The Merrylandgirl year in review

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

I chose the topic for the last blog project post of 2014: Make a top 10 list of your favorite blog posts from your own blog in 2014. (Doesn't have to be from the blog project ones.) Write a sentence explaining why you chose each one.

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

I was inspired by Moma Rock, as she did this for her blog last year. I even did it for mine. I figured we could get two posts out of the way by doing this topic for our blog project. And I'm curious as to what everyone else will pick too!

All I know is that I need to be better about sticking to my writing goals. I was hoping to write a short fiction piece every month but then the High Holiday season threw me off course. I am thinking of ways to write more fiction in 2015, so stay tuned!

Here goes...

1. The Not-so-Ugly Truth about Running a Book Blog: I wrote it for an essay contest and didn't win, so I decided to share it and it received some great feedback!

2. Un-Frozen: Long before Mayim Bialik spoke out, I made it okay for people to admit that Frozen isn't the "end all, be all" of Disney movies.

3. I blog, therefore I am: I put a lot of my heart and soul into this post about why I love writing so much!

4. Breaking up is hard to do: I had fun with this piece and I've actually lost some of the post-pregnancy pounds since then.

5. My Attempt at Fan Fiction: Inspired by the novel Fangirl and my favorite childhood series, I wrote some fan fiction of my own. I really like how it turned out and am considering doing more with it.

6. Get in (or out of) the zone: I enjoyed working with this piece, as well. It was a post about comfort zones and I used a list I had found online to talk about how I stretched mine to the limit.

7. A Stand-Up Kind of Gal: Another story about getting out of my comfort zone...and being fearless.

8. You win some, you lose some: My first fiction piece for a contest. I didn't win, but I ended up getting an honorable mention and some fun swag as a result. Not bad for a first try!

9. Movies that "dare to be stupid": I wrote this for a blog tour and had so much fun reminiscing about these movies. Visit the blog tour link to see the movies that other bloggers chose.

10. Silly Sunday: This was inspired by one of my favorite chick lit novels of 2014. In my story, Moma Rock and I swap places. Visit her link from this post to see what she did when she was me for a day. I still look back on my post and laugh, especially since she said I nailed it without even knowing what I was doing.


I'd love to know what posts of mine you liked best from this past year. It might give me insight on topics for 2015 or other ideas to work with. Thanks! 

Wishing you a happy, healthy, and prosperous New Year!

List-a-Mania 2014!

I've decided to take inventory of some past lists I've made, and also wanted to include some new lists. I did this last year, as well. However, this year my favorite blog posts will be in a separate post.

This list was taken from a post about my [not-so] laminated top five list (this time Jason Segel came off the list. Sex Tape just shouldn't have been made.)

1. Chris Messina: Really, all he has to do is dance and I'm sold! :) Actually, he could just stand there and do nothing and he'd still be swoon-worthy. However, I love that, as Danny Castellano on The Mindy Project, he's not afraid to act goofy and vulnerable.  Oh, and that smile....
2. Jeremy Jordan:  I can't wait to see him in The Last Five Years when that finally comes to a screen near me.
3. Justin Baldoni: Now that I watch Jane the Virgin, I have my eyes on Rafael. *Swoon*
4. Matt Lanter: He's just incredibly hot. He doesn't even have to talk. I wouldn't mind the kind of making out I've seen him capable of on 90210. And he has such a great speaking voice...all deep and intense. He's definitely been on my list ever since he first appeared on the show.
5. Jamie Cullum: I think it's his Harry Connick Jr. appeal (speaking of....I also think HCJ is sexy). He has such an amazing voice that it just sends tingles down my spine. He could seduce me just by singing!

I could add Luke Bryan to this list just for his voice, but that's all that really does it for me about him. That, and his songs are sexy. But that's it, really.

This is my celebrity bucket list, revised from a list created around this time, three years ago. Last year, I took Idina Menzel off the list. This year, the How I Met Your Mother cast gets the cut because I already met Neil Patrick Harris and the series finale felt like a break-up to me.

1. Mindy Kaling. She's so funny and down-to-earth. I can only imagine her being like that in person too. I could totally see us exchanging chick lit novels and joking around about anything and everything.

2. Tatiana Maslany and Jordan Gavaris of Orphan Black. I'm obsessed with this show and it would be an honor to meet either/both of them.

3. Lin-Manuel Miranda. I was hoping to meet him when I saw In the Heights. (He wasn't performing at the time but I had a fantasy that he'd be watching from backstage and would come out to meet his fans anyway. However, that was not the case.) He wrote an incredible musical, does a great job rapping without it sounding unintelligible and even sang "To Life, L'Chaim" to his wife at his wedding. Toss in the fact that he's adorable and you'd want to meet him too! He was even in an off-Broadway production of Tick...Tick...Boom this past year.

4. America Ferrera. She won me over in Real Women Have Curves and completely sold me on her talent in Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants. Then she was in Ugly Betty and completely took on her role as Betty Suarez and made it her own. She just seems like a down-to-earth celebrity who isn't going to go the skanky route that other female celebrities have. I could see just hanging out with her and having fun "girl talk" over dinner.

5. Khaled Hosseini. I didn't get a chance to see him when he was in DC this past summer promoting his latest novel. I still hope to meet him one of these days, as he is on par with Wally Lamb for his incredible writing talent.

Top 10 Favorite Movies that I saw in 2014 (some might be from previous years). 
This is in no particular order.

1. Begin Again: A really good story with a great soundtrack.
2. Muppets Most Wanted: Pairing classic Muppet characters with Tina Fey, Ricky Gervais, and Ty Burrell is the perfect formula. And it's a musical too!
3. Saving Mr. Banks: I must have cried a zillion times.
4. Big Hero 6: This says it all
5. Chef: Very clever story that made me hungry by the end.
6. Blended: I don't know why this movie got so much slack. It was adorable!
7. St. Vincent: Great to see Melissa McCarthy in a more down-to-earth role. And I loved the kid.
8. The Skeleton Twins: Very heartfelt and well-written. Also nice to see more comedic actors in serious roles.
9. Neighbors: Hilarious! And it featured my celebrity girl crush, Rose Byrne.
10. Into the Woods: Can't stop singing the songs now!

Top Ten Favorite Books I read in 2014. (Some may be from previous years.)
I'll be sharing my top five chick lit favorites on Chick Lit Central tomorrow, so stay tuned!
Links are all to reviews.

