Yes! Here I am! Back from the dead (at least in terms of blogging, that is) and actually writing. February was a killer month for me in many, many ways and I will attempt to catch up in the next few days. Most of the stuff was good stuff, but there were a few weeks that I just felt like raising a white flag and full-out surrendering. And then crawling back into bed.
But when you have three wonderful, growing, active children and a great husband that you want to take care of and other things in life requiring attention, you cannot just crawl back into bed. You press on and think to yourself that you'll rest when you're 60.
(That's when I'll catch up on sleep, scrapbooking, sewing, reading, watching every movie I've wanted to see since 2001, and trying to learn to quilt. Maybe even can a few jars of dilly green beans.)
So fear not! More dispatches will be coming henceforth!
(Can you tell that in February I also became seriously addicted to Downton Abbey??)
Monday, February 27, 2012
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Watching with the Eye of a Grown Up.
Recently I stumbled across the movie Legends of the Fall, starring Brad Pitt, Aidan Quinn (before anyone was named Aidan), and Anthony Hopkins, released in 1994. It was playing on Bravo, and I was interested to watch a little of it since I hadn't seen it in literally decades. When it came out, I was completely mesmerized by it: the hotness of the three sons, the sprawling ranch they lived on out west, the gorgeous music in the movie, and the idea of love gone awry, and the romantic tragedy of falling in love with the wrong brother.
Well, now I'm way past that star struck teenager, and it looks totally different as an adult.
Sure, the music and settings are the same; Brad is still gorgeous beyond belief; the name Tristan is still as exotic and romantic to me now as it was then; and the period touches are still fun to note.
But, my goodness, it is pretty cheesy.
The funny thing is that Michaela and Jenna happened to wander into the room when I was floating down memory lane watching this movie and they were COMPLETELY TRANSFIXED by it. Completely. Made me DVR it because we had to leave for some reason or another and couldn't watch the last 45 minutes. They loved it.
For those of you who need reminding, it is the story of three brothers, Alfred, Tristan and Samuel, all bonded to each other and their colonel father, and Samuel returns home from college with a fiance played by a radiant Julia Ormond. (Really- you can practically see the soft focus halo all around her. She's gorgeous.) It is clear when Edward and his girl, Susannah, arrive home that she is falling hard for Tristan, and that both he and Alfred have the hots for her. Tristan and Edward go off to fight in WWI, Edward is killed and Tristan blames himself. He returns home from fighting and is crushed in every way, yet does help himself to Susanna. They hook up, Susannah falls madly in love with him, but Tristan clearly has some PTSD issues going on and goes off to find himself. Susannah, who has been staying at the ranch this whole time, stays behind and promises to wait for Tristan to come back. Tristan sends her a letter home saying (very dramatically), "What we had is dead, as I am dead. Marry another." A broken Susannah is again rescued by big brother Alfred, who she marries and settles down with but is unable to have children. Tristan eventually returns, healthy and GORGEOUS, and marries the ranch hand's daughter and immediately has a few kids. Susannah is clearly still in love with Tristan and swoons any time she sees him. I am not terribly familiar with the whole ending as I haven't gotten that far, but you get the gist.
Oh, if I could talk as a grown woman to that Susanna! She seemed like such a heroine when I was a teenager, and now I see her as so weak willed and only gathering worth from who loves her. She basically destroyed the entire family and wreaked havoc on the relationships between the brothers. She was always drawn to the bad boy, the one who got away, and settled, instead of fully moving forward. Get off that ranch! I want to yell at her. Go seek your own dreams! Leave this situation behind! Don't think you can tame this wild boy... you are not what he really wants.
It is so interesting to see how something in the sweeping romance of the movie really strikes a chord with my girls just as it did with me all those years ago. Falling in love. The bonds of family. The heart being broken and fixed again. The pull of wanting what you cannot have. And of course, one thing remains untouched by time: Brad Pitt is super hot. Doesn't matter how old you are.
Well, now I'm way past that star struck teenager, and it looks totally different as an adult.
Sure, the music and settings are the same; Brad is still gorgeous beyond belief; the name Tristan is still as exotic and romantic to me now as it was then; and the period touches are still fun to note.
But, my goodness, it is pretty cheesy.
The funny thing is that Michaela and Jenna happened to wander into the room when I was floating down memory lane watching this movie and they were COMPLETELY TRANSFIXED by it. Completely. Made me DVR it because we had to leave for some reason or another and couldn't watch the last 45 minutes. They loved it.
