Theme Thursday: Thankful (Obviously)

Oh what a Thanksgiving. What a thankful kind of Thursday. 

We started our sunny November holiday with some Monkey Bread for breakfast and watching the parade. I'm not huge on parades in general but I do love Macy's I sure do. 

We are thankful that tomorrow we will go back to our house and leaving these two cuties. 

 They look so sweet and innocent but man they take a lot of energy. One of us however is going to be really sad to lose his playmates.

 
He loves playing with Jess and throwing the tennis ball around for her. He gets all giggly and excited and they tire themselves out which is good for everyone. Look at how excited he is?

I am thankful for both guys in my life. I cannot imagine what my life would be without them. I thankful for Skype and being able to talk to my family who I couldn't see in person. Modern technology is pretty great sometimes.

Since it was just the three of us we opted for the non-traditional Thanksgiving fare because a whole Turkey or Ham wouldn't be sensible. So we had ribs, Oh-No Potatoes (a delicious family recipe that I LOVE) and cornbread casserole. 

 It was delicious. We followed it up with a completely wonderful pineapple upside down cake.

Happy Thanksgiving from all of us to you! We hope you had a wonderful day spent the way you wanted!

WWRW: Really What I'm Reading

I'm not sure if Jessica is hosting this week but I've really enjoyed the reflection of my reading on Wednesdays so I am going to write either way.

Last week, I was fortunate enough to win Dynamic Catholic over at Annery at Home. And because we are local she dropped it off for me, which even though it was a total of 30 seconds (she had her girls in the car and I was in the process of wrangling a C into clothes for an errand) it marked my first blogger meet up. So that was pretty darn cool!!

So we've been dog sitting right? It's funny, the only other Matthew Kelly book I've read is Rediscovering Catholicism, and it was the last time we were dog sitting in August 2012. Isn't that a hoot? So I've been delving into Dynamic Catholic. This week I am going to take full advantage of the word "reading" because despite my best efforts, I am not finished due in part to taking on 2 canines.

But so far Kelly is proving to be the same writer I knew and coming up with great actions to become dynamic. So far he has provided realistic expectations to provide growth. It's not all jump in the deep end of becoming engaged in your faith but it does offer suggestions and key ideas. Which is good I think. I certainly could be more engaged and I look forward to finishing the book and encouraging my journey.

If you were to ask me what else I've been reading lately the answer would be board books. Lots and lots of board books. And I'm sure I'm going out on a limb but my post won't determine whether or not you decide to read Goodnight Moon for the umpteenth time. I mean, certainly we all like saying goodnight to mush but either you read Goodnight Moon or you don't.

Anyway, have a delightful Wednesday prepping for Thanksgiving. I actually have only one thing to prep today. But we are going the mostly non-traditional way as far as food goes and well, there's only 3 of us to feed. That sure takes a lot of stress out of it.

Oh. If you read this post, could you take a minute to say a prayer for Beth and her sweet baby girl? Beth was my very very first blog I ever read with regularity. Her kid's antics got me through grad school and led me to blogging myself. She has just been on my heart and she needs some prayer warriors.

Puppies and 18 months

Eh, I feel like blogging but I don't really have a lot to say. I know that's really exciting.

We've been dog sitting for Husband's canine cousins Gable and Jess. Pretty awesome. Well... Jess is a puppy still, less than a year. In Yellow Lab standards she's almost full grown, maybe she is full grown, I'm not their owner so I don't really know. And on some levels it's fun, the big house, cable television and other things like that. Oh and as a special bonus when I dropped the relatives off at the airport I got to drive the Lexus. That was pretty sweet.

But on the other side it's like having 2 toddlers. Jess and C are needy. Though they do entertain themselves for the most part which is cute. This however is reaffirming our decision to not be pet people. We just are not cut out to be dog owners. But it's nice to hang with them occasionally.

We are gearing up for Thanksgiving. It's just going to be the 3 of us and we're still in debates on the food. I'm sure we'll figure it out before Thursday though. I am excited to watch the parade in my pajamas and have a special breakfast with my boys. (Jury is still out on what that's going to be too.)