1-3. Amy Hatvany trio: Safe with Me, Heart Like Mine, and Outside the Lines
4. Secret Daughter by Shilpi Somaya Gowda
5. Leaving Time by Jodi Picoult
6. Big Little Lies by Liane Moriarty
7. Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
8. One Plus One by Jojo Moyes
9. Me Before You by Jojo Moyes
10. The Fault in Our Stars by John Green

My five favorite TV shows that I saw in 2014:

1. Orphan Black: As I said earlier, I'm OBsessed!
2. The Mindy Project: Season two was amazing and I look forward to seeing where season three will go in 2015.
3. Orange is the New Black: I can't wait to see more in 2015!
4. Modern Family: Consistently hilarious. I love it more and more every year.
5. Jane the Virgin: I am so glad my author friend Tracie Banister convinced me to watch it. Such a fun series. Reminds me of Ugly Betty.

I didn't include The Big Bang Theory only because I'm so far behind on it still. And after a disastrous season five of Glee, I can only hope it will be better in 2015 and win me over again.

14 in '14

It's my annual tradition to write a list of best things that happened throughout the year. I enjoy looking back on these and reflecting upon the great memories.

1. Celebrating 10 years of marriage and my husband planning special surprises for our day (and night) in Chicago.
2. Book Expo America (BEA) and BookBuzz! See more details here and find out which celebrities I met. I also got to hang out with my friend Linda again.
3. Seeing Disney's The Little Mermaid on stage. It was a fantastic production that left me on a natural high for days.
4. My BFF's visit and our fun girl's day out...getting manicures and going to the thrift store. :)

5. Spending time with my parents and sister during their visits this past fall.
6. Visits from Paula and Christina. So great to see both of them!
7. Seeing Sarah, Jason, and their kids when they were in town from Israel. Can't believe two years flew by so fast!
8. Finally seeing The Last Five Years on stage. I can't wait for the movie to come out in February!
9. Finally seeing Gary Gulman perform live (hilarious!!) and having a date night with my husband at the same time.
10. Being at my job for five years.
11. My daughter starting the hearing loss program at her school and her speech and language taking off.
12. My friend making me a Rent cake for my birthday.

13. Being acknowledged in books by some authors I love: Meredith Schorr, Janis Thomas, and Jane Green (who also gave me a shout out in an interview she did for a magazine).
14. Seeing Into the Woods after waiting all year and actually being impressed with it!

A "wish" come true

I had been looking forward to seeing the movie of Into the Woods ever since I knew it was being made. As the time got closer and trailers started showing up online, I got even more excited. "Well, excited and scared." Scared because I was hearing some bad reviews of it and I was hoping they were just from people who didn't see the stage version and had no idea what to expect. Some people reviewing on Fandango were brutal. Did they even see the trailer to know that it was a musical in the first place?!? However, my worries were for naught because I asked friends who had seen the stage version what their thoughts were and received all sorts of good feedback. And then, I saw it for myself.... All I really need to say is that I was impressed. When I saw favorite musicals done as movies in the past, I was annoyed by them and picked them apart. This time, however, I have very few critiques. Here are my thoughts, as I felt this was too long to share on Facebook as a status update. (Since it's 2014, I think giving 14 reasons is enough...)

1. I wasn't sure what to think of Emily Blunt doing musical theater. I never knew she could sing. She has a different singing voice than I'm used to, but it's pretty and she harmonizes well with James Corden. I loved "It Takes Two." They totally nailed one of my favorite songs from the show. She also did well with "Moments in the Woods." So her girl crush factor has gone up a few points as far as I'm concerned and it made the Baker's Wife my favorite character in the movie, as well as in the stage version.

2. Johnny Depp as the Wolf. He was perfectly creepy and it just worked for this role.

3. Lilla Crawford was perfect as Red Riding Hood. I can't even go back and watch Danielle Ferland in the role now because Lilla just owned it.

4. While Daniel Huttlestone (Jack) was cute and all, my one critique is that I was expecting him to sing "Little People" from the London production of Les Miz because his accent was that overwhelming. It just didn't work for anyone playing Jack. I liked Tracey Ullman as his mother.

5. I liked how they made "Giants in the Sky" and "I Know Things Now" so that they were directed at the Baker instead of as monologue songs. I just don't know that I liked watching what happened after the Wolf ate Red. It seemed a bit cheesy and unnecessary.

6. My other critique is that "The Steps of the Palace" was changed to be first person and the time stopping aspect seemed weird. I can see why they did that, but it just didn't feel right.

7. "Agony" was a fun production. I think other people found it funnier than I did, but I still thought it was cute overall. I'm glad they didn't do the reprise as it would have taken away from the direction in which the movie was going.

8. Meryl Streep rocked the role of the Witch. I didn't know she had it in her, but I was pleasantly surprised. And she looked fabulous once the curse was broken.

9. I wasn't sure if I'd like Anna Kendrick as Cinderella, but she really was amazing. I hope she does as well in her role as Cathy in The Last Five Years.

10. I definitely cried a few times toward the end. I do for the stage version too, so the emotional quality did carry over well.

11. The effects and costumes were wonderful. I totally felt swept away into the world of the story. I also got a different perspective on things that couldn't be portrayed on stage as well as they could on screen.

12. While some songs were eliminated, it didn't take away from the story. I wouldn't have minded hearing "Maybe They're Really Magic," but that's okay.

13. I really liked James Corden as the baker. I had only seen him in one other movie prior to this one and liked him then too. He played the role in a different way than Chip Zien did, but he really made it his own and put so much charm and emotion into it.

14. My older son loved it and wants to see it again. And so do I! (We'll probably wait for DVD though.)

What's NOT to love?!?

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

This week Moma Rock chose the topic: Tell us about something you really love that others can't relate to.

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

A while back, I wrote about things other people like that I don't like. So it's interesting to turn the topic around. Especially since I'm so mainstream and like most of the same things other people do. Reading? Check. The Mindy Project? Check. Broadway musicals? Check. Ice cream? Check. The list goes on and on...

There are some things that I know I'm in the minority for liking though. Maybe not universally, but at least in my little world. :)

I'm sure I've mentioned this many times before, but I'm still as addicted as ever to Special K Vanilla Almond. I eat it every single day for breakfast. When the stores have it on sale, I stock up like it's going out of style. My husband used to eat it but he doesn't anymore. Maybe he became satiated? I can't start my day without a bowl of Special K. My quirk is that I don't put milk in it. I eat it dry with a cup of hot tea or orange juice. The only time I don't eat it is the week of Pesach. I wish they'd invent Kosher for Passover Special K Vanilla Almond. Then I'd be all set. Of course, that week of just makes me appreciate it even more.

I'm not obsessed or anything...

Next is country music. I know there are a lot of people in the world who love country music, but very few whom I know personally. I'm hard pressed to find someone to attend a Band Perry, Luke Bryan, or Lady Antebellum concert locally. I started liking country music during my senior year of college. After I graduated, I'd buy CDs of my favorite country artists and even went to a Dixie Chicks concert. I still prefer the country station to all other radio stations, no matter how many songs are about girls wearing jeans and riding in a truck.

