"Smiling's My Favorite".

Last week I spent some time pulling out Christmas movies and adding others to my Blockbuster.com queue. We have lots of seasonal favorites that we love to watch every year and I thought I'd share my top ten favorites with you.

1. Elf. 
We watched this last night and I laughed just as much as I did the first and second and third and fourth time I saw it. Very funny.

2. Auntie Mame.
I guess technically this is not a Christmas movie (though there is a Christmas scene!) but it's one we watch every single year during Christmas break. One of our pastors referenced a line from this movie in a sermon last month and asked for a show of hands from those who had seen it. I was proud that all five of us had our hands in the air.

3. Miracle on 34th Street.
We like both the old and the newer version. I think the little girl in the new version is just adorable but then again, so was Natalie Wood.

4. The Nativity Story.
Beautiful.

5. National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.

I actually bought this last year (because it's HILARIOUS) and watched it with the kids before previewing it. There's quite a bit of language that I'd forgotten about. I think it is one of the funniest Christmas movies around but wish there was a cleaner version for families. 

6. A Christmas Story

This is another of the funniest movies around. And after watching our "VHS taped-from-television" movie for many years, I bought it on DVD only to realize that the television version had most of the language edited out. There's so many funny lines from it though. Fa-ra-ra-ra-ra. The last scene gets me every time. 

7. The Polar Express

8. Holiday Inn

Years and years and years ago, a family friend told us about this movie and it was instant love for my mom, sister, and me. I've seen it dozens of times and I still adore it. The girls watched it with me last year and I believe we launched a new tradition.

9. It's A Wonderful Life

I cannot believe we don't have this movie on DVD. That must be remedied ASAP. 

10. A Charlie Brown Christmas

I know, I know. It's not a full-length feature film but it's a MUST-SEE Christmas favorite around here. I always always always cry at the end when they sing Hark the Herald Angels Sing. 

Runners-Up:

The Bishop's Wife

Bells of St. Mary's

The Family Stone

Love Actually

How the Grinch Stole Christmas

What are some of your favorites?

some schtuff and some photos

Warning: I cleared my camera's memory card the other day so this post contains lots of random pics and lots of scattered thoughts.

My friend gave me a SUPER FUN gift yesterday. A pair of fuzzy warm Glee pj pants. Aren't they cute? I nicknamed them my "gleejays" (instead of pjs) and can't wait to wear them to pajama Bunco this month! By the way, I'm loving some of the mash-ups from Glee this season--especially the Singin' in the Rain and Livin' on a Prayer ones. Wow.

Know what makes me jealous? My husband can play the piano very well. And he can play by ear. Sarah was practicing Deck The Halls last night and kept missing notes. He wasn't even paying attention to the keyboard and was telling her things like "It's D, Sarah." or "Try hitting G". Not fair.

Our library is amazing. I mentioned the cool Playaway audio books they have available but last spring I discovered another fabulous resource they offer: the Book Club Collection. Your book club selects a book to read from their lengthy list of offerings and then you reserve as many copies as you need for your group. No more buying every book we read for book club! You also get to keep them twice as long as you would a normal book. One person checks them out for the group and they come in this cool bag. I'll find out later today how much I owe for all 8 books that are now overdue. Oops.

I'm loving eating by the light of our Advent wreath this week. Tonight we're going to our church's soup supper and Advent service. I love this season so very much.

My kids found my old OBU student ID card the other day. Hilarious. Love the preppy sweater vest. I betcha I also had on khaki shorts and white Keds.

Do you remember when I planted basil seeds? It's been growing like crazy (this pic is from a month ago) and I've been cooking with it. Delicious!

The girls found these rocks in the backyard one afternoon. They thought they were so funny. And they are. They gave them to me to keep because I'm the big 4-0.

A few weeks ago, I was searching high and low for a photo to show my Bible study group. I never found the photo but I did find the medallion I got when I ran my first (and probably my last) marathon. I didn't run all 26.2 miles but I ran 7+ as part of a relay team. It was a fantastic experience and the cool part is that it was Little Rock's first ever marathon! Great memories with great friends. Love you Carol and Carol and Terry!

