The Frozen Phenomenon and Being a Girl Mom

I've been hearing about Frozen for months from my friends who have kids and from the students I work with.  Apparently it's a huge deal,  but I don't exactly fit the demographic of people who watch that type of movie (Ha!  Who am I kidding?  Half of our blu-ray collection are Disney movies).  Anyway, I wasn't in a rush to see the movie.

Then last Wednesday, Scarlett was napping and I clicked on a video someone had posted on Facebook.  It was a man singing a cover of the song "Let it Go" (from Frozen) in a bunch of different Disney voices.  I was getting a kick out of it when I heard Scarlett stirring in her crib.  So I paused the video, went to scoop her up out of her crib, and then let her watch the rest of the video with me.  I usually don't like her to watch anything on a screen, but made an exception for a short, cute video.

She seemed to be really into it, so after that video was over, I clicked on another one -- the version of the song from the movie.  She was absolutely mesmerized. 

Throughout the day, I would play the song and we would dance around, and she seemed to be having the time of her life.  There was just something about that song. 

By the time Saturday rolled around, we had listened to the song approximately 850 times.  So I decided I might as well purchase the blu-ray, since it will probably be one of Scarlett's future favorites.  And let's be honest, probably mine too.  So during naptime on Saturday, I took part in this wonderfulness while Scarlett snoozed:

 

And oh my goodness, it was so cute!  I loved it, and I'm almost 30 years old.  I know Scarlett is going to love it even more when she's old enough to really watch it. 

And now when Scarlett gets fussy, I see her looking at the TV, just waiting for me to  play her favorite song.  And I willingly oblige.  Her eyes get big and she gasps and dances and even tries to sing along.  And I kind of see into our future for a minute.  I see all things princesses, pink, dancing, sing-alongs, girly movies, and all the fun things about being a little girl.  And sometimes I'm so overwhelmed with happiness that God has blessed me with a baby girl that I almost cry.  You can tell me I'm perpetuating gender norms all you want, but I happen to love being a woman, and I'm glad my daughter gets to experience all of those fun, girly things too.  

I will also teach her to be tough and independent and to stand up for herself.  But that's the beauty of being a girl:  she can be all of those things, and still be a beautiful, feminine, princess at the same time.  

I know I would have loved a little boy so much, and I hope I have one someday.  But I feel so blessed that God picked me to be a girl mom, too. 

DIY Framed Silhouette

I have decided to continue doing pregnancy updates every other week because not much changes week to week now that I'm further along, so I will have the next one posted in a week.

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I am currently coming down off of the high that was the weekend.  Saturday and Sunday it was beautiful and sunny!  and so warm!  It's still warm today, but it's supposed to cool down soon, so I'm trying not to get too bummed.

Anyway, my weekend was great!  I feel like I've kind of been in a funk all winter thanks to the winter blues and lack of sunshine and Vitamin D. So this weekend was a nice change!  On Friday night Luke went to the Cavs game, so I went to Chipotle and to see the new Oz movie with my parents.  We loved it!  Definitely worth seeing in 3D.

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And then I spent the day Saturday shopping with my mother-in-law and sisters-in-law.  We went to Hobby Lobby, and I bought some things for a few nursery projects I've been wanting to do.  

The first project I've tackled is a framed animal silhouette.  It was a very simple DIY project, and took me about 10 minutes from start to finish.  I simply bought 2 different patterns of scrapbook paper that complimented one another - one for the background and one for the silhouette.  I googled the silhouette of a bird that I liked, printed it, cut it out, traced it onto one piece of scrapbook paper, cut that out, glued it onto the background paper, and framed it.  And just like that, Scarlett's first nursery project was complete!

I think we're doing mostly yellow and gray and maybe a little blue in the nursery, so I thought this was perfect.  It was an easy little project, and could be done with a silhouette of just about anything. 

It feels good to have one project completed.  Never mind that we have to completely clean out the future nursery, replace the carpet and light fixture, prime and paint the walls, buy furniture, organize her closet....etc.  I'm happily in denial about the amount of work that needs to be done now that my first cutesy project is done!  

Date Day

Luke agreed to go on a little date with me this weekend, and nothing could have made me happier!  We clocked a bunch of quality time hours during our date on Sunday, so my heart was very happy!  Luke really doesn't have a whole lot of spare time right now since he's working two jobs, and when he chooses to spend some of that precious spare time with me, it makes me a happy wife!