I have very few friends who have both heard of and love the movies Moving Violations and Sing. I still love both movies so much for their comedic factor or their feel-good factor respectively. If you know me well enough, you know that I can't shut up about these movies. My husband has seen both, but he doesn't appreciate them the way I do. So having people to talk about either or both movie(s) is few and far between. Here are the trailers for both. If you're able to get your hands on either movie and watch them, I'd love to hear your thoughts!





Tell me about something YOU love that others don't appreciate.

Looking up or looking down?

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

This week Darwin Shrugged chose the topic: Bill Cosby is all over the news for his alleged inappropriate activities. Many people struggle with accepting that Dr. Huxtable could have done the things for which he is accused. So I ask this: Is there a celebrity scandal that would really upset you, simply because you love that celebrity/hold him or her in high esteem? Has it already happened? If there's no celebrity, is there a person in your real life like that?

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

A month or so before the big Cosby scandal became a news story, there was a situation in DC involving an Orthodox Rabbi. I don't want to go into all the details again and I don't really have a personal connection since I never went to his shul, but at the point in time of our shul choosing a new Rabbi, it's given everyone a lot to think about. And since it involved the mikvah, I'm definitely checking for anything out of the ordinary whenever I go to the one close to my house. I know the situation has affected people who used to go to that Rabbi's shul and the reactions could be seen as post-traumatic stress. I remember one of my friends posting on Facebook that she's not sure she'll be able to completely trust any Rabbi. Scary to think about since they're leaders for our faith. I've never encountered problems with any of the Rabbis whose shuls I've attended, and I hope I never have to come into such a situation.

Having said that, time to move on to celebrities. Obviously, I'm having trouble reconciling Cliff Huxtable with the accusations made against him. It seems so unreal (and not in a good way, obviously). I remember when people made accusations about Michael Jackson and his relationships with children. I don't know how much of it is true and don't really want to either. I was a fan of Michael Jackson when I was growing up, but eventually lost interest in his music. I think that was around the time people started turning against him. Here's a recent story of such accusations against him. What can even be done about it now that he's dead?

Then there's Pee Wee Herman's movie theater incident. Upon reading about it again, it was at an ADULT theater. He wasn't doing anything in front of kids, nor was he touching anyone except, allegedly, himself. What else do people do during adult movies? Isn't it expected that it would happen. I don't really see what Paul Reubens does on his personal time has to do with his character of Pee Wee Herman. It doesn't stop me from wanting to show my kids Pee Wee's Big Adventure. It was a funny movie and it came out before the incident anyway. Comedic actor Fred Willard was also arrested for a similar situation. The charges were dropped shortly afterward. I should probably hold him to the same standard that I hold Pee Wee to, right? For some reason, I keep picturing him as his character from A Mighty Wind and saying "Wha' happened?" while he was, to put it nicely, entertaining himself.




George Michael was also arrested for a lewd act in the late 90s. Except this was in a public bathroom. There's a time and place for everything, but it's harder to excuse this than something that happened in an adults only theater. Good thing I wasn't really interested in him at the time, but I still like Wham's music.

A few years ago, Kevin Clash (the voice of Elmo) was accused of sexual abuse. This past year, the charges were dropped. At the time, however, people were blaming Elmo, like he had some control over what happened to the guy who gives him a voice. I'm glad to hear the charges were dropped though.

There are certain celebrities that I would never want to hear about any scandals from. If that happened, it would be a travesty!

* I know Mr. Rogers has been dead for over 12 years, but if a scandal were ever dug up about him, that would completely turn everything on its axis. I recently heard from someone that he is as good of a person as he appears on his show, so that's a relief! I watched his show every day when I was a kid and still see him as this gentle guide when it comes to parenting and even talking to kids about the difficult things in life.

* As you know, I'm obsessed with The Mindy Project and feel that Mindy Kaling can do no wrong. If she ever tarnished her image, I would be extremely disappointed and would be questioning whom I admire going forward.

* While I don't watch Ellen DeGeneres on TV all that much, I still admire her. She's funny, generous, friendly, and--most importantly--the voice of Dory! She even got the Golden Tweet award and it was for something cute and fun. So I can't even imagine her doing anything scandalous or shameful.

* Candace Cameron was my TV best friend growing up and I even got to interview her at Chick Lit Central last year. She has good family values and always seems positive and encouraging. The fact that people had to pick her apart for how she keeps her marriage going strong only shows that there's nothing shady about her. Now her brother, on the other hand.... Let's just say Candace may be boasting about her religious beliefs, but she doesn't cram them down our throats or use them as ways to back up hatred of any population.

* I don't watch The Tonight Show, but I hold Jimmy Fallon in high esteem. I've always thought he was funny and talented. He had me at his impression of Adam Sandler. In any case, I've seen his rise to fame and there have only been good things about him in the news, magazine articles, etc. He loves to entertain and make people laugh and he seems like a total family man too. So I can't see him messing that up anytime soon, nor would I want to.

* My kids were into The Laurie Berkner Band for a while and my younger son even won a Skype chat with Laurie herself. She not only sings cute and fun songs that the whole family can enjoy without getting annoyed, but she's also really nice to all her fans and so down-to-earth too. I think Earth would fold in on itself if she ever did something unsavory.



* Finally, there's a semi-new TV dad whom I totally admire. That dad is Phil Dunphy from Modern Family, played by the ever-so-funny Ty Burrell. I really didn't think much of him when I first started watching the show. He was just another nameless, faceless, TV dad at the time. And he was being overshadowed by all the other equally funny and talented actors on the show. However, he managed to surprise me and win me over pretty quickly. And then I kept seeing him pop up in movies, whether he's a French detective in Muppets Most Wanted or a talking dog in Mr. Peabody and Sherman. These days, if Ty Burrell is in it, you know it's going to be good. I recently heard that he's going to do a voice in Finding Dory, starring the abovementioned Ellen DeGeneres. (He was even on her show this past year.) So, needless to say, I hope Ty stays on the good side of the news for many years to come because I really don't want to see Phil meet Cliff's fate.



What celebrity scandal would really upset YOU?

My kryptonite

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

This week Froggie chose the topic: Unimaginable

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

Chick Lit Central is currently hosting a giveaway of Dina Silver's latest novel, The Unimaginable. For a bonus question, I asked our readers what is unimaginable to them. One of them said "Life without books would be unimaginable." While I originally had something else in mind to write about, it was a heavier topic and I had trouble tackling it without somehow offending someone. However, this reader hit the nail on the head and I couldn't agree with her more! Take away books from the world and you have tortured me for life. Oddly enough, my son once said that if I ever get in trouble, a good punishment is to have someone take away all my books. (I'm sure the same could apply to him because he also loves to read!)

Anyway, I've talked about my love for books many times. They have been my salvation when I was growing up and dealing with bullies or not having many friends to hang out with. They've also been the reason I've met some of the friends with whom I'm currently close. I can't go a day without having a book to read! And I definitely can't imagine ever not having books in my life. That would be like taking away spinach from Popeye!

