Eclipse!!!!

I was a crazy woman and went to a triple feature for the Eclipse premiere last night!

The movie was the best one so far.

In the books, I love Edward.

But Jacob is hot. I must admit.

This is the group that we went with.

(l to r: Becca, Kristin, Sayra, Lindsey, me, Holly and Maria Mae)
I love having MoonPie to do fun and crazy things with. Here she is, yes, laying on the ground to model her tattoo with a set of twins who have REAL tattoos on their feet saying, "the lion fell in love with the lamb."
I love having her around to pose for crazy pictures with!
and convince me to wear Volturi tattoos!
And take pictures with pop bottles in her shirt to cool down!
Love this girl, loved the movie, it was so worth the sleep hangover!!!

I know what you're all thinking....

What have I been reading/watching lately???

No?

Well, here's the answer anyway!

My week currently revolves around Wednesday and Thursday nights where I have finally officially caved into actually voting for my long-time fave SYTYCD! I'm thrilled Mia Michaels is back. I miss Mary Murphy's expertise but I definitely do not miss her voice! And already the choreography is more exciting than all of last season! I like the "all stars" and how each dancer is now judged more individually and can't be dragged down by a lesser partner. (I always think of "white lightning" and how she was so awesome but her partner just couldn't keep up! Once she switched partners, she shot right to the top!)

I just spent a week at my parents' house. I've gotten a bit addicted to Top Chef. Watched a few season finales in preparation for the new DC season. It seems like the new season is very much already a show about two guys, so hopefully things round out a bit soon!

Here's where I hang my head and admit I got sucked into "Bethenny Getting Married". I'm amazed at how someone can be wealthy and big in society but not know how to give birth!

Other recent flicks. This was not as bad as I'd feared. Let's put it that way. I liked the smaller story lines in the film about the little boy and his Dad. I kept waiting for the lead girl or boy to kick the bucket in true Nicholas Sparks style, but they didn't!

I loved loved loved this book when I read it several years ago but I tried to watch the movie by myself and couldn't finish it! Too scary to watch without my hubby!

Watched this one this week. It was cute. I liked most of the story lines. I just try really hard to NOT like Ashton Kutcher and his story line was integral to the movie so I didn't love the movie!

I did however really enjoy this one. Cute cute! I thought it was clever and I loved how the priest!

I read this book over my DC jaunt. I had lots of friends love it and a few not love it. I loved it. The ending left me hanging a bit but I enjoyed the characters and the changes.

head-hanging time again. I finished the Help on the last day of my trip and had nothing to read on the plane. I bought this in the airport and wish I hadn't. I shouldn't have finished it and am embarrassed to admit I did. It's going in the pile with Water for Elephants if that means anything to you! post-edit: my brother asked me what i thought of Water for Elephants. I was thoroughly fascinated by the main plot of the veterinarian and the circus and the romance and the circus life in the early 20th century. However, I did not enjoy the dark side of the circus, and it was too graphic and detailed on the sex and prostitution for me.

I saw this book on a friends GoodReads list a few months back and was intrigued. I got it from the library and ate it up. Literally! It was charming and sweet and like an adult's Ella Enchanted. A real world girl living in a fairy tale where people don't really even realize it! I loved it!

So I then tracked down the author's first book and I loved it too! It wasn't as much of a clean read as The Sugar Queen. There was more sex in it. It reminded me of the movie Practical Magic. I always liked that movie and how these normal girls were really witches but not scary ones. This book is like that. Normal women with the ability to cook food that will make you feel things or act certain ways. It was charming! Without the demonic possession at the end! :)

I stumbled on this movie during my cable week this week. Remember Grey Gardens? Well, HBO did it again! I'm sure this movie is close to my heart because of my brother but I loved it. Loved it!!! Rent it! I love movies where the actor dives wholly into the part, like Drew Barrymore in Grey Gardens or Meryl Streep as Julia Child. Where you can't see any of the actor, only their role. Claire Danes was brilliant and I thoroughly enjoyed it!
I loved the end of this movie. Temple goes to the Autism Convention in 1981 and she sounds strange and is dressed strange, yet, when she stood to make a comment, they all thought she must be a parent. They were astonished to find out she was Autistic. They asked her to speak and asked her how she was cured. Her answer was so true. "I'm not. I'll always be autistic." Then she went on to explain how she had been pushed to learn and get and education and grow and how her mother had never given up hope that she would talk. And it's true. She's brilliant. So is my brother. But he will always be autistic. But to me it makes him more brilliant.

