Okay, I don't need need a laptop, but it would sure be nice to have one. I've been writing down ideas for blog posts that I'd like to do. But the problem is that, the more time I spend posting on my blog, the less time I have to read my friends' blogs and the ones I like to read for entertainment, or to keep up with people on Facebook, or to keep on top of my e-mail.
If I had a laptop, I could use it at night and multitask while I'm watching TV and/or riding the exercise bike. There's a computer in the family room, but it's a dinosaur and would take forever. Plus it's in the opposite corner of the room from the TV, which would necessitate either constantly turning back and forth to see what was going on (so not a good plan when watching something like "Lost", and just plain annoying at any time) or else completely missing what's on the TV screen. And I couldn't use it while riding the exercise bike.
So, see, it totally makes sense to get a laptop. Now I just need someone to give me one out of the goodness of their heart.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Tuesday, January 27, 2009
Women in Matthew Chapter 1
Today I finally got started on reading the New Testament. (I've been in a Bible study on the book of Esther, so I've been doing other Bible reading, but now I'm starting to get caught up with the book of Matthew so that I can just read the weekday e-mails I've been getting to stay current.)
I find it interesting that in the genealogy of Jesus, several women are mentioned: Tamar, the mother of Perez and Zerah; Rahab, the mother of Boaz; Ruth, the mother of Obed; Uriah's wife (not mentioned in The Message by name, Bathsheba); and Mary, the mother of Jesus. I wonder why those particular women are the ones who are mentioned. Perhaps because the others aren't discussed in other books of the Bible, but these ones are?
I got to thinking about Boaz. I wonder if having a mother who was a former prostitute meant that he was a man who was raised to be respectful of all people, not to be judgmental, and to be kind due to the kindness that was shown to Rahab and her family by the Israeli spies. Interesting that he would go on to extraordinary lengths to take care of the widowed Ruth and to marry her, continuing the line that would lead to King David and, later, to Jesus. And I find it curious that Bathsheba is only referred to as Uriah's wife - perhaps as a reminder about the sinful beginning of her relationship with David? And maybe that's a reminder to all of us that God can redeem even the tawdriest beginnings, although not without us experiencing the consequences of our bad choices.
I find it interesting that in the genealogy of Jesus, several women are mentioned: Tamar, the mother of Perez and Zerah; Rahab, the mother of Boaz; Ruth, the mother of Obed; Uriah's wife (not mentioned in The Message by name, Bathsheba); and Mary, the mother of Jesus. I wonder why those particular women are the ones who are mentioned. Perhaps because the others aren't discussed in other books of the Bible, but these ones are?
I got to thinking about Boaz. I wonder if having a mother who was a former prostitute meant that he was a man who was raised to be respectful of all people, not to be judgmental, and to be kind due to the kindness that was shown to Rahab and her family by the Israeli spies. Interesting that he would go on to extraordinary lengths to take care of the widowed Ruth and to marry her, continuing the line that would lead to King David and, later, to Jesus. And I find it curious that Bathsheba is only referred to as Uriah's wife - perhaps as a reminder about the sinful beginning of her relationship with David? And maybe that's a reminder to all of us that God can redeem even the tawdriest beginnings, although not without us experiencing the consequences of our bad choices.
Monday, January 26, 2009
16 Random Things About Me
1. I was born in Fresno, aka the Raisin Capital of the World and setting of an awesome 1986 miniseries starring Carol Burnett.
2. I was 16 years old before I took my first plane flight, to NYC 87 (that's Nazarene Youth Congress to you), in Washington D.C.
3. On my second trip to D.C., I got sort of lost in that I was separated from the rest of my group at the Smithsonian and had no idea where to find them or how to get back to the hotel. Fortunately I found a cabbie who was all too happy to take me where I needed to go, so it wasn't too traumatizing.
4. I once had lunch at the Warner Bros. Commissary while surreptitiously watching George Clooney at a nearby table.
5. In the 5th grade, I was the second place spelling bee champ (so, first loser) for the entire county.
6. I'm capable of functioning on not much sleep over a period of many months and coping with it pretty decently most days.
7. My first time out of the country was a mission trip to Brazil the summer after my freshman year of college. This despite going to school in San Diego, where we were less than an hour away from Mexico. And while there, I got violently ill with chills, an ear infection, congestion in my lungs and a few other things for which I needed to take antibiotics and some kind of liquid for a week after returning, including the first few days where I was a counselor at a junior high camp. And because I was ill, I missed out on the one day our group went to Rio de Janeiro. AND my camera broke after I'd taken something like 3 photos on that trip, so I have no pictures to show for it, which really blows.
8. I don't like to be around constantly pessimistic people. It irritates me when someone can't find anything to be happy about. How about the fact that you're breathing and not six feet under?
9. I recently tried a new hair color, going for the "Light Reddish Brown." Which my hair apparently thought meant "totally grab onto the brown and add just the tiniest bit of reddishness in." So I'm trying to decide if I want to stay this shade or risk "Strawberry Blond" next time and see if I get the color I was actually trying to get, or if it ends up all brassy and loud.
10. I wish that I was more comfortable talking with people about my faith in Jesus. I don't know if it's lack of knowledge (which would be sad considering how long I've been a Christian), lack of courage, fear of failure/rejection, or what.
11. There are so many places I'd like to see in the world that I'm not sure how I'd ever have the time and money to see them all, but I'm hoping to give it a good go: Australia, Italy, England, Spain, Kenya, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Egypt, New Zealand, Greece, Hungary, France, Japan, Thailand and much more of the U.S., for starters.
12. I'm trying to be more patient with my 4-year-old daughter and calmer when my 8-month-old son cries, but I often fail. I need to work harder in both areas. I don't want to be an uptight, frustrated, upset mother, and I certainly don't want to set that kind of example for the two of them. I'd love to learn how to just "zen out" instead of reacting to the triggers that seem to get to me.
