considered an endurance athlete.  I can't even tell you how excited I am to be considered an athlete, let alone an endurance one!  It's like getting an extra medal at the finish. 

I'm thinking September or October sound good for the next one.  Anyone else crazy enough to do it with us?

We Like Totally Hosted a Murder

This weekend we hosted a murder mystery party at our house...a la 1980!  Five other couples came over to figure out who murdered Principal Ed Rooney in the boys bathroom during the school dance.  It was a time of fun, laughter and big hair. 

From left to right:

Ferris Bueller (Steve), Sloane Peterson (Jorene), John Bender (Jamie), Jeanie Bueller (Amanda), Andrew Clark (Pete), Allison Reynolds (Lindi), Duckie Dale (N), Fab 80's narrator (moi), Steff from Pretty in Pink (Stacy), Benny Hanson (Melissa), Jake Ryan (Jim) and Samantha Baker (Julie).

The best part of the mystery was the costumes.  Jorene actually spray painted shoes white so Ferris could be authentic and she sewed fringe onto her coat for an authentic Sloane.  Jim came as Jake Ryan and actually had some polka dot panties in his pocket that he got back from the dork for Samantha.  Melissa got her hair feathered and about 3 sizes bigger than normal just for the event.  Jamie came dressed as he usually does and accused me of thinking he looked like a criminal!

We laughed, we accused and we reinacted the scene with the candles on the table in Sixteen Candles! 

Thank you for being willing suspects in a murder.  Duckie and I had like a total blast with each of you.  You brought this party to life in a bigger way than I had hoped as I wrote it. 

Get ready for the next one!

The ATL Meets the GEG

My sophomore year of college wasn't too exciting.  I had contemplated not returning to Western Baptist because of some rules that I didn't agree with.  My mom told me that she wasn't paying for an extra year of college if all my credits didn't transfer, so I was stuck.  I went back not the happiest camper. 

One afternoon while I was working on a paper or maybe playing solitaire, I got a knock on the door.  It was a girl from down the hall asking if I wanted to run an errand with her.  Steph was someone I had always thought seemed like a super fun person, but was always imtimidated to talk to because she knew EVERYONE!  That day she asked me to run an errand with her.  I got her in Ford Fiesta and she threw a baggie on my lap.  As I unwound the baggie, I asked her where we were going.  She said, "Petsmart!"  As she said that I looked at the baggie and noticed a dead fish inside. 

"He jumped the tank and died, but he's under warranty so we're going to get another one."  I sat in the car, holding that dead fish, seeing spots and freaking out on the inside because there was only a small layer of plastic separating me from a fish carcass.  I kept my cool because I really wanted to be friends with Steph.  That is how Steph and I became friends.  It's a story that I was able to retell at her wedding and will share with all her children and grandchildren.  It's so touching, how could it not be shared?

After she got married to her amazing husband, she moved to Atlanta since that's where he lived.  I tried to talk her into a long-distance marriage so she would stay close, but obviously she really loves Kendall!  It's rare that we get to see each other because neither of us have private jets (which is a great Christmas idea!  We only need one between the two of us!).  When she came up to see her grandparents, I took a day off, loaded Zoe into the car and drove to wherever they would be. 

It was well worth it!  We got to spend time with Steph and her beautiful girls. 

It is such a blessing to have a friend that no matter the physical distance or the length of time between phone calls, we can still connect, still catch-up like it's only been a short while.  We've always said that our girls would be BFFs and guess what, they totally are!  They didn't even need a fish carcass to do it.  Progress!

Steph,

Thank you for being the friend I can always count on, no matter where each of us are.   Thank you for your constant support, encouragement and Modern Family quotes.  I'm not sure how many friends can form a live-long friendship over a dead fish carcass.  Honestly, you're the only person I'd ever touch a baggie with a dead fish in it for! 

I'm having N work on getting me a private jet so I can come to your neck of the woods and visit.  I love you friend!  Remember, your friends will run away if they're afraid of being chewed!

Kel

You Can't Eat Diapers

Last week my friend Becca had to come up with an idea for a baby shower at her work.  She asked for some help, so we came up with the idea to make a diaper cake.

When I told Zoe that Aunt Becca was coming over to make a diaper cake, she furrowed her brow and said, "but mom, you don't eat diapers!  You can eat frosting though."

In our first attempt to make a diaper cake, it was actually surprisingly easy.  I think it turned out pretty darn cute.

The Falls, A Fall and Friends

After we spent time at the dam and saw fish bigger than a boat, we headed to Portland for some time with family.  That wasn't without a stop at one of the area's most famous water falls.  Multnomah!  It has become a family tradition the last couple years to visit.  This time we had daddy!