C had his 18 month old check up yesterday, it went well. I can't believe my baby is a year and a half old! That's almost 2 people. Which is too old already!! Every day he surprises me with something which is the best part of parenting I think. At his checkup we could hear a little baby crying and I he looked at me and said sweetly "cry." He was concerned for the baby. So sweet. And when Nurse Sherry came in for the pokes he knew and started whimpering during the alcohol swab, poor sweetheart.

But he is right on track developmentally which is good, I think any parent worries a little (or a lot) about that. I just can't stand that he is so big already. I just want to hit pause.

Life is pretty good I think. And Advent starts on Sunday. I cannot wait!!

Catching Fire

You guys. I went with my friend to see The Hunger Games Catching Fire last night. (We went at 8:45. Neither of us was crazy enough to stay up for a midnight release these days.)

The movie was emotional. Captivating. Beautiful even. Honestly I thought the book was the weakest of the trilogy. This movie was not only better than the first but also possibly better than the book?!?!

It was so good. Stanley Tucci and Lenny Kravitz are amazing. Just amazing. Go see this movie. Well if you know what's going on go see it. If you haven't seen the first one I maybe wouldn't just dive in to this one.

But otherwise go.

Theme Thursday: Shaming

This is kind of a big week for me. Shaming became an official Theme Thursday Theme after Rebekah's comment and my prompting. So that's pretty cool. Plus I am the featured blog of the month over at Cari's. Now, she just went alphabetical and all but it's still more than kind of awesome.

So you'd think I'd rise to the occasion and bring you the best Theme Thursday in the history of ever. But alas, alack. I spent all week trying to come up with something GREAT! And I said "shaming" so many times in the past week that it started to sound like:

Do you watch The Big Bang Theory? I love it. Some of the humor is a little crude which is not my thing but the smart humor makes up for it. It just makes me smile. Plus the Barenaked Ladies wrote and sing the theme song so that is a bonus. 

In self shaming I give you: 

I made 5 different kinds of Chex Mix. It looked awesome. It tasted awesome. Yet what you see above is the truth. No photo evidence of the Chex Mix. The birthday cake one stole the show. It's delicious I tell you. Pinterest rocks occasionally rather than being a source of shame. 

And I know I said that the research told me that shaming children is basically one step above the worst thing you can do but sometimes toddlers are proud. Plus he's funny. And we totally lost the button after it fell out. The replacement remotes are $20 too. Rigby is a rip-off! Bonus points if you know that reference. So the point is we are going to make do with the missing button. My pinkie can get right in there anyhow. 

So on this delightful Theme Thursday I am linking up with the great and powerful Cari. And have you checked out her new blog design? Pretty snazzy. 

It's the Holiday season. So Whoop-dee-doo!

It's Touchy Topics Thursday! (I just made that up. Seriously.)

All the blogs. All the memes. All the news stories.

“If you shop on Thanksgiving you are part of the problem.”

And yeah, okay on the surface that makes sense. Thanksgiving is a day set aside for the entire country to be thankful and spend time with family. Maybe a big meal. Maybe not. Either way it is a bonus day of rest the government has so thoughtfully given to everyone no matter their religion, race or creed. Then all these horrible corporations are having huge discounted sales and forcing their employees to work and give up their holiday. And if you dare to shop you are just encouraging the corporations to do that to their employees over and over again.

I get it.

But let’s look at the flip side for just a second. Thanksgiving is just a Thursday. I know it’s a holiday and all that, but it isn’t a Holy Day. There is no required Mass. And even if there was, the church doesn’t state how we spend the rest of the day. Thanksgiving is no different than Memorial Day, Fourth of July or Labor Day. But nobody makes a fuss about people working and the corporate sales on those days.

I’m not entirely sure why Thanksgiving is so sacred in people’s minds. It has never been my favorite holiday. Sure the sentiment is nice, being thankful. But let’s be real. Aren’t we supposed to be thankful 365 days a year? I am. And I have never liked turkey. PLUS it’s a Thursday. And if your company is mean, (like every company Husband has ever worked for.) you have to go back to work on Friday. Which severely limits the traveling plans for us and I’m sure many others in our same shoes. 