13. Sometimes I make a small batch of cookie dough sans eggs just so I can eat it raw and indulge my sweet tooth.
14. Before I had kids, I was much more concerned and self-conscious about my privacy and modesty than I am now.
15. I would secretly (well, not so much now) love to be a well-known singer or author.
16. I was surprised by how much I love being a mom to a boy. I always knew I'd love being a mom to a girl.
2. I was 16 years old before I took my first plane flight, to NYC 87 (that's Nazarene Youth Congress to you), in Washington D.C.
3. On my second trip to D.C., I got sort of lost in that I was separated from the rest of my group at the Smithsonian and had no idea where to find them or how to get back to the hotel. Fortunately I found a cabbie who was all too happy to take me where I needed to go, so it wasn't too traumatizing.
4. I once had lunch at the Warner Bros. Commissary while surreptitiously watching George Clooney at a nearby table.
5. In the 5th grade, I was the second place spelling bee champ (so, first loser) for the entire county.
6. I'm capable of functioning on not much sleep over a period of many months and coping with it pretty decently most days.
7. My first time out of the country was a mission trip to Brazil the summer after my freshman year of college. This despite going to school in San Diego, where we were less than an hour away from Mexico. And while there, I got violently ill with chills, an ear infection, congestion in my lungs and a few other things for which I needed to take antibiotics and some kind of liquid for a week after returning, including the first few days where I was a counselor at a junior high camp. And because I was ill, I missed out on the one day our group went to Rio de Janeiro. AND my camera broke after I'd taken something like 3 photos on that trip, so I have no pictures to show for it, which really blows.
8. I don't like to be around constantly pessimistic people. It irritates me when someone can't find anything to be happy about. How about the fact that you're breathing and not six feet under?
9. I recently tried a new hair color, going for the "Light Reddish Brown." Which my hair apparently thought meant "totally grab onto the brown and add just the tiniest bit of reddishness in." So I'm trying to decide if I want to stay this shade or risk "Strawberry Blond" next time and see if I get the color I was actually trying to get, or if it ends up all brassy and loud.
10. I wish that I was more comfortable talking with people about my faith in Jesus. I don't know if it's lack of knowledge (which would be sad considering how long I've been a Christian), lack of courage, fear of failure/rejection, or what.
11. There are so many places I'd like to see in the world that I'm not sure how I'd ever have the time and money to see them all, but I'm hoping to give it a good go: Australia, Italy, England, Spain, Kenya, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Egypt, New Zealand, Greece, Hungary, France, Japan, Thailand and much more of the U.S., for starters.
12. I'm trying to be more patient with my 4-year-old daughter and calmer when my 8-month-old son cries, but I often fail. I need to work harder in both areas. I don't want to be an uptight, frustrated, upset mother, and I certainly don't want to set that kind of example for the two of them. I'd love to learn how to just "zen out" instead of reacting to the triggers that seem to get to me.
13. Sometimes I make a small batch of cookie dough sans eggs just so I can eat it raw and indulge my sweet tooth.
14. Before I had kids, I was much more concerned and self-conscious about my privacy and modesty than I am now.
15. I would secretly (well, not so much now) love to be a well-known singer or author.
16. I was surprised by how much I love being a mom to a boy. I always knew I'd love being a mom to a girl.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
To the driver of the white van at the corner of N. 308th and Pacific Highway in Federal Way at around 9:20 this morning:
What is wrong with you, dude? You were waiting at a red light to turn left, heading north on Pacific Highway. You were behind a green car with Massachusetts license plates, which was waiting to turn right, heading south.
Apparently you didn't like that they weren't turning right on the red, since you started honking repeatedly at them. Then you actually lowered your window and began yelling things. I didn't lower mine to hear what you were saying, but it was pretty clear that you were chewing them out for not turning.
What's it to you? You couldn't go, anyway, since the light was red. If they waited for a green light, it would cost you maybe one full second of your precious time, which I'm sure you would have made up with reckless driving shortly thereafter.
You didn't make them feel humiliated or rightfully chastised. You just made yourself look like an idiot in need of anger management counseling. Do yourself a favor and get some before you yell at the wrong person and find yourself at the business end of a gun or a fist. Heck, get some counseling just so you can stop annoying the rest of us.
Apparently you didn't like that they weren't turning right on the red, since you started honking repeatedly at them. Then you actually lowered your window and began yelling things. I didn't lower mine to hear what you were saying, but it was pretty clear that you were chewing them out for not turning.
What's it to you? You couldn't go, anyway, since the light was red. If they waited for a green light, it would cost you maybe one full second of your precious time, which I'm sure you would have made up with reckless driving shortly thereafter.
You didn't make them feel humiliated or rightfully chastised. You just made yourself look like an idiot in need of anger management counseling. Do yourself a favor and get some before you yell at the wrong person and find yourself at the business end of a gun or a fist. Heck, get some counseling just so you can stop annoying the rest of us.
Missed the Darwin Awards by *That* Much
This article is about the accidental shooting of an 81-year-old actor in a Florida seniors theater group. The gun belonged to a member of the group.
This is what gets me:
"The group had used the gun in the past as a prop, but the member told police she did not check to see if the gun was loaded when she brought it for the show Sunday.
The actor who pulled the trigger, who is also the president of the group and the play's director, told police 'it was stupid' not to check to make sure the gun was empty."
Uh, ya think? Why on earth wouldn't someone, particularly the gun's owner, have checked to see if the gun was loaded? What was the thought process there? "Hmm, I'm pretty sure I haven't used the gun with real bullets recently. Wait...did I? No, no, I don't think so. I'm sure we'll be fine." It's a miracle the actor, who is 81 years old, didn't die and wasn't critically injured.
I don't get how you don't have checks and balances when a REAL GUN is being used in a theatrical production. Or a prop gun, for that matter. You just don't behave that carelessly with guns, people.
This is what gets me:
"The group had used the gun in the past as a prop, but the member told police she did not check to see if the gun was loaded when she brought it for the show Sunday.
