Top 10 Movie Theatre Experiences

Definition: These are not my top 10 favorite movies. These are the top 10 movies that left me FEELING something…I sat in my seat speechless or left the theatre euphoric over the film I had just experienced.

1. Remember the Titans – Saw it with my Pennsylvania family (Mark, Jamie, Gretchen, Woody, Cliff, Ang). We all walked out of the theatre and immediately began freaking out. Left on a big high.

2. Slumdog Millionaire – Saw it with Faith. Getting through the grittiness of the Mumbai slums was so worth it as we sat speechless at the end with soaring hearts.

3. Fever Pitch – Saw it with Mark. Best date movie ever because Mark, who doesn’t like going to movies much, loved it as much as I did. Sports, romance, Jimmy Fallon humor, Red Sox winning…perfection!

4. Dan in Real Life – Saw it with Lydie. Laughed and hurt through the whole thing. Total resolution at the end…left feeling happy about life.

5. August Rush – Saw it with Lydie and Sam. Was hyperventilating and gripping the armrests during the last minutes as they came together.

6. The Curious Case of Benjamin Button – Saw it alone. Very needed as an escape that day. It fit my mood perfectly…wanted to be carried away by something not real and something that would make me feel.

7. The Other Sister – Saw it with Gretchen. Thought it looked silly, but after weeks and weeks of Gretchen begging me to go see it, I finally gave in and it was SO WORTH IT. Left theatre feeling euphoric about life.

8. Reign Over Me – Saw it with Kristen. Basically having convulsions trying not to sob out loud. Will probably never see it again because it was so hard to get through, but glad I saw it once.

9. Never Been Kissed – Saw it with Gretchen. I really don’t love this movie at all anymore, but seeing it when I was younger was awesome. Gretchen and I literally floated out of the theatre and still talk about how it made us feel. =)

10. Stepmom and Patch Adams – Saw them with Gretchen. Tied because we cried so hard at the end of both.

I saw lots of teeny bopper movies with Tishka, lots of chick flicks with Gretchen, and lots of anything and everything now. Indies have become my recent favorite…plan on seeing Sunshine Cleaning soon. Movies make me happy. =) I’d love to hear about anyone else’s experiences…

Top 40

Okay, another blog tag. I was told to list my personal Top 40. There's no rhyme or reason to the order because with so many different genres, I couldn't possibly figure that out. All I know is these are the songs I've been coming back to again and again for most of my adult life.