We started our date at Outback Steakhouse, continued with some shopping, followed by a movie, and then ended with my first trip to Menchie's.

Date highlights: 

• The Aussie cobb salad at Outback.  I am sick of salads, but decided to stay true to the diet today.  And this salad was surprisingly great! 
• The fun things I found at Target:

  

A new journal, just for fun.  It says, "She's a dreamer, a doer, a thinker.  She sees possibility everywhere."  Hopefully I will be inspired every time I look at those words.  I can't wait to start filling the pages!

Some new nail polish, $1.99 apiece.  I saw someone post about this brand on Twitter or maybe a blog recently (I can't remember where, so let me know if it was you!)  I bought them, and tried them, and ended up hating both of the colors! ("rise and shine" on the left, and "easy going" on the right).  So instead of wasting two bottles of nail polish, I decided to be inventive, and I mixed the colors together.  It made a really pretty turquoise!  I feel kind of funny with turquoise nails (I'm usually a pink or red kind of girl) but I think it's growing on me! 

(ignore the smudge on my ring finger.  I didn't paint them fast enough, and the polish started to dry and made it difficult to go on smoothly).

And these therapy tools, found in the dollar spot.  One of my professors told my class to keep our eyes peeled at Target because their dollar spot has great therapy tools or reinforcement activities.  On this trip I found rhyming flash cards, alphabet bingo, and a dry erase board with a handwriting template on one side, and fun reinforcement games on the other.  I was so excited to make my first therapy-related purchases!  And for $1 apiece, you can't beat that!

...back to date highlights:

• Seeing the new Spider-Man movie in 3D!  Luke and I were a little skeptical because we are huge fans of the Toby McGuire Spider-Man series (well, the first two in the series at least).  But we loved this new one even more!
• Going to Menchie's without breaking any diet rules.  I got sugar-free raspberry frozen yogurt topped with chopped peanuts, strawberries, raspberries, and blackberries.

This weekend contained so many blessings with our date day today, and then spending most of the rest of the weekend at the pool with friends!  And I think this week will be equally awesome with our 4-year anniversary on Thursday, and a possible trip to Presque Isle to celebrate together on Saturday!  These summer days are going way too fast, but I'm trying not to take any of them for granted!

Miscellaneous Monday

A few miscellaneous facts on a Monday:

• I think I check my Instagram feed 8 billion times a day.  Seriously, it's the first thing I do every time I pick up my phone.  It is my absolute favorite social media app.  I love being able to see simple moments from my friends' days!  And I love documenting my own little life through snapshots.  Follow me, and I will follow you back! - jessicaw1106
• I've been wanting to watch the movie 500 Days of Summer for a really long time.  And this weekend I realized I still had $3 left on an Amazon gift card from Christmas time.  I downloaded the movie for 48 hours for $2.99 on my Kindle Fire, so it worked out perfectly!  I settled in and watched it Friday night and loved it!  It was really cute and sweet, and not the typical rom-com, which I appreciated.  I'm sure there are lots of different opinions about the ending, but I thought it was perfect!  And my favorite part was the Ikea scene...too cute!  Zooey Deschanel is my favorite actress, and I love Joseph Gordon-Levitt, so this movie was basically made of win. 

• My mom put together some hanging baskets for me, and I put them up yesterday.  I think they make the place look so welcoming!  I can't wait until they fill out more, and start spilling over the sides of the baskets.

• I am really sad that all my shows are done for the season (Desperate Housewives, How I Met Your Mother, New Girl, Revenge, Modern Family, Parks and Rec, The Office, and Big Bang Theory.  Yes, we watch a lot of TV around here).  However, there are a few shows this summer that I'm excited about: Food Network Star, The Glee Project, So You Think You Can Dance, and my guilty pleasure: Teen Mom.  And of course, Mad Men and Dawson's Creek reruns on Netflix.  What shows are you looking forward to this summer?
• This past weekend was pretty great.  In a nutshell, it included: a movie, sleeping in, more popsicles, reading on the porch, a Mexican Train night at my mother-in-law's, great church service, Chipotle where we ran into friends, and a big get-together where I saw lots of old friends.  I love weekends.  

Happy Monday!

Must See Movie, and Much Needed Girl Time

I've been super stressed out lately.  It's the end of the semester, and I still haven't heard a final verdict about grad school, finals are soon, and I'm trying to finish up my last few clinical observation hours for one of my classes.  Let's not even talk about the fact that I have no idea what my life will look like in 2 weeks if I don't get into grad school.