A couple of years ago, John bought me a Caphalon skillet from Williams-Sonoma. The non-stick coating started peeling off a few months ago and I stopped using it because I was afraid of ingesting it. John reminded me that the skillet had a lifetime warranty, so we took it back and they replaced it (NO hassle!) with a new and improved skillet. That's the best customer service I've seen in ages and I thought you should know. You get what you pay for and in this case it is quality and superb customer service!

I still want to post some pics from Thanksgiving but Blogger is giving me difficulty and I really need to get moving. Later, friends.

A little curiosity about Christmas

Just for fun, I created another survey for y'all and this one is all about Christmas.

It only let me create 10 questions. I had sooooo many more.

It's a short and easy survey and if you're curious too, click here to take it.

What Do You See?

My husband posted this picture on his Facebook wall today along with the question, What do you see in this picture?


I'm curious as well. What do you see?

(I don't know who to credit for the photo. John remembers that it came from the Denver Post several years ago.)

Up, Up, UP!

I hiked the Manitou Incline on Sunday.

It was by far the most strenuous hike I've ever done. Even more so than climbing Pikes Peak. Okay, not really but it's close.

For those of you who aren't familiar with this legendary trail, it's a one mile hike with a 2000 foot elevation gain straight up the base of Mount Manitou. The grade is 41% for most of the climb, but there is one super steep part that has a 68% grade. Crazy. The Incline is actually the old railbed for the Scenic Incline Railway, hence the railroad tie "steps", and even though it's a heavily populated trail, it's privately-owned land so hikers are technically trespassing when they're on the Incline. Oops.

My friend, Heather, asked me early last week if I wanted to go with her. I've been wanting to try it for awhile now so I said "sure". I was re-thinking that decision when we were walking to the trailhead. It really is daunting. See the top? Yeah, that's not even the top. It's a false summit. Once you get to that point it levels out a little before the final ascent. Wowza.

This was not even halfway up. And yeah, that's the "false summit" behind me. Here's the view looking down!

I didn't even take a picture from the summit! What was I thinking? 

It was a really beautiful day to hike. It was sunny and cool. I didn't need my fleece on the way up, but I definitely needed it on the hike back down.

I took the above pic from Barr Trail. There were some patches of golden aspen that really stood out against the evergreens. So pretty.

The Incline connects to Barr Trail (the trail that leads to the summit of Pikes Peak) and that's the recommended path back down. We saw some people walking and even running back down the Incline. Amazing. Lots of people were running up it too. I canNOT imagine.

Heather and I climbed at a slow, steady pace and still had to stop often to catch our breath. I felt really, really nauseous at one point too, but it seemed like it got easier after we got past the really steep part. A little past the half-way mark there is a bailout point where you can cut over and connect with the trail back down. We had considered bailing but we were feeling better at that point and we both just wanted to finish and savor the feeling of accomplishment! Considering that three months ago I could barely walk without pain/limping because of my leg/hip injury, I'd say it's a big accomplishment!

Would I do it again? Absolutely! But first my glutes need to recover. That's the only place I'm really sore, but man oh man, I am VERY sore!

Here are some interesting links about the Manitou Incline and it's history. I love all the old pictures, and these more recent ones as well!

Friday Night Lights

I suppose it would be redundant to tell you guys that I love football. You know that already. College football is my favorite, but thanks to fantasy football I'm starting to get back into NFL football again. And high school football? Yep. I love that too.

Friday Night Lights is one of our favorite television shows. John and I started watching Season 4 on dvd this week. If you've ever lived in a small town and/or like football then there's a great chance you'll love Friday Night Lights too. It's no secret at our house that I have a crush on Coach Eric Taylor--he's a big reason that I love the show.  It's also not a secret that John has a crush on his wife, Tami, so it all evens out. Smile.

Anyway...............

We went to a high school football game--a real life Friday Night Lights game--last night with some good friends.

Despite being very COLD and very WINDY, it was loads of fun.