1. Sweet Baby James - James Taylor

2. Over the Rainbow - Judy Garland

3. Daydream Believer - The Monkees

4. Feels Like Tonight - Daughtry

5. Midnight Train to Georgia - Gladys Knight & the Pips

6. Penny Lane - The Beatles

7. Angel - Aerosmith

8. If I Had a Million Dollars - Bare Naked Ladies

9. Born To Fly - Sara Evans

10. Sweet Caroline - Neil Diamond

11. New York New York - Frank Sinatra

12. Dancing Queen - ABBA

13. Boulevard of Broken Dreams - GreenDay

14. Wide Open Spaces - Dixie Chicks

15. Ain't Too Proud to Beg - The Temptations

16. Defying Gravity - Wicked soundtrack

17. Real Fine Place - Sara Evans

18. 59'th St. Bridge Song (feeling groovy) - Simon & Garfunkel

19. A Wink and a Smile - Harry Connick Jr.

20. Save a Horse Ride a Cowboy - Big & Rich

21. Tiny Dancer - Elton John

22. September Grass - James Taylor

23. Ain't No Mountain - Marvin Gaye & Tammy Terrell

24. Baba O'Riley - The Who

25. Cowboy Take Me Away - Dixie Chicks

27. Come Fly With Me - Michael Buble

28. More Than a Feeling - Boston

29. Seasons of Love - Rent soundtrack

30. Caledonia - Celtic Woman

31. Bridge Over Troubled Water - Simon & Garfunkel

32. Wholly Yours - David Crowder Band

33. Mighty to Save - Hillsong

34. Blessed Be the Name - Matt Redman

35. No One Like You - David Crowder Band

36. God of This City - Chris Tomlin

37. From the Inside Out - Hillsong

38. Knees to the Earth - Christy Nockels

39. O For a Thousand Tongues - David Crowder Band

40. Hosanna - Christy Nockels

A Quandry

Okay. I don't know why I haven't been writing lately. Ideas pop into my head, but I just don't take the time to write them out. Sure, I'm busier than I used to be, but I still have plenty of time at home in front of the laptop and tv. Then I started wondering, am I getting more private as I get older? My life has always been for the most part, an open book, but maybe I don't want people knowing the details on everything... But I don't think that's it either. I just looked back to the beginning of this blog and realized it's been exactly 3 years since I started. It was March of 2006--that's a long time! The past couple of months that I haven't been blogging, I've really missed my blog world. I miss posting on friends blogs...I miss checking to see comments on my own page. It's just another way to be connected to the people I love who aren't near me anymore. So I was thinking after 3 years of writing about the simple things in life (which I still love) and throwing stories about my kids in here and there, maybe I need to move on to something else. I mean, there's only so many times I can rhapsodize over how much I love fall and all that comes with it, right? So what are my other passions in life? That's the easiest question in the world...movies, cooking, and books! Hmmm....stay tuned friends. =)

6 Years Old!

Today Jake turns 6! It's hard to believe he's been around that long already. Most people say that Jake is a mini-Mark...the spitting image. He has my eye color but it ends there. =) Jake is a really good big brother. He loves to share his candy from school or church with Rory and he checks to make sure she's okay in certain situations, which is hilarious. He's really big on hugs and I Love You's lately, and we're drinking it in because we assume it won't last. He's all boy, and thumps and bumps and bangs around the house, which of course, drives me crazy. He's stubborn (shocker) but quick to say he's sorry. He colors a lot, and wants to do more school work as soon as he gets home in the afternoon. Right now his world is consumed with Transformers, Superheroes, and Legos. Especially Legos. His little mind is definitely a builders mind. He loves all his toys that he can create with...Legos, Magnetix, Lincoln Logs, Bristle Blocks...anything he can build. Legos seem to have taken over our house this Christmas and birthday. We're so thankful for Jake...I can't imagine my world without his fits of laughing. I don't think there's anything I love more in this world than when Jake does his hearty laugh! =)

Merry Christmas!

Twas the week before Christmas and what can I say
No blogging for weeks, but I’ll explain if I may.

I came home from Thanksgiving way too sick.
But December is crazy with many tasks to lick!

So I started in right away, decorating and baking
With no rest I got sicker—and I wasn’t faking!

Finally it was all done, my house looked cheery.
I could sit and enjoy the season through my eyes so bleary.

Now that I'm healthy there’s fun stuff to do.
Town festivals and light spotting are the first two.

We’ve been watching our movies and reading our books.
Got some pics of my kids with some pretty cute looks.

We decorated our tree and had a party or two
The kids sang in big church, to name just a few.

Busy busy busy, but with really fun stuff.
December is magical so it never feels rough.

The stockings are hung by the chimney with care
Gifts are bought and wrapped and I can’t wait to share!

I’ve been very out of touch and I feel really bad,
But there are special times with my family that are being had.

And since I’m sure this post will be it for a little while,
Merry Christmas to all and a very big smile! =)

Oh Christmas Tree!

I know I indulge myself in a little bit of Christmas through November by breaking out the music and the mugs (and even some decorations if Mark will let me get away with it early). But I will admit that it is not truly the Christmas season until that cold, fresh, nothing-else-like-it smell of our balsam fir hits me for the first time. Aaaaaahhhhhh...the true smell of Christmas in my living room!

Counting Down

Thanksgiving Countdown & MySpace Layouts

Mulling It Over...

When I was in college I remember my friends and I discussing what our favorite childhood Christmas record was. Yes, I am old enough to have used records as a small child. It was that one album that meant Christmas was here the moment you heard it. For one friend it was Barbara Streisand, for another Jim Reeves...you get the picture. We had a bunch that we played at our house, but my favorite by far was the Carpenters Christmas Portrait. A friend of ours was techno savvy enough in the early 80's to finally record it onto a cassette tape for us and that's what we played for years and years and years until the CD revolution, at which point (after receiving my very own CD player for Christmas), I went right out and bought my own Carpenters CD, along with one for my mom.

I was thinking about this the other day. For years now we've had Christmas radio stations at our exposure. I remember as a kid the oldies station would play Christmas music all day only on Christmas and we were so excited about it every year. Something different, something fun. But now, we have stations playing Christmas music starting as soon as Halloween is over and straight through New Year's (and online all year long if you want it). Now for me, this is great because my minivan is on the old side and only has a radio and a broken casette player. So the radio being my only option, I thrive on those Christmas stations as I drive around town. Another thing those of us blessed with DirecTV have is XM radio stations through our TV. I never listen to these stations, except when Christmas comes around. It's so convenient to flip on the TV and turn it right to the Holly station for some old and new Christmas classics.