So when I heard that some of the ladies in my family were having a movie-and-dinner night, I knew it would be the perfect time to leave the worries at home, and have a nice night out.  And I'm so glad I was able to do that! 

We chose to see Mirror Mirror.

Have you seen this movie yet?  I felt like a huge nerd, because I got so sucked into it!  It was so cute!  And actually really funny, too.  It was weird to see Julia Roberts in the role of the villain, but she did a great job!  I find myself screening all the kids movies I watch to see if it's one we'll add to our collection and watch with our own kids someday.  And I think this one made the cut for sure.  (Does anyone else do that?  I hope I'm not the only one!) 

After the movie, we went out to dinner at Panera, and then I went shopping a little bit with my mom.

I don't think it matters how old you get: you always need girl time, and you always need family time.  This night was exactly what I needed!  Ever since that day, everything seems a little easier to handle. 

1000 Gifts 

128: Girls nights

129: Quality time with family

130. Not being too old to enjoy a kids' movie

The Hunger Games Movie vs. Book: My Thoughts

 I made it to the theater this weekend to see The Hunger Games, after reading all three books around Christmastime.  I thought I'd share my thoughts this afternoon. 

Overall, I thought this was one of the best movie adaptations I've ever seen.  They stuck so closely to the book!  There were a few minor changes, but only one that bothered me a little (I don't want to put any spoilers in here, so I'm not going to say which part it was).

First of all, I thought the acting was superb.  Jennifer Lawrence was THE perfect Katniss Everdeen if you ask me. And Josh Hutcherson was great as Peeta.  The only characters that didn't 100% match the picture in my head were Elizabeth Banks as Effie Trinket (I'm not sure why...maybe it's because I can only ever see her as Kim from Scrubs? I've watched way too many hours of Scrubs)  and Woody Harrelson as Haymitch (In the book I felt a love/hate sort of thing for Haymitch, and I thought Woody Harrelson made him just a touch too lovable).

I also thought they handled the heavy subject matter pretty well.  Yes, it is a violent book.  However, I think the violence serves the purpose to convey a very powerful message.  I thought the movie was well-done in that they kept the deaths quick and showed as little as possible, but still conveyed the horror of the whole premise of the Hunger Games (a game where children fight to the death).

One big concern I had about the movie was that they wouldn't be able to convey all of Katniss's thoughts on the screen, because such a huge part of the book is her inner dialogue.  However, I thought they did a great job of this.  They used the announcers a lot to explain what was going on, and the music and mood of the scenes portrayed the rest.

I compare this series to the Harry Potter books and the Twilight books, in that it is a young adult series of epic novels.  If I were to rate how well the movie matched the book, I would say The Hunger Games definitely wins if it is competing against the other books I mentioned.  Simply because the Harry Potter books contained so much, it was impossible to fully transform them into movies because there was no possible way to include everything.  And Twilight failed miserably in casting, in my opinion.  Kristen Stewart is nothing like the Bella I pictured, and Robert Pattinson is not an attractive/lovable enough Edward. And let's fact it, Taylor Lautner is too hot to play a character that wasn't supposed to be nearly so lovable in the books.  Anyway, I think The Hunger Games did a fantastic job of casting the perfect actors for their characters, and also sticking to the book for most main plot points.

So what did you think?  Did they do a good job with the movie?  I still think the book was better, because the book is always better!  But I thought the movie was about as good as it could have been.

The Twilight Saga: Guard Your Heart!

On Friday, I went to see the latest movie in The Twilight Saga - Breaking Dawn Part 1. I have been a Twilight fan since I began reading the first book in 2008. I wouldn't put myself in the "Twi-hard" category, but I do enjoy the books and the movies an acceptable amount. I've heard some incredibly bad reviews about this latest movie, so I think I'm in the minority when I say: I loved it.

For the first time in a really long time, I got totally sucked in by this movie. Maybe partly because I had already read the book and knew what was going to happen, so the incredibly weird stuff didn't shock me much, because I knew it was coming.

Anyway, let me tell you why I loved it so much: the romance! The wedding scene was sooo beautiful! And romantic!

And the honeymoon? First of all, let me just say that I thought those scenes were completely inappropriate for all the little junior high girls who will go see this movie (call me old fashioned)! But anyway, it was equally as romantic.