Oh yeah, then there’s the fact that in theory when you see your family for Thanksgiving you have a high chance to turn around and see them all again in four-ish weeks for Christmas. Canada has it right. Thanksgiving is in mid-October. On a Monday. Boom! 3 day weekend to be thankful. Far enough removed from Christmas that you can replenish your small talk subjects and burn off the calories in order to do it all again.

But whatever. This post isn’t about the merits of Thanksgiving as it is clearly SO IMPORTANT. And I don't even disagree with that even if I don't think it's all that and some gravy.

I will move on to Black Friday invading Thanksgiving Thursday. If you don’t want to shop? Don’t. Personally, there are very few things at a deep enough discount for me to determine standing outside in a line is worth it. I've done it before. I don’t really have plans to this year. But for society as a whole it actually makes sense for the shopping to happen on Thursday. Because a lot of people don’t have to work. So they have time.

But Madeline, think about those poor employees and single mothers who are forced to work at Target and Wal-Mart on Thanksgiving to put food on the table. I've been there. When I worked for the giant cell phone company customer service I worked on holidays. It wasn't the most fun time I've ever spent. But the company tried. There were prizes and games and ways to be festive just for being there. And the money was fantastic. 8 hours of holiday work was the pay of 20 hours. That was my entire Christmas budget right there. In one day. Plus the company was very upfront about it when I was hired.

I don’t imagine anyone who works at Wal-Mart or Best Buy is overly shocked when come “the holiday season” they work on holidays. (Especially seasonal employees.) And the money they earn just might be worth the people clamoring to get cheap stuff. I know with the economy many people are stuck between a rock and a hard place when taking these jobs initially, so some may not be happy about working on Thanksgiving but feel “forced” to. To these individuals I say, thank you for sacrificing for your family to provide for them.

As it happens many places have taken the rush (literally and figuratively) out of Black Friday shopping. They hand out coupons in line so there’s no question who gets what hours before the doors open. This makes it safer for the employees as well which I am sure is appreciated. 

Okay Madeline, they are compensated for working on these holidays, but what about the precious time with their family? Everyone deserves a day with their family! I agree. I do. But who says they’re not spending time together? 

If they don’t have to be to work until 4:00 PM perhaps they had their Thanksgiving meal earlier. In Husband’s family Thanksgiving is OVER by then because the farmers have to go do chores. (They work every day, there’s no such thing as a holiday for them.) Or perhaps they aren't seeing their family on Thanksgiving proper, maybe the best day for everyone to get together is on Sunday after church. What if they have no family? And Thanksgiving just makes them sad? Why can't they make a little money while not feeling so alone?

And to address the shoppers who “should be home with their families,” I also know families where they all go shopping together, that’s how they celebrate. And staying up a little late (and when stores open at 8:00 PM that’s not even that late.) might be better for some than waking up early.

All I’m saying is there is a flip side to the “rampant consumerism ruining holidays” argument. If the world is clamoring for Thanksgiving to be sacred they should be arguing the same for the other holidays. Yet somehow the turkey dinner is deemed more important than the barbecues of summer. I don’t know why. 

This year my little family will be hanging out just the three of us. And I am pretty excited for it. And I'm not going shopping, but only because I think there's nothing worth battling crowds for. We will be thankful and grateful together. But we won't begrudge those who do. They're just celebrating differently than us. 

WWRW: It's a Trapp

I don't know what it is. But The Sound of Music is everywhere.

I think it all started when I say what GI Kids was reading 2 Wednesday's ago. But since then it's just been insane.

Ignoring the fact that the radio station somehow thinks "My Favorite Things" is a Christmas song is one thing. (And just because she says sleigh-bells and snowflakes, I think we can all agree, does not a carol make.)

Then the whole hype about NBC's live televised Carrie Underwood stage version. The stage version is different from the movie. I cannot stress this enough. The Baroness has songs. There is no "Something Good." and "My Favorite Things" starts out between Mother Abbess and Maria, not during a storm. I'm not saying it won't be good. I'm just saying it's going to be different and you should know that. Also all the ads say how it this is unprecedented. It isn't. In the 50s they did live versions of musicals on TV all the time. But I digress.

