The Light

As I look back on 2013, I’m actually amazed at where we started and where we are today.  If I could only use words to describe the last year, they would be:

Together

New

Bumpy

Battle-worn

Growth

Faith

Conviction

Devastating

Healing

Clear

Miraculous

In 2013, we made a major life change by moving, starting a new school and job, living together 24/7, finding a new church, a health scare where they used the word cancer, finding out it wasn’t cancer, just an ulcer, working on custody changes, the divorce of parents, and making new friends.  I knew the move would bring about some difficulties, but I was woefully unprepared for the onslaught of attacks we would be under on all fronts. 

I don’t say good riddance to 2013, because truthfully, many of these things will follow us into 2014.  I don’t say that sadly.  Last year I had to deal with my antics, I was broken to pieces and it made me wholly dependent on God.  I now see a very real spiritual battle and last year prepared me for this battle.  I wouldn’t change any of that.

If I’m being honest, last year felt dark and heavy.  It was like I was under cover of night, trying desperately to find the light.  As I look into 2014, I can’t honestly tell you what this year holds.  I have no resolutions.  I really have no expectations on this year.  I’m focusing on this moment because I can no longer see ahead.   

As I was driving to work today, the clouds on the horizon had a halo-like look to them.  It was a gray-white with a ring of yellow.  As each second passed, the sun crept over the horizon until I was blinded by the light. 

For that moment, the weight of the previous year felt lifted.  It was as though God spoke to me and showed me His glory for a moment.  It was a reminder that the Light will always shine in the darkness. 

My prayer is that God continues to shine His Light in your life this coming year.  May 2014 be blinding as the Light creeps over the horizon.

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.

I Ignored Life for 3 days

Lately I've been on a HUGE reading kick.  Which is ironic because if you had asked the 11 year old me if I would ever read for pleasure, she would've bet her first born that she would NEVER read for pleasure. 

The last books I was hooked on, like couldn't put it down, tried to sneak away hooked on was The Hunger Games.  Before that it was Twilight.  Don't hate, it's a good story. 

I find that I have a hard time getting into books without strong characters.  Apparently, I'm more along the Young Adult/Sci-Fi reader.  Which shocks me a little.  Perhaps there is some therapist who has some explanation for that. 

Several months ago, just after I finished The Hunger Games trilogy, Amazon sent me a recommendation for this book:

Along with several others that sound eerily like The Hunger Games meets junior high meets that would never happen.  Perhaps that's why I loved The Hunger Games - even though it is "that would never happen" they make you believe that it totally could.  So I bought Divergent because the story sounded good and I really liked the cover.  My refined selection habits are astounding!

Then it sat in my Kindle library for approximately 187 days.  After reading some other books and getting my reading mojo going, I thought, why not.  I'll give it 30 pages.  That's my strategy with any book; 30 pages and if I'm not hooked, I don't read it.  Anywho, I came up for hair about 5 hours later, lost precious sleep, and had to rely on Starbucks to get me through the next day. 

I had no idea it was the first book in a trilogy.  This is the second:

They are Young Adult/Sci-Fi, but not in that weird video game way where everyone is a zombie and they go by names you cannot pronounce.  It's YA/Sci-Fi in a way that you love the characters and think, "this could totally happen." 

Veronica Roth is awesome!  She's early 20's, wrote Divergent during college and now has a trilogy that is fabulous.

The third book of the trilogy doesn't come out until fall 2013. 

If you liked The Hunger Games trilogy, enjoy books that provide entertainment and strong characters, give this 30 pages.  It's can't put it down fabulous!

Two Movies Just Wipes Us Out

My mom has offered for the next 12 years to watch Zoe on New Year's Eve so N and I can have a proper date.  In the past, we've bought a new DVD, I've cooked a nice dinner and we've stayed in.  Neither of us really like to be out with the drunk people on that night, so it's worked out well for us.

This year we bucked the trend.  That's not entirely true.  I wanted to buck the trend and N played along because his motto is "if mamma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy."

Since my mom hadn't got to see Zoe for the last two weeks since N wasn't in school, she picked her up early.  N and I ran out the door to start our marathon date.  First up was The Blind Side. 