Sounds like a pretty sweet and romantic movie right? And where is the harm in that?

Well I do believe there is some harm in that if we are not careful!

Proverbs 4:23 "Above all else, guard your heart. For it is the wellspring of life."

How many women get totally irritated and angry when we see our husbands or boyfriends looking at other women? Or watching movies, TV shows, or even commercials that contain scantily clad women who look perfect in every single way? It is really hard for us to live up to those images that completely inundate the media.

Those images are not real. They are a total fantasy, and no one is really that perfect. Lighting, slow motion, and Photoshop are really responsible for those perfect images.

And just like those images are not real, a perfect romance like Edward and Bella have? Is not real.

See the parallel?

Now I'm not saying that it is totally wrong to read the Twilight books or go see the movies. Everyone is different, and it may not effect you at all! But I know people who have read the books, and who are looking for a Twilight sort of romance. And they're just not going to find one, because romance like that doesn't exist long-term in the real world!

I guess what I'm saying is that we need to guard our hearts, just like Proverbs 4:23 tells us. If we're going to allow ourselves to read books or go see movies like this, we need to know that it's not real. We need to completely separate ourselves from those fictional situations, stop comparing our own relationships to those in the movies, and get rid of all expectations that real life is like that. Because I think Satan can sneakily use the media to steal our contentment about our own relationships.

If I've learned nothing else about marriage and relationships, I've learned that we cannot compare our relationship to anyone else's! Especially not the relationships of fictional characters!

And I'm not even talking about simply Twilight movies. I'm talking about things as close to home as those Christian romance novels that are so readily available to us even in our own church libraries.

Again, each person is different, and we need to guard our own hearts and know what we can handle, and how things affect us. But there are some Christian romance novels out there with some pretty idealistic portrayals of romance and relationships.

So I guess I'll get off my soapbox for the day :-) But I just wanted to share what God is teaching me about my own heart, and the way I need to protect it.

Lessons I Learned from Watching "Up"

I started a private blog about a year ago when things started getting really difficult regarding our fertility problems. I started it not only for myself - to help me deal with things, but also because I knew I planned on sharing some of these thoughts on my public blog someday.

The other day I remembered a post I had written about the movie Up, and knew I had to share it. The first part is a little depressing, but I promise it gets better :-)

"November 10, 2010

I had a rough day yesterday. I recently resumed temping in the mornings after taking a break for a month for my sanity, and my BBT [basal body temperature] had been high. Even though I was sick, I got my hopes up that maybe I was pregnant. I took a test yesterday morning, and of course it was negative. I had a ROUGH day. It felt like I had a relapse into the time a few months ago, before I started coming to terms with things.

But today I keep thinking about that scene in the movie Up. The scene where they find out that Ellie can't have a baby, so they decide to travel to Paradise Falls and essentially conquer the world instead. That is how I feel today. If I can't have a baby yet, I want to conquer the world today. I want to take advantage of my freedom and do things that I couldn't do if I had a little one. [just a warning if you haven't seen it...the clip is cute but really depressing at the same time :-P]

Babies will come in time. But for now, I'm happy with my sense of adventure...which is something that will probably die a little bit when I become pregnant."

Almost a year later, and I feel the exact same way! A big lesson I've learned during the past year-and-a-half is that you can't put life on hold while you wait for something. Whether it's waiting for the right guy to come along, marriage, the perfect job, or a baby, you must keep living.

My sense of adventure is something that has really blossomed in the past year-and-a-half, and I look at it as a blessing that came with this awful situation. Because of my new-found sense of adventure and the increased awareness of how much freedom I have without a baby, I've:

• Taken on more responsibility at church like when I wrote the church building project blog, worked on the campaign committee, wrote the campaign newsletters, and became one of the head library workers.
• Done things I wouldn't normally do, like in January when Luke and I spoke in front of the whole church on a Sunday morning
• Packed up and headed out to Arizona in the middle of winter, and in the middle of the school year. And those were some of the best days ever! (funny sidenote...I told Luke if we became pregnant while we were in Arizona, we were going to name our child Sedona if it was a girl. I think he was happy that didn't happen :-P)
• Stayed up late and slept in. A lot. Because I could. And I did not feel guilty about it one bit.
• Enjoyed time spent with my husband and relished in the flexibility of our schedule.
• Went to Cedar Point and rode every ride on our 3-year anniversary
• Lost weight (9 lbs to be exact!)...that wouldn't have happened if I had been pregnant!
• Quit my job to go back to school to follow a dream.

