Christmas Eve Letter

Well, we made the deadline, due to Marshall's diligence and the fact he bribed me with a dinner at Red Robin to get me to finish my portion. Smart man. Here's the link for you.

And, for old time's sake:

Almost Halfway Through the Dark

I don't really have the energy today for a real blog post, but I was thinking of movies this week and planned, on Tuesday, to go see Thor 2 today, which is why Alex immediately came down with an ear infection that upset all of my plans. I might still be able to see Hobbit 2 tomorrow; it depends on how my honey is feeling after wrenching his back on black ice in the driveway on Tuesday. Not the best week.


January 11
Zero Dark Thirty (I went to see this with my father, at his suggestion, and was so impressed, even though I expected Kathryn Bigelow's film to be good because I am a fan of The Hurt Locker. And Jessica Chastain is as good as advertised.)

January 18
The Last Stand (I tried to watch it on DVD but only made it half an hour in before the excessive body count turned me off. Sorry, Arnold.)
Broken City (I would still like to see this because Russell Crowe's performance is supposed to be better than his Les Miz embarrassment. And I've always liked Wahlberg.)

January 25
Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters (I know, it looks awful, but it does have Jeremy Renner. I keep thinking Renner might be worth it, but I have yet to check out the DVD.)
Parker (Saw it on DVD. Jason Statham and J-Lo were interesting together, but it was very bloody. Not my favorite Statham film.)

February 1
Warm Bodies (This is an amazingly charming take take on Romeo & Juliet. We saw it on DVD and highly recommend it, although the zombie stuff was a little gross for me.)

February 15
A Good Day To Die Hard (The reviews were so bad I never went to see it. I only made it through the first half hour of Live Free or Die Hard before I got bored and turned it off, Timothy Olyphant notwithstanding.)

March 1
Jack the Giant Slayer (I never saw this but still want to; Nicholas Hoult is a new favorite of mine after Warm Bodies.)

March 8
Dead Man Down (I watched this recently on DVD. It reminded me of Spartan in that its plot was, well, spartan, and difficult to follow. I never realized, through the whole film, that it takes place in NYC. I thought it was just a large city in Europe. Farrell and Rapace are good, but I already like them.)
Oz the Great & Powerful (I saw this in the theatre with my mother-in-law and we liked it. Visually stunning, to be sure.)
Emperor (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

March 22
Olympus Has Fallen (Saw it on DVD. Almost turned it off after the enormous body count in the first half hour. Still like the actors, but was endured rather than enjoyed.)

March 29
G.I. Joe: Retaliation (I liked it. Byung-hun Lee and Ray Park were amazing.)

April 12
42 (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

April 19
Oblivion (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

May 3
Iron Man 3 (Really enjoyed this. Robert Downey Jr. just keeps getting better.)

May 10
The Great Gatsby (Did not see it. Might still.)

May 17
Star Trek Into Darkness (Totally awesome! Benedict Cumberbatch was so good I might actually watch him as Julian Assange just to see what he'll do.)

May 24
Fast & Furious 6 (I enjoyed it, but I still think Fast Five was better.)
Epic (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

May 31
Now You See Me (I saw this at the recommendation of friends and really liked it. Mark Ruffalo was excellent.

June 7
Much Ado About Nothing (Lots of fun. Still haven't watched the disc all the way through. Life's been rather full.)

June 14
Man of Steel (I enjoyed it and still want to see it again.)

June 21
Monsters University (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

June 28
White House Down (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

July 5
Despicable Me 2 (It was delightful.)
The Lone Ranger (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

July 12
Pacific Rim (Awesome! And very pretty on BluRay.)

July 19
Red 2 (Never managed to see this; still want to.)
R.I.P.D. (Saw it with my parents and it was okay. Ryan Reynolds is good, but he was much better in Safe House.)

July 26
The Wolverine (I liked it; Jackman is always good.)

August 2
2 Guns (Would still like to see this.)
Europa Report (Finally watched it a couple of weeks ago. It was good but a little too close to a horror movie for me to love it as much as Moon.)

August 9
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (I like Harry Potter but I love Percy Jackson, so I will keep seeing the movies, no matter how bad they might be. This one was okay, considering it was based on the book I consider most difficult to film.)
Planes (Never saw it; reviews were uniformly awful.)

August 16
The Butler (Would still like to see this.)
Paranoia (Avoided because of the awful reviews.)

August 23
Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (I have decided since I hate the books I will avoid all of the films as well. Besides, the reviews were awful.)
The World's End (Not my usual fare but the trailer makes it look hilarious. Still want to see it.)
The Grandmaster (This is absolutely exquisite. Highly recommended.)

September 6
Riddick (I had to choose between this and Grandmaster; I chose the later.)

September 27
Rush (Still want to see this.)

October 4
Gravity (I didn't manage to see this, but my husband loved it. I'm sure I'll see it on DVD).

October 11
Captain Phillips (Still want to see this.)

October 18
The Fifth Estate (Still interested because of Cumberbatch, but haven't seen it yet.)
Escape Plan (Still want to see this.)

November 1
Ender's Game (I read the book for the first time last fall and found the kid-on-kid violence pretty hard to take, but it is a compelling story. Still hoping to see it in the one theatre still showing it.)
About Time (Still want to see this.)

November 8
Thor: The Dark World (Still hoping to see this. We need to stop getting sick!)

November 29
Frozen (Still want to see this.)

December 6
Out of the Furnace (The good reviews have piqued my interest.)

December 13
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (Hope to see this tomorrow.)

December 20
Saving Mr. Banks (Mary Poppins is still one of my favorite movies, even if my children refuse to watch it.)
American Hustle (Looks fascinating.)

December 27
47 Ronin (Looks like fun).

And The Winner Is...

Sybil of the blog Peace It All Together. I can guarantee her name was chosen completely at random by my son from a bowl of folded up papers. Enjoy the book!

(Of course, Amazon is temporarily out of stock, but this is a good thing because it means lots of people are buying Kim's book!)