But the other day as I was driving around singing Christmas songs with Rory at the top of our lungs, I realized that so far, my kids don't have that one special album that will always mean the magic of Christmas. Part of this is because of the two things I just mentioned, but another reason is because I have been a Christmas CD freak since college and at this point probably have over 40 different CD's. So if I do take the time to pop in a CD (or bring up iTunes on my laptop) instead of the radio, I'm playing a variety of music all season long, rather than just those few special albums over and over.

Is there a solution? I'm determined to make December as magical for my kids as I remember it being for me. But I like ALL my music and I don't want to leave any out. Maybe I can play the same CD every year as we decorate the tree, or maybe I can play the Disney one during breakfast every morning as a happy Christmas start to the kids' day...I don't know...I'm still mulling. Suggestions are welcome. Just once again thinking out loud to anyone who wants to listen!

Happy Halloween!

One of my favorite things about Halloween is that I get to eat candy that I would normally not spend money on when I'm at a store. Take Milk Duds, for instance. I LOVE Milk Duds, but I don't think I've ever actually bought them. I mean, do they even have Milk Duds in the check out line? I don't think I've ever seen them in a store at all, come to think of it. So as I sit and make the effort to chew my milk duds (not an easy task), I see disapproving looks coming from Mark. He thinks it's mean to dip into the kids candy buckets. I have many points to dispute this thought:

1) Mark doesn't like our kids to have much candy in the first place.
2) I am a self-proclaimed candy addict and it's impossible to see massive amounts of chocolate without indulging.
3) Our kids are getting old--we did 2 neighborhoods instead of just our development and both kids have a rediculous amount of candy.
4) If we don't help the kids eat it, it will last until January, and I personally don't even like the candy to infringe on our Christmas cookie season because there's already so much food to enjoy during December.
5) Isn't it the God-given right of every parent to dip into their kids Halloween buckets? I mean come on--my mom did it. It's the circle of life!

Anyway, we had a GREAT Halloween this year. Mark got to go trick-or-treating with us for the first time in years. Jake had a fun class party and school parade that Rory and I got to help with. And we had a blast running into so many neighbors and kids from school that we're getting to know. Sometimes suburban America is nothing short of wonderful. =)

Pumpkin Time

I am a person of tradition. If something is done one year, it must be done the following year. My mom did it this way growing up, and I think it's just bred into me now. Although my mom does say that when we were kids, if she let something go or we skipped something, I was the one who demanded that things go the traditional way. I was not a fan of change--I think it made me feel secure and I liked knowing that our family did things certain ways. I feel it's really important to help create a feeling of security, fun, and festiveness in my kids lives, so they can look back at their childhoods and proclaim to all the world the way things were done in our family. I'm thinking this mostly pertains to holidays and special occasions, but I've seen it creep into other facets of our lives too.

So in saying all this, it's hard to let go of a traditional fall activity this year, but it's with good reason. We have carved a big jack-o-lantern every year since before we had kids. Usually it's the week before Halloween. Last year we made a huge event out of it, first carving the pumpkin, then having hot chocolate with pumpkin peep marshmallows, and finishing by watching "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown." Obviously, this is the most fabulous event in my mind because I'm so psychotic about fall, and I planned to make it an annual family evening.

BUT...I didn't count on life changing so much between then and now. First of all, Jake is in school, and on top of that, we are involved in so much more now than we were when we first moved here, and we finally know more people. This week, being the week before Halloween, is CRAZY! We had a costume party with our Young Adult (college/career) group from church, Rory has a Halloween party with her library story time class, we have a friends costume party and bonfire with a ton of people from church Thursday night, and then Friday Jake has his class costume party and parade at school, which Rory and I will also be going to. There was simply no time to carve a pumpkin! I'm willing to let go just this year and not freak out about it, because the kids are having SUCH a fun week with alternative festive events, instead of our little homemade one. But rest assured, it's in the back of my mind to pick back up next October. Maybe we need to do it 2 weeks before Halloween...

21 days and counting until the constant beating over our heads that is campaign commercials comes to an end.

40 Things You May Not Know About Me

Someone challenged me to do this and it was hard, but fun.