So does it stink to not be pregnant after 16 months of trying? Yes. But all the things I've gotten to do and all the places I've gotten to go have not escaped my notice. Somehow this situation has made me appreciate all the good things so much more. And it has helped me see that there are blessings every day in the freedom of not having a baby too. The last thing I want to do is wish this time away.

I'll let Pinterest deliver my final thoughts...because everything has more impact with a pretty font :-)

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Today

Today I'm...

...a little tired since I was up until two at a friend's house watching movies. We watched How do You Know with Reese Witherspoon, and it was SO GOOD. I had no expectations because I had barely even heard of it, but it was hilarious and heart-warming. A perfect chick flick.

...not feeling well. Appointment with the allergy specialist is in 5 days and counting.

...writing my favorite post yet at In My Twenties. Go check it out! P.S. we are doing a giveaway next week because we reached 100 followers! Be on the lookout :-)

...hungry for Mexican food, and hoping to get some soon. Luke, can we make that happen?

...thinking about also doing my first giveaway when I finally reach 100 followers on this blog. I do not blog to see how many followers I can get. I blog for myself and to share my testimony. However, I would like to give back a little something too. And celebrate all the wonderful people I've met through blogging! So stay tuned :-)

...looking forward to working out in the pool later. I'm glad I finally found a type of exercise that I don't loathe :-P

...excited about the future

...in the mood to watch a Disney movie. Don't judge. The mood strikes sometimes :-P I'm not the only one, right? I'm thinking Beauty and the Beast (I blame it on "The 90s are All That" block on Teen Nick. It puts me in the mood to watch all of my 90s favorites).

...ready for fall. I'm not complaining about the heat because honestly I would deal with this weather all year long if I could skip January and February. However, I just love fall and it's my absolute favorite time of year. It can't come fast enough!

...learning to trust in God instead of worry. It's a hard lesson, especially when I'm getting nervous about school.

...embracing life and loving every minute. Life's too short to not have fun. I'm thankful for my husband who has taught me not to take life too seriously.

What are you feeling/thinking/doing today?

What I've Been up to

I was so looking forward to life slowing down after Julie's shower, but it just hasn't yet! However, I am MAKING time to post today. However, all I can muster is a bullet list, because I'm about to fall asleep. so here's what I've been up to:

~ Watching all the Pirates of the Caribbean movies! Luke and I are going to see the new one on Sunday night so we have to catch up on the first three! We watched the first one on Tuesday, we'll watch the second one tomorrow night, and the third one Saturday night. After these long, hectic days, it has been nice to relax for a few hours at night and watch a movie with Luke.

~Working on the church library. Since our church just rebuilt a wing of our building, we got a new library! I am on the library committee, and we have been working hard for a few months, entering all of our books and resources electronically, along with shifting our entire collection of books to a different section of the church: the new, beautiful library. It has been a big project, and it feels so good that the library is so close to being opened! On Saturday we will load all of the nonfiction books. This excites me, and I think that officially qualifies me as a big nerd.

~Nearing the end of the school year. We have two weeks left! The year has gone quickly, but I've had a heavy workload and some students who require a lot of extra guidance and attention. I'm ready for a break, and I'm definitely counting down the days!

~ Receiving my sister's wedding invitation in the mail! Oh my goodness, it's so cute! She designed them herself. I can't show the whole invitation because there are way too many last names and addresses on there, but her's a little detail on the RSVP card...I love the bird!


~ Blogging over at My Twenties Blog. Hop on over there to see a post devoted to my favorite color for spring and summer!

Wow, I just looked at the clock and it's after midnight! I'm going to sign off since I have to wake up in 6 hours! Have a happy Friday :-)

Date night 6: Unstoppable

Luke and I had our weekly date night on Saturday night. We went to a late showing of the movie Unstoppable.Obviously, Luke picked this date out. You can probably tell by the movie selection. I wasn't sure what to expect of the movie. But it ended up being pretty good! We went to a late showing, and usually I have a hard time staying awake during those (yes, even at the theater!) But I was wide awake and on the edge of my seat during this entire movie!

I thought the acting was excellent, with Denzel Washington and Chris Pine in the lead roles (Can I just say that it should be a rule for Chris Pine to always be sporting that stubble?? Haha...I like it).