If you missed out on the contest, you can order your own copy of Cracking Up: A Postpartum Faith Crisis by Kimberlee Conway Ireton from Amazon. And, of course, you can follow Kim's blog here, for free.

You Can Still Win a Free Book! Leave a Comment!

1. Come on, people! Leave a comment and enter a drawing to win a copy of Kimberlee Conway Ireton's new book, Cracking Up: A Postpartum Faith Crisis. Do not think for a minute you have to be a mother or even female to appreciate the brilliance of her work. I've already bought two copies to give away; help me to buy another one!

2. Let me share some of my favorite quotes:

But in this dark season, I do not want a God who humbly meets me in brokenness. I want a God who exercises enemy-annihilating power.... I want God to obliterate the cancer that is eating Michaela's bone marrow. I want God to eradicate my pregnancy-induced queasiness--both the physical and the emotional kind. I want God to make an agent love my novel as much as I do, to make a publisher love it, and readers, too. I want God to show up with power and might, to raise His victorious right hand and for all to be well. (19)

'[J]oy sounds to our postmodern ears like an emotion, something you feel, whereas celebration is something you do. And since you can't change how or what you feel--it's not like you can force yourself to feel joy--it might be better to focus on what you do, on how you're actually living, rather than what you're feeling or not feeling.' (60)

How do I hold those things in tension? The goodness of my life, the many gifts I have, and the fact that I still find my life so difficult? And the more sobering fact that it could easily be so much harder? And the horrible reality that even if my life is good, others' lives aren't good in the same way? (194)

3. To encourage my legion of blog readers to read Kimberlee's new book, I will give away one copy of Cracking Up to a randomly selected person who leaves a comment at the end of this post between now and Sunday night, November 3rd. Deadline extended until 10 pm Eastern. It will arrive on your doorstep from Amazon as soon as possible after that time.

4. Halloween pictures, if you missed them on Facebook:

Miranda was Tinker Bell and Alex had no name for his costume; he just wanted a purple mask. He wanted a purple hoodie to go with it, but no body makes a plain, unembellished purple hoodie for kids. At least, no one that Google knows of.

5. I'm still working my way through books by Mary Balogh. I've read book one of the Bedwyn sextet, books 1-3 of the Huxtable quintet and 3 of the 4 books from the Simply quartet. According to Goodreads, I read 11 Balogh books in October. Libraries are wonderful.

6. I forgot until Wednesday night that Marshall will be in Washington, D.C., at the LISA conference all of next week; he leaves tomorrow afternoon. And, as all NJ families know, this is NJEA week so kids are only in school on Monday and Wednesday. My parents are supposed to return late Tuesday from San Diego, so I won't be totally on my own, and Marshall's mother will help me out Monday night so Miranda and I can go to dance class. Still, it is a daunting prospect, even though we probably won't have much homework for the week.

7. Still haven't managed to go to the movies or update my movie list for 2013. Too busy reading. Maybe next week.

And Jen is back this week.

Leave a Comment! Win a Free Book!

1. As promised several weeks ago, I have a review (just posted on Amazon) of my dear friend Kimberlee Conway Ireton's new book, Cracking Up: A Postpartum Faith Crisis:

This was a tough book for me to read. I lived with depression long before my two children were placed on the autism spectrum, so I still struggle to reconcile my Christian faith with the suffering of my family. So many times, I have longed for "God to show up with power and might, to raise His victorious right hand and for all to be well" (19). 

What I love most about "Cracking Up" is the eloquence and emotion with which Kimberlee describes the same darkness I have known in my own life, desperately praying and holding on to my faith with my fingernails, uncertain about my next breath because I am certain I am going to drown in my present circumstances. She has described the story of one year of her life so exquisitely that I can now point my family and friends to this book and saw, "This is how I live. This is how I feel. If you want to understand my brokenness, read this."

I cannot tell you how grateful I am to Kimberlee for describing a life in Christ while suffering anguish over children you dearly love. I am a longtime fan of her writing because it encourages me to remember that even when parenting seems an impossible task, it is still a worthwhile endeavor that God honors.

2. Let me share some of my favorite quotes:

But in this dark season, I do not want a God who humbly meets me in brokenness. I want a God who exercises enemy-annihilating power.... I want God to obliterate the cancer that is eating Michaela's bone marrow. I want God to eradicate my pregnancy-induced queasiness--both the physical and the emotional kind. I want God to make an agent love my novel as much as I do, to make a publisher love it, and readers, too. I want God to show up with power and might, to raise His victorious right hand and for all to be well. (19)

'[J]oy sounds to our postmodern ears like an emotion, something you feel, whereas celebration is something you do. And since you can't change how or what you feel--it's not like you can force yourself to feel joy--it might be better to focus on what you do, on how you're actually living, rather than what you're feeling or not feeling.' (60)

How do I hold those things in tension? The goodness of my life, the many gifts I have, and the fact that I still find my life so difficult? And the more sobering fact that it could easily be so much harder? And the horrible reality that even if my life is good, others' lives aren't good in the same way? (194)

3. To encourage my legion of blog readers (ha!) to read Kimberlee's new book, I will give away one copy of Cracking Up to a randomly selected person who leaves a comment at the end of this post between now and Saturday night, November 2. It will arrive on your doorstep from Amazon as soon as possible after that time.

4. I am also grateful to Kimberlee for explaining to me how a writer thinks and how much writers love their works. As you may well remember, my mother is also a writer who talks animatedly about her characters and titles and plot points and I now realize that the reason I can't seem to match her enthusiasm is because I'm not a writer. Kimberlee understands you perfectly, Mom.

Then there's my husband and his Volkswagens, but that's a different story for a different time.

5. My emotions have been rather roller coaster-y lately and I realized this week that because Alex's anxiety is (relatively) stable and has been for a few weeks, I can emotionally start processing all the grief and pain I stuffed away for  the previous 9 months plus. Alex was one minute away from exploding, all day, every day, for all of those months, which wears on a person. Last summer, I described it to Marshall that it was as if we were living in perpetual agony, not waiting for the other shoe to drop, but for it to explode. It would also explain why my blog updates were few and far between.