I'm serious when I say this was one of thee best movies I've seen in a long time.  I just makes you want to be a better human.  Plus it's got humor.  Great humor.  I recommend this with every fiber of my being.  It's in my top 10.

Then we took a break for dinner at Applebees.  We needed fuel and the 55 gallon drum of movie popcorn wasn't enough.

After dinner it was our double feature of Sherlock Holmes.

Another excellent movie.  It was a different twist on the classic, but in a completely Guy Ritchie way.  If you love Lock, Stock and Two Smoking or Snatch, you'll love the way this movie was filmed.  It wasn't bloody or gross, it was suspenseful.  And brillant. 

We were two-for-two and totally stuffed from all the food.  We only made it until 11:15.  Actually I only made it until 10:45, but I fell asleep on the couch, so I don't count that.

I'm not sure when we got so old.

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!

Say my name, Spidermonkey

I had a Friday Five Fave post all ready to go seeing how I'm running on limited sleep. However, I feel it is my duty to give this Public Sevice Announcement to you all.

My friends Becca, Kristi and I all stood in line last night at 10:45 pm with 4 theaters full of teenagers and their parents to see the midnight showing of Twilight. I think we were the oldest people there on our own accord.

If you've been reading this blog you know I have a real fondness for the series. The books create a wonderful love story. Becca and Kristi are just as crazy about the books as I am. We were as excited as the girls wearing Twilight t-shirts behind us. See. Pictures of us, not the shirts.

Becca and me
Kristi and Becca

We were also fully aware that it would be hard to take a 500 page book and condense it into a 2 hour movie. Especially since Stephenie Meyer goes into great detail to explain her characters. Not to mention one of the main characters, Edward, can read minds. That's hard to translate into the movies. Not impossible, but hard.

Since these books have outsold Harry Potter, I thought we could expect a similar calibur movie.

You know what they say about assumptions. Don't do it.

If you have read the books or are thinking about reading them, do not see this movie. Maybe it's because I'm not a teenager. The whole audience was laughing during a commercial for some video game with rabid animals. That really could be why I hated it. I couldn't relate to the movie like I could with the books. However, I don't think that's it.

Here's where I go into spoilers.

They only kept three things from the book the same. 1) The characters's names. 2) The fact that Bella drove an old Chevy truck (they had Edward driving a different type of car). 3) There was a baseball game.

Beyond that, nothing was the same. Nothing.

Stephenie Meyer created a fictional story in a real town, Forks, Washington. Did they film in Forks? Nope. When they talk about the Olympic Penninsula what do you think we saw? The Columbia Gorge and Multnomah Falls. Granted some teenager in St. Petersburg, Florida will never know the difference. Anyone in the Pacific NW or who has visited here knows. Multnomah Falls is a pretty big deal. Not to mention the beaches between northern Washington and Oregon are drastically different.

Stephenie Meyer is a member of the LDS church. The books contain no alcohol, no swearing and limited sexual tension. They are fairly wholesome. The movie had no swearing, which was great. Probably the only positive I have (next to Kristin Stewart really being the only good actor in the bunch). However, Bella's father is the chief of police in Forks. Apparently when you put his character on the big screen, he develops a love of beer. We're not talking any beer. We're talking 16 oz cans of Rainier Beer. Because that's all we have available in Washington. Being so close to Mt. Rainier and all. It totally didn't fit his character. I can't believe anyone on the Stephenie Meyer camp didn't complain about that.

The special effects were horrible. The relationship development between Edward and Bella was lacking. Their chemistry was non-existent. Billy, the Native American Chief, used the term "homeboy" like it was a normal part of his vernacular. They eliminated a character completely.

Here's the part where I became totally aware I would hate this movie. None of the characters had any of the same personality traits from the book. Bella is quite, thoughtful and inquisitive. In the movie she is forward, angsty and monotone. I have no idea what Robert Pattinson did with his facial expressions, but they were angry not charming and alluring. He's supposed to be born in 1901, so he should have some old world charm to him. He used the term "spidermonkey" for crying out loud.

I don't think it's because I had this vision in my head, I think it's because the poor direction, the horrible screenplay and the lack of the actors reading any of the books.