The plot was slightly predictable, but it did not stop me from being on the edge of my seat. It followed basically the same formula as the movie "Speed" as far as building up the tension. It actually felt very similar to "Speed," minus the bomb.

Anyway, I recommend this movie! Go see it if you enjoy nail-biters.

Now this week is my turn to pick the date night, and I really want to pick a good one since it's so close to Christmas! I'm trying to think of something fun and unique. If this snow sticks around, (and it should..we got a TON of it) maybe we'll have to do a sled-riding date or something!

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I was lucky enough to have a snow day today!! It is absolutely beautiful outside. And yes, I'm still in my pajamas. But I'm about to get ready for the day and finish making my Russian tea cakes. On Saturday I made peanut butter blossoms, peppermint bark, and halfway-finished Russian tea cakes. I'm sure there will be a post to follow soon about my baking adventures.

Now I'm off to enjoy every second of my day off! Being a teacher certainly has it's perks :-)

Thanksgiving '10...A Lovely Day!

I guess my Thanksgiving started super late on Wednesday night. Luke had fallen asleep on our beautiful, new couch, but I still had energy coursing through my veins. (SO unlike me!!) So I stayed up until about 2:00 AM addressing Christmas cards and writing a little note on each one. I'm probably more than halfway done now!! And it was fun to stay up until the middle of the night like I used to.

Thursday morning began when I woke up at 10:00!! That's about 2 hours later than my normal sleep-in time these days, and it was really nice! When I got up, I had to make a dessert for my Grandparents' house. I was told to make a dessert, but not a pie. I decided to peruse The Pioneer Woman's dessert archives, and I found the perfect little treat: French Breakfast Puffs. You can find the recipe here.

Although they are "breakfast puffs," they're really more like doughnuts. Delicious, cinnamon, nutmeg doughnuts. They were so easy to make, and they made my entire house smell like nutmeg. I made 12 large ones for my grandma's house, but had tons of batter left over, so I also made some tiny ones for fun, and for taste-testing ;-) Aren't the tiny ones so cute? They look like doughnut holes.

These were a hit, and I will definitely make them again!

We did find that we liked the little ones better than the big ones, because the big ones are sooo filling, and because you obviously get more cinnamon sugar in each bite and less cakey stuff with the little ones. They are also even more delicious when they are still warm. And I have to say, I think they kind of taste like these cinnamon doughnuts straight form White House! P-Dub sure knows what she's doing when it comes to good food ;-)

Anyway, our first stop of the day was my Grandparents' house. The whole day reminded me of that episode of Gilmore Girls where Rory and Lorelei have 4 Thanksgiving dinners to make it to. But instead of 4, we just had 3. And we did not eat at each place. Honest! :-)

At my grandparents', we ate a delicious, traditional Thanksgiving dinner. Grandma always does everything up very fancily. I did not take any pictures, because I made a conscious effort to leave my camera in my purse. Sometimes when I'm busy taking pictures, I don't get to fully enjoy everything. Know what I mean?

Anyway. As we ate, all the cousins and our husbands/fiances sat at a separate table. We laughed that even in our mid-twenties, we are somehow still at the "kid's table."

After dinner, all the ladies sat around the big table while the men watched football. And then all too soon it was time to head to our next destination: Luke's Grandma and Grandpa W's house.

There we honestly did not eat anything, if you can believe that! I don't think we could have if we had wanted to. At this spot, we watched football and chatted with family, and again, it was a very nice time!

After a few hours, it was time to move on again, to Luke's Grandma and Grandpa H's house. This was a fun place to end the day! We somehow ate a little more here, because Luke's Grandma always makes delicious risotto for Thanksgiving. It is Luke's absolute favorite thing to eat in the world.

After dinner, a bunch of us played a really fun game called Wits and Wagers. We played for a looong time, because it was addicting! Luke laughed at those of us who were playing the game, because he was laying in a big armchair in the living room, watching football and trying to take a little nap, and every few minutes we would all yell or start laughing, and he just could not fall asleep! Haha...I love being blessed to be a part of this family...they are so much fun!

After the game, Luke and I talked with his grandparents and looked up flights for when we visit them in AZ this winter!! I am so excited!

After awhile, it was time to head out and we left with enough leftovers to feed an army!! And I'm only slightly exaggerating.