So I've been taking naps, walking in the autumn wind, and reading lots of books. Mary Balogh has three different series that I working my way through simultaneously; I read 4 of her novels yesterday. Some people drink wine to relax, or watch reality television. I read romance novels.

6. I've been staring at my DVR listings lately and finally gave up on a couple of series that have been sitting there for months or years and I've never watched one single episode. Good-bye Continuum, Defiance, Copper and Perception. If I really want to watch them later, I can always see them on DVD. Or not.

7. Next week is Miranda's birthday (Wednesday) and Halloween (Thursday). Alex doesn't understand why he has to wait another 3 weeks until the family party. I keep explaining we have to wait for my parents to return from points West. Miranda doesn't understand why she can't have every friend she's ever had at the party. Someone please tell me she will eventually realize the universe does not revolve around her.

Here's Cari, who's standing in for Jen this week.

Grump. Grump. Whine. Whine.

So I had a bad week. All I could do was whine or grump or complain about something. And I had planned to read my friend's new book, Cracking Up: A Postpartum Faith Crisis, and offer a copy for free for some fortunate commenter. Well, I haven't read the book yet. I read a few other worthy books, especially Difficult Men: Behind the Scenes of a Creative Revolution: From The Sopranos and The Wire to Mad Men and Breaking Bad, but not hers. I don't even watch any of those television shows, but I was interested in how they became popular and why. Anyway, it seems silly to beat the drum for a book I haven't read yet (this week, I promise; really, I mean it this time!), so I'll save that for next Friday.

And to try to kick myself out of my funk, I'm going to be thankful for 7 things:

1. Miranda stayed home from school on Wednesday with a scary cough so we went back to the doctor for another strep test, but it was just bad allergies. The trees just do not like my poor girl. 
2. My local library continues to buy books that I'm interested in reading, just because I request them via inter-library loan, like The Darwin Elevator. 
3. Alex refused to do his homework Monday and Tuesday nights and after I realized this was his way of communicating that the work was too easy and he'd already done these same worksheets too many times previously, I asked his teacher to find something better which she did and so homework Wednesday and Thursday nights was a breeze. 
4. The lady who cleans my house came Thursday, so for a few brief and wonderful moments, the whole house was clean and the paper piles were reduced to a memory of their previous glory. 
5. My mother-in-law is coming for supper tomorrow so she can then stay with Alex while I take Miranda to dance class because Marshall is on late schedule at work this week. Taking Alex with us to dance would be . . . difficult. 
6. Pacific Rim was released on BluRay this week and Costco had the best price, as I expected, so I bought it yesterday and we watched it last night. Still a cool movie, for those who want to watch giant robots fight giant monsters from outer space. I do; I'm sure I'll watch it again, but probably not every day.
7. The Boston Red Sox and the St. Louis Cardinals are going to play in the World Series, starting on Wednesday. I'm not a huge fan of either team, but this was a more positive outcome than other options. But do we really have to call it the World Series? All the baseball teams, except for the Toronto Blue Jays, are from the United States. I mean, seriously. 
8. Bonus: I think I'm going to go see a silly movie this week. Escape Plan should fit the bill. 

Here's Jen.

Wait, I Have a Blog? I Totally Didn't Know That!

1. So, where have I been the last few weeks? Well, we had that trip to Atlanta on our double wedding weekend, which was fun, which took a week to prepare for and another week to catch up from, and then I got some viral something and when I finally saw my doctor a few days ago, after 11 days sick, he said I was doing the right thing (lots of naps and drinking water). And then, last weekend, both children got sick and when I dragged them to the pediatrician for throat cultures, it was strep times two. And that pretty much sums it up.

2. The new television season has started and we like a few new shows:

• The Crazy Ones - I've loved Sarah Michelle Gellar forever but Robin Williams is pure genius. And I am not a sitcom watcher, until this summer, when I started watching TBBT. 
• Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. - The first two episodes were fun, although the characters, aside from Coulson, are a bit bland. Still, a cameo from Fury? Awesome.
• Sleepy Hollow - Good actors. Hopefully, the writing will improve. It seems like Grimm-light.
• I've picked up The Blacklist and The Tomorrow People but haven't watched them yet. 
• Still looking forward to Almost Human, which premieres next month.

3. Some of my film friends may be disappointed, but The Grandmaster was my first Kar Wai Wong movie. Marshall and I saw it in Atlanta because we had the time then to see it. It was either that or Riddick and we can see Vin on DVD.

I now understand why people rave about Wong's movies. This is a breathtakingly beautiful movie. There is a quiet scene near the end at a tea house between Ziyi Zang and Tony Leung Chiu Wai that had me in tears. So, now, apparently, I need to see Days of Being Wild, In the Mood For Love, and 2046.

I keep asking my husband, with all his years and training in acting, how do people make their faces show emotion so carefully? I know I can't do this. David Tennant is the master of the elastic face, as is Timothy Olyphant. Hero is an excellent film for many reasons, but the high quality of acting seems to set it above and beyond reproach. Ziyi Zang and Tony Leung Chiu Wai are in it, along with Jet Li, Maggie Cheung and Donnie Yen. And Crouching Tiger, Hidden Dragon depends almost as much on the faces of Yun-Fat Chow and Michelle Yeoh as their fighting skill. Andy Lau should also be on this list. Their faces and expressions make me believe.

4. And now for something completely different. Alex has been on Laurie Berkner music kick for several weeks now, singing at the top of his voice (remarkably in tune), so we've been listening to it in the car when we go anywhere. And the song stuck in my head, for all these weeks is this:

Maybe because we've been sick for two weeks and I haven't been able to bake any cookies? I dunno. My favorite song is still "I Know a Chicken" but I couldn't find a good video link for it. Just go out and buy the We Are The Laurie Berkner Band DVD. You'll be glad you did.