Then a friend posted this on the book of face and I about died from laughing. So funny. 19, 23 and 29 are my favorite.

Then even Cari got into the game by posting one of Ken's bitstrips.

So what I'm saying here is that The Sound of Music is everywhere. It is. But I couldn't immediately download The Story of the Trapp Family Singers. So I had to old school order it. But I could get Yesterday, Today and Forever. So I did. How bad could it be right? It's about the Trapps. And I love them.

I was blown away. This was not just a revamp of the movie I know and love. This was an in depth expose of Maria, her family and their love of Jesus. She weaves personal thoughts, anecdotes and stories with passages from the Bible and how she developed a lasting relationship with Jesus. And all from a Catholic perspecitive. (Let's be real, she was going to be a nun. If you didn't know that already you've been living under a rock.) 

Throughout the book, she asks questions of the reader and herself in order to develop a strong foundation in her faith, which she does. Trapp obviously takes some license in the interpretation of passages, but always shows you her process in getting to that point. On top of the fact the book is thought provoking and inspiring, it is also eloquently written. 

Then the library called and The Story of the Trapp Family Singers was in. So I went and got that one. It is similar to Yesterday, Today and Forever. Some of the stories are the same (How could they not be?) but The Story of the Trapp Family Singers was more in depth about the story and less about faith.

I imagine that in the right time period Maria Augusta Trapp would have been a Catholic Moms of Many blogger. Her writing style is concise and she knows when the reader needs to laugh and when a reader can gain a solid message from her.

This book is just wonderful. But again I was the precocious 8 year old who would debate the merits of ever song in the movie and be aghast at people who honestly thought "Climb Every Mountain" was the best song. Oh goodness. The passion I had for The Sound of Music.In April, for Husband's birthday we even went to see it on the IMAX screen where it was playing as a special series. It was C's first movie in a movie theater. And yes, Husband wanted to go see the movie, more than I even did. And I have to say, it's really spectacular on the big screen. I've seen that movie dozens of times and there were still new things I noticed when it was big.

Anyway if you are looking for a book, I would recommend either of these. Maria Augusta Trapp has a good story to share. From a Catholic perspective however, I'd go with  Yesterday, Today and Forever. Because it's a book about people you already care about. The Trapp Family and Jesus. Just doesn't get more interesting than that.

I am linking up with Jessica over at Housewifespice because I like to read. I like to find out what you're reading and quite often I'm going to take your suggestions!

Getting Ready to Host Book Club

Tonight is Book Club!

I am pretty darn excited to be hosting this month, especially because it is the last one of 2013.

The book we I picked was Hotel on the Corner of Bitter and Sweet by Jamie Ford. You can read my thoughts on it here. I have a list of discussion points all ready to go, if people have actually read the book. You can never tell with these gals. Obviously part of the fun is snacking and chatting but I do hope I was able to pick a discussion worthy book.

But the snacks are important too. Yes. Yes they are. I am having a buffet of Chex Mixes!! Last night we made three out of the five mixes.

We are having The Original and Delicious Party Mix. (Without the nuts partly because I forgot to buy them and partly because I don't really like nuts. Okay, I forgot to buy them and decided I didn't care because I don't like them.)

Rounding up the salty snack side we also have Cheesy Ranch Chex Mix. Featuring Pretzel, Baby and Parmesan Goldfish. It looks very fun with the little fishies swimming in a sea of squares.

There is no other word to describe Funfetti Puppy Chow other than tasty. It's funfetti. It's puppy chow. It's tasty. Make this for your next event. Sprinkles go with anything.

Still on the docket we are set to make the Classic Puppy Chow. They can call it Muddy Buddies all they want. But you know, and I know that it is Puppy Chow. I'd ask who doesn't love peanut butter and chocolate together but I was just recently informed of one such person. Doesn't matter. More for me. (And the book club guests.)