When I got home, I relaxed and watched the first part of Home Alone 2 before it was time to go out AGAIN! Mom, Julie and I decided to see a late showing of Tangled because we all thought it looked so cute!

We were not disappointed! It reminded me of the old Disney princess movies, like Beauty and the Best or Aladdin. We got to see it in 3D, and the visuals were stunning. I LOVED it, and will definitely be adding it to my Disney blu-ray collection :-)

After the movie I came home to an empty house...Luke had gone with his sisters to Walmart at midnight to get some cheap blu-rays. So I laid on our couch and turned on Home Alone 2 again. Luke got home, and we were laying head to head since our couch is L-shaped, and Gabby was laying on my lap and Ellie was laying on my stomach. It was so cozy, and a wonderful way to end the day! We ended up staying up until 3:00 AM! When I was in college, I would often stay up that late on the weekends, and it felt so nice to be able to do that again with no real commitments the next morning to worry about!

I hope everyone else had a blessed Thanksgiving, too! Tomorrow I will be revealing our Christmas trees, so come back! :-)

My Husband is Awesome

Today I was having a rough day at work. I have some trying students this year, and it's wearing on me. However, everything was made right when I got a text from Luke about halfway through my afternoon.

He texted me to let me know that he had joined The Disney Movie Club! This is awesome for several reasons:

1. I love all things Disney, including Disney movies.
2. Luke supports my unnatural love for children's movies, and loves me despite this quirk.
3. By signing up for the program, we committed to buy 5 Disney movies over the next two years at full price, and in doing so, we will receive 4 movies RIGHT NOW, for $1.99 each!! What a great deal!

So in two years, our Disney blu-ray collection will increase by 9 movies! Sweet!

I've written a lot lately about how I want to build our Disney blu-ray collection for when we have kids (ahem. And also for the two big kids who live here right now. We are not ashamed :-P)

As of right now we are the proud owners of the following Disney blu-rays:

And as soon as they come in the mail, here are the 4 that Luke ordered for $1.99 each. I think he did a good job with the ones he picked out!

(For the record, Luke has never watched Enchanted. I'm sure he would want you to know that. Haha! He just knows I absolutely LOVE it).

And you better believe the first full-priced movie I buy from the Disney Movie Club is going to be this...only my favorite Disney movie of all time:
(Side-note: I was a Beauty and the Beast FREAK when I was in second grade. I was Belle for Halloween, wearing a beautiful dress made by my mom...seriously, it was an incredible dress...the perfect re-creation of the gold ball gown. On top of that, I had a Beauty and the Beast-themed birthday party. And saw Beauty and the Beast on ice. I could go on and on)

(You can click here to see the whole movie collection I would like to own for my children one day, and to read why I think movies are so much better than TV for children)

So in conclusion...I have an awesome husband. Little surprises like this get me through the day.

Click Here to find out more about The Disney Movie Club.

Julie and Julia Night

Tonight was a great night! Sarah came over to watch Julie and Julia with me. She had never seen it before, and I knew she just had to watch it. She came over early and went grocery shopping with me. we then came home and made a pizza for us and Luke for dinner.
I got to talking while I was cutting the pizza, and this picture is just proof of why I can't talk while I do things. We laughed so hard at my uneven pieces on the left side. I just said that it was perfect, because I cut them all different sizes in case somebody wanted a really big piece or a really small piece. Haha!

After dinner, Sarah and I went for a walk around town again. This time we went to the park and just sat on the swings and talked for a really long time. It was so much fun, and I felt like I was 10 again! I really wish I had brought my camera, because I could have gotten some great pictures there. We were laughing so hard that my cheeks hurt by the time we left!

We were gone for about two hours overall during our walk and our time at the park! We got back and since Luke was leaving for band practice, it was our turn to have the TV, so we popped in the movie.

We bought this giant bag of freshly popped popcorn at Giant Eagle for $.99! I thought that was a great deal, and it was pretty good, too! Perfect to eat during the movie...
The movie was of course wonderful...it was my third time watching it. Sarah really enjoyed it, too. I think I've decided that it's one of my favorite movies.

Sarah is looking for a new apartment right now, and until she finds one, she is going to be spending a lot of time at our house. It is so much fun! She's like another sister, since my own sister does not live close to me. Last year at this time, I remember feeling so lonely. I felt like I was not connecting with other women, and I was sick of fake friendships. I spent a lot of time in prayer for a really great Christian friend. I am so glad that God was faithful in answering that prayer, and that I practically have another sister, now!