The actor who pulled the trigger, who is also the president of the group and the play's director, told police 'it was stupid' not to check to make sure the gun was empty."
Uh, ya think? Why on earth wouldn't someone, particularly the gun's owner, have checked to see if the gun was loaded? What was the thought process there? "Hmm, I'm pretty sure I haven't used the gun with real bullets recently. Wait...did I? No, no, I don't think so. I'm sure we'll be fine." It's a miracle the actor, who is 81 years old, didn't die and wasn't critically injured.
I don't get how you don't have checks and balances when a REAL GUN is being used in a theatrical production. Or a prop gun, for that matter. You just don't behave that carelessly with guns, people.
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
If I Say It Here, Then I Have To Do It
I was reading a friend's blog, and he was talking about how few Christians actually read the Bible even once a week. For some time now I've been thinking that I need to read mine more regularly. I mean, if I want to be more godly, shouldn't I be reading more about God so that it becomes more a part of me and reacting like Him becomes more natural?
I've hesitated in the past to make formal commitments about reading regularly in my Bible, I guess because I'm not sure I can be consistent and really do it. I did actually start a Bible-in-one-year plan once but petered out somewhere around March and never got caught back up. But I was thinking: How much time do I spend on Google Reader? Checking e-mail? Reading articles on EW.com? And now, blogging? If I can find the time to do those things, I can find the time to read a chapter or two of the Bible each day. Most aren't that long and just take a few minutes.
I've decided to read through the New Testament this year. Not as big a commitment as reading through the entire Bible in a year, but I think this is a big enough piece of it for me to bite off this year. Between that, the book we're reading for our small group and the Beth Moore Bible study I'm doing with women at my church, I'd say that's more than enough serious study and discussion time.
Once I establish consistency reading the New Testament, I'll either move on into the Old Testament and read through that in 2010, or I may try to read the entire Bible. Either way, I'll find myself reading through the Bible within 2 years. I found a website that will e-mail me a chapter each weekday. I'll need to catch up on most of Matthew first, but that shouldn't take me too long, then I'll be on track with the rest.
They actually had 13 different reading plans depending on how much and what you want to cover in a year, and they had probably a dozen different translations you can choose between. You can find the plans here.
I've hesitated in the past to make formal commitments about reading regularly in my Bible, I guess because I'm not sure I can be consistent and really do it. I did actually start a Bible-in-one-year plan once but petered out somewhere around March and never got caught back up. But I was thinking: How much time do I spend on Google Reader? Checking e-mail? Reading articles on EW.com? And now, blogging? If I can find the time to do those things, I can find the time to read a chapter or two of the Bible each day. Most aren't that long and just take a few minutes.
I've decided to read through the New Testament this year. Not as big a commitment as reading through the entire Bible in a year, but I think this is a big enough piece of it for me to bite off this year. Between that, the book we're reading for our small group and the Beth Moore Bible study I'm doing with women at my church, I'd say that's more than enough serious study and discussion time.
Once I establish consistency reading the New Testament, I'll either move on into the Old Testament and read through that in 2010, or I may try to read the entire Bible. Either way, I'll find myself reading through the Bible within 2 years. I found a website that will e-mail me a chapter each weekday. I'll need to catch up on most of Matthew first, but that shouldn't take me too long, then I'll be on track with the rest.
They actually had 13 different reading plans depending on how much and what you want to cover in a year, and they had probably a dozen different translations you can choose between. You can find the plans here.
Monday, January 19, 2009
TV Season, Part Deux (or is it Troix?)
I cannot tell you how excited I am about the return of Lost, in just 2 short days! It seems like forever since season 4 ended, but now season 5 is almost here. The show really picked up steam last season and started to answer some of the questions that have been out there for a while. The show's creators promise a lot more answers will be forthcoming. From an article in EW:
"Exec producers Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof say these questions will be answered within the first eight episodes: Where did the island go? When did the island go? How did Locke die, and how did he get back home? How will the Oceanic 6 get back to the island, and will they all go back?"
I'm excited to see how these last two seasons play out. I'm also looking forward to the following series:
So those are the time sucks that I will be starting with soon. Plus the ones I'm already watching, like The Office, CSI, Leverage (great new show on TNT, you should watch it if you haven't), The Mentalist, etc. How do I manage when I have two young children, you ask? It's a difficult job, but if you have the dedication, you too can find that much time to waste.
"Exec producers Carlton Cuse and Damon Lindelof say these questions will be answered within the first eight episodes: Where did the island go? When did the island go? How did Locke die, and how did he get back home? How will the Oceanic 6 get back to the island, and will they all go back?"
I'm excited to see how these last two seasons play out. I'm also looking forward to the following series:
- Dollhouse - I'm not generally a big sci-fi fan, but this is from Joss Whedon, and I loved (most of) Buffy the Vampire Slayer. The premise of a company that keeps agents on hand whose memories are wiped clean and who are imprinted to be whatever the clients want them to be is intriguing. I also like Eliza Dushku, who plays an agent who starts to experience memories she shouldn't be having (Fox, Feb. 13, 9 pm).
- Cupid - I really enjoyed the original series with Jeremy Piven and Paula Marshall and was so disappointed when it was cancelled early in its run. I'm not sure how a redo will be, but it's from the same creator, Rob Thomas. I want to give it a try and see what I think. If I end up liking it as much as the first go-round, I'll have to hope it gets a fair shot this time (ABC, Mar. 24, 10 pm).
- Harper's Island - EW describes Harper's thusly: "a 13-episode serialized mystery about hot young people (led by Ugly Betty's Christopher Gorham) at a weeklong wedding getaway who start getting picked off by a serial killer." This sounds like an easy candidate for a quick cancellation, but if it survives, it could be very interesting (CBS [how is this not on Fox or the WB?], Apr. 9, 10 pm).