5. I have read a few books lately, like the latest Eileen Wilks, Ritual Magic, and Mary Balogh's The Proposal. What I need to sit down and read is my friend Kimberlee Conway Ireton's new book, Cracking Up: A Postpartum Faith Crisis. My life is rather intense, so I tend to read fluff. But if you come back here to my blog next week, you might win a free copy.

6. Last weekend, Marshall took his dad to see Gravity for a belated birthday present. I know everybody is raving about this film, but I'm afraid of getting motion sick. My first IMAX experience, in HS, made me very ill and I still have difficulties on planes, trains, automobiles, boats, escalators, elevators, etc. Besides, my permanent babysitters are leaving for Hawaii tomorrow.

7. Must read for a good laugh: Simcha Fisher's Ten Reasons You Should Get a Dog, Like, NOW. I was howling.

And here's Jen.

Too Busy To Blog

Marshall and I are attending the wedding of one of his co-worker's tonight in Phoenixville, PA, and then very early tomorrow morning we are flying to Atlanta, GA, to attend the wedding, tomorrow night, of very dear friends. So I'm running around still trying to get everything sorted out. But I had to share a few things with you, first:

And this:

Tom Hiddleston is just awesome.

Entropy

1. A definition from the Free Online Dictionary, for those of us who need reminding:

en·tro·py  

n. pl. en·tro·pies

1. Symbol S For a closed thermodynamic system, a quantitative measure of the amount of thermal energy not available to do work.

2. A measure of the disorder or randomness in a closed system.

3. A measure of the loss of information in a transmitted message.

4. The tendency for all matter and energy in the universe to evolve toward a state of inert uniformity.

5. Inevitable and steady deterioration of a system or society.

2. I have been meditating on entropy in the past few weeks as I've been walking around my neighborhood, getting my exercise and trying to keep my back from aching. I notice who has managed to keep their lawn mowed and who is running behind; sometimes I even pray for mercy for the unfortunate latter group, because I have often been one of their company. I notice how quickly the roads deteriorate and how flimsy are the creations of humans in comparison to the riot of green growing around them. For example, this weekend we are going to power wash our driveway and reseal it. It was so beautiful and clean, black and happy asphalt, when the wonderful pavers we hired created it several years ago. (2? 3? I can't remember.) Now the grass and weeds are crawling and thrusting their way in at every edge, last winter's leaves are still piled in the corner by the trash cans and there are stains all over from the necessary auto maintenance my husband does.

My flower beds have grass growing in them again, trying to choke the roots of the plants I want to preserve. My cannas, who love the heat of the late summer, are o'er shadowing everything else in the front yard, and the rose bushes refuse to grow outwards and keep banging into the soffit. My butterfly bushes, that I trimmed so carefully in early summer, are o'er hanging the back patio and blocking the way into the garage or through the gate.

3. And speaking (writing) of entropy, yesterday was cleaning day. I spend hours picking up piles, sorting toys and clothes and generally trying to get everything put away ahead of the lady who cleans my house once a month so that she can actually find the surfaces she's supposed to clean. So, for a few glorious minutes, the house was clean. But the children got home from school before she was finished (which Miranda likes because she wants to "help;" she rarely helps me clean, but our cleaning lady is somehow different) and this morning, before she left for school, Miranda had moved all of her "babies" (every stuffed animal she owns) into the living room. (She was miffed with me when I made her put them in the baskets on the shelf yesterday morning so we could clean her room.) It takes so much effort to put the house back in order and the moment you turn your back, it drifts back to chaos.

4. A dear friend of mine who has a child with a sensory disorder shared a great post this week about selective eaters. As many of you know Alex, you know he only eats about 12 things. I stopped worrying about it last year because his anxiety about everything was overwhelming all of his other issues, but it still bugs my husband. But then, my husband eats almost everything and I am a picky eater. I eat more than I used to, like Brussels sprouts and asparagus, but I still eat the same thing for breakfast, every morning of every day. And that's the way I want it.

5. Youth Group starts up again on Sunday night and I will be relieved to be back on a normal schedule. I miss the students when I don't see them regularly, which is most of the summer. I need this opportunity of service to force me out of myself and worrying about my own problems. It is not all about me.

6. In May of 2012, my cousin Sarah (yes, I have a cousin Sarah; my family has a fondness for certain names, so we have 2 Sarah's, 2 Tim's and 2 Brandon's) asked me to try to explain to her what "Passing for Normal" meant. I have been thinking about it, off and on, since our conversation, especially since Miranda has just been "mainstreamed" in a regular first grade classroom.

Ever since Alex was diagnosed with ASD (Autism Spectrum Disorder) in the spring of 2006, I have come to label many of his behaviors as "autistic," like stimming, echolalia, or his inability to read social cues or conduct a conversation. When I see another child with behaviors like this, my "radar" goes off, meaning that I recognize another child who is probably on the spectrum.

Passing for Normal means not sticking out in a crowd, not displaying behaviors like this when in public, but instead responding to the situation in the appropriate manner which we have worked so long to teach them. Alex's first therapist told me that a new instruction that might take half a dozen reminders in a neurotypical child could take 100 reminders for him. Miranda has progressed far enough that we and the school felt she would benefit from being in a "regular" first grade class (neurotypical peers) after 4 years in the district in self-contained (all classified children) and inclusion (a mix of classified and neurotypical children) classes. Alex was unable to maintain a partial mainstream schedule last year (even with an aide) so we've put him back in a self-contained class this year in hopes of stabilizing him so that we can pursue some mainstreaming again next year.

Perhaps it comes down to: can they function in public without getting stared at or made fun of? Do they answer the question asked of them, instead of ignoring it and announcing their own topic of conversation, like the story of Finding Nemo? Can they say, "No, thank you," when offered food they don't like instead of falling apart? Can they stay with me in the store, being polite to others and not trying to hug everyone they see? Can they follow directions in a group setting?

I hope this helps, cousin.