For those of you who need reminding, it is the story of three brothers, Alfred, Tristan and Samuel, all bonded to each other and their colonel father, and Samuel returns home from college with a fiance played by a radiant Julia Ormond. (Really- you can practically see the soft focus halo all around her. She's gorgeous.) It is clear when Edward and his girl, Susannah, arrive home that she is falling hard for Tristan, and that both he and Alfred have the hots for her. Tristan and Edward go off to fight in WWI, Edward is killed and Tristan blames himself. He returns home from fighting and is crushed in every way, yet does help himself to Susanna. They hook up, Susannah falls madly in love with him, but Tristan clearly has some PTSD issues going on and goes off to find himself. Susannah, who has been staying at the ranch this whole time, stays behind and promises to wait for Tristan to come back. Tristan sends her a letter home saying (very dramatically), "What we had is dead, as I am dead. Marry another." A broken Susannah is again rescued by big brother Alfred, who she marries and settles down with but is unable to have children. Tristan eventually returns, healthy and GORGEOUS, and marries the ranch hand's daughter and immediately has a few kids. Susannah is clearly still in love with Tristan and swoons any time she sees him. I am not terribly familiar with the whole ending as I haven't gotten that far, but you get the gist.
Oh, if I could talk as a grown woman to that Susanna! She seemed like such a heroine when I was a teenager, and now I see her as so weak willed and only gathering worth from who loves her. She basically destroyed the entire family and wreaked havoc on the relationships between the brothers. She was always drawn to the bad boy, the one who got away, and settled, instead of fully moving forward. Get off that ranch! I want to yell at her. Go seek your own dreams! Leave this situation behind! Don't think you can tame this wild boy... you are not what he really wants.
It is so interesting to see how something in the sweeping romance of the movie really strikes a chord with my girls just as it did with me all those years ago. Falling in love. The bonds of family. The heart being broken and fixed again. The pull of wanting what you cannot have. And of course, one thing remains untouched by time: Brad Pitt is super hot. Doesn't matter how old you are.
Friday, January 27, 2012
Alec's Latest Obsession.
And it's a strange one, one that begs to to be chronicled in the blog forever.
He loves playing with my iPhone, and while at first I was super strict about him NOT using it, I have fallen into the trap that every parent who has an iPhone and a kid under five has also fallen into: KIDS LOVE iPHONES. And it keeps them entertained and still and quiet for juuuust enough time to get something accomplished. Not a big thing, but something. Like posting on their blog.
I have a YouTube app on my phone and when you touch it, it automatically loads a short video that was linked to an email my brother sent out from his church. It's a great video with two guys talking about going to a candlelight church service and what it means. It's funny and real and effective. But that's not what he loves.
Linked to this video (I'm assuming one of the suggested videos on the right hand side) is the new object of his affection: a video posted by some southern evangelical-y church inviting the masses to its Christmas Services. It starts out with a nice, hearty, "Hello, everybody! We welcome you with open arms to Redeemer Baptist Church!" and then the wife chimes in with her silky Southern drawl, "... we are offering three services this Christmas Eve, at 2, 4, and 7 pm..." and that's as far as I've heard before Alec starts the whole thing over and I hear "Hello, everybody!" all over again. Sometimes Alec starts it over three or four times in a row, so it sounds a little like some kind of bizarre DJ remix: "Hello, every-Hello, every-Hello, everybody!"
But that's the power of the Holy Spirit combined with modern technology... and a two year old: I, a housewife in upstate New York, have the Christmas service times memorized for a Southern Baptist church that I've never ever heard of. I think God has the most wonderful sense of humor.
He loves playing with my iPhone, and while at first I was super strict about him NOT using it, I have fallen into the trap that every parent who has an iPhone and a kid under five has also fallen into: KIDS LOVE iPHONES. And it keeps them entertained and still and quiet for juuuust enough time to get something accomplished. Not a big thing, but something. Like posting on their blog.
I have a YouTube app on my phone and when you touch it, it automatically loads a short video that was linked to an email my brother sent out from his church. It's a great video with two guys talking about going to a candlelight church service and what it means. It's funny and real and effective. But that's not what he loves.
Linked to this video (I'm assuming one of the suggested videos on the right hand side) is the new object of his affection: a video posted by some southern evangelical-y church inviting the masses to its Christmas Services. It starts out with a nice, hearty, "Hello, everybody! We welcome you with open arms to Redeemer Baptist Church!" and then the wife chimes in with her silky Southern drawl, "... we are offering three services this Christmas Eve, at 2, 4, and 7 pm..." and that's as far as I've heard before Alec starts the whole thing over and I hear "Hello, everybody!" all over again. Sometimes Alec starts it over three or four times in a row, so it sounds a little like some kind of bizarre DJ remix: "Hello, every-Hello, every-Hello, everybody!"
But that's the power of the Holy Spirit combined with modern technology... and a two year old: I, a housewife in upstate New York, have the Christmas service times memorized for a Southern Baptist church that I've never ever heard of. I think God has the most wonderful sense of humor.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
January Bits 'n' Pieces.
Here's the latest from Libutti Land:
Michaela... has a new "boyfriend" at school named Matt, whom she has pined after since she arrived at Eagle... tonight is her Winter Concert at school for choir... is doing the school's Lip Sync program on Friday night, complete with dance routine and custom outfit... actually wears and sees much better with her new glasses, proving Mommy wrong... is thinking of making a fabric model of a bottle nosed dolphin for the Whale Museum they have at school every year... is a great big sister... signed up for softball in the spring...is constanty harassing me to give her my iPhone... is attending her last year of vacation Bible school during Feb break- next year she'll be a helper.