- Trust Me - I'm on the fence about this one. I really like Tom Cavanagh, so I'm tempted to watch it just for him. But I'm not that excited about the ad agency premise and I'm not a big fan of Eric McCormack, either. (I saw McCormack play Harold Hill in a production of "The Music Man" at the Hollywood Bowl, and he made Hill into a really lecherous character. If it was possible to turn something into a double entendre, he did.) Still, there's the Cavanagh factor. I still miss "Ed" and thought that "Love Monkey" got a raw deal, and he's just a likeable actor (TNT, Jan. 26, 10 pm).
- Castle - Nathan Fillion (aka Ada's #1 fantasy boyfriend) stars as a mystery novelist who finds the murders from his books being carried out in real life. He teams with a female detective to investigate. Romance, mystery and, I'm sure, a good sense of humor (ABC, Mar. 9, 10 pm).
- Survivor: Tocantins - The Brazilian Highlands - I've watched every episode of Survivor that's aired (except the cobbled-together rehash filler shows), and the show still holds my interest and is something I look forward to. Not every season has been great (Thailand, anyone?), but enough of them have been that it keeps me watching (CBS, Feb. 12, 8 pm).
- The Amazing Race 14 - I started to watch this show around season 4, then caught up with the past seasons in reruns on cable. It's such an interesting study of how people work together (or don't) and doesn't involve the negativity that many reality shows do. Sure, there are the bickery couples/duos, and sometimes the "villains" are the ones who win the race, but they go to so many beautiful and unique locations, and I like to see how the teams interact with one another and with the locals. Last season seemed a little dry, I think because they didn't do a good job of casting enough teams that I wanted to see win. There were a few teams I really liked who ended up getting out early, and one completely boneheaded team that stumbled their way into the final three (but luckily did not win). I'm hoping for a better job with the casting this time (CBS, Feb. 18, 8 pm).
So those are the time sucks that I will be starting with soon. Plus the ones I'm already watching, like The Office, CSI, Leverage (great new show on TNT, you should watch it if you haven't), The Mentalist, etc. How do I manage when I have two young children, you ask? It's a difficult job, but if you have the dedication, you too can find that much time to waste.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
When I'm Tempted to Eat a Blizzard...
...I need to remember that:
- Blizzards are over with way too quickly.
- The momentary pleasure is not worth the lingering guilt and the desire that I hadn't set myself back in losing weight.
- They're a waste of money.
- I end up having to give Rachel sugar or she'd whine and beg and I'd never hear the end of it.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
2008 Top 10
Hey, this "posting" to a "blog" thing is becoming a "regular" pastime for me. By the way, have you seen the "Blog" of "Unnecessary" Quotation Marks?
Okay, a friend of mine has thrown out a challenge to list your top 10 favorite discoveries of 2008. These don't have to be things that began to exist in 2008, they were just new(ish) to you last year. I thought that would be fun so took some time to think about it. I'm not sure this is my actual top 10 list as it's hard to think back that far with an 8-month-old baby who isn't sleeping through the night yet, but these are definitely things I enjoyed this year:
10. H&M
They opened one of these stores a few months ago at a mall about 12 miles from where I live. I'd never heard of them but found that they have such nice stuff and for really affordable prices, too. THEN they go and put things on crazy sales, like Buy 1 Get 1 Half Off for stuff that's already on clearance, like nice coats and sweaters. Totally cute things for little girls and boys and I can't wait to get some of it for Rachel and Ben.
9. Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
I'm a fan of Neil Patrick Harris. I think he's hilarious as Barney on How I Met Your Mother, and he's always an amusing talk show guest. This mini-musical stars him as wannabe evil villain Dr. Horrible, who falls for Penny, the girl next door, only to be thwarted by the tool-like actions of superhero Captain Hammer. Dr. Horrible is basically harmless and his attraction for Penny sweet, but you know that it's just not going to work out and something bad will result. After all, this *is* from Joss Whedon, purveyor of heartbreak galore in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series. But it's a very entertaining piece of work, albeit with a downer of an ending.
8. Toy Story Midway Mania
We took a trip to the Disneyland Resort in September. It was hard to get to everything we wanted to do since we were traveling with a 4-month-old baby and had a 4-year-old with us who could get cranky when tired and worn out, so we had to take things easy and missed some stuff. But we made sure to try out this ride, and it was AWESOME. You ride through 5 arcade games featuring characters from the Toy Story films, and at each stop, you shoot balls at targets to see how many points you can score. The games were fun, the ride cars move really fast through the ride, and even baby Ben seemed to enjoy being in it. I would have loved to have ridden it again, but when we went back towards the end of the day, there was a 45-minute wait, and that doesn't work with young kids.
(Side Note: Creating this list makes me wish I had been blogging throughout 2008 so that I could look back over previous posts for ideas to spark my memory.)
7. Jeff Probst's blog about Survivor: Gabon
I've somtimes thought Probst seemed like he thought he was too good for the show. Reading his blog, you can see that he's really a fan, and one with insider views on the show and the contestants. He's hilarious, too, and not afraid to call things like he sees them. This is the first season he's written a blog for Entertainment Weekly's Popwatch section, and I hope he continues to do it for however many seasons remain.
6. Lost Season 4
I've watched Lost since it first went on the air. Season 1 was amazing and blew me away and left me on the edge of my seat, waiting for more. Season 2 was uneven, but there were parts and characters that I still enjoyed. It really seemed like Lost stumbled a bit, but partway through Season 3, it started to regain its mojo, and that season ended with another astonishing cliffhanger. Season 4 was fabulous, and the episode that stands out most for me was "The Constant." Solidly steeped in the mythology that's been building since the beginning, it was also the most romantic and heartrending episode we've seen. I'm so excited for Season 5 to start (on January 21st!) and can't wait to see where the next two seasons takes us.