1. Green is my favorite color (okay, so maybe you know that one since practically all my clothes and half my shoes are green)
2. I grew up the oldest of 4 kids with a single mom.
3. I love hiking and canoeing.
4. I’ve had 8 holes pierced into my body, and only the first two are left.
5. I had my gallbladder removed in college.
6. I wear sneakers every day (although since Christmas, my Crocs are giving them a run for their money).
7. I saw a real Viking ship sale into Dublin, Ireland the only time it’s ever happened since the invasions thousands of years ago.
8. Once the weather is cool, I burn candles every day.
9. Ever since I was a little kid, I have fainted EVERY SINGLE time I’ve puked.
10. In 9’th grade after puking, I fainted, then simultaneously split my chin open on the bathtub, and burned my arm (2’nd degree!) on a radiator. =)
11. For someone who hates working out, I was a pretty good athlete back in the day and actually won athletic awards. (it’s okay—you can giggle at that one).
12. New Hampshire is my favorite state.
13. I love oldies.
14. Growing up, my walls were covered with hockey posters, but now I know nothing about it and football has taken over.
15. I took a cake decorating class.
16. My mom let my sister and I have friends sleep over just about every weekend of my life.
17. I used to play the piano, flute, and guitar.
18. I went to a boarding school in NH for my last 2 years of high school.
19. My sister is tall, blond, trendy, and runs marathons, while I am average, brunette, wear the same clothes forever, and hate exercising, but we make each other laugh a LOT!
20. I’m in love with New York City.
21. As a kid, I took ice skating lessons and gymnastics.
22. I'm a big-time morning person.
23. When I'm sick, I babble the ears off of whatever person is near me and don't realize I'm doing it.
24. I have 14 rubbermaid bins of Christmas decorations.
25. My cousin and I once spent 9 hours straight swimming and playing in a NH lake.
26. My favorite part of the day is choosing my morning coffee mug.
27. My laundry room walls are covered with pieces of my history and things that make me smile.
28. I still like toys and cartoons just as much as when I was my kids' ages.
29. My husband and I are extreme opposites, but a lot alike---it doesn't make sense, but it works.
30. I love sleeping with the windows open and piled with quilts.
31. In 8'th grade my friend and I used to go to Au bon Pain every Friday night and order a ham and cheese croissant and Coke for $3.33.
32. I always considered myself a city girl, but lately I'm wanting to live in the country (as long as we're close enough to drive to the city).
33. I realized recently that my love of old movies stems from the fact that my mom and my grandmother always did too, and I've become determined to pass this on to Rory (along with our love of books). She just watched her first Shirley Temple movie.
34. I biked for an entire day around Cape Cod and the next day, literally could not sit down.
35. My ringtone has always been "Over the Rainbow" with a few others thrown in seasonally.
36. For someone who's not that into clothes, I have 2 and a half drawers of graphic tees.
37. My favorite food is a really well done Italian sub.
38. I have a GIGANTIC collection of cookie cutters.
39. I watch all my Christmas DVD's in November so in December I can watch the movies that are on TV--I even love the cheesy ones on Lifetime every afternoon in December.
40. I eat popcorn about every other night.

My Favorite Month

"October is the glory and magnificence of the year's late afternoon."
--Hal Borland (The Twelve Moons of the Year)

The Man With the Spatula

Most people probably wouldn't look at Mark and automatically assume he's a cook. And he probably wouldn't call himself one, but I must proclaim to all the world that he has a gift. I think this gift involves spatulas. I'm telling you, anything he touches with a spatula turns to gold. Mark has been making pancakes with our kids on Saturdays mornings since they were old enough to stand on a stool. But it's his omelettes that have so impressed me over the years. I've been making my own omelettes since I was a kid, but once we'got married and Mark made me that first omelette years ago, I don't bother to make my own anymore. I don't know what he does to make them so perfect, and I think I've decided I don't want to know. I love cooking, but it's kind of fun that his are so much more yummo. The really cool thing is that he seems to have so much fun making them that he doesn't mind if I randomly ask for one. This weekend the spatula gift was confirmed. I was sick with a knock-me-over kind of cold and no food sounded good to me except for mild things like soup or english muffins. Mark made me the most delactable grilled cheese of my life. It wasn't anything fancy--plain white bread, one slice of american cheese--so I don't know why it tasted so good. I guess I'm just chalking it up to my husband's gift.

September, Here We Come!

Since having my kids and becoming a stay-at-home mom, my life has been very slow, for lack of a better word. I've had all the time in the world to do things. Once we moved to Columbus, it became slower than ever because of not knowing many people. I became involved more than ever in my online world, which involved numerous blogs I read, browsing for any and everything, and of course, facebook. Suddenly, life isn't like that anymore. For the past 6 or 7 months, we've been busy, but it seems since July, busier than ever. It's a good busy though--getting Jake started in school and all the meetings that go with that, starting with the Young Adult group at our church, doing a rediculous amount of fun area things with friends to get us through my most hated month of the year (swelteringly miserable August!). I guess all this is to say that I hate the fact that each blog entry seems farther apart than the last. As I go about my day, so many things pop into my head and my brain starts automatically writing my next entry, but then I don't get a chance to sit down and actually type it in, or when I do, I'm tired and I just want to vedge. It's frustating because this is such a fun outlet for me. Anyway, if you're still checking this silly but hopefully slightly interesting blog, I'm hoping things will even out sometime soon, maybe after my mom flies home next week and we're finally settled into a normal routine around here.