Now I'm stepping off my soap box.

Any recommendations for me to read/watch next????

ps-just got "released" or finished serving with the area primary and will just be a primary sunday school teacher in my ward/congregation. That's my small bit of time freed up. Nothing too exciting!

Where in the world...

is Daddy?

Last night they had a fun dinner in quaint Reston, Virginia.

Today he went to downtown DC and saw:

-The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History

-Lincoln's top hat and coat at the Smithsonian Museum of American History

-The Spirit of St. Louis and the Wright Brother's airplane (a dream come true for him!) at the Smithsonian Museum of Air and Space

And he comes home in SIX days!!!!!

Time for a status update...

Elizabeth....

loves So you think you can dance. I think Kent and Jose and the blonde girl are adorable and I yes, I voted. For four people.

misses her husband.

did I mention only 8 days???????????

is loooooving having a garage to park my car in this week when it's 99 degrees! I no longer feel like I'm committing child abuse as I strap my girls into their carseats.

is proud of the fact that she might have turned Teriney into a Gleek.

is excited for Eclipse in less than a week!!!!

8 days!!!!!!

is itching to sew girls' clothes but seriously, they don't need anything until fall!!!

is thankful that she can wear flip flops to work.

wishes she could see Kauai too!

is going to be slightly less busy very soon.

is wondering if the Eclipse soundtrack is better than the New Moon one??

can't eat any more pasta al forno for a while.

now has to ask her other brother to dispose of the dead bird on the front stoop.

is thankful that her four year old does not sleep with her every night. She has personal space issues!

loves that lulu's new favorite toys are matchbox cars!!

I heart Primary!

I love Primary.

I love teaching Primary.

I'm so thankful that I get to teach the 11 year old girls that I do. They teach ME every week.

I'm so thankful for the opportunity to get back to gospel basics and review the principles that the scriptures teach.

I love when my girls come home singing primary songs.

I love that Lulu wants to sing "Popcorn Popping" and "I love to see the Temple" each and every night as she goes to bed.

I love that M sings "He Sent His Son" and "I know that my Savior Loves Me" while she's coloring or playing by herself. I love that she asks questions about what the songs teach.

Click on the links to enjoy the sweet music that my girls and I love so much!!

I'm so thankful for a Heavenly Father that created such an inspired program to teach my girls about His love and plan for us!!!

When the men are in charge

this picture makes me giggle.

It's at her cousin's birthday bike party.

I was in DC and grandpa and uncle Sam were in charge of getting the girls ready.

the flip flops are M's.

she's wearing a t-shirt. over a onesie.

and that's it.

and in the background, M is trying to peddle her bike with rain boots on.

love it!

Conversations

Me: How many dresses are you wearing?
M: (holds up two fingers) So I can look BANTASTIC! (singing the last word triumphantly!)

after telling M where her heart is
Me: Did you know Papa is a heart doctor? He keeps your heart healthy.
M: You mean Papa Bill?
Me: No, Papa Gareth.
M: You mean the one married to Grandma Betty?
Me: No, Papa Gareth who's married to Grandma Mardie.
M: Oh! You mean your Dad?

after dropping my youngest brother off after the church swim party
M: I just love Sam. He is just so nice!

a few of lulu's faves right now:
LG: hold you! hold you! (translated: pick me up and carry me)
nummy=pacifier=firepass
when I put her to bed, she holds out her fingers trying to make the "I love you" sign and says "see ya, wuh-voo"
she can sing the chorus to Feist's "1234" and Black Eyed Peas "I gotta feelin"

Our Daddy

He made his debut on his birthday. Somehow over the last four years, he's come to accept that.

but he's never looked back.
He was delighted to have another girl two and a half years later.
but this one has him wrapped around her finger.
or by the look of her, maybe she's wrapped around his!

he's more patient than I am.

he IS story time.

he loves all three of his girls more than we can say!

and we miss him like crazy but are so proud of him!!!!

Where in the world...

is Daddy?

I wish I had left the camera with him! Last night he went to a Washington Nationals game which was a blast. From inside the stadium you can see some of the DC landmarks!