Now I think I better go spend time with Luke! I don't want him to feel neglected after all this girl time! It is so hard to keep a good balance of things now that school has started. Not to mention, I feel like I need to sleep for three days straight in order to feel energized again! Tomorrow I plan on just chilling out at home, working on the church newsletter, looking up DIY sewing projects online so I can make something with my new sewing machine, and just RELAXING. This weekend cannot come soon enough!

Beautiful Movies: You've Got Mail

I fell in love with You've Got Mail when I was at a very awkward point in my life: my early teens. I wanted nothing more than to fast forward my life to a time when I'd feel comfortable in my own skin. During this awkward stage in my life, I watched this movie so many times, I almost memorized every line. I got wrapped up in Meg Ryan's character, Kathleen Kelly. I wanted to be her someday. And I still do! Ha! Anyway, this movie was a comfort to me during one of the most uncomfortable times in my life, and when I watch it now, all the warm, fuzzy feelings that I would get when I watched it back then come back.

Tonight I watched the movie for the first time in years, and I forgot how absolutely beautiful it is! From the music to the dialogue to the scenery, in my opinion, this movie is absolutely flawless.

The thing that I love the most in the movie, visually at least, is Kathleen's bookstore, Shop Around the Corner.
I have always been a bookworm. I love simply being in a library because it makes me so happy just to be around all those books. So obviously I really love this absolutely adorable bookstore in the movie. In a perfect world, I would work in a place like this, just like Kathleen Kelly. See? I still want to be her!

The next beautiful thing in the movie that I practically drool over, is Kathleen's apartment. This movie is pretty timeless, because it is 12 years old, and I would still love for my house to look just like her apartment.

Love, love, LOVE that headboard and all the neutral colors:
And how cute is the kitchen floor?
But my favorite part of her apartment? THIS:
I love it. I would love to have a blogging/writing space like this!

The other thing I love visually in this movie is, umm, everything else...? I just love it all. There is not one ugly shot in this film. Here are some of my favorite scenes...I couldn't find pictures for all of them, but if you've seen it, I'm sure you can picture them in your mind:

1. The little carnival where Joe takes his Aunt Annabelle and his little brother, Matt.

2. Joe's apartment. It's almost as nicely decorated as Kathleen's.

3. The grocery store where Kathleen is trying to avoid Joe. I couldn't find a picture of it, but I did find a picture of the cashier...if you watch Grey's Anatomy, you will recognize her as Callie Torres.

4. The scene where Kathleen is decorating her Christmas tree. I usually cry at this part when she talks about her mom.

5.The Cafe Lalo scene, where Kathleen is waiting to meet "NY152" for the first time, with the book Pride and Prejudice and a crimson rose.

6. New York in the fall.

7. New York in the spring.

8. Joe's boat

9. The outdoor market that Joe and Kathleen visit together toward the end of the movie.

10. The hot dog shop that Joe and Kathleen visit right before the last scene. they're standing by a big window that says "We're Talking" and for some reason I think it's so adorable. I wish I had found a picture of it!

11. The last scene in the park surrounded by so many flowers. I cry every time during this scene when Kathleen starts to cry and says [spoiler alert], "I wanted it to be you. I wanted it to be you so badly!"
This just has to be the best chick flick ever made. The best word I can think of to describe it is "charming." Everything about this movie is completely charming. This is one movie that I can watch over and over, and never get sick of it.

Click here to see my other "Beautiful Movies" post about The Proposal

Much Better Today...

Today is the first day of my 4-day weekend.

I slept in until 9:00 this morning.

My house is filled with the scent of maple syrup, thanks to my Yankee Candle. Which smells like fall to me.I have pork tenderloin in the oven, and potatoes boiling on the stove for parsley potatoes.

It was a cool 78 degrees today and it rained.

I have a date-night-in with Luke tonight to watch Bounty Hunter. (I don't think Luke knows he's in for a chick flick in disguise!! Hehe)
Tomorrow I am hanging out with my sister

Sunday we are going to a fun picnic with Luke's family

Monday we are spending some time at the Canfield Fair! I absolutely cannot wait, and will write more about it later!

I have plans to put out all of my fall decorations this weekend.

...And these are just some of the reasons I'm feeling much better today. I hate whiny posts like my last one! Hopefully I won't be writing anymore of those anytime soon!

Have a great Labor Day weekend!!