Favorite Flick Friday

Ahhhh....childhood.

I love watching movies that take me back to those days.

Here is one such movie.

Actors: Hayley Mills, Maureen O'Hara

Rating: G

Year: 1961

Genre: Family, Comedy, Romance

The Scoop: Two girls living in opposite sides of the country end up at the same summer camp where they are forced together and discover that they are twin sisters. Neither knew of the other's existence.

Favorite Character: Maggie McKendrick

Favorite Line:
Maggie: Oh yes! Don't say anything about that dear, sweet, precious Vicky! That plus-faced child bride and her electric hips!

Why I Love This Movie: Oh my goodness. What's not to love? It's funny, cute, wholesome, clever and just so lovely. I like the remake, too, but definitely prefer the original. The music is fun. The acting is GREAT. The characters are so likeable. I recently watched this movie with Miriam; thinking that she would lose interest within the first ten minutes, but she didn't! She persevered and she actually enjoyed it. Made a movie mama oh so happy.

O Ye of Strong Will

My sweet, kind and loving daughter can easily melt my heart. With her bright blue eyes and her silly personality, I value the little girl that she is becoming.

She has such a caring heart for others and can not stand when someone near her is sad. She is friendly and talkative.

Oh holy goodness....she is talkative.




But, she has another quality that continually astounds me.

Her will.

Her STRONG will.

Some may mistake it as being mischievous.



But, oh dear....they are so very wrong.

She's 3. But, she has to have the last word. For real. The very last. Even if it is muttered under her breath or mouthed silently.

I'm in for it.

Take this morning, for example.

Miriam knows what is expected of her. She is in charge of taking her juice cup to the table when she is done drinking it. But, she still asks me because she's "too tired" or "too cold" or plain doesn't want to.

And then she whines.

And ten minutes later she asks again.

This morning it took a couple rounds before she got up and walked it to the table, looking at me out of the corner of her eye, daring me to give her accolades for being obedient. (She hates when I give her a hearty "Good Job!" when she is grouchy.)

Yes, she is also moody at 3 years old.

I ignored her.

So, then came round two.

Refusing to throw the yogurt container away.

She was too tired.

She told me this over and over AS SHE WAS WALKING to the garbage can.

And this is where, once again, I shudder at the future confrontations I will have with this sweet child.

She stood in front of the garbage and insisted on throwing it in the recycle bin (it was one of those tube containers and wasn't rinsed out). I told her no and she then threw the container at the lid of the trash can until it opened and then stormed off.

And then I took this picture.



And then I prayed. This is only the beginning.

Massive Mammary Monday

Pop Quiz!

What did God tell Noah to build when He flooded the earth? Remember? He told him to bring in animals two by two.

I'll give you a hint.

It has three letters in it.

Favorite Flick Friday

This week's movie was one that I first saw in my high school psychology class, of all places. Our teacher wanted to show us an example of rehabilitation from a traumatic brain injury. Usually, when you are forced to watch a movie in class, you bring a snack and wear a big, baggy, hooded sweatshirt to better hide your attempt at sleeping through it. But, THIS....was a pleasant surprise and soon found its way into my DVD library.

Actors: Harrison Ford, Annette Bening

Rating: PG-13

Year: 1991

Genre: Drama

The scoop: Henry is a high end lawyer with little time or affection for anything but his job. But, his life is forever changed when he is shot in the head. Seriously. Shot in the head. He forgets everything about his former life and, in fact, realizes he is not even the same person he was before. It is a heartwarming story of recovering from a seriously life-threatening injury, becoming a new person and redefining relationships.

Favorite character: Henry Turner (Post shot in the head. That's kind of sad that I like him AFTER he was shot in the head. Much more charming.)

Favorite line:
Henry: No thanks, I don't like eggs.
Rosella: What?
Rachel: Eggs are your favorite!
Henry: Okay, then give me lots of eggs.

Why I Love This Movie: It's good. It's a story that makes you feel all warm and fuzzy at the end. Emotional, interesting, deep......just a good movie.

Praying for Poop

I had already decided to early potty train Miriam before it was even close to time to do so. I read a couple different books, some blogs and then dove in.

It failed.

And then I dove in again.

It failed.

Finally I stumbled apon a little e-book called "3 Day Potty Training Bootcamp."