5. Food Network Programs
I've been a fan of Paula Deen for some time and used to like watching her cooking show on the Food Network, but the rest of the network was largely ignored by me. I started to get into watching a few more of the shows this year. Two in particular were ones I really enjoyed:
My husband has been using Google Reader for a while now, but I didn't think I really needed it. However, I got tired of trying to remember to visit all the sites I liked each day, especially when I'd miss 3 or 4 (or 5) days and all of a sudden have a ton of stuff to try to catch up on. Lo and behold, I started using Google Reader and have really appreciated being able to just click on it and find a bunch of things that are of interest to me when I have a few minutes to read. One of my favorite blog discovers this year is Cake Wrecks ("When Professional Cakes Go Horribly, Hilariously Wrong"). The site features atrocities in cake making in categories like Creepy Cakes, Creative Grammar and Missed Marks. They also showcase beautifully done cakes on Sundays with the Sunday Sweets categories. I cringe at some of the ugly ones shown and marvel at the Sunday creations. Another favorite website is Not Always Right, which features tales of idiocy from those working on the front lines of customer service. It's truly unbelievable how stupid some people can be, but these are all true stories, and many are hilarious. Also, Pixdaus delivers a wide variety of photos to my Reader program. The only problem is that there are often well over a hundred in a day, so sometimes I just click on "Mark All As Read" because I can't keep up otherwise. But I do every so often have a chance to check out a bunch of the photos and have seen some really beautiful shots.
3. Parental Assistance Tools
I honestly don't remember it being quite this tough to adjust to having our first baby in our lives. Baby Ben, while a sweetheart and a joy, has also deprived us of much more sleep and has had more trouble with teething, digestive problems and other things, so we've had our share of sleepless nights and fussy days. Consequently, I'm thankful for some of the things that have made this time easier, like:
I heard about this through my church this past Christmas. The idea behind this is to take back Christmas from the materialism and commercialization. That's not to say that giving gifts is discouraged or considered wrong, nor is singing Christmas carols or going to parties or any of the other fun stuff that happens at Christmastime. But it also suggests bringing the main emphasis back to 4 basics:
Hearing about this made me rethink what to give for Christmas. I haven't fully transitioned over to as pared-down a Christmas as I think I could do, especially since I tend to get carried away with the kids. But I had some ideas I carried out this year and am hoping to do even more for next Christmas. I found some good suggestions at Rethinking Christmas. I was talking with my mother-in-law about this at Christmas, and she's excited to put some of the ideas into play and to see if she can get her church interested, too. I'm looking forward to seeing how this evolves over time.
1. Facebook
And finally, my #1 discovery of 2008 was Facebook. I didn't see what all the big fuss was about, but once I joined, I found it to be addictive. I've reconnected with people I haven't talked to in up to 20 years! I was able to get back in touch with my matron of honor, who I'd lost contact with 9 years ago, and friends from college. I've become Facebook friends with people I currently know in real life and have had an easier time keeping up with what's going on in their day-to-day lives. I've discovered Scramble and Challenge Sudoku and the Never Ending Movie Quiz. Frankly, I could waste all kinds of time on Facebook, so it's a challenge to balance out time spent there with responsibilities and other things I'd like to do. But I think it's a really neat thing to be able to see so many parts of my life crisscrossing over time in one place, and it's been wonderful to get back in touch with formerly long-lost friends.
Whew! Okay, that took me longer to write out than I thought, and it ended up being quite lengthy. If you decide you'd like to come up with your own top 10 list for 2008, I'd love for you to put a link in the comments so I can see what you discovered last year. (That's assuming that anyone is reading this blog, so the comments section may just be quite dead.)
Also, I would have included the CD "O Holy Night" by Sara Groves on this list, but since I'd already blogged about that, I thought I would do other stuff here.
Okay, a friend of mine has thrown out a challenge to list your top 10 favorite discoveries of 2008. These don't have to be things that began to exist in 2008, they were just new(ish) to you last year. I thought that would be fun so took some time to think about it. I'm not sure this is my actual top 10 list as it's hard to think back that far with an 8-month-old baby who isn't sleeping through the night yet, but these are definitely things I enjoyed this year:
10. H&M
They opened one of these stores a few months ago at a mall about 12 miles from where I live. I'd never heard of them but found that they have such nice stuff and for really affordable prices, too. THEN they go and put things on crazy sales, like Buy 1 Get 1 Half Off for stuff that's already on clearance, like nice coats and sweaters. Totally cute things for little girls and boys and I can't wait to get some of it for Rachel and Ben.
9. Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog
I'm a fan of Neil Patrick Harris. I think he's hilarious as Barney on How I Met Your Mother, and he's always an amusing talk show guest. This mini-musical stars him as wannabe evil villain Dr. Horrible, who falls for Penny, the girl next door, only to be thwarted by the tool-like actions of superhero Captain Hammer. Dr. Horrible is basically harmless and his attraction for Penny sweet, but you know that it's just not going to work out and something bad will result. After all, this *is* from Joss Whedon, purveyor of heartbreak galore in the Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV series. But it's a very entertaining piece of work, albeit with a downer of an ending.
8. Toy Story Midway Mania
We took a trip to the Disneyland Resort in September. It was hard to get to everything we wanted to do since we were traveling with a 4-month-old baby and had a 4-year-old with us who could get cranky when tired and worn out, so we had to take things easy and missed some stuff. But we made sure to try out this ride, and it was AWESOME. You ride through 5 arcade games featuring characters from the Toy Story films, and at each stop, you shoot balls at targets to see how many points you can score. The games were fun, the ride cars move really fast through the ride, and even baby Ben seemed to enjoy being in it. I would have loved to have ridden it again, but when we went back towards the end of the day, there was a 45-minute wait, and that doesn't work with young kids.
(Side Note: Creating this list makes me wish I had been blogging throughout 2008 so that I could look back over previous posts for ideas to spark my memory.)
7. Jeff Probst's blog about Survivor: Gabon
I've somtimes thought Probst seemed like he thought he was too good for the show. Reading his blog, you can see that he's really a fan, and one with insider views on the show and the contestants. He's hilarious, too, and not afraid to call things like he sees them. This is the first season he's written a blog for Entertainment Weekly's Popwatch section, and I hope he continues to do it for however many seasons remain.