Today, in one day, he and some friends:

-went up to the top of the Washington Monument
-visited the Jefferson, Lincoln, FDR, Korean War, and Viet Nam War Memorials
-had lunch at the Hard Rock Cafe (but didn't have nearly as much fun as last Saturday with me, right????)
-bought a second snow globe to bring home to his girls so that they will stop fighting over the first that was such a hit souvenir!
-went to Ford's Theatre
-visited the Capital visitor's center
-saw the Library of Congress but didn't go in
-and got kicked off the sidewalk outside the White House

I'm tired READing his list!
Back to hitting the books tomorrow!

Mount Vernon

i guess it's time to prove i actually went on this trip. here we are!
Mount Vernon was hot but lovely!



Washington's home is situated right on the river and is breathtaking!
This really isn't a great picture, except this was the lovely Scottish family who stood in line with us for an hour and made me miss my kids and had a lovely chat with!
The tour guides were awesome! This gentleman is Dr. Craik who was Washington's physician who attended to him as he died. They were fun, knowledgeable, funny, and made the long wait easier! The guides inside the house were awesome as well!
Fulfilling another one of W's goals of coming to Washington? Awesome!

Calgon, take me away!

I'm supposed to be at a party right now. Saying farewell to one of the sweetest missionaries to ever serve in Little Rock, I think.

I was supposed to have a busy week. So far I have missed two events I have wanted to go to.

The girls have needed the time home, but the events are frankly falling victim to my stress.

Unfortunately, I can't quite get it together.

Tonight, I made a choice between diapers and socialization.

There are no diapers in the house.

The thought of putting on makeup and doing my hair to look presentable only make me sweatier.

The girls need baths desperately.

We are out of laundry detergent.

The thought of going out in the 95 degree heat makes me nauseated.

I miss my husband. I'm worried about my husband.

I would like to leave the kids home and run to Target all by myself. So much quicker, so much less sweaty.

The short trip to the grocery store spent us. So the avocado bean dip will not get made tonight. It will not make it to the party.

The girls recovered with Elmo and temping princesses.

I am still working on recovery.

The Eiffel Tower Effect

When we were on our honeymoon in Europe, SIX years ago, we stumbled on an interesting phenomenon.

We got off the train, turned around and there it was!

The Eiffel Tower!

We were so excited that we snapped a picture.

And then we would go somewhere else and see it again and BIGGER and snap, another picture!

We came home with a bunch of not very exciting and excessive amounts of pictures of the Eiffel Tower, that we didn't even go up, and while it was very impressive, not many of our pictures were.

But we were in awe of it!

In DC, the Washington Monument is the Eiffel Tower, Big Ben, the pyramid, you name it!

Turn around and look! There it is! You get so excited, that you take a bunch of pictures!

This one is from the WWII memorial and is my favorite. It had started to rain and it was getting dark and a rainbow arced right next to the monument.

W took this one and I love it because it shows how they used two different stone quarries to build it before and after the Civil War. And how big the thing is!




But then we just took picture after picture after picture because it was so big and glorious!

Starting with this one, surprising me as I stepped off the Metro in front of the Smithsonian Castle.

What an amazing city DC is!

DC Sights!

I have always wanted to go to DC!

We have planned so many trips there as a little family and they've all gotten shelved due to babies, grad school, moving, you name it.

So I was thrilled to take this chance, cash in some airline miles and see the sights with my sweetheart!

He had to work Thursday and Friday so I had two days to myself to explore.

This is the closest I got to the White House. I hope W does better before he leaves!

And this is the closest I got the capital. Same comment as above.

And it would also be my only complaint about this city. The metro is wonderful but how they expect tourists who are NOT marathon-trained to make it around to all the monuments without their legs turning to jello is beyond me. There is a bus that you can hop-on, hop-off but we didn't find out about it until the last evening when our legs were already dying! I'm still bummed I didn't make it to Lincoln's Memorial. Next time!

The "Old Post Office"

The Smithsonian Museum of American History

The really cool tunnel attaching the two wings of the National Gallery of Art

The waterfall that I ate lunch by at the National Gallery of Art

The National Gallery of Art that I got to early, not knowing it didn't open until ten, so I thoroughly enjoyed it in peace and quiet, before it was swarming with teenagers!

more proof, yes I was there!

The Smithsonian Castle-really yummy eclairs!!!!

The Smithsonian Museum of Natural History

The United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. I still haven't found the right words to describe this place-tragic, beautiful, moving, amazing. So glad I made the time!

We are so blessed!