Red Velvet Chex Party Mix is a new one to me, but one I am really looking forward to. It is a slightly different process to make than the other three but I imagine it is going to be good. I hope it makes me want to cut into an armadillo. Because if it does... so much easier than creating an armadillo let's be honest.

Tomorrow I'll give each version of Chex Mix a grade.

Simba, Sebastian and Peter! (Okay Lilo was there too.)

Once upon a time, in the land I live in, Disney on Ice comes to town every year around the holidays. While I wouldn't say we are Disney fanatics, we are certainly Disney lovers and have started our own little tradition of going to the show. So Saturday night we continued the long standing tradition and went to Disney on Ice as a family for the second time.

After hitting the ATM and the gas station we headed over the bridge to the arena. After driving around looking for a free place to park we decided to just park in the ramp. We got ROCKSTAR parking in the ramp. It was the first of many good things to come. On the way in we bought a Donald Duck stuffed animal to match his Mickey from last year. There were many different things to choose from but luckily he was pleased with the souvenir we picked out for him.

While you probably can't tell from the pictures we are all in Mickey shirts. I questioned this while we were getting dressed but went with it. Lemme just say we were tame compared to some of the Disney get ups. Clearly some people used Disney on Ice as an excuse to use the Halloween costumes again.

We bought the same exact seats as last year. We like them. They are the first row of cheapy-seats, but since our child is 17 months old and was going to enjoy it regardless it doesn't matter where we sit. Another perk of cheap seats is we had the entire section to ourselves. Meaning we could have moved closer but we like rules and all that. (Really I was nervous that my wiggly dude would have jumped over the railing. There was a little boy in the section next to us and I thought he was for sure going over.)

My guys. I have a similar picture from last year. 

Having the section to ourselves was also good because the wiggle worm could climb the steps and use his new found outdoor voice and it just doesn't matter one bit. We weren't bothering anyone. It was especially fun during the intermission for him to run the top row. (With Husband close by of course. We like him to explore the world but don't think I'm so easy going I'd let a 17 month old loose in a stadium.)

This is the best picture of the two of us. He just wanted to take it all in.

He LOVED the show. He liked it last year too but this year he really got into it. He waved to Mickey every time he was on the ice. And I am incredibly biased but it was adorable. He liked the music and at the end there were indoor fireworks so that was pretty cool. He did switch between his seat, both laps and standing but with a snack cup of baby Goldfish crackers, a bag of fruit snacks and his water bottle he did great.

This was during the Lilo and Stitch Segment.
 As it happened we just watched this movie on Daylight Savings Night.

The show itself from my perspective wasn't as good as last year but it was still Disney and I liked it. C really hadn't seen many of the featured movies, just Lilo and Stitch. I had him during the Peter Pan parts and he had seen enough of Jake and the Neverland Pirates to make that interesting. But Disney is good with music and spectacle which makes any toddler happy. I'm looking forward to next year already! 

Theme Thursday: Cold

Monday was one of those days where fall and winter crashed into each other and neither had enough strength to battle it out for long. That snow is still there, barely but it's there, arguing that winter is in fact approaching. Those leaves are hanging on there in a vain attempt to pretend October hasn't past. The bone chilling temps since then confirm otherwise.

It was a cloudy snowy day anyway but was just getting dark enough for lights to pop up outside. Darkness was invading slowly, but just around the edges where it doesn't matter yet. And suddenly the Schwan’s man was there because the moment clearly called for frozen food as well. But really, what moment doesn't call for an ice cream treat?

There is no other word to describe this. It was cold. 

Cari our fearless leader is out today so this week we're all linking up with Mary Kate. 

Join us next week with official shaming. It should be a hoot.

WWRW: An Ode to Mo

Way way back many centuries ago... okay more like 2006, Husband and I went shopping at Barnes and Noble. I think, like anyone with eyes, it was really more accurately "spend an hour browsing and end up with more than you expected and maybe even justify your sudden new finds by not getting the thing we came for which was really more of a splurge than this book we HAVE to HAVE." Or are we alone in that Barnes and Noble disease?