He graciously carried her up the mountain on his shoulders.  By the time we got to the bridge, I was still fresh and thought we needed to make funny faces.

She will so thank me later for all the goofy shots I make her take throughout her life.  Fortunately she's totally my child and just does it because.

Unlike years prior, okay year prior, this time we played around in the water.  It was ice cold and we couldn't feel out feet.

Fortunately the water was only to her ankles because exactly 10 seconds after this shot, she fell into the water and got soaked.  There were tears and as I tried to get her to to the top of the little embankment of pure asphalt, I left some of my toe and half of two toenails.  It was the injury that prevented me from walking barefoot on the beach.  I'm still a little sad about it.

Fortunately we had dinner with some friends of ours, Phil and Anna.  They have three munchkins around Zoe's age.  It was play time for her, fellowship for us and they had Band-Aids.  It was like a quadruple win!

Thank you Phil and Anna for the great fellowship, the wonderful dinner and the baby cuddles.  Next time we're coming for much longer!

Radioman

Years ago our church did Rich Warren's 40 Days of Purpose.  I had a minor role in all that.  There were weekly drama sketches associated with the lesson for each of the 6 weeks.  I played a woman named Ronda.  She was absolutely clueless about God's plan for her life, but sweetly innocent in all her shenanigans.  Ronda was a BIG hit with our congregation. 

As a result I was typecast at church.  People didn't know my real name.  They didn't know me outside of Ronda.  The best part of all this was that Ronda was actually as crazy as I am.  Which is probably why I played her so well.  Even though she lacked common sense, we shared a sense of the outrageous.  I loved playing Ronda.  It wasn't until this year that I actually retired Ronda.  They have asked her back for the last 7 years to do announcements or small sketches on things. 

One gentleman in our church especially loved Ronda.  His name was Ray Daves.  He would yell "RONDA" across the foyer and give me big hugs.  I think if I were to label it, I would call him Ronda's groupie.  At the time I had no idea that Ray had such an amazing past.  He never really talked much about it.  I think if you'd ask him, he'd introduce himself as Marian's husband.  He has one of the best laughs and a great sense of humor.

The more I learn about Ray, the more I want to be around him.  He had a book written about his time in World War II called Radioman.  Now he is being honored by having the control tower of our airport named after him.  It still has to pass through the House before it's official, but I don't really see why it wouldn't.  He's an extraodinary man who is the first to tell you his family is his first accomplishment.

Even though Ronda is the part of me that Ray always identified with, it's Kelly who is in awe of his character. 

Mom's Lunch

Yesterday my mom and Lily offered to watch the kids so our small group moms could go to lunch.  There are 6 of us in the small group and we never get to chat all together without the kiddos.  The thought of having lunch with 5 of my favorite people, without kids was totally intoxicating.

I can safely say it was equally intoxicating for the other ladies because we've been looking forward to this day for a month.  Anytime we chat, the excitement of this day is mentioned.

You have to understand, to coordinate this kind of event, two crazy people have to offer to watch all our kids.  That's 15 kids, 2nd grade and younger.  Most of them are kindergarten and younger.  My mom has just enough crazy in her to think she and Lily could do it.  She had lunch, bubbles, sidewalk chalk, water games, water balloons, a birthday party for one of the girls who actually turned 3 yesterday, painting and I'm not sure what else because my brain started to hurt and I got really tired all of a sudden.

The kids had a blast.  They were wet, tired and all smiling when we showed up.

Thank you ladies for meeting for lunch.  It was nice to to catch up, talk without being interrupted and just fellowship with you.  Each of you have blessed my life and I'm so grateful that God brought our family into this small group.

Jorene, Lindi, Erin, Amanda, me and Becky

I wonder if next week is too soon for my mom!

We Heart Friends

This weekend my friend Ami and her son A came to visit.  Ami and I met years ago while we worked for a company that shall remain nameless.  I knew her before she got married.  She knew me when I was single and wondering where HE was, but not knowing who HE was.

It's been a friendship that has only been in the making for 9 years, but it feels like we've known each other a lifetime.  She's a friend I can confide in, laugh with and be myself around.  To say she's a blessing would be an understatement.

She had A three weeks before I had Zoe.  I've always used A as my measuring stick for Zoe's development.  They haven't been together for over two years, so we were excited to see how close they would be developmentally.

It's funny because they have the same interests, the same meltdown triggers and are the same size.  After being in a car for 5 hours, A wanted to feel the ground under his feet and wind in his hair, so Zoe thought they should scooter.