Thanks to a meme I found on Facebook recently, I was directed to Bookfessions. There I found some "bookfessions" that really spoke to me. I'm sharing a few of them here so you can truly see why books are so essential to my life.



* 794. People who hate to read scare me. Books have kept me alive.
* 1033. Books are essential to life.
* 1024. Reading has been constant in my life ever since I fell in love with it.
* 997. I actually can't remember a time when I could not read.
* 948. I own so many books that I ended up starting my own library system. (This actually does apply to me and a friend even gave me an embossing stamp for them!)
* 838. I never want to stop reading. I just want to linger on my adventures for as long as I can.
* 828. Being in a bookstore, surrounded by tons of books I want to read, is one of the best feelings I can have.

Having said all this, I want to do a book giveaway. It won't be as big as the giveaways at Chick Lit Central, but maybe it will give a book lover like me something for their collection or will inspire someone to read more often. Whatever the case may be, someone's going to win a book and I hope they'll enjoy it!

How to enter: Use the Rafflecopter. If you have any questions on how it works, please comment below with your contact info and I will e-mail you to answer them. If Rafflecopter is not working on this page, go here to enter.

a Rafflecopter giveaway


Worldwide (e-books will be sent to overseas winner)

My first, my last, my everything....

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

This week I chose the topic: Five Firsts and Five Lasts (you can choose whatever you want for each separately or do a comparison for each.)

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

When I read People magazine, I love the last page where they ask celebrities what their last of something was, such as the last time they laughed, spent money, had a dream, etc. It's a cool way to get to know them on a different level. Also, a while back, my blog idols Liz and Lisa asked their visiting authors about firsts and lasts. I was reading their questions and having a hard time coming up with my answers to them. However, I thought it would be a fun, and yet somewhat challenging topic for this group. I decided to go the comparison route.

(As of November 19th at 10:20 pm)

First movie I saw in a theater: Mary Poppins when I was about three years old, even though I was apparently scared of the dark and didn't want to stay. (At least my parents were smart and took me out instead of letting me cry a lot and ruin other theatergoers' experiences.)

Last movie I saw in a theater: Big Hero 6, which was fantastic! My three-year-old sat so well the entire time, so it was the other patrons who couldn't keep their kids from attempting to ruin everyone else's experiences.

First time I flew on a plane: My second trip to Florida for Disney World when I was six years old. My (late) maternal grandma came with us too.

Last time I flew on a plane: Home from my most recent trip to Disney World in 2013. While I was with my parents and sister for most of the trip, I also shared the experience with my husband and kids.

First thing I posted on Facebook: A bunch of pics of my older son when he was a toddler back in summer 2007, when we lived in NJ.

Last thing I posted on Facebook: A timehop pic of my first trip to DC. After going on this trip, I decided I wanted to move out to this area. Less than a year later and we had a house and established our lives here pretty quickly after moving in.
Side note: I love that the monument reflects in the pool. On my most recent visit to the Lincoln Memorial, it was too cloudy to get any reflection. 


First job: Babysitting. If that doesn't count, then the Chinese restaurant job.

Last job: The job I will be celebrating five years at in December....working for a local Jewish non-profit. It's amazing how much has changed in five years between staff coming and going and a new office space.

First thing I did this year: Played board games with some close friends of ours. This lasted until about 1:00 a.m. after 2014 started.

Last thing I did this year (as of tonight): Aside from writing this blog post, I watched Jane the Virgin. I'm an episode behind at the moment, but will be caught up soon. Such a fun show!

Movies that "dare to be stupid"

When I found out about the Stupid Movie Tour that was going to take place this month, I just had to get on board! I've enjoyed reading about everyone's choices and coming up with my own. Originally, I just had one movie in mind, but then I thought about a few others and didn't want to neglect them. So I will share a little bit about each one, along with a fun video clip or trailer. Enjoy!

Teen Witch

Something came to mind recently that made me think of this movie and brought back a slew of fun memories. Teen Witch is about Louise (played by Blake Lively's half-sister, Robyn), a girl who is pretty, but shy and not fashionable, so she's practically invisible. Then she learns that she's a witch and she uses her powers to help herself fit in at her school, learning some important lessons along the way. Not only is Teen Witch a movie, but it's also a musical! Of course, the music is super cheesy as is expected with late 80s films. (My friend and I would randomly sing "I Like Boys" while getting ready for dance class.) There's a hilarious scene involving this teacher who is always mean to Louise. I don't even want to say any more as to not spoil the fun. I think the main reason I liked this movie is that it spoke to my fantasy of becoming popular. Oh, how I wished I had magical powers so that I could get the jacket of my favorite rock star, which would be used to make me the most popular girl (see video below). I just thought life would be so much easier that way. However, I like the lesson she learned after becoming popular and almost losing her best friend, who looked very similar to one of my closest friends. I think her friend forgave her since she gave her special rapping powers earlier in the movie. Oh yeah, and Zelda Rubinstein from Poltergeist has a special role.




Grandma's Boy

This was actually the first movie that came to mind when I heard about this blog tour. I knew I definitely wanted to write about it. My husband and I saw it for the first time in 2006 and we couldn't stop laughing. We've seen it again since then. Sometimes, we'll just randomly quote lines from it. I think this is the only time I've seen Allen Covert in a starring role. And I'm surprised he only plays bit parts or secondary roles in other movies (my favorite being "10 Second Tom" in 50 First Dates). He's really funny and adorable as Alex, the video game programmer who has to move in with his grandma. Playing an equally funny secondary role as Alex's best friend, Jeff, is Nick Swardson, whom my husband and I only like because he played Terry on Reno 911. Anyway, there are a lot of really funny moments and quirky characters. The villain of the story is socially inept and talks like a robot all the time. Linda Cardellini is cute as Alex's potential love interest. Doris Roberts, Shirley Jones, and Shirley Knight are the icing on the comedy cake though. I think Grandma's Boy even inspired my husband to design his own video game. Given that this is a Happy Madison production, you know you're in for a treat. Check out the trailer:




UHF

Before Michael Richards was Kramer and Fran Drescher was the nanny, they starred along with Long Duk Dong in a classic late-80s comedy that takes TV to a whole new level. And best of all, it stars the one...the only...WEIRD AL! (Hence my subject line.) I can watch this movie over and over and laugh each time, as well as quote most of the lines along with it. There are great lines and puns ("Badgers? We don't need no stinkin' badgers!"), as well as hilarious parodies, such as the Beverly Hillbillies version of "Money for Nothing" by Dire Straits.

Really though, all the reason to watch this movie is right here:




Good Burger

"Welcome to Good Burger, home of the Good Burger. Can I take your order?" 