We were still in college then. Husband as a graphic design major has a very specific style that spoke to him. I think most designers do. (I wonder if any other wives of graphic designers have adopted their husbands design style in their heads as "good" like I have?) And as we were browsing I happened across a book and it overwhelmed me.

It had the right design elements. It was smart. It was a little snarky. And it was funny. It was also for children. Don't get me wrong--we LOVE children's books. I just couldn't justify buying them. But for Christmas or my birthday or some other gift giving holiday there it was.

Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus. Oh that Mo Willems. How I love that Pigeon. Over the next year or so we managed to collect them all. It became our thing so much that Husband wound up getting permission from Mo's publisher to use:

The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog for his first partner scene at ACTF. (Long story, not relevant.) And my mom bought us Pigeon shirts for Christmas. 

We are at that ACTF here, young, goofy and ridiculous.
You can see a smidgeon of the pigeon on my shirt.

So it's really no wonder to me at all that C is OBSESSED with Pigeon. We have most of them. We had them all but somewhere Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus and Don't Let the Pigeon Stay Up Late were misplaced. Which is really sad because "The Bus" had a very sweet inscription in it from Husband. But don't worry. They are coming back to us again at home this Christmas. Joining their friends. 

This is C's most favorite currently.

C loves Pigeon SO much that 90% of the time they are up on a high shelf because they would be the ONLY books he would read and we don't want him to damage them. Luckily we also have the 2 board book Pigeons and those stay in rotation all the time. He loves them. They are also VERY easy to memorize so reading them from the front seat while he turns the pages is a breeze. 

One of the board books. 

The other board book. See how they say a smigeon of pigeon?
That's too good a line for me to have come up with.

 But our love for Mo doesn't end there. We have some Elephant and Piggy books as well as Naked Mole Rat Gets Dressed. Which is a delightful book. Witty and fun.

We've read the Knuffle Bunny books but up until now they have just been library books. So imagine my joy when I noticed the other day what was available for presale? 

It's due out in April. Which is Husband's birthday month. I am sure you can't guess what he's getting. 

Mo captures everything I need in a picture book. There are a lot of inane books out there, books I know I loved as a child but that are not as much fun for the adult to read. But these books, are enjoyable for C and fun for Husband and I to read aloud. Pigeon is SUCH a fun character, he's basically a big toddler. For the most part he learns lesson in each book as well. There are a lot of little details in the utter simplicity of Pigeon's illustrations too. It's just great. 

Pigeon is also REALLY easy to draw if you wanted to make up your own coloring sheets. We just did that yesterday in fact. But we have done it before. I was watching a segment of Mo on the Today show a few months ago. (Maybe longer than a few...) He and his family sit down every night before bed time and have a family coloring/drawing session. They buy butcher block paper and spread it over the table and they all draw and color while talking about life, their days and interesting topics. I just really liked that idea. 

Anyhow, we love Mo Willems. We love Pigeon. He is highly recommended by me for anyone. Linking up with Jessica for What We're Reading Wednesday. 

Theme Thursday: Shaming (Unofficial Theme) THUMBS

A long while ago I thought up "Shaming" as the unofficial theme for this week. I was thinking like those funny dog memes.

But I don't have a dog. 

Then I read an article about how shaming children leads to low self esteem and all that stuff that you know, leads to them living lives of destitute or in serious therapy.

So I am shaming myself. It was a weak moment in parenting. But I just stood by and watched. (Then cleaned up.)

UPDATE: Shaming is now an official theme for 11/21. This week is thumb. Brought to you by my right hand and the sad remnants of OPI Bubble Bath.

Linking up with Cari who apparently decided 3 legged Levi was on to something yesterday. 

And since this is mothering at it's finest. I am also linking up with Real Motherhood link up over at Messy Wife, Blessed Life. 

WWRW: Champions, Tiaras and Counting to 5.

Well I am back for What We Are Reading Wednesday. I took last week off because what I read, I didn't like. And since many others have very recently read, reviewed and loved this book I didn't want to write a contradicting blog post about it. Especially because I can't pinpoint exactly what I didn't like about it other than it didn't speak to me.

So I am making up for it with 3 books this week.