Honestly, I'm not sure I've ever seen anything cuter.

In preschooler world, kids that scooter together are friends forever.

It also means that you can only scooter for so long before you have to find something more fun to do.  It does get hot under that helmet.  We got out the sidewalk chalk.

Here's where the boy vs. girl thing comes in.  Zoe wanted to draw pictures and shapes and then play games with those pictures.  A wanted to draw lines all over the place and be in several places at one time.  It was fun to see their differences.  I suggested maybe playing hopscotch.  Apparently that's a HUGE hit with the 3 year old crowd.  I drew up the hopscotch and they jumped.

That night during prayer time Zoe wanted to pray for Ami and A.  You know she enjoyed having them visit as much as I did.  That also meant she had plans for them.  I'm pretty sure she had our whole Saturday booked.  I'm still trying to recover from it, so I'll post those pictures tomorrow.

It Was The Best Compliment EVER

Last night I was putting Zoe to bed and my phone beeped because I had a text message.  My dear friend Sarah said this:

I'm listening to Coolio/Gangstas Paradise & thought of you.

I really hope it's because our hair is so similar!

Thanks Sarah for totally making my night.  I think I'm going to try out the braids for the reunion!

Even Thought It Was the Same Temperature As The Sun, the River is Still Cold

For May 15th, it was hot.  For a Saturday it was busy.  N had to work overtime on Friday night, so I got to spend time with all three of our girls.  We talked about boys, mean girls, homework and how ice cream fixes everything.  I may have used that last one as my solution for the former topics.

We had to get up early Saturday morning for an all-day soccer fest that turned into more of a sun overload.  N got some extra sleep, while I ushered the older girls to the largest soccer field known to man.  I'll have more pictures tomorrow.  I took about 175 pictures from the soccer games.  I'm still doing some editing.

N and Zoe showed up later in the day to cheer on D & E.  It was also a trade-off.  N stayed with the older girls while I took Zoe to a party for some friends birthdays.  G & M are dear twins that turned 4.  They are some of Zoe's best friends and she will pray for them by name at night. 

What made their party even cooler was that it included a river.  We came dressed to play in the water.  Not so much me since it's only May 15th and it's been hot for exactly 1 day this year and I'm pretty sure the river isn't warm yet.  Not to mention G's & M's mom always has a camera.  I'm not too keen on wearing a swimsuit around people who bring their camera everywhere.

That doesn't stop the 3-foot and under crowd from getting in, throwing rocks and splashing around. 

Zoe with the birthday girl, M.  Before we left, Zoe gave her a big hug and said, "I love you so much!"  M was totally unphased, but two mothers got a little verklempt.

This is Zoe with the birthday boy, G.  It's also about 5 seconds before Zoe's first encounter with how cold the river really is on May 15th.

Zoe loves G.  She calls him her "silly boy."  If you know G, that's a good description of him.  He's 100% boy.  He loves to throw stuff, climb stuff, wrestle you and all things the opposite of Zoe. 

He also has amazing strength.  He's one of the strongest kids I've ever met.  He's so strong in fact that during that sweet hug, Zoe lost her balance and went booty first into about 1/2 inch of water.  Okay 1/2 inch of freezing water.  That water on your toe isn't a big deal.  That water higher up than your ankle is too much water.

As Zoe's crying and G's wondering what she's crying for, he said, "I'm so sorry."  To which my girl replies, "that's okay, (sniff, sniff, gasp for breath) G.  I'm (sniff, gasp, gasp) okay!" 

Again, two mothers were verklepmt at how sweet their children are.

Thank you G & M for being born.  Thank you for being such great friends to my Zoe.  Silly or sweet, you bring a fun balance to our lives.

We can't wait to join you at the river again soon.  Maybe after we've had more than 1 hot day of weather.

Sometimes Smiling Just Isn't Enough

A few weeks ago our small group met and instead of the usual, Pete and Lindi offered to make us dinner.  It was an impromptu birthday celebration for their daughter.  We ate entirely too many waffles, pancakes, bacon, eggs, sausage, hashbrowns, strawberries and cake.  It was awesome. 

As I was looking through the pictures from the event, I realized that, while the kids smile, the adults are a mixed bag.  You have the people who smile:

Thank you Lindi and Jamie for posing for me and indulging my need to document every second of our life.

Sometimes they like to pretend I'm not even there:

Granted Pete is working at a hot grill, so I'll give him a pass on that one.  Steve likes to pretend he's talking to someone, while Shawn smiles, knowing he's being difficult. 