I first saw this movie when I was in college. The previews made it look pretty, um, cheesy. (My friend would even imitate Ed dancing around in the milkshake machine.) However, for a dollar at the second run theater, I figured it couldn't hurt to try it out. And you know what? I actually enjoyed it! It was funny with lots of slapstick moments, as well as an interesting plot. It's about this teen, Dexter, played by Kenan Thompson (who is now on SNL). He has to work at a burger joint to make money so he can pay back his neighbor, played by Sinbad. He's hoping to just do his job each day and get out of there. However, Ed, played by Kel Mitchell (who--kind of--disappeared after this movie), makes this more difficult by always getting underfoot and being his quirky and goofy self. (He's so convincing in his role that the New York Times thought he was a real fast food chain employee). Then he invents a sauce that gives them a huge boost in business, much to the chagrin of this more modern burger place across the street (along the lines of Fuddrucker's), run by the evil Kurt. Overall, it's a story about friendship and teamwork. Linda Cardellini (mentioned earlier for Grandma's Boy) even plays a small role in this movie before she became famous for Freaks and Geeks. I saw Good Burger again a few years ago and still found it just as funny and endearing as I did 16 years ago. I'm even excited to show it to my kids someday.

Check out this trailer and then "consider yourself tomatoed!"


What is your favorite stupid movie? Please share in the comments.

Visit Deb's blog on Friday for more stupid movie fun.
See the full tour schedule here.

Disney's Heroic Effort Pays Off

This past week, I went to see Big Hero 6 with my kids. I wasn't all that interested to see it at first, since it's about science and robots and has a Marvel Comics element to it. However, one of my friends who has similar tastes in movies posted that she loved it, so I decided to check it out. I'm SO glad I did!

Big Hero 6 is about a boy genius, Hiro, who graduates high school at age 13 and creates robots to use for Bot Fighting tournaments, in an effort to make money. His brother, Tadashi, inspires him to get into San Fransokyo University, which is accomplished by creating a unique contribution to technology. Hiro's efforts are rewarded, but then disaster strikes and everything he created is gone. With the help of Tadashi's health-care robot, Baymax, Hiro finds out that his creation is still in existence, but taken over by an evil villain who is intent on using it for his own purposes. Hiro gathers his friends, along with Baymax, to overtake the villain and get back what is rightfully his.

I loved everything about this movie, from characters, to art design, to music (and not typical Disney show-stoppers, but the songs playing as the action is going on). The story is clever and emotionally driven. There are a lot of action scenes, as well as comedic moments. I was laughing as much as my six-year-old son, if not more. I even cried at times.

I totally loved Baymax as a sidekick. He's funny and not annoying at all. What's amazing is that even without a mouth, he can still convey emotion. He's mainly created as a revolutionary healthcare device. I wish he were around when my son was having ear problems. He could have resolved the issue in no time! I love that he won't go away until Hiro is satisfied with his care. How often do health care professionals even ask that of their patients? It's such a simple question too. There's so much more to Baymax than what he appears to be and the result is incredible. He's definitely the source of most of the humor too.

The main song, "Immortals," is really good and goes well with the action scenes. It's sung by Fall Out Boy, even though I thought it was Adam Lambert until I saw the credits. (Shows how much I mix up rock groups and singers these days.) The marriage of Tokyo and San Francisco was really cool in terms of what they were able to do with scenery. Most of the character voices were not well known, but Maya Rudolph played Hiro's aunt, which I thought was cool. Alan Tudyk, who was the voice of King Candy in Wreck-It Ralph and played Wash on Firefly, also did a voice in this movie. Another fun fact: Scott Adsit, the guy who did Baymax's voice, is from a town near where I grew up.

What worries me is that because this is not a movie about princesses with memorable songs, it will fade into the background. I felt like Wreck-It Ralph did that, and I loved that movie too. I highly encourage everyone to see Big Hero 6 and stay all the way through the end for a special celebrity cameo visit.

All I can tell you for now is that I'm glad I braved the theater experience to see this on the big screen and that my three-year-old princess-obsessed daughter sat better than most of the bigger kids in the theater. She told me she liked it a lot too.

Here's a trailer:

The Grammar Police in the house

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

This week Moma Rock chose the topic: When you witness someone else making a mistake, what do you do? Do you believe it's a chance for lessons learned, or do you intervene?

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

I will admit I had a hard time coming up with what to say on this topic. It was so broad that I felt the need to narrow it down. And even then, it still felt like it could go so many ways. I didn't feel comfortable talking about witnessing personal, life-changing mistakes because we all make them in one way or another at different times. Then my older son had me check over his homework tonight and I got all obsessive over the spelling errors. I also read what the assignment was asking and felt he didn't do that, so I made him correct his work. He's in third grade and I want him to be accountable. I know my younger son's first grade teacher is more concerned about his handwriting and understanding how sentences work. However, third grade is more complex. My son is smart and is doing well in school, according to the parent-teacher conference I attended. However, I feel the need to correct his homework before his teacher sees it. I don't make the corrections, but I ask him to do it. I'm not as hard on my first grader with his homework, but I will still point out little errors that drive me crazy if they don't go corrected.

I'm not only the Grammar (and Spelling) Police with my family (and believe me, I've corrected my husband on things too), but also with friends. I have this mini-proofreader living in my brain and they won't leave me alone until I make sure errors are fixed at once. Don't even get me started on punctuation either. If I see so much as a comma out of place, I have to intervene! I'm sure I've annoyed people when I've pointed out spelling or grammar mistakes, but other people have appreciated it. I've been known to stand over someone and correct what they're writing as they are going along. I'm like the back seat driver of the writing world. One thing that frustrates me is when a book goes to final print and comes out with errors all over the place. If I were an author and those errors weren't caught before my book went to final print, I'd be fuming! Maybe some authors feel they just have to let it go and hope the readers aren't as obsessive as yours truly.

I don't know why I'm so obsessive about little errors or why it's so important that something looks right. Shouldn't I allow my kids to be kids and let their teachers correct them, if necessary? Why is it so important that their work be turned in with proper spelling and grammar? I feel that I'm preparing them for the future, where a little mistake could cost them in the long run. (I recently witnessed a mistake that could have cost someone a large amount of money, but thankfully the responsible party realized what they did and was able to stop it in time.) Having my kids be accountable for their work and how they present everything is a step in the right direction. After all, I don't want them to be Rachel Green and send off their resumes with a glaring error.

How qualified is OVERqualified?

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

This week Darwin Shrugged chose the topic: Can someone be overqualified for something?

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

When I think of the word "overqualified," I think of applying to jobs. Then again, I was usually told I didn't have enough experience for the job I was angling to get. How does one get experience if no one will give it to them in the first place?!? I don't know that I've been overqualified for any of the jobs I applied for, per se. Most jobs I've had required a learning curve of some sort. My husband has the kind of career now where he could be overqualified for certain positions. He's made his way up the IT ladder since he started out in the field. So he now even feels overqualified for a job that he had five years ago.