Alright. Well yesterday Champion came out. It hit my Kindle just before midnight and I didn't finish before I went to sleep. (That right there should tell you something typically but in this case it is telling you I was tired.) But I managed to get through most of it during nap time and I finished around 9:00 last night.

So I not too long ago wrote about the beginnings of this trilogy with Legend and Prodigy and if you are sick of the "Madeline spouts on about all the dystopia-YA triliogies WWRW posts" you're not alone so let me promise you this is my last for a while. But I feel like I owe it to you and the world for writing this post right now. Champion is a good solid ending to the series.

But I won't leave it at just that. The story line had just enough action, just enough emotion and just the right amount of happy ending to make it fulfilling without being super predictable. In this case we do the ending in current time then the Harry Potter-esque ten years later thing. But while I continue to think Harry Potter ended that way just to please fans I feel like Champion needed this ending so you could see the growth in both the characters and the country in which they live.

Champion is not as violent as many of the other series. There are a few bombs planted on (empty and grounded) planes and a few (racking my brain and I think 2) instances of on foot gunfire battling. But that is pretty much it as violence. What it does have is teenage intimacy. (Very much implied though not graphic.) And a character who was hinted at having same-sex feelings in the previous books... well we are given a detailed flashback with dialogue. I am INCREDIBLY torn on this moment particularly.

On one hand it felt gratuitous and there so that "everyone would be able to relate to one of the love stories." On the other, it was a moment that was manipulated in the war of the book and actually was important for the plot. This part was written so that we as readers understand a character and so June can understand how deep the corruption got. It was just a kiss and ultimately the action did not bother me because I understand why it needed to be there. The way it was written, however, did bother me as it seemed to me more than was necessary to drive the plot. If you are a parent you should be aware of this as I'm sure the ultraliberals will tout it out as being "a good role model" plot line. (It really isn't a good role model for anything other than evil. It is truly a horrible moment. Not because of the kiss. Because of what comes after.)

I would say pre-read and decide for yourself if Champion needs a place on your bookshelf. Through all this thought process I decided I still like Hunger Games the best. When I read those books I felt so deeply for the characters and the terror permeated my soul. I guess I am seeking for another series to make me feel that intensely and so far all have failed. Still I haven't been completely unhappy with any of the series.

In other reads it was also self help week I guess. With a reading of The 5 Love Languages by Gary Chapman and Teaching in Your Tiara by Rebecca French.

As I am SUPER late to the party with Teaching in Your Tiara I will just say if you haven't read it and you're interested on any level in homeschooling this is worth a read. Even if you're like me and are 97% sure you won't actually homeschool but maybe would like to supplement or do some curriculum over the summer.  Or if you're like "homeschoolers are nuts but they're sure fascinating" this book is still a good one. I had tried to win a copy or 5 a while back but lucky me it was FREE on Kindle for her birthday and that is in our pre-Christmas season budget so I was thrilled to get to read it finally.

So I'll be honest for a second and while I knew both the love language of Husband and myself, read some articles and excerpts and taken a quiz I had never just read the book. So I did. I put it on the Kindle because we were going to visit my in-laws and I needed plenty of options of unread material to keep me occupied if I needed it. I didn't need it so read it when I got home. It's a good refresher on how to help people feel loved. Obviously it focuses on marriage and Chapman has other versions for children but I think it works as a reminder in all relationships to be the best you can be.

Linking up with Jessica for WWRW. Have you read anything lately? Should you? Let me know about it. Link up!!

My Little Helper

By my calculations it has been a while since my last straight up C post. So here we go. He is such a little helper. He wants to do everything and be involved. I just love this stage and I want to remember it because I am sure we'll get to "I don't want to do ______ " sooner than later. 

He has had just a love affair with the vacuum for months. It is his favorite thing. He has his own sized Dyson Ball and when it's time to vacuum we have a mini party. It helps that we vacuum almost every day. We had a Halloween party last week and the two toys all the boys wanted were the vacuum and broom. It was really bizarre because the girls could have cared less about them but there were actual tears involved when a turn was up from 4 different boys. No idea. Though let's be honest, Brave Little Toaster is making way more sense these days. Because who thought as a child that it was weird he was connected to the lamp, toaster and vacuum? I understood the blanket but the appliances? I get it now. He also has a fondness for the appliance cupboard with the crock pots, rice cooker and toaster in it. 