6. Lost Season 4
I've watched Lost since it first went on the air. Season 1 was amazing and blew me away and left me on the edge of my seat, waiting for more. Season 2 was uneven, but there were parts and characters that I still enjoyed. It really seemed like Lost stumbled a bit, but partway through Season 3, it started to regain its mojo, and that season ended with another astonishing cliffhanger. Season 4 was fabulous, and the episode that stands out most for me was "The Constant." Solidly steeped in the mythology that's been building since the beginning, it was also the most romantic and heartrending episode we've seen. I'm so excited for Season 5 to start (on January 21st!) and can't wait to see where the next two seasons takes us.
5. Food Network Programs
I've been a fan of Paula Deen for some time and used to like watching her cooking show on the Food Network, but the rest of the network was largely ignored by me. I started to get into watching a few more of the shows this year. Two in particular were ones I really enjoyed:
- Next Food Network Star - This show has aired three previous seasons, although I could only tell you one of the past winners -- Guy Fieri, who now hosts 3 shows on the Food Network, won season 2. I do enjoy watching him from time to time but hadn't tuned in to the competition that earned him his job. I did watch season 4 and found myself addicted to it. I enjoy reality competitions and am not sure why I never checked this one out, but I really liked seeing the challenges they faced, what they cooked, how they handled themselves on camera, etc. I'd like to catch the first three seasons if they're rerun, but so far I haven't seen them listed. I'll definitely be tuning in for season 5 when it starts. They just finished accepting applications, so hopefully they'll be filming and airing the episodes soon.
- Food Network Challenge - specifically the ones where people make amazing cakes. I looked for a link to the Disney/Pixar cake challenge but couldn't find one that had anything other than a cursory description. Cakes were made with the themes of Finding Nemo, Monsters, Inc., A Bug's Life and Toy Story. They were incredible, just really beautiful works of art in most cases. I also saw a Disney Princess Cake edition, and a Disney Villains one. Interestingly enough, I haven't really gotten into watching Ace of Cakes, even though that show is all about elaborate cakes. I think I just like to watch the actual process of the creation rather than the background stuff they seem to also cover in Ace of Cakes.
- Oh! how could I forget - I've been watching Dinner: Impossible as well. I can't remember if I started watching that in 2007 or 2008, but I very much prefer host Robert Irvine, who faked part of his resume and was given the boot for a while, to Michael Symon, an Iron Chef who was hired to replace him. Apparently Robert Irvine has made amends with Food Network since they rehired him and he'll have 6 episodes airing a little later this year, presumably followed by more seasons in the future. He's just more personable and fun to watch than Symon. For the uninitiated, this show puts a chef into a difficult situation where he has a fixed amount of time, limited access to food, archaic cooking tools and/or other challenges to face. Past challenges have included cooking dinner fit for a king for 30 people at a Renaissance Faire, using only tools and foods that existed in Renaissance times, and baking 2400 individual pastry pieces overnight for a bakery opening at 6am the next morning.
My husband has been using Google Reader for a while now, but I didn't think I really needed it. However, I got tired of trying to remember to visit all the sites I liked each day, especially when I'd miss 3 or 4 (or 5) days and all of a sudden have a ton of stuff to try to catch up on. Lo and behold, I started using Google Reader and have really appreciated being able to just click on it and find a bunch of things that are of interest to me when I have a few minutes to read. One of my favorite blog discovers this year is Cake Wrecks ("When Professional Cakes Go Horribly, Hilariously Wrong"). The site features atrocities in cake making in categories like Creepy Cakes, Creative Grammar and Missed Marks. They also showcase beautifully done cakes on Sundays with the Sunday Sweets categories. I cringe at some of the ugly ones shown and marvel at the Sunday creations. Another favorite website is Not Always Right, which features tales of idiocy from those working on the front lines of customer service. It's truly unbelievable how stupid some people can be, but these are all true stories, and many are hilarious. Also, Pixdaus delivers a wide variety of photos to my Reader program. The only problem is that there are often well over a hundred in a day, so sometimes I just click on "Mark All As Read" because I can't keep up otherwise. But I do every so often have a chance to check out a bunch of the photos and have seen some really beautiful shots.
3. Parental Assistance Tools
I honestly don't remember it being quite this tough to adjust to having our first baby in our lives. Baby Ben, while a sweetheart and a joy, has also deprived us of much more sleep and has had more trouble with teething, digestive problems and other things, so we've had our share of sleepless nights and fussy days. Consequently, I'm thankful for some of the things that have made this time easier, like:
- Cherry Coke Zero - As a non-coffee-drinker (usually), I appreciate having tasty diet caffeinated beverages available. I was formerly a Diet Cherry Coke drinker, but once I tasted this, it just doesn't compare. I also like Diet Dr. Pepper Cherry Vanilla for a caffeine fix.
- Gripe Water - The kind we use has sodium, ginger and fennel. Its uses include treatment of hiccups, colic and just general fussiness. We were using this pretty much around-the-clock for the first 3 or 4 months, although now it's tapered off to where we just need it every so often. It really does seem to work amazingly quickly to end Ben's hiccups, and it does help to settle him down when he's very fussy.
- Movies from the library - I've been getting movies from the library for a while now, but it wasn't until a few months back that I realized I could request movies that aren't even out on DVD yet, as long as they have a release date for DVD. I found it out almost by accident when I requested something that wasn't yet in the library catalog. I checked my account and found that I was now #1 on the list for that movie. So we've been to see movies like Tropic Thunder and The Dark Knight pretty early in their DVD release time because of getting in at or near the top of the hold list, which has been awesome. After all, how often do most parents of young babies make it to the movie theater?