Oddly enough, in timing with this week's topic, I saw this article about a bestselling author who tried to get a job at The Container Store. Do you think her past jobs have rendered her overqualified? When is a job just a job?

I was thinking about the field of performing arts and how someone who is an established actor would be overqualified to be put in a movie as an extra without a speaking role. I also thought about someone who has had a professional career going for an entry-level position in their field. However, if someone wants to start fresh in a field where they have no base of familiarity, I wouldn't say they are overqualified if they don't have the experience in that field to begin with.

There are some jobs or careers where one can never be overqualified. This is because I feel they should have as many qualifications as possible to be the utmost successful.

Doctor: I think you should have every qualification in the book and also pick up new skills if you're going to be responsible for someone else's health and well-being. Case in point...my younger son had terrible ear pain a few weeks ago. His ENT (that is "ear, nose and throat" specialist) couldn't figure out that the ear wax that he even saw was causing the problem. That caused his pain to last longer than it had to and added inconvenience for us both.

Dentist: Same thing...if the health of my teeth is in your hands, you better have every qualification imaginable. I'm still impressed with my dentist's ability to fix the tooth I cracked earlier this year. You can't even tell anything happened to it!

Teacher: If you have too many qualifications, you could always be a professor instead. Seriously, education is so important that someone should know what they're talking about first before passing along that knowledge. Especially with this new "Common Core" stuff our kids are being taught.

Any job involving possible danger to self or others. Like a pilot, construction worker, electrician, etc.

Chef: If the success of a restaurant is depending on your cooking skills, you should be as qualified as possible.

Any job involving handling money. Otherwise we're putting our trust in someone who could lead us into another Ponzi scheme.

President or any other major leadership role. Do I even have to explain this one?

What jobs do YOU think someone can't possibly be overqualified for?

We've come a long way, ladies!

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

This week Froggie chose the topic: Feminism

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

The word "feminism" has been around for a long time. Longer than I've been in existence. However, I have always just looked at it as a concept instead of something that had a definition to it. It seemed so broad and all-encompassing. And I don't want to make generalizations or stereotypical labels on what I think a feminist is. So I decided to go straight to the dictionary Internet to get the real meaning.

Merriam-Webster defines Feminism as...

*The belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities

*Organized activity in support of women's rights and interests

Wikipedia defines Feminism as...

A collection of movements and ideologies aimed at defining, establishing, and defending equal political, economic, cultural, and social rights for women. This includes seeking to establish equal opportunities for women in education and employment. A feminist advocates or supports the rights and equality of women.

Having seen all this, it doesn't really put my feelings on feminism in one camp or the other. I can't say I define myself as a feminist, given these definitions, even though I'm obviously pro-women's rights. It sounds more like even if I do believe that women and men should be treated equally on the social, political, and cultural, and economic spectrums, I am not truly a feminist if I'm not marching in front of the White House holding a sign that says I believe these things to be important.

I do feel women have come a far way since the time our grandparents or even our parents were our age. Even though back in the day, some women were doing more than just being nurses or secretaries. Amelia Earhart flew a plane across the Atlantic Ocean! Still, women entrepreneurs and CEOs are more a thing of the present. There are women writing and directing films. Entertainment Weekly just put out an article about female producers who have become successful in Hollywood. I recently read another article about women under 30 who are taking the technology field by storm. So yeah, I'm impressed with how far women have come in terms of their career goals. However, until their paychecks show that they should be earning as much as men (if not more), women will constantly be fighting for such rights.

Since I am involved in the book industry, by way of being a blogger, I have noticed that female authors are taking a stand against not having their books reviewed because they are women. Jodi Picoult and Jennifer Weiner (two of my favorite authors) have spoken out about this in numerous articles. (See this one for example.) I've also seen women who still disguise their name in order to have their books noticed more.  J.K. Rowling didn't only go by her initials for the Harry Potter series, but she also wrote books for adults under a man's name. (Oddly enough, there are male writers who disguise their name so they can foray into women's fiction, so I guess it works in reverse too.) There are some great novels written by women and I am always proud to see them as bestsellers, movies, etc. It's not just about romance novels anymore.

I have to admit that when Froggie presented this topic, I felt overwhelmed. There really are a lot of directions I could take it in and I really don't have the time and motivation to write what could turn out to be a term paper by the time I was finished. All I can say is that women in my generation and in the next generations are forging paths for themselves and the women of the future who will need to pick up where we left off in order to show the world we mean business (and not just in the career sense).

These days, I'm just proud of my daughter who refuses to admit that she's pretty or cute, wants to do everything by herself, and holds her own when it comes to standing up to her brothers. If the future is in her hands (and the hands of girls like her), we have nothing to worry about!

Book Review: Leaving Time

For some reason, every time I think of the title of Jodi Picoult's latest novel, Leaving Time, I get the song "Closing Time" by Semisonic in my head. They have nothing to do with one another, but that's just what the title conjures up for me. (Then again, "you don't have to go home, but you can't stay here" makes me think of how I feel now that I'm done with the book. I can keep it in my head all I want, but I really need to move on soon or it will consume me. I'm just not ready to stop pondering over it just yet...) What's inside the covers is a reading adventure that you won't forget anytime soon.

I have to start off by saying that I'll post a short review with just some thoughts about the book in general and will then post spoilers for those who have read it and wish to discuss it with me at some point. (There may be spoilers in the comments, so don't look at them if you haven't read the book yet.)

First things first, the synopsis:

For more than a decade, Jenna Metcalf has never stopped thinking about her mother, Alice, who mysteriously disappeared in the wake of a tragic accident. Refusing to believe that she would be abandoned as a young child, Jenna searches for her mother regularly online and pores over the pages of Alice’s old journals. A scientist who studied grief among elephants, Alice wrote mostly of her research among the animals she loved, yet Jenna hopes the entries will provide a clue to her mother’s whereabouts.

Desperate to find the truth, Jenna enlists two unlikely allies in her quest. The first is Serenity Jones, a psychic who rose to fame finding missing persons—only to later doubt her gifts. The second is Virgil Stanhope, a jaded private detective who originally investigated Alice’s case along with the strange, possibly linked death of one of her colleagues. As the three work together to uncover what happened to Alice, they realize that in asking hard questions, they’ll have to face even harder answers.

As Jenna’s memories dovetail with the events in her mother’s journals, the story races to a mesmerizing finish. (Courtesy of Goodreads.)

Basic thoughts:

This is definitely a departure from Jodi's more recent novels. There are no courtrooms or ethical dilemmas to focus on. Instead, it's more of a mystery but with many different layers and voices. It reminds me a lot of one of my favorite books of hers, Second Glance. Both involve ghosts in some way, since in Leaving Time, Serenity Jones is a psychic who has connections with people who are deceased. Both talk about sacred areas of nature being taken over by humans. Both have a "cold case" aspect to them. And both are incredibly compelling stories.