C loves to do anything with us though, he is all grown up in his eyes. He can bake and rake. Vacuum, dust and sweep. He LOVES making pasta and bread--anything with dough really. He is very gentle though. When we made ravioli, he gave each one a soft pat as kind of his seal of approval. Every once and a while a bread loaf comes out a little weird looking but then I know that he just got a little excited and stuck his finger in too far. 

All of sudden he is using his spoon and plates/bowls. Previously he wouldn't let anything be on a plate and he'd just dump it everywhere. I don't actually know what inspired him to keep it on the plate but clean up has been so much easier these past few weeks. He can use a spoon and gets excited when he does but after a while it still slows him down and goes back to his fingers. He will eat and enjoy just about anything except  for scrambled eggs. It's the weirdest thing. He liked scrambled eggs when he was younger but for months now has shown no interest and spits them out. We definitely still introduce them regularly as we have breakfast for dinner every week and while it doesn't involve eggs every time they still come into rotation quite a bit. We once made a breakfast burrito and hid eggs in there and he ate it okay until he noticed the eggs and then that was no good. Ah well if our biggest food issue is scrambled eggs than it's not really a big one is it? 

In this case, he even has his own sized rake but it wasn't as good as the big one I guess.

The talking is so cute. Husband tells me I have too high of standards on talking but that's okay. I don't consider it really talking unless I hear it multiple times and it sort of makes sense to me. I don't have a number of words count for the doctor but I feel he is right on track since he does communicate his wants and needs with me, repeats words and then uses them later as well as uses good listening ears. He is a really really good listener. He loves to bring us things and help and even stopping his negative behavior which at this point is mostly climbing and throwing things.

In the world of toys and books anything that is monkey theme is great or if it has wheels that's good too. Cars, trucks and vacuums are pretty awesome. No really, he pushes the vacuum around the house like it's a big car. What can I say? He loves it. He makes very clear demands for the books he wants by shoving them in our faces and throats which is cute but occasionally painful. For his favorite books he knows how long it takes to read each page and he will turn the page at the right time.

He has the sweetest temperament. I'm not sure if it was ingrained or learned but he doesn't really get mad when people take what he's playing with, he just picks a different toys. He is not a rough houser but still likes to run around with all the boys. He is very gentle with things too. Of course this doesn't mean he doesn't tantrum or get clingy or get loud. He has always had a very loud cry and that has translated into also having a very loud yell.

Anyway that is what's going on with us in the C world. I just don't want to forget this stage and what he was like. And there's so many little things that I wish I could capture perfectly but he hams it up for video cameras and writing it down isn't the same so I just have to watch and remember. He just makes my heart happy. What a guy. My little helper.

I Have Come To A Conclusion

I have recently decided that there are two kinds of people in the world. 

Wreath people. 

And non-wreath people.

There are so many different kinds of wreaths. And according to Pinterest they're all apparently really easy to make and FUN! (Please note, all of these pictures are stolen from Pinterest. If one is your picture and you don't want it on here, I will take it off.) 

And all of these wreaths are cute. And fun. With whimsy. 

Halloween-y wreaths... fun. 

This matches my kitchen... but I don't need a wreath in my kitchen.

Wouldn't this get gross in pretty much any weather besides sunny?

I love this. I want one.

All the whimsy.

Can you just buy green burlap? Or would you have to dye it? Because... that seems like a lot of work,

I am safely in the "I guess I like wreaths but I'm not going to make one because while I am not entirely uncrafty it just seems like a lot of work for something that I won't really see and since no one uses my front door the only person who would see it is my mail man" camp. So mostly non-wreath. I have Christmas wreaths but... that's it.

Okay, enjoy your day and thank you for reading my conclusion on wreaths. (But seriously... search wreath on Pinterest. CRAZY how many different ones there are.)