7. Miranda started a new dance class season on Monday. Artists in Motion in Cherry Hill was where she took a basic class last year with other 5 year old's called "Acro Jazz" that was dancing and gymnastics as well as a one that taught some social interaction skills. This year, we've moved up to a larger class with 6-8 year old's called "Ballet/Hip Hop" and instead of 6-7 other students, there are about 15 of them. Her first class was awesome and I thought, again, this is the best money we spend all year. She's still, at almost 7, the tallest one in the class, but she learned quickly and looks awesome doing an arabesque.

And here's Jen.

I Wasn't Planning to Blog Today But....

1. Today is the first day of school and this has been running in my head for days:

2. Being that today is the first day of school, I guessed a time way earlier than necessary to start getting ready for the day since the bus schedules are estimates and neither child likes to be rushed. So my alarm went off at 5:49 am. It was still dark outside.

I woke Alex about 6:15 for hot pancakes and he was happy to be the only one awake with me. Of course, since he cannot be quiet, Miranda stumbled out about 20 minutes later and I made her pancakes then.

Alex's bus came at 7:25 (moving from a 9 am start last year to a 8 am start this year), as expected, and he has a bus driver we've had previously (though I can't ever remember her name; bad mommy brain). He was ready by 7 and cheerful. Of course, since he has no AD/HD meds at the moment, he's going to have a bouncy day. But that's better than a screamy day.

At 5 of 8, I walked Miranda down to the end of the block with a couple of the neighbor kids, only to have, 15 minutes later, her short bus stop for her at the corner and tell me they'll be picking her up in the driveway, same as every other previous year. Mt. Laurel SD Transportation's mailings leave a little to be desired in the way of details. I thought since she's now "mainstreamed," she'll ride the big bus with all the other kids. But, apparently, since she still has an IEP, she's still riding the short bus. It's probably better for me, but I have this horrible feeling that she's going to come home absolutely crushed because she didn't get to ride the big bus. At least dance class starts tonight.

3. If you've never watched a How It Should Have Ended trailer, you are missing out. Here's the one for Pacific Rim:

4. I wasn't planning to blog this morning because after the kids went to school, I was going to nap. But the refrigerator has been running loudly so Marshall suggested I defrost it and see if that helps. So I did that first thing. Then I got started working some YG correspondence. Then I thought I should just blog a little. And I wrote a grocery list for Shop Rite. But I'm still planning to nap.

5. The US Open is nearly finished. It was a very exciting Women's final yesterday between Serena and Vika. Tonight it's Rafa vs. Novak and we are totally rooting for the Serbian. I'm sad that this year's tennis is coming to a close, but my children won't be disappointed to have more access to the television again. But there's still baseball. The Phillies actually beat the Braves this weekend. Talk about your miracles.

6. I know there hasn't been regularly blogging here lately. I've either been too tired or there hasn't seemed anything to share but children yelling and fighting and stress. If I don't have good news to share, it's hard to write.

7. Jen had her website redesigned and it sure is pretty.

And here's her quick takes.

7 Things To Do When Your Kids Are Sick

1. Catch up on laundry, and not just the clothes that Alex threw up on earlier this morning. Wash the sheets on all the beds, but only strip them one at a time. If, at the end of the day you have 3 bare mattresses and 3 piles of clean sheets, you are going to be sorry.

2. Read a few books and not just the book that currently overdue at the library (Midnight in Mexico). After seeing the new Percy Jackson movie last Tuesday, which was decent, I read The Lightning Thief and Sea of Monsters on Tuesday, The Titan's Curse and half of Battle of the Labyrinth on Wednesday, the rest of Labyrinth and the first half of The Last Olympian on Thursday and finished up Friday afternoon. Then I spent the rest of the weekend taking care of sickies and watching tennis. Only one more week until the US Open!

3. Binge on some British television. I've decided to try Luther again because, well, Idris Elba is brilliant. And all my husband wanted to watch all weekend was Doctor Who (since he was also ill with whatever bug Alex is sharing). So we watched the Pertwee series Terror of the Autons and The Daemons.

4 Cross stitch. You know, that project I was so excited about a few weeks ago. Yeah, that one. Get back to it, slacker!

5. Continue to clear off the DVR. Make a decision about Continuum and Defiance. Either watch 'em or dump 'em.

6. Get Alex to stop watching the first half of The Incredibles every day. I realized this weekend that if Mr. Incredible had just let Bomb Voyage kill Buddy in the opening scene, most of his problems would have disappeared. Of course, he'd be immoral and guilty of some version of murder, but still, no Syndrome.

7. Mow the back yard, if the grass will dry before the sun goes down. It's the only way I'm going to find all the piles left by the visiting dog.

And here's Jen. Although her post from this morning is funnier.

Life Needs to be Simpler, Like Just Smash the Aliens

1. No one's using my laptop, so I really should do a blog post tonight because tomorrow's going to be busy. I'm watching a delayed replay of the Phillies game but since they're on a 10 game losing streak, I don't have a lot of hope for them. While channel surfing on Friday, I found a tennis tournament in Canada to watch which made the weekend a lot more fun. The semi-final matches were a lot more interesting than the finals; Serena Williams and Raphael Nadal just steamrolled their poor opponents in their respective final matches. Only 2 weeks until the US Open! Maybe I should get the tennis channel, although, then I wouldn't have time to watch baseball.

2. Speaking (writing) about smashing the aliens, my honey and I went to see Pacific Rim on Wednesday night and it was just as good as the first time, only it went by faster, as it always does, the second time through a film. Then I came home and downloaded the soundtrack and Amazon suckered me into the movie novelization by Alexander Irvine by putting at least 20 pages up on the site for free and by then I was hooked and had to buy the Kindle version and finish reading it on my phone. I made it 3/4 of the way through when my battery died at 1 am. I finished it later and napped a bit while Alex was at school and Miranda was watching television. It's a remarkably good novelization; sometimes they are just corny, but not this one. However, Miranda definitely watched too much tv this week. Tomorrow I'm dragging her on a whole series of errands so I'm sure she'll be begging for relief by lunch time.