I heard about this through my church this past Christmas. The idea behind this is to take back Christmas from the materialism and commercialization. That's not to say that giving gifts is discouraged or considered wrong, nor is singing Christmas carols or going to parties or any of the other fun stuff that happens at Christmastime. But it also suggests bringing the main emphasis back to 4 basics:
- Worship Fully
- Spend Less
- Give More
- Love All
Hearing about this made me rethink what to give for Christmas. I haven't fully transitioned over to as pared-down a Christmas as I think I could do, especially since I tend to get carried away with the kids. But I had some ideas I carried out this year and am hoping to do even more for next Christmas. I found some good suggestions at Rethinking Christmas. I was talking with my mother-in-law about this at Christmas, and she's excited to put some of the ideas into play and to see if she can get her church interested, too. I'm looking forward to seeing how this evolves over time.
1. Facebook
And finally, my #1 discovery of 2008 was Facebook. I didn't see what all the big fuss was about, but once I joined, I found it to be addictive. I've reconnected with people I haven't talked to in up to 20 years! I was able to get back in touch with my matron of honor, who I'd lost contact with 9 years ago, and friends from college. I've become Facebook friends with people I currently know in real life and have had an easier time keeping up with what's going on in their day-to-day lives. I've discovered Scramble and Challenge Sudoku and the Never Ending Movie Quiz. Frankly, I could waste all kinds of time on Facebook, so it's a challenge to balance out time spent there with responsibilities and other things I'd like to do. But I think it's a really neat thing to be able to see so many parts of my life crisscrossing over time in one place, and it's been wonderful to get back in touch with formerly long-lost friends.
Whew! Okay, that took me longer to write out than I thought, and it ended up being quite lengthy. If you decide you'd like to come up with your own top 10 list for 2008, I'd love for you to put a link in the comments so I can see what you discovered last year. (That's assuming that anyone is reading this blog, so the comments section may just be quite dead.)
Also, I would have included the CD "O Holy Night" by Sara Groves on this list, but since I'd already blogged about that, I thought I would do other stuff here.
Wednesday, January 7, 2009
Rachel's Favorite Song
This year, there were several Christmas songs that Rachel would hear and say "This is my favorite one!" One was a new one from Sara Groves' Christmas album, "O Holy Night." I grabbed it at Family Christian Store because they were out of Stephen Curtis Chapman's new Christmas album, and it ended up being my favorite holiday album this year - possibly my favorite holiday album overall. It contains mostly classic songs redone with different new arrangements. Two of my favorites are "Angels We Have Heard on High" and "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas."
But the song that grabbed Rachel's attention first is called "Toy Packaging." It's a goofy song about the frustrations of gaining access to your children's new toys. I'm sure parents everywhere will identify!
But the song that grabbed Rachel's attention first is called "Toy Packaging." It's a goofy song about the frustrations of gaining access to your children's new toys. I'm sure parents everywhere will identify!
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
There Will Be Less of Me To Love
I've decided that this is the year I'm finally losing all those extra pounds I've been carrying around for far too long. It's not a resolution - there's no "I hope that I can stick to this and lose some weight this year..." I've decided that by my daughter's birthday in June, I want to be 33 pounds lighter.
Originally it was 30 pounds, but somehow I've already gained 3 pounds since that decision. I hadn't started actually cutting back and consciously eating in a more healthy way and exercising when I made the decision, and apparently I did some damage in the meantime. I guess 3 pounds isn't horrible, though, considering it was the holidays and I received a fair amount of yummy sweet stuff in my stocking.
Even more disheartening is the fact that, about 6 weeks after giving birth in May, I was about 15 pounds lighter than I am at the moment. I'd actually lost the baby weight plus 12 pounds from where I'd started pre-pregnancy, only to squander all that and end up right back where I didn't want to be. I think a big factor in that was the gestational diabetes I had during the pregnancy. Once I was able to eat more freely again, I just went nuts and had no self-control.
So I need to reprogram my brain in terms of what I need to be eating most of the time and when it's okay to indulge. I need to realize that I don't *have* to have dessert every day. I am a snacker, though, so I'm also getting myself into the habit of healthier snacks in the evening. Instead of eating cookie dough, for example, I'll have an apple with some peanut butter. I do love buttered popcorn and don't plan on giving that up, but I haven't had any in probably 4 or 5 days and am not going to eat it as often as I had been. Oops, just realized I had some at the movie theater 3 days ago, but it honestly didn't taste all that great compared to the home-popped kind with real butter. I think next time I could go for a smaller size and be happy with it. Plus I get out to the movie theater so rarely these days that it's not like that's the root of the problem.
I have had little to no self-control when it comes to what I eat, and that's changing. I'm not happy being this size and am danged if I'm going to go to the next size up. It's time for me to be a healthier weight and a size that I feel better about. I'm sure my cholesterol and blood sugar could stand to see an improvement, as well.
And if I need further motivation, I can remind myself of this:
My 4-year-old daughter and I were at a store when she saw some SlimFast. She asked what it was and I said it was something that people could drink if they want to lose weight. She said "Why are you still fat?" Ouch. I know that I'm overweight but am not obese, and it really bummed me out to find out that she thinks of me as fat.
So 2009 is the year of the slimmer me. I'm not going to post actual starting weight until I've lost some, because I just don't feel the need to blurt it out while I'm still that heavy. Just know that it's 33 pounds more than where I want to be. And heck, if I lose 35 or 40 pounds, all the better! But I'll feel I've achieved my goal once I hit the 33.
It's going to happen. Oh, yeah.
Originally it was 30 pounds, but somehow I've already gained 3 pounds since that decision. I hadn't started actually cutting back and consciously eating in a more healthy way and exercising when I made the decision, and apparently I did some damage in the meantime. I guess 3 pounds isn't horrible, though, considering it was the holidays and I received a fair amount of yummy sweet stuff in my stocking.