I really liked the voices of the four main narrators of this novel. When I read the synopsis, I wasn't expecting Jenna to be a 13 year-old girl, but I've been more interested in reading perspectives of teens and pre-teens lately, given that some get snuck into the chick lit novels I've been enjoying. She's very mature for 13 anyway, which makes me forget that she's that young. With Alice, some of her chapters are just descriptive of elephants and their behavior, so it takes a while to get to know her for who she is, outside of what is going on with the elephants. That's when her part of the story really picks up. I would have liked to know more about Alice's relationship with her mother, as well as what her childhood was like. Based on the synopsis of her short story, Larger than Life, I may be able to get more information. (Here's what I was saying about not going home just yet...)  I was visualizing Jessica Chastain as Alice in the movie version. (Maybe because she was on the recent cover of Entertainment Weekly when I was reading this book.)

Serenity is just fascinating. I love learning about how she came into her psychic abilities and how they have affected her life. She's unforgettable in description with her cotton candy pink hair and her elaborate make-up. I definitely need to read the novella, Where There's Smoke, which focuses on her. I think it was written as a prequel. For some reason, I would picture her being played by Laverne Cox sometimes and Lisa Kudrow at other times. Finally there's Virgil. I wasn't expecting to like him at all, but it turns out that he has a soft side. I couldn't place his age and thought he was in his 50s, but apparently he was in his 30s. I kept picturing Jeremy Ratchford from Cold Case though. And even though Thomas wasn't a narrator, I was picturing Andrew Gillies (Orphan Black) as him when he's older. (Welcome to my mind...)

The only thing that weighed down the book a bit was all the scientific details about elephants. Some were fascinating, but it was more the emotional aspects. It would have been nice to have a glossary to explain some of the terms more in detail. I think I just had trouble keeping up with which elephant was which unless they had a prevalent role in the story, such as Maura. Some of the parts involving cruelty to the elephants were hard to read about. The elephant information reminded me of the wolf information in Lone Wolf. Both were very well researched though.

Overall, it was very hard to put this book down and even harder to stop thinking about it now that I finally have. If you've read it and want to hear the rest of my thoughts with SPOILERS included, keep reading. If you want to read the book and come back later to hear my thoughts in full detail, stop now and this post will be waiting when you get back. In the meantime, I'm going to share links for a few of Jodi's books and then those who want the spoilers can move down past this section.

My thoughts with SPOILERS included:

I first need to say that I saw the ending coming a long time before it did. When Jenna found her toddler-sized sneaker in the back of Virgil's car, that just spoke volumes to me. I immediately thought of a certain popular movie from 1999 and how that turned out. So I wasn't surprised when things unfolded the way they did. I will admit that the scene with Nevvie in the old rundown house threw me a bit. I was beginning to wonder if I was wrong.

I liked the Matrix-esque feel that came about when Jenna and Virgil started to realize they were both actually dead. And then you find out who else was actually dead...that just floored me. Knowing that Serenity was surrounded by spirits this entire time and she ended up talking to them out loud anyway because she thought that everyone she encountered was real? Well that was just priceless!

I have a hard time wrapping my head around the concepts of ghosts or spirits being able to have physical contact with the living world. It just doesn't work for me. Like where was all the evidence that Virgil was carrying around and having tested? Was that symbolically dead? How was he able to drive a car? Was it a virtual ghost car? Same with Jenna's bicycle crashing into Serenity's scrying bowl. And how Jenna was able to wear her mother's scarf and necklace. How were they eating all the food that Serenity ordered at the diner? Or was that make-believe ghost food? And how do they age if they're dead? Wouldn't they be frozen at the age in which they died? Or is it like Serenity said in relation to seeing her deceased mother, that ghosts can come back in a form that they want people to see them in. I recently read another story involving a ghost being able to connect physically with the living and their objects. So it's not just Jodi putting this stuff in her story.

Thomas' situation reminded me of A Beautiful Mind. In the end, I just felt bad for him. He really was a victim in some ways, both of his own head and of Alice cheating on him, which lead to the eventual death of his daughter.

I'm still reeling from the whole situation surrounding Jenna's death and disappearance. Being the mother of a three year-old, it freaks me out even more. It was so heartbreaking. And the way it happened was terrible, like a nightmare. I couldn't believe Nevvie would take an innocent life just to avenge her daughter's suicide. How spiteful can one get that they would resort to murder? I think I'm reeling from that the most. Just the way everything happened. I can't even imagine what Alice must have been feeling. Just horrifying.

I'd love to discuss this story with anyone who has read it so that they were able to make it to this point in the review without yelling at me for ruining the plot.

Disclosure of Material Connection:
Some of the links in this post are “affiliate links.” This means if you click on the link and purchase the item, I will receive an affiliate commission. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will add value to my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

In it to win it

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

This week I chose the topic: Have you ever won anything? If so, tell us about it. If not, tell us about something you'd love to win.

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

Over the past few years, I've not only been giving away books, but I've also entered a lot of book giveaways. There have been times when I actually won a book or two...or three. It thrilled me to no end each time that happened. A few of my favorite book prizes were The Brightest Star in the Sky by Marian Keyes (from Novel Escapes), Fly Away Home by Jennifer Weiner (from a contest Sarah Pekkanen was having and she liked my idea the best at that time), The One that I Want by Allison Winn Scotch (from Manic Mommy...it was even signed!), Stay by Allie Larkin (from this website about dogs) and The Love Goddess' Cooking School by Melissa Senate (her son picked my name at random on Facebook). I've won numerous others, but those giveaways stick out to me for some reason. I've also won bookstore gift cards a few times, which has been nice. I remember winning one for $50 from Josie Brown a few years ago. I was thrilled!

I wouldn't say I've always been this lucky at winning stuff. The times I'd win something would be few and far between. I remember how hard it was to place at any level at speech tournaments. When I placed third for Verse Reading during sophomore year, I was over the moon. I placed a couple of times during senior year, but third was my highest. (Somehow I still liked doing speech team anyway. I think it was for the flirting aspect.) During junior year, I didn't get cast in any plays, but I assistant directed two of them and had a lot of fun doing that. At the end of the year, during the theater awards ceremony, I was elated to hear my name called out as one of the recipients of the Len Gustin Theater Service Award. I didn't see that coming at all and was so pleased to have won it.

I've won radio contests a few times, which is definitely a challenge. (There's that nervous feeling when the phone actually rings but then I just end up being caller number eight.) The biggest of the prizes was tickets to see Alanis Morissette and Barenaked Ladies in concert (10 years ago). Otherwise, I just got keychains and T-shirts for knowing random trivia.