Never fear, I'll still post the pictures on the internet.  I'm ruthless like that.

Neither of these things happen as often as this:

I'm not sure if they just ate too many waffles or what.  It seems to be a common pose for the people we socialize with.

Then again, I also found these:

It's nice to know we found our people.

Friends Make The Good Times Better

One of the things we're most grateful for is our friends.  N's family doesn't live close and my family is small, so we like to bridge that gap with friends.  We're so blessed to be part of a church and small group that want to encourage, support and love on us.  They've accepted us without question, which if you know us, that's no small thing!

One of the biggest blessings has come in the form of friends for Zoe.  Being an only child most of the time makes it difficult for her to relate to kids her age.  She can be in a room full of other kids and want to play with the adults.  To have her form friendships with children who come from homes that value the same foundations that we do is immeasurable. 

To have friends who will play dress-up, as either a pirate or a princess, well, that's just something this mom would like to personally thank each of the children.  Perhaps buy them something special, like gold.  I can only explain how hard it is for mommy to wear a size 4T Sleeping Beauty costume to Zoe so many more times before she stops asking.

To invite us to their house for a lovely dinner.  Then throw in a trip to their chicken coop, a ride on their swingset and to sit around a campfire to roast smores.  That kind of love just warms the heart of this mother.  Not to mention having time to socialize with another mother who is also chasing her kids around, wiping noses and having her eyes in 600 places at one time.  It's nice to find people who are a kindred spirit and have an understanding that being distracted doesn't mean lack of interest.

Most importantly, to be loved on just because they can and want to. 

It's not uncommon for Zoe to wake up asking what her friends are doing and if we can play with them.  Or including them, by name, in her prayers before bed.  After all the fun times she's had with them, it's safe to say they're in her heart. 

I think it's one of God's greatest blessings.  To have your child have good friends, but to also have their mommies and daddies as your good friends too.  They add a depth to life that makes each memory a little more colorful and each get together a little more exciting.

Thank you friends for loving on us, accepting us and making our weeks brighter.  Our life wouldn't be the same without you.

Well, we'll see what you say tomorrow after you see that post!

Will You Join Me?

Several months ago N and I joined a small group bible study at our church.  It's made up of 6 couples, including us.  We're all about the same age and so are our kids.  It's the highlight of our week, not only for N and me, but also Zoe.  She knows Sundays are the day she gets to play with her friends not once, but twice because of small group.

Neither N nor I have ever been part of a group like this.  To say this group is a blessing would be an understatement.  We feel incredibly fortunate to count each of these people as our friends, prayer warriors and accountability partners.  In just a few months they've managed to work their way into our hearts in a very tangible way.

One of the couples in our group is going through something that, as a parent, I cannot comprehend.  Their 4 year-old daughter, Sara, was just diagnosed with cancer.  The good news is the doctors are confident that it's treatable and they can get rid of it. 

This family is a family who lives by faith.  They have been an example to both N and me.  If you feel so led, would you pray for this family.  We know that the Great Physician will be guiding this process every step of the way.  We know His plan is perfect.  As a parent you don't want to see your child go through this, even though He knows how it feels to see your child go through difficulty.

Just makes me want to squeeze our girls a little closer and a whole lot more tighter.

Even when they do squeal, "mommy you're squishing me." 

McTeacher

One of my dearest friends is Becca.  We've been friends for 10 years.  On one hand I cannot believe it's been 10 years already.  It seems like just yesterday we graduated college and began our first real-life job.  On the other hand I can't believe it's only been 10 years.  She's someone I feel like I've known my whole life.  Her friendship is something I count as a blessing that I totally don't deserve.  She's the absolute best.

She's also the mother of Tucker, the dog that has won over Zoe's heart.  Aunt Becca and Uncle Josh are two of Zoe's favorite people.  When we hang out together it means she gets some much needed love from her favorite 4-legged friend. 

Not to mention it puts off the need for a puppy.

When Aunt Becca informed us that Uncle Josh was going to be serving up french fries at a local McDonalds, we jumped at the chance to go see him.  The McDonalds in Deer Park hosted McTeacher night.  Part of the proceeds from that night's sales would go back to the Deer Park school where Uncle Josh works.

We loaded in Aunt Becca's car and headed up to McD's for some ice cream.

I'll tell you what, go to a McD's on a McTeacher night and your child will feel like the Belle of the Ronald McDonald ball.  When we walked in she got a star sticker for her hand and a Ronald McDonald crown.  I'm pretty sure I saw her doing her princess wave to all the other kids who were there.