Even more disheartening is the fact that, about 6 weeks after giving birth in May, I was about 15 pounds lighter than I am at the moment. I'd actually lost the baby weight plus 12 pounds from where I'd started pre-pregnancy, only to squander all that and end up right back where I didn't want to be. I think a big factor in that was the gestational diabetes I had during the pregnancy. Once I was able to eat more freely again, I just went nuts and had no self-control.
So I need to reprogram my brain in terms of what I need to be eating most of the time and when it's okay to indulge. I need to realize that I don't *have* to have dessert every day. I am a snacker, though, so I'm also getting myself into the habit of healthier snacks in the evening. Instead of eating cookie dough, for example, I'll have an apple with some peanut butter. I do love buttered popcorn and don't plan on giving that up, but I haven't had any in probably 4 or 5 days and am not going to eat it as often as I had been. Oops, just realized I had some at the movie theater 3 days ago, but it honestly didn't taste all that great compared to the home-popped kind with real butter. I think next time I could go for a smaller size and be happy with it. Plus I get out to the movie theater so rarely these days that it's not like that's the root of the problem.
I have had little to no self-control when it comes to what I eat, and that's changing. I'm not happy being this size and am danged if I'm going to go to the next size up. It's time for me to be a healthier weight and a size that I feel better about. I'm sure my cholesterol and blood sugar could stand to see an improvement, as well.
And if I need further motivation, I can remind myself of this:
My 4-year-old daughter and I were at a store when she saw some SlimFast. She asked what it was and I said it was something that people could drink if they want to lose weight. She said "Why are you still fat?" Ouch. I know that I'm overweight but am not obese, and it really bummed me out to find out that she thinks of me as fat.
So 2009 is the year of the slimmer me. I'm not going to post actual starting weight until I've lost some, because I just don't feel the need to blurt it out while I'm still that heavy. Just know that it's 33 pounds more than where I want to be. And heck, if I lose 35 or 40 pounds, all the better! But I'll feel I've achieved my goal once I hit the 33.
It's going to happen. Oh, yeah.
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Hell Kitty?
Saw this at the Sanrio store at the local mall today:
Um...okay. I wonder if it laughs like Yzma in "The Emperor's New Groove" when she turned into a kitten.
Um...okay. I wonder if it laughs like Yzma in "The Emperor's New Groove" when she turned into a kitten.
Thursday, January 1, 2009
Happy New Year!
I'm excited that 2009 is here. 2008 was a year that was full of challenges, chief among them my mom living in our house the entire year (with the exception of the last two weeks). Way too much strain and stress and tension and just general ickiness ensued, especially since she'd started living with us in August 2007. It was a situation that just dragged on and on and felt like it was never going to end. Finally she's out, and a load has been lifted from us. Things at home aren't perfect, but there's a lightness to us that we didn't have a few weeks ago, and the change has been palpable and drastic.
2008 is also the year our son joined us. Although he is a joy and such a loving little boy, he's also had a lot of problems with teething, acid reflux, digestive issues with certain foods, etc., that have caused him to be fussy much of the time. We feel bad for him but are really hoping to see him come out of it soon so that he can feel better and sleep better at night, and we can have more happy times with him and not so much time focused on just trying to get him to stop crying. His sister, who's now 4 1/2, was an easier baby in terms of just being happier more often, but she also didn't seem to have so much sensitivity to teething or the same kinds of things making her very uncomfortable.
They are both wonderful children, and we wouldn't trade them for anyone in the world. They are special blessings from God, and we're so thankful to have them. But we *are* looking forward to having solid nights of sleep again sometime!
In 2009, I'm looking forward to:
- Getting down to a healthier weight/size
- Paying our main credit card off and keeping to our monthly budget better
- Planning more things to fix up the house in small ways and keeping (mostly) to a schedule for that
- Possibly starting a home business to give myself a creative outlet and help out with our finances
- Our daughter starting Kindergarten, which I know she'll love
- Our son learning and growing and continuing to change in exciting ways
- Getting on top of household clutter and keeping it away for good
- Hopefully getting a visit from my dad
- Seeing extended family members more often
- Getting back into a regular quiet time with my Bible and a good devotional book
- Starting back into monthly scrapbooking days with friends and making some good headway on my photos
I believe 2009 is going to be a great year for our family, and I'm really looking forward to seeing what it holds. I'm sure there will be challenges this year, too, but hopefully this will be an easier year without the constant strain in our home, which has become a haven for us once again.
Happy New Year!
2008 is also the year our son joined us. Although he is a joy and such a loving little boy, he's also had a lot of problems with teething, acid reflux, digestive issues with certain foods, etc., that have caused him to be fussy much of the time. We feel bad for him but are really hoping to see him come out of it soon so that he can feel better and sleep better at night, and we can have more happy times with him and not so much time focused on just trying to get him to stop crying. His sister, who's now 4 1/2, was an easier baby in terms of just being happier more often, but she also didn't seem to have so much sensitivity to teething or the same kinds of things making her very uncomfortable.
They are both wonderful children, and we wouldn't trade them for anyone in the world. They are special blessings from God, and we're so thankful to have them. But we *are* looking forward to having solid nights of sleep again sometime!
In 2009, I'm looking forward to:
- Getting down to a healthier weight/size
- Paying our main credit card off and keeping to our monthly budget better
- Planning more things to fix up the house in small ways and keeping (mostly) to a schedule for that
- Possibly starting a home business to give myself a creative outlet and help out with our finances
- Our daughter starting Kindergarten, which I know she'll love
- Our son learning and growing and continuing to change in exciting ways
- Getting on top of household clutter and keeping it away for good
- Hopefully getting a visit from my dad
- Seeing extended family members more often
- Getting back into a regular quiet time with my Bible and a good devotional book
- Starting back into monthly scrapbooking days with friends and making some good headway on my photos
I believe 2009 is going to be a great year for our family, and I'm really looking forward to seeing what it holds. I'm sure there will be challenges this year, too, but hopefully this will be an easier year without the constant strain in our home, which has become a haven for us once again.
Happy New Year!
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