Jenna... had her first filling today and handled it like a trooper... weaseled her way out of a few hours of school on Monday morning, saying that her "tummy felt angry" but was actually fine... when asked why she was giving me a hard time about me going out for a bit with a friend of mine answered, "You don't need playdates. You're a MOM."... loves being a Girl Scout... just started having spelling tests at school... is refusing, once again, to sign up for anything over the summer... is happy that I am doing Junior Achievement in her classroom for the next four weeks... loves playing with her dolls and Barbies... is also in Lip Sync group and did awesome at the dress rehearsal- smiling, sashaying and dancing up a storm... still struggles with going to bed without a 40 minute struggle to do three things: brush teeth, go to the bathroom, and put on jammies... backs up so much when I help her brush her teeth that the other day we ended up in the hallway...is peppering her vocabulary with the word "like" a little more than I care for.
Alec... is doing great in therapy and is making slow but very steady and noticeable progress... is obsessed with his sisters' 3DS and loves watching Bob the Builder... had a terrible, horrible week two weeks ago with us and the therapists and is much better after getting it all out of his system...still loves SpongeBob... and trains... and Cars... while playing with the Little People farm the other day during Speech Therapy made everything lay on their side and go to sleep, including the farmer's tractor... is trying more to say more... is sleeping through the night every night... is registered for preschool this fall (gasp!)... still lives on love, strawberries, popsicles and occasionally pasta... has FINALLY started to agree to wearing a coat when he leaves the house, and it's last year's coat. Which is not even a winter coat. But it'll do.
Dan and I... are close to renting a house for a summer vacation on Cape Cod (where we haven't been since 2008!)... bought, put together and started using our treadmill... really like the treadmill... have hidden the key that starts the treadmill so littler people in our house (and I mean ALL the little people) can't turn it on by themselves... are trying to lose a little weight... are desperately trying to keep up with the activities in our family. And are very happy.
Michaela... has a new "boyfriend" at school named Matt, whom she has pined after since she arrived at Eagle... tonight is her Winter Concert at school for choir... is doing the school's Lip Sync program on Friday night, complete with dance routine and custom outfit... actually wears and sees much better with her new glasses, proving Mommy wrong... is thinking of making a fabric model of a bottle nosed dolphin for the Whale Museum they have at school every year... is a great big sister... signed up for softball in the spring...is constanty harassing me to give her my iPhone... is attending her last year of vacation Bible school during Feb break- next year she'll be a helper.
Jenna... had her first filling today and handled it like a trooper... weaseled her way out of a few hours of school on Monday morning, saying that her "tummy felt angry" but was actually fine... when asked why she was giving me a hard time about me going out for a bit with a friend of mine answered, "You don't need playdates. You're a MOM."... loves being a Girl Scout... just started having spelling tests at school... is refusing, once again, to sign up for anything over the summer... is happy that I am doing Junior Achievement in her classroom for the next four weeks... loves playing with her dolls and Barbies... is also in Lip Sync group and did awesome at the dress rehearsal- smiling, sashaying and dancing up a storm... still struggles with going to bed without a 40 minute struggle to do three things: brush teeth, go to the bathroom, and put on jammies... backs up so much when I help her brush her teeth that the other day we ended up in the hallway...is peppering her vocabulary with the word "like" a little more than I care for.
Alec... is doing great in therapy and is making slow but very steady and noticeable progress... is obsessed with his sisters' 3DS and loves watching Bob the Builder... had a terrible, horrible week two weeks ago with us and the therapists and is much better after getting it all out of his system...still loves SpongeBob... and trains... and Cars... while playing with the Little People farm the other day during Speech Therapy made everything lay on their side and go to sleep, including the farmer's tractor... is trying more to say more... is sleeping through the night every night... is registered for preschool this fall (gasp!)... still lives on love, strawberries, popsicles and occasionally pasta... has FINALLY started to agree to wearing a coat when he leaves the house, and it's last year's coat. Which is not even a winter coat. But it'll do.
Dan and I... are close to renting a house for a summer vacation on Cape Cod (where we haven't been since 2008!)... bought, put together and started using our treadmill... really like the treadmill... have hidden the key that starts the treadmill so littler people in our house (and I mean ALL the little people) can't turn it on by themselves... are trying to lose a little weight... are desperately trying to keep up with the activities in our family. And are very happy.
Thursday, January 12, 2012
Alec Monkey Shines.
Here's what Alec has been up to lately:
Learning the finer points of Angry Birds, or "A! B!" as he calls it.
Sneaking verrry quietly into the pantry, grabbing the Oreos, opening cookies,
licking the cream filling out, and discarding the cookie onto the floor.
Doing his best to charm me when he gets caught.
And if Mommy has the audacity to put the Oreos up high where Alec can't reach, no prob-
he drags a chair over and gets them himself.
Mastering his sister's Nintendo 3DS- he loves to stream Netflix through it
and watch the first two minutes of as many shows as possible.
Looking adorable.
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