We ordered our ice cream and princess-waved to Uncle Josh who was at the fry machine in deep conversation with the actual McDonald's employee.  We're pretty sure he was learning all about oils, best cooking heat and the best wrist technique for shaking the extra grease off.  Uncle Josh is a constant learner like that.

Fortunately he did stop a moment from all the learning to pose in his apron.

Zoe took a moment from her ice cream to pose.  This is her official Princess Ronald McDonald photo.

Thanks Uncle Josh for working the industrial fry daddy for us.  We enjoyed visiting with you.

12 Adults + 15 Kids = Super

Yesterday our small group decided to put our study aside and enjoy some good fellowship.  Our hosts had the perfect house for a group our size.  The kids were either in their kids's bedrooms playing or down in the basement playing.  The men were in the family room watching the Super Bowl together.  The women were in the dining room chatting about life.

I think, between the 6 ladies, we asked "now who's playing again?" only maybe 6 times.  I have to say that's pretty good considering we were trying to track down kids, hold down conversations, eat as much yummy food as we could, convince the kiddos they needed to eat something and plan a Valentine party for next week.

I missed every single play, every single commercial and had the best time ever.

Thank you Steve and Jorene for opening your home.  It was super.

I'm Over The Moon

I know last week I was a bit distracted by all things New Moon and Twilight.  When you find a book that can totally make you forget all time and reality, you go with it.  There is no point in avoiding it.  It will suck you in.

That's the Twilight series for me.  I used to read 3-4 books a week when I was single.  This was the first series since motherhood and marriage that I got into.  I'm forever grateful.

After Twilight I was a bit nervous for New Moon.  For starters it was my least favorite book of the 4 since it's so dark.  Plus I was a little gunshy after the midnight viewing experience of the first one (oh yes I di-id Jamie!). 

Becca and I arrived at the theater about an hour before showtime.  Actually the line wasn't too bad.  I was way better than getting a number and being assigned to one of 4 lines at the midnight showing of Twilight.  We each got a mocha since 7:00 pm on a Friday night is way to late for us old ones.

We chatted and began to notice that most people in line were our age or at least old enough to drive themselves to the theater.  We began to think this experience might not be so bad.  Maybe all the swooning and screaming when Edward or Jacob came on the screen would be minimal.

We got great seats, turned off our phones and set our expectations low.  We also decided that if you can't beat 'em, join 'em.  When the audience swooned, we did too.

It was a great experience.  I loved this movie WAY better than the first one.  It stuck to the dialogue in the book, stuck to the storyline and brought the book to life.  They did add a fight scene to the movie, but it didn't bother me.  I think it worked well the the story and set us up for the next couple movies.

Both Becca and I, true Twi-Hards, left the theater ready to see it again.  New Moon wasn't our favorite book, but the movie made us want to read it again.

I'm glad I went.  Thank Becca for encouraging me to give it a shot.  I'll be ready for Eclipse!

I Twi-Hard To Lower My Expectations

I'm not one to hide the fact that I love Stephenie Meyer's Twilight books.  It took two friends trying to convince me that I would love them for me to even contemplate reading them.

A teenager girl, a teenage vampire and a teenage werewolf.  I think Michael J. Fox did the Teen Wolf thing as well as it could be done quite frankly.  I wasn't about to get sucked into a Teen Wolf wannabe.  These friends continued with their peer pressure and pleaded "just give us 30 pages.  If you don't like it, we'll stop hounding you." 

I gave them 30 pages.  Six days later I emerged from the fourth book totally in love.  I love with Edward, Bella, Jacob, the Cullens, Mr. Swan and Stephenie Meyer (and happily eating crow).  The books are about vampires and werewolves, but it's also about some really great characters.  People you grow to love.  Stephenie Meyer brings you into her world with these characters, makes them your friends and gives you a deep connection to her fantasy world.

During that 6 day marathon of reading I lost serious amounts of sleep.  Not only because I couldn't put the book down, but also because I would dream about flipping through the pages and wondering what I read next.  It was exhausting and exciting.

I officially became a Twi-Hard.  I stood in line for a midnight showing of the Twilight movie.  I was seriously disappointed.

Now I've got tickets to New Moon.  Becca, my midnight viewing Twi-Hard sister, got tickets.  There is a new director, some sweet special effects on the previews and maybe, just maybe that will help.  The New Moon book was my least favorite in the series.  My expectations are low.

If things on ye olde blog are quite for the next couple days it's because I'm re-reading New Moon. 

I am a Twi-Hard afterall, spidermonkey.