A couple of years ago at work, our names got put into a raffle every time we actively participated in the database training program (like by answering questions correctly out loud). At the end of all the sessions, they chose a name and guess whose it was. Yep! I got a $50 Visa gift card and used it to buy a pair of boots (just for fashion, not for walking in snow). I always enjoy winning little things like this and am usually pleasantly surprised when it happens because I feel like it hardly ever does.

Even though I've won things, I'd like to talk about something I'd LOVE to win. While a large sum of money would be very much welcomed, I'd actually love to win a writing contest, either fiction or personal essay. I've entered a few in the past year or two, but haven't won any yet. I did get an honorable mention for the fiction piece I wrote this past summer and they sent me a swag package. I feel like my biggest success with writing, thus far, was during senior year when a play I wrote was published in the school's literary magazine and two different people directed it for directing class. That was 20 years ago and I think my writing skills have become more fine-tuned since then. (At least I hope they have.)

Since I like when people win things, I'm going to do a little giveaway right here for some random swag (and maybe even a book...) Just comment below and tell me about something you'd love to win. Please include your e-mail address or a way to reach you if you win. (US/Canada only. Ends October 30th at midnight EST.)

Fair(ly cold) weather friend

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

This week Moma Rock chose the topic: What are some of your favorite colder weather traditions?

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

Our Sukkah a.k.a. The French Bistro

I absolutely love autumn. It's my favorite season. The nip in the air reminds me that it's time to start wearing long sleeves and even--gasp!--sweaters! This past week, we celebrated Sukkot. To me, it's no fun to eat in a sukkah unless the weather is brisk and you can truly enjoy a hot bowl of soup while sitting under the stars. (One year, Sukkot was during a particularly hot week and the heat just took away the feel from the holiday.)

Every autumn, my husband makes Journey's End soup at some point. It's this hearty vegetable soup that we would eat at this restaurant in Illinois that we enjoyed visiting frequently. Since the restaurant was called Journey's End, we naturally had to name the soup after it once we got the recipe and he replicated it perfectly. Of course, the experience is not complete without some oyster crackers.

In the past, we used to take trips to check out the fall colors. We haven't done it as often as we did in the past, but we need to start that tradition again. It's really hard to impress my kids when it comes to just being out in nature and if the leaves aren't in a pile to jump in, they could care less.

I tend to bake more in the winter, especially on snow days, when there's nothing better to do. I also love stocking up on Candy Cane Joe-Joe's at Trader Joe's. They're like Oreos with little pieces of peppermint in the cream filling. So so SO good! And no winter is complete without hot cocoa and mini-marshmallows.

YUM!!!

Our street during
Snowmageddon '10

Winter is usually mild out here and schools tend to close when there's barely an inch of snow on the ground. I prefer there to be enough snow to send my kids out to play and allow them to enjoy building snow castles, sledding down our hill, and having snowball fights. Sometimes I even join in. One year, we had an insane amount of snow here (a.k.a. Snowmageddon) and everything was closed for a week. We'd go to our neighbor's houses for meals or have them over here. It was a fun week of bonding, even though the kids got restless after a while during the day.

While we don't have any set-in-stone autumn/winter traditions, we do look forward to Thanksgiving and Hanukkah. (Of course, they were at the same time last year.) New Year's Eve is pretty low key, but we're happy to spend it with close friends who live nearby. I'm just looking forward to the simple pleasures of the season overall.

"So much fun-ukah to celebrate Hanukkah..."

The Curse of the Non-Ghosts

Sometimes I only get the chance to blog once a week. And since I can't always get up the motivation to think of a topic, it's nice to have other friends to blog with so we can take turns. I enjoy being challenged to write about stuff that might not normally come to mind and also reading everyone else's thoughts on the same topic. Blog Project 3.0 has been going on for about a year now, even though one of the group members changed after a few months. I love blogging with this group and I hope we can continue to inspire each other.

This week Darwin Shrugged chose the topic: Ghosts

First, read what everyone else had to share on this topic:
Darwin Shrugged
Froggie
Moma Rock

Darwin Shrugged certainly has good psychic timing with her topics. When she suggested "Ghosts," I just happened to be reading Haunted Ever After by Juliet Madison. It's like a cross between Twenties Girl by Sophie Kinsella and the movie Over Her Dead Body starring Eva Longoria (based on what I saw from previews). I'm enjoying it so far, but it reminds me how I have had absolutely no encounters with spirits from another realm. I sometimes hear noises in my house, but can't imagine that it would be haunted. Honestly, when I first was given this topic, I thought of two funny stories that hint at ghosts, but don't quite get to that level.

When I was at overnight camp with my BFF, some other girls in our cabin made a Ouija board and decided to see if they could channel any spirits. It was the middle of the afternoon and we were all sitting in our counselor's side of the cabin while a couple of the girls were trying to communicate with someone from above. At one point, it felt like they were getting somewhere and then we heard a loud voice say "HELLO EVERYBODY!" We were all freaked out! I think everyone screamed. Then we realized it was someone announcing that it was time for dinner. Such crazy timing, right?!?

About a year later, I was babysitting for the kids I regularly looked after on Saturday nights. One night, I kept hearing a kid yell "Mommy, Mommy!" When I went to check on the kids, they were either sound asleep or laying there calmly trying to settle down for the night. I asked the older kid if he was calling for his mom and he denied it. I kept hearing the voice though. I finally figured out it was coming through the baby monitor and shut it off. I figured I'd just check on the kids every so often. When the parents got home, I explained what happened and they said that the monitor was switched to another channel and picking up signals from a neighbor. Still...pretty scary at the time!

While those are fun and harmless stories, I got to thinking about the other ghosts who haunt me. These are also non-ghosts, as they are still alive, as far as I know. However, they are no longer a part of my life, nor am I a part of theirs. I don't need to get into reasons, but that's just how it is with some people. They still find ways to get to me, such as visiting me in my dreams, being around on social media, having doppelgangers in other towns, etc. Either it's because of unresolved issues as to why we're not connected anymore or things just ended badly and couldn't be fixed no matter what. All I know is that these people still manage to haunt me, no matter how hard I try to get them completely out of my mind. I don't have room for them in my mind to begin with and am not sure why they still try to make their presence known when it's not welcome. It's times like these that I wish I could do something similar to Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind. However, I wouldn't want to forget other little details from the time periods when I knew these people, such as books I read, movies I watched, other friends I hung out with, etc. I just hope that we can all make peace on this realm so that they can finally exit my subconscious once and for all.

There are some people in my life who have passed on already and I wouldn't mind being haunted by them, especially my late maternal grandma and my late paternal grandpa. I figure this would be the best way for them to see what I've been up to and meet their namesakes. If that ever happened, I would just want them appearing as young and vibrant again.

July, 1998: Late maternal grandma at left and
late paternal grandpa standing next to me

Do you have any ghosts...or non-ghosts?