3. Tuesday, Miranda has a play date with her best friend, Jason, so I think my mother and I are going to sneak off and see Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters. Which reminds me of my favorite quote from 10 Things I Hate About You:

Bianca: There's a difference between like and love. Because, I like my Skechers, but I love my Prada backpack. 
Chastity: But I love my Skechers. 
Bianca: That's because you don't have a Prada backpack. 

You see, I like Harry Potter, but I love Percy Jackson. At least, in the books. And for all of you Potter fans who've never read Rick Riordan, you are missing out. And if you've never seen 10 Things I Hate About You, what is wrong with you?

4. Other books I'm trying to read this week:

• Midnight in Mexico: A Reporter's Journey Through a Country's Descent Into Darkness by Alfredo Corchado. I heard his interview on Fresh Air and decided I needed to read the book. I haven't started it yet but Marshall has been casually reading it (as it lies around) and says it's good. BTW, I ILL'd it from the library and they bought it for me! I love my local library. 
• And old friend sent me the Kindle version of Saving Mars by Cidney Swanson, which looks fun but I'm afraid of starting the series because it's not available from library. Sigh. I need to get a job!

5. In my mission to clean off the DVR, I went through 8 episodes of Graceland in 2 days, a new series from USA Networks. The pilot was weak but Aaron Tviet, who was so appealing in last year's Les Miz, is worth watching, and by the second and third episodes, the twisty plots had pulled me in.

My other surprise new favorite it Crossing Lines, a French/American co-production filmed in Europe. All the characters are so wonderfully flawed (Farscape-flawed is how I described it to my honey) that I'm interested to see if they manage to catch the bad guys before they are caught. Perhaps it could be considered Spooks-lite; I never managed to finish the second series of that show, and I tried twice. I only made it through 5 episodes of each of the first seasons of The Wire and Luther, even as brilliant as Idris Elba is; too heavy. Life needs to be simpler.

6. The dog days of August are about to begin: Alex finishes summer school on Thursday and both children do not return to school until Monday, September 9. Hoping to find fun things to do. Cheap fun things to do.

7. Marshall's company picnic will be at the Philadelphia Zoo on Wednesday night and we're looking forward to that. And the weather forecast is partly cloudy and not too hot. Should be fun!

And here's Jen.

2013 Movies, So Far

For the first half of 2013, I was looking forward to Joss Whedon's Much Ado About Nothing. I thought it would be my favorite film of 2013 and it is an excellent film. If you missed my extensive review, read it here. But on a visceral level, I think I like Pacific Rim better. Maybe that's because I only got to see Much Ado once (but I did just pre-order the BluRay!) and I'm thrilled to be able to go see Pacific Rim for the second time tonight, this time with my husband. Maybe it's the difference between brain-food and gut-food. Maybe I just need to watch both of them 5 times each and then decide. We don't buy a lot of BluRays, but I think we'll have both of these by Halloween.

In other movie news, if you know me, you know I watch a lot of movies and read movie reviews, for every film opening, every Friday. Rotten Tomatoes is my friend; I even have the app on my phone. I almost always read Roger Ebert's reviews before seeing a film, even though we only agreed about half the time (he was a huge Scorcese fan and I've never managed to find a Scorcese film I like or even admire). It was very difficult for me this spring and summer to know that Roger was gone, that there would be no more reviews from his pen. I have yet to find another reviewer that I like as well.

Okay, now the list:


January 11
Zero Dark Thirty (I went to see this with my father, at his suggestion, and was so impressed, even though I expected Kathryn Bigelow's film to be good because I am a fan of The Hurt Locker. And Jessica Chastain is as good as advertised.)

January 18
The Last Stand (I tried to watch it on DVD but only made it half an hour in before the excessive body count turned me off. Sorry, Arnold.)
Broken City (I would still like to see this because Russell Crowe's performance is supposed to be better than his Les Miz embarrassment. And I've always liked Wahlberg.)

January 25
Hansel & Gretel Witch Hunters (I know, it looks awful, but it does have Jeremy Renner. I keep thinking Renner might be worth it, but I have yet to check out the DVD.)
Parker (Saw it on DVD. Jason Statham and J-Lo were interesting together, but it was very bloody. Not my favorite Statham film.)

February 1
Warm Bodies (This is an amazingly charming take take on Romeo & Juliet. We saw it on DVD and highly recommend it, although the zombie stuff was a little gross for me.)

February 15
A Good Day To Die Hard (The reviews were so bad I never went to see it. I only made it through the first half hour of Live Free or Die Hard before I got bored and turned it off, Timothy Olyphant notwithstanding.)

March 1
Jack the Giant Slayer (I never saw this but still want to; Nicholas Hoult is a new favorite of mine after Warm Bodies.)

March 8
Dead Man Down (I watched this recently on DVD. It reminded me of Spartan in that its plot was, well, spartan, and difficult to follow. I never realized, through the whole film, that it takes place in NYC. I thought it was just a large city in Europe. Farrell and Rapace are good, but I already like them.)
Oz the Great & Powerful (I saw this in the theatre with my mother-in-law and we liked it. Visually stunning, to be sure.)
Emperor (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

March 22
Olympus Has Fallen (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

March 29
G.I. Joe: Retaliation (I liked it. Byung-hun Lee and Ray Park were amazing.)

April 12
42 (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

April 19
Oblivion (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

May 3
Iron Man 3 (Really enjoyed this. Robert Downey Jr. just keeps getting better.)

May 10
The Great Gatsby (Did not see it. Might still.)

May 17
Star Trek Into Darkness (Totally awesome! Benedict Cumberbatch was so good I might actually watch him as Julian Assange just to see what he'll do.)

May 24
Fast & Furious 6 (I enjoyed it, but I still think Fast Five was better.)
Epic (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

May 31
Now You See Me (I saw this at the recommendation of friends and really liked it. Mark Ruffalo was excellent.

June 7
Much Ado About Nothing (See above.)

June 14
Man of Steel (I enjoyed it and still want to see it again.)

June 21
Monsters University (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

June 28
White House Down (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

July 5
Despicable Me 2 (It was delightful.)
The Lone Ranger (Never managed to see this; still want to.)

