Sleepy Friday

1. Three out of the last five nights/mornings, Miranda has been up at 4 am, hungry or crying or something, so it should not have surprised me that she woke up with a fever today. Poor little woozle. I have a call into the pediatrician's office, so I'm sure if there's anything seriously wrong with her, we will discover it.


Update: Dr. says that since all she has is a low-grade fever and no other symptoms, to keep an eye on her, treat with Tylenol per usual, and call back if she gets worse. Unlike Alex, who at the first sign of fever we rush to the doctor because it means he is really sick, Miranda can run fevers like this for a passing virus and be fine two days later. 


2. It's been a get back to normal week. My parents returned home on Easter Sunday, after a lovely but informal lunch hosted by my sister-in-law, so I've been re-adapting myself to household maintenance as an army of one. (Keeping up with mess generated by my children is so much easier when my mother shares the load!) Alex, Miranda and I joined friends at the park on Monday (being that it was Easter Monday, there was no school) and then both children returned to school on Tuesday and have received good reports from their teachers all week. I guess a week with their grandparents did them good; it was certainly a blessing to me!


3. I pushed doggedly forwards on my cross stitch this week, trying to make it past this complicated first half of page 13, although I have the feeling the bottom half of the page is going to be just as much fun (I haven't glanced at it yet). I did make enough progress in the last few evenings that I can see what it's supposed to look like and should be able to finish this section soon. Here's your progress picture:

The way the pattern creates the shimmer and outline of the vase is seriously not fun to stitch (I feel like I'm changing thread colors every 5 stitches), but the effect is quite stunning. 


4. Movie Update:

January 14

Green Hornet (never managed to see before it left theatres; dang.)

April 1

Source Code (Marshall and I were able to go out and see this while my parents were here and we really liked it. Not as amazing as Moon, but still very good.)

April 29
Fast Five (I am going by myself to see this tomorrow night; can't wait! Rotten Tomatoes has even given it an excellent rating.)

May 6
Thor (I have booked the babysitter--we are going next Saturday night! Early reviews are good so I am excited to see how Kenneth Branagh does a superhero movie.)

Anyway, here's my hopeful list for other upcoming films:

June 3
X-Men: First Class (It could be good, like X-2 was)
June 17
Green Lantern (Ryan Reynolds was very compelling in The Proposal so I want to give him a chance)
June 24
Cars 2 (Cars is my favorite Pixar Film so I have high hopes for the next one; it also may be the first movie our kids actually see in the theatre)
July 1
Transformers: Dark of the Moon (also has a new trailer out this week)
July 15
Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows: Part 2 (the new trailer is out and looks awesome!)
July 22
Captain America: The First Avenger (the trailer looks like a lot of fun)
July 29
Cowboys & Aliens (Daniel Craig and Harrison Ford in a western with aliens and all the early buzz is good!)

November 11

Immortals (first trailer came out this week; starting to look interesting)

5. We recently got a hold of the audio versions of all of the Harry Potter books and are trying to make our way through them before the new movie comes out in July. I finished the first one last night while stitching and was surprised, once again, by how much I liked it and how suspenseful it was. I was also impressed by how well J.K. started to set up her story arcs from the very beginning. That is a woman who knows how to plan!


6. Doctor Who opened up Series 6 with a bang last Saturday night and left us hanging on several terrifying cliff-hangers, earning Steven Moffat the same reputation with me that his predecessor (Russel T Davies) had which leaves me muttering curses on them directly after the episode finishes. Often, they are good writers for this show, but the emotional directions they push the audience sometimes verges on manipulation, which I despise. And I hate it when they make me cry.


7. My mother's book, Bathsheba's Lament, continues to earn praises and recognition from among a growing number of readers. There is a great review of it on the International Christian Fiction Writers' blog that you must read! There is another awesome review of Bathsheba's Lament on LeAnne Hardy's blog. Read it here. Remember, if you haven't already ordered a copy, you will find it available here, or, if you are a local fan, you can purchase my last remaining copy of the book.


Bonus 8. If you were unaware, I am a long-time fan of Wait Wait Don't Tell Me, the NPR News Quiz. I was even a contestant once (I dare you to find the audio clip!). I discovered this week that there is a guy who keeps a statistical page for this show. It's awesome, but, wow, that's an interesting hobby.


And here's Jen.