It was written by a mother of (6 ?) boys. She found a method that worked and then put it on the web. Every one of her boys was potty trianed by 22 months and she swore, when following her method, yours could be too! The best thing about her e-book was that it made sense to me. I knew my goal....I knew the steps to achieve it and it didn't leave too many questions. The other mehods left me wondering what to do next when certain situations arose.

I won't go into details of the actual potty training process, but lo and behold....it worked!

Of course it didn't work in the 3 days because my little sweetheart has a will of freaking iron. But, on the 7th day.....it clicked. And we never looked back.

Well, almost never.

4 months later, Miriam started having some digestive issues and developed an intense and very justified fear of pooping.

And for the following year, whenever Miriam left the room for any period of time, it was not uncommon to have the following conversation:

Mommy: Miriam?
Miriam: I'm right here!
Mommy: What are you doing?
Miriam: Just poopin'.

WE TRIED EVERYTHING.

EVERYTHING.

Do you have a suggestion? Save it. We tried it.

Finally in June, I decided to try something I hadn't tried.

I prayed for her to poop in the toilet. Seriously. No joke. I bowed my head and prayed to Lord Jesus that she would poop in the toilet.

And then in exasperation, I tried the reward system one more time.

I told Miriam that if she pooped in the toilet ten times in a row.....that I would take her to the zoo.

She wanted that prize soooo bad.

The first time she tried was actually really hard to watch. She was so afraid and was battling her fear. You could just see this little struggle going on. But, she did it!

Don't ask me why my husband drew a dinosaur on there. Apparently it's been a long time since he went to the zoo.
She was so excited and told EVERYONE at the zoo that she was there because she pooped in the toilet.

We even got Uncle Al to come.

And Grandma!

And I was there, too. Which, apparently, she was thrilled with.

We also took Eve. It was her first time. She didn't really care.

And it's been home runs ever since! I started running out of prizes. Plus....how do you beat the zoo?

Miriam suggested Disneyland.

Favorite Flick Friday

Want an intriguing movie this weekend? This is definitely the one.

Actors: Tom Cruise, Colin Farrell

Rating: PG-13

Year: 2002

Genre: Action, Crime, Mystery, Sci-Fi, Thriller
(I don't like a lot of movies considered "sci-fi" but this is one of those that surprised me.)

The scoop: It's the year 2054 and in the city of Washington, D.C. There is virtually no crime in the city thanks to "technology" known as the pre-cogs (3 humans with the ability to see a crime before it happens). And then there is a whole lot of mystery......crime.....action......conspiracy. It's good. And really interesting.

Favorite Character: Chief John Anderton

Favorite Line:
Director Burgess: Who's the victim?
John Anderton: Someone.
Director Burgess: Who?
John Anderton: (trying to remember the name) Leo Crow
Director Burgess: Who is he?
John Anderton: I have no idea! I've never heard of him! But I'm supposed to kill him in less than thirty-six hours.

Why I love this movie:
It's interesting! It's really thought provoking. The storyline is so fascinating and the acting is great. I really, really enjoy it.

Favorite Flick Friday

Another genre of movies that I love is Christmas movies. Why? Because I LOVE Christmas! I love it more than my birthday. And as many of you may know...

this is how much I love my birthday....

So, it's fair to say that I am a big fan of the Christmas season.

This week's movie is a newer Christmas themed flick that made its way into my list of must see holiday moves each December...ok, maybe November....all right...you got me. October.








YEAR: 2006

GENRE: Holiday/Romantic Comedy

ACTORS: Kate Winslet, Jude Law, Cameron Diaz, Jack Black

RATED: PG-13

THE SCOOP: Two ladies, who are strangers and both unlucky in love, swap houses for the holidays. Both hoping for a respite from men, they both meet new love interests in the town of their vacation homes. Shocker.

FAVORITE CHARACTER: Graham

FAVORITE LINE:
Iris: You are supposed to be the leading lady in your own life, for *goodness* sake!

WHY I LOVE THIS MOVIE:
What's not to love? It's funny, witty and romantic. And Jack Black adds JUST the right amount of silliness. Oh...and Jude Law is pretty....how you say....attractive? Especially his character in this movie. Not at first....but keep watching.