I could go one for hours on why I hated this movie. When you have a cult-like following you have a responsibility to create a visual world that the author created. They were able to do that with Harry Potter and Lord of the Rings. There is no reason they should've have been able to do that with this movie.

It was almost like the studio executives knew anyone who was a fan of the movie would see it, so they could give them the same budget as those Napoleon Dynamite kids. It was insulting. It was disappointing. They've paved the way for a sequel.

Consider yourself warned, spidermonkey.

The you ain't watching my baby Edition

I rarely watch television. I don't have a DVR, so any shows that I want to watch I either have to 1) stay up late to catch it, 2) wait for reruns and hope I have more energy or 3) wait for the season's DVD to come out.

Granted most of the shows I really enjoy are on Bravo, so catching reruns aren't hard. However, shows like The Office and So You Think You Can Dance just have to wait.

Last night I made an exception to my rule. Actually I got sucked in. I saw a preview for the Baby Borrowers. My mom was interested in it and a couple weeks ago my friend Steph commented on it. I lost some sleep to catch this show.

For those of you who have no idea what I'm talking about, let me explain. The Baby Borrowers is a reality show on NBC. Five teenage couples (I use the term couples loosely as they're still teenagers) are put up in a house to play house. Most of these "couples" want to have kids and think it'll be easy. Five real families donate their children to this experiment. For 3 days and 2 nights the teenagers care for the children. They experience what it's really like to have kids.

The parents of the kids watch on monitors to see what's going on with their children. Each house has a secret nanny for when someone needs to step in.

After the 3 days and 2 nights, the actual parents come to give a review to each of the couples.

Last week they got babies. You want to see a meltdown on national television, get some arrogant teenager, make them lose precious sleep from a crying baby and then make them go to work. I thought two of the girls were going to actually need some therapy in the form of a good slap to the face. They got nasty. Welcome to the world of babies! It's like totally not like about you anymore, you know?

What surprised me is that the teenage boys really stepped up to the plate and took care of the babies. I was impressed with them.

That's where I stopped liking the show.

This week the teenage "couples" got toddlers. Most of the toddlers were around age 2. We've got meltdowns, potty training, etc. Some of the "couples" got twins or siblings. It was like a double whammy. It was like Press Your Luck. No whammies, no whammies, no whammies. Then the little cartoon whammy comes on stage they lose all their money. In this case they lost sanity. This phase almost broke every "couple."

What shocked me was how horrible some of the girls treated these children. One girl, Morgan, should attend some classes on acceptible handling of another human. Also, perhaps a class how to change a diaper. This girl is unreal. I know she makes for good television drama, but I was mad. She dragged a kid across the floor by his hand. Then at the parent's review, the parents congratulated them. Their son wasn't taken care of, it makes you wonder what kind of parents they are.

The whole thing actually ticked me off. Here's my reasons:

1) These teenagers range in age from 18-20 and they're shacking up. I'm sorry, but if my 18 year old daughter had been dating her boyfriend from, you know, like 8th grade, I still wouldn't be okay with them living together at 18.

2) The language these kids use around the children is unacceptable. You don't drop the f-bomb around a small child because you're ticked off they didn't make it to the potty. That's never okay in my book.

3) What kind of parents drop off their 2 year old child, who doesn't understand what's going on? After seeing some of these kids and how they treated the kids, I would've walked across that cul-de-sac and taken my child back. Yet most of these parents laughed.

4) It's not real. There is a reason the love you have for your child is the way it is. It's undescribable. If you didn't have this love for your child, you would act like those arrogant teenagers.

While I think it's a great learning experience for the teenagers, it just seems to go against most of my values. While there were times when the potty training accidents happened that I laughed at the teenagers responses, I'm totally disappointed in this show.

Maybe they need to do this more as a follow-up to Engaged & Underage on MTV. Now you're 19 and married, are you really ready for a family. Rather than picking some snotty college freshman who think kids are like totally easy and like I can still like, you know, like go get my nails filled and like grab some like Starbucks on the way to like lunch with like my friends.

All I can say is I'm glad next Wednesday is the 16th and Project Runway starts again. That's some good TV.