Here We Go Again

Just bear with me here, people, as it is time for my very annual lament about how summer is too long and it’s time for the magic of Fall.

I’m ready for jeans.
I’m ready for Ohio State football.
I’m ready for Jake to start school.
I’m ready for my brown sweater coat.
I’m ready for leaves to change color.
I’m ready for socks and sneakers and boots.
I’m ready for apple picking.
I’m ready for clean crisp air.
I’m ready for my green puffy vest.
I’m ready for pumpkins.
I’m ready for hay rides.
I’m ready to wear my first ever official OSU football jersey on Saturdays.
I’m ready for warm spicy candles.
I’m ready for pumpkin bread and apple crisp.
I’m ready to change my living room décor to autumn stuff.
I’m ready for a new TV season.
I’m ready for flannel pj pants and hooded sweatshirts.
I’m ready for homemade soups and stews.
I’m ready to wrap up in quilts in my cold house.
I’m ready to swap our American flag with our OSU flag for a few months.
I’m ready for the fact that once fall is here, the magic of Halloween, Thanksgiving, and Christmas closely follows, but with enough time in between to revel in each one.

So very much to enjoy...

I got to share the Lord's Supper last night with some girls in a very intimate setting. What a unique experience...to sit and take communion with a group of girls who I barely know yet, but who I feel close to because they are my sisters...

Little Things That Make Me Smile

"Don't you just love New York in the fall? It makes me want to buy school supplies. I would send you a bouquet of newly sharpened pencils if I knew your name and address..."
--Tom Hanks in the movie You've Got Mail
I know I've used this before in a previous post, but it's honestly one of my favorite quotes of all time. And it's getting to be that time of year. Not fall yet, unfortunately, but since it's almost August, the stores are packed to overflowing with school supplies. As a kid, one of my favorite things in life was shopping for each year's supplies. I loved choosing a fun tissue box, a new pencil case sporting whatever I was obsessing over that year, and I still remember every trapper keeper I ever had. What's better than fresh pencils and crayons? Now that Jake is starting Kindergarten, once again I get to relive fun things through my kids. A few weeks ago he picked out a Batman backpack, and last week we got everything else on his supply list. I can't believe he's old enough that his existence now requires a batch of #2 pencils! So this is a fun new phase we're entering, but something I've been doing in August for years now is restocking our own personal house stash of crayons. You know how it goes...after a while you have a plastic shoebox size container of all broken crayon bits and pieces, complete with stray papers that have been ripped off the crayons along the way. Well, every August I stock up on 10 cent boxes of brand new Roseart crayons to last us another year. And hey, if you're feeling crazy, go for the 22 cent Crayolas!!

Reasons I Haven't Been Blogging Lately...

--3 week vacation to PA and Boston

--Picnics at the park

--Painting projects around the house

--Lots of kiddie pool time in the backyard

--Pool and ice coffee time at friends' houses

--Christmas shopping (that's right...have you seen the clearance toys out there? June and July are goldmines!!)

--Spending time with Mark before he started his summer job

--Painting polka dots on Rory's toenails

--Fun crafty projects with the kids

--Guitar Hero with Mark and quality Wii sports time with the kids

--Saturday morning farmer's market

--Library reading club

--Dinners with friends

--Quality time with ice cream cones

--Grilling outside instead of cooking inside

--Summer movies at ornate old theatres, in the park, and at the dollar theatre

I have to say, for someone who claims to "hate summer," I sure have been enjoying myself!

"Though inland far we be

our souls have sight of that immortal sea..."

--William Wordsworth

"Why do we love the sea? It is because it has some potent power to make us

think things we like to think."

--Robert Henri

"Those who live by the sea can hardly form a single thought

of which the sea would not be a part."

--Hermann Broch

"A person should go out on the water on a fine day to a small distance from a beautiful coast, if he would see nature really smile..."

--Augustus William Hare

"There is indeed, perhaps, no better way to hold communion with the sea than sitting in the sun on the veranda of a fisherman's cafe."

--Joseph W. Beach

I am very happy here in Columbus. I've fallen in love with the city itself, but I do have one complaint--it's inland. This has been a problem for me and probably always will be, no matter how at home I am here. I once read that if you're born near the ocean, your connection to water never goes away. I find this to be irrefutable...