July 12
Pacific Rim (Awesome! See above.)

July 19
Red 2 (Never managed to see this; still want to.)
R.I.P.D. (Saw it with my parents and it was okay. Ryan Reynolds is good, but he was much better in Safe House.)

July 26
The Wolverine (I liked it; Jackman is always good.)

August 2
2 Guns (This is getting interesting reviews. I might get my dad to go see it with me.)
Europa Report (My husband is interested in this; we may try to see it VOD.)

August 9
Percy Jackson: Sea of Monsters (I'm hoping to see this Friday because I love Percy Jackson, even if the first film wasn't perfect.)
Planes (Since Cars is one of our favorite Pixar films, I'm sure this will be date film for us.)

August 16
The Butler (Looks fascinating.)
Paranoia (Looks fun and twisty.)

August 23
Mortal Instruments: City of Bones (I read the first 2 books and was really disappointed with their quality, but the film might be pretty. Or pretty awful.)
The World's End (Not my usual fare but the trailer makes it look hilarious.)

September 6
Riddick (I was going to pass until I saw Katee Sackoff is in it. But I'm not seeing it alone!)

September 27
Rush (Very appealing trailer.)

October 11
The Fifth Estate (Just interested because of Cumberbatch.)

November 1
Ender's Game (I read the book for the first time last fall and found the kid-on-kid violence pretty hard to take, but it is a compelling story.)

November 8
Thor: The Dark World (More Tom Hiddleston as Loki? Sign me up!)

December 13
The Hobbit: The Desolation of Smaug (I liked the first Hobbit movie; it just wasn't as breathtaking as The Fellowship of the Ring. But few films are.)

December 20
Saving Mr. Banks (Mary Poppins is still one of my favorite movies, even if my children refuse to watch it.)

December 27
Jack Ryan (I loved the books when I was much younger, but disliked every film adaptation after the first one. However, I love Kenneth Branagh's films, so I will probably give him the benefit of the doubt.)

And that's the list, as of August 7, 2013.

Pain is an Excellent Teacher

1. I haven't really blogged much this summer (No, really?!). Since we returned from California, I've been focused on finishing a bunch of other, energy draining projects like Physical Therapy for my ankle (graduated from Strive Physical Therapy for the second time in 2 years) or my laptop, which I share with both children, has been regularly occupied by one of them. My phone can do a lot of things, but blogging isn't one of them. Not practically, anyway.

So I've finished the PT that was ordered after my car accident in December and have a pretty poor opinion of the Procura Healthcare System (Moral of the story is: Never get in a car accident.) which was responsible for paying (Ha!) for the care I received as a result of my injuries. I do have pain free moments, but to maintain them requires lots of stretching and exercise. Daily. This is a new thing for me. I'd rather sit on the couch and read a book or watch a movie than do anything else. But if I don't, my lower back and my ankle ache interminably. So I am trying to rearrange my life to accommodate daily exercise which, while the children were in school, was a lot simpler. Put the kids on their buses, go for a walk. But Miranda's last day of summer school was yesterday. I'm going to have to be a lot more creative in the upcoming weeks. Today that might mean mowing the back yard, because it's something I can do with the kids in the house that counts as exercise.

2. I've had other persistent, annoying health issues recently. My IBS flared up in April which has caused me to drastically change my diet, taking out as much sugar as possible, as well as anything acidic (which includes most fruits and, sadly, tea.) Since the result of ingesting any of these substances is almost instant pain (the acid burns while the sugar makes it feel like balloons are being inflated in my gut), it has been easy to refuse foods I would have previously fallen upon with a ravenous appetite. One happy result is gradual weight loss, but I still miss my tea.

Right before we left for San Diego, I had a sore throat for about a week. Then half-way through our vacation, the soreness went away and I developed laryngitis, which I still have. 2 weeks ago, I went to my doctor who ran a huge pile of blood tests to check for happy things like mononucleosis. All the blood work came back clean, so I'm chalking it up to stress and moving on.

3. I haven't stitched in months, mostly because Celestial Dragon is such a large undertaking, that it's difficult to pick up for a casual moment of stitching. So, several weeks ago I kitted up Day Lily from the Connections series by John Clayton of Heritage Stitchcraft. Here's what the finished product will look like:

Here's attempt number one:

This is 6-7 hours of stitching that then had to be frogged because I had the material (which is rectangular because of the patterns dimensions) turned the wrong way. Sigh. Using scissors and a seam ripper, it took nearly two hours to pull out. Ugh.

Here's where I am now:

I love Heritage Stitchcrafts designs because, for the most part, they are small and elegant and only take a few months of dedicated stitching to finish. Of course, this is part of a 4 panel series I've wanted to make for myself for about 10 years now. You can see them here. I let Miranda choose which one to start first; I myself might have chosen the tulip. Or not. I also love Clayton's International series; I've previously stitched Greek Steps and Venice.

4. I went to my first Phillies game last night. It was a rather ho hum game until the last inning, when the Phillies lost dramatically to the Giants, 2-1. Still, the tickets were great (gift from a friend) and the scoreboard was so beautiful it was hard not to stare at it incessantly. I don't think I want to know how many pixels is shows.

Picture by Marshall:

Even though thunderstorms were in the forecast, all we had were a few sprinkles.

5. I haven't managed to see all the movies I wanted lately, but I saw a few:

• Pacific Rim was awesome. I took my mother and even she liked it. Marshall and I will see it again on Wednesday.
• Despicable Me 2 was really cute. Miranda and I went with the cousins and grandma's and had a good time. 
• R.I.P.D. was okay. Ryan Reynolds is always good though, even in a bad movie. 
• Wolverine was good, as Jackman is always good, but I found the competing loyalties and plot twists a little confusing. 

Yes, I know, I need to update my 2013 movies list.

6. I am making strides in watching what I call "Autism Television" in that I've been watching The Big Bang Theory this summer, which is easy since it's all over the television schedule and my DVR currently has 14 episodes for me to watch. Of course, this means I'm watching it all out of order, but it is funny enough to stand the disorder. I'm also enjoying King & Maxwell, which also has a main character with ASD, although, like Sheldon, he's a savant. The savantism helps with the plot because it allows the character to be extremely useful in certain situations but there's enough that's familiar to strike a chord with me, like this:

Well, I can't manage to insert the video, so here's the link.

By the way, "Autism Television" is what I call any show with an element of ASD. I have previously avoided them all because it was too painful to watch.

7. Okay, it's time for lunch and Alex wants to use my computer, so I guess I'm done.

Here's Jen.

7 Movies I Want To See (or See Again)

I still have vacation brain, so I'm cheating on my blog today. Or is it really cheating since it's my blog and I can do what I want?

1. Pacific Rim, which opens today. I'm hoping to find time this weekend to see it.

2. Despicable Me 2, which opened larger than expected last week. I still love the first film, even though I've seen it at least 20 times. I may actually try to take Miranda this week, one day after school. Alex still doesn't do well in theatres, but there's hope for the girl.

3. The Lone Ranger. I don't care if the reviews weren't terribly flattering; it still looks fun. And Armie Hammer was incredibly appealing in Mirror, Mirror.

4. Monsters University. Even though Monsters, Inc. is a perfect movie (and I have every line memorized because it was Alex's movie to watch during an intensive month of potty-training so we watched it over and over and over again and I learned that my DVR/DVD player would crash after playing the same disc more than three times in a row without stopping). I still love Mike & Sully.

5. White House Down. Pure fun and adrenaline. And Channing Tatum.

6. Much Ado About Nothing. Once is never enough.

7. Man of Steel. It's compelling enough I need to see it again.

Here's Jen. Don't miss Yaya's letter.

7 Great Reasons to Vacation Here

1. For 10 days in a row, I got to sleep in until I wanted to get up because my parents were here to be up with my children and make them breakfast.

2. Twice in one week, Marshall and I got to go out to see live theatre at The Old Globe Theatre in Balboa Park. The Merchant of Venice was good but A Midsummer Night's Dream was excellent.

3. I got to watch as much Wimbledon coverage as my aunt's DVR could record. Today we will watch the men's final, all together.

4. Yesterday I had a West Wing hangover with my aunt because we'd stayed up late the night before watching "Celestial Navigation" and "Noel."

5. My children can go in the pool anytime they can convince the plethora of adults present to go out and watch them swim.

6. I get to visit with my grandmother, aunt, uncle, cousins, brothers and their delightful wives and darling children. I love my niece and nephew so much! My sister-in-law and my mother took lots of pictures that I hope to share later in the week.

7. I am disappointed to be going home tomorrow, but the idea doesn't fill me with dread. I'm sure that's the emotion I will feel as we're flying over Texas and still several hours from Philadelphia.

And here's Jen. Or, at list, the list of links. She was a little busy this week.

7 Reasons You Should Go See "Much Ado About Nothing" ASAP

1. Let's watch that trailer again:

Drooling yet? You should be. If not, check in with the nearest Shakespeare film expert to see if Zombies have eaten your brain.


2. Adapted from the Shakespeare play by Joss Whedon. Directed by Joss Whedon. Produced by Joss Whedon. Music composed by Joss Whedon.

Remember the last film from 2012 that had similar credits? The Avengers.

3. Here's a cast list to drool over:

• Amy Acker (Angel & Dollhouse) as Beatrice - I didn't think her slight frame could keep up with the part, but I was wrong.
• Nathan Fillion (Firefly & Serenity, Buffy as a super guest star) as Dogberry - Perfect. The best Dogberry I've ever seen.
• Clark Gregg (Avengers) as Leonato - I liked his balance between Head of Household and Loving Father.
• Fran Kranz (Dollhouse & Cabin in the Woods) as Claudio - Best performance I've ever seen of his and I loved him in Dollhouse.
• Sean Maher  (Firefly & Serenity) as Don John - Terrifying.
• Reed Diamond (Dollhouse) as Don Pedro - Quite jolly, actually.
• Alexis Denisof (Buffy, Angel & Dollhouse as a super guest star) as Benedick - Good. I liked David Tennant better. 
• Riki Lindhome (Buffy guest star) as Conrade - Brilliant change from male to female character.

4. Joss solves many of the common problems of the play, especially since it's been reset to modern Pasadena:

• Don John is seriously menacing. Not the weak cipher he was in the Tennant version nor the odd, out of step Keanu he was in the Branagh film. Conrade has been transformed to a female and she's used effectively. 
• Claudio is incredibly sympathetic, which, if you go by the text alone, he just a jerk.
• Borachio's motivation for setting up Hero's marriage to fail is believable. 
• Dogberry and Verges are definitely comic relief but in a way that's believable and not quite so over the top as Michael Keaton was in Branagh's film.  
• Antonio has been excised completely, which was done to save time. Although I like Brian Blessed in Branagh's film, the conversion to Antionia, Hero's mother, in the Tennant production was a lot more interesting. 
• Margaret is very sympathetic without losing her droll remarks. 

It is the best interpretation of the whole play I've ever seen. Branagh's is good but Don John and Dogberry don't fit. Tennant's is better in some respects (I really like his Don Pedro and the switch from Antonio to Antonia) but Claudio is such a whiner. 

5. The video available of David Tennant's Much Ado is from a stage performance which automatically changes the behavior of the actors, especially with the acknowledgement of the audience. Kenneth Branagh knows he's making a film but he had such a restricted budget that it limited his set and costumes that it sometimes seems like a slightly grander theatre performance. Joss' film is so intimate and the lines slip by so quickly we were in the second act before I'd really adjusted to the difference of perspective. I guess I just need to see it again. 

6. I loved all of the original music. It is used in the background, as would be appropriate at a party or a wake. 

7. The more people who see the film, the more money it will make, which might encourage Joss to make another Shakespeare movie. Measure for Measure is my first choice. It has so many delicious problems to wrestle with. That could be awesome. 

Here's Jen.