The game was a big match-up between the two high school teams in our town. They've never played each other before so they're not really rivals at this point, and I sort of hope it remains that way. I have so many friends who teach, coach, or have kids at each of the two schools that it was hard to choose who to cheer for. In the end, we chose to cheer on the high school that Will will attend next year.

Oh my gosh. Did you catch that? Our son will be in HIGH SCHOOL NEXT YEAR. How in the world did that happen?

High school football games are such a community event. We've lived in this town for seven years [this weekend is actually the anniversary of our move to Colorado!] and in that time we've gotten to know LOTS of people. I feel blessed to call many of them my friends.  Last night we saw old friends, new friends, friends we go to church with, friends we know from work, from school, and we even made brand new friends. [The lady sitting behind me joined the conversation my friend and I were having about Friday Night Lights while waiting for the game to start. She practically told me her life story--probably because she's from the South--ha!]

We left with a resolve to go to as many home games as we can next year. I think I might be out for the rest of this season though simply because it's just getting downright cold at night. I wore my parka and took my Slanket. Oh yes, I did. And our children, who repeatedly balked at my instructions to wear their winter coats, were thankful.

People and football are two of my favorite things, and both are on the agenda for today and tomorrow as well. [Big, contented SIGH!]

Survey Says

Thank you, thank you, thank you for playing along with my survey last week. I loved reading your answers. Unfortunately, I wasn't able to read all of them because the survey host only allows me to read the first 100 answers for free. If I want to read the rest, I have to pay to upgrade my account and I don't really want to do that. So...I'm just going to go with what I have.

Pretend for a minute that I'm Richard Dawson, host of the popular 70s/80s game show Family Feud. Pretend that I'm him when I say: And the survey says....


1. What is your least favorite household chore?
Bathrooms - 38%
Mopping - 24.5%
Unloading the dishwasher - 15.3%
Dusting - 12.2%
Other - 10.2% (laundry, vacuuming, tidying up, loading the dishwasher, sorting papers, all of the above, ironing, windows, putting laundry away).


2. What's the best movie you've seen lately?
17% of you don't watch movies.

The other 83% of you mentioned some good ones. Here are the ones that were mentioned the most often.
Inception
Ramona and Beezus
Toy Story 3
Eclipse
The Blind Side
Book of Eli
Eat, Pray, Love
Invictus
Temple Grandin

That last movie? Temple Grandin. Put it in your Blockbuster/Netflix queue if you haven't seen it. John and I watched it last week and it is excellent. You can click here for a synopsis. 


3. What's your favorite form of exercise?
Walking - 53.6%
Exercise? What's exercise? - 14.4%
Hiking - 9.3%
Yoga/Pilates - 8.2%
Running - 8.2%
Aerobics - 7.2%
Other - 8.2% (elliptical, jazzercise, varied cardio, tennis, water aerobics, biking, stepper, kayaking)


4. If you found a $20 bill in your pocket today and you weren't allowed to save it, what would you do with it.
Such great answers. Lots of you would buy books or coffee or treat the family to ice cream. Lots of you would go out to dinner or take a friend to lunch. Some of you would buy something fun--iTunes, candle, new shoes, clothes, craft stuff, or get a mani/pedi. Some of you would give to missions or give to a friend who could use some financial encouragement. And some of you would use it to pay bills or buy groceries.


5. Choose one word to describe yourself.
Tired. Moody. Fun. Friendly. Tenacious. Happy. Joyful. Overwhelmed. Responsible. Christian. Pregnant. Social. Dependable. Wordy. Easy-going. Loner. Crazy. Luscious. Blessed. Busy. Loyal. Passionate. Perfectionist. Scattered. Content. Tall. Funny. Sarcastic. Over-scheduled. Different. Quirky. Creative. Flexible. Over-scheduled.
So fun to read all your words. If I had more time I'd list them all here. Oh, and whoever described themself as supercalifragilisticexpealidocious cracked me up.


6. Are you a blogger?
Yes - 54.5%
No -  36.4%
I want to be! - 9.1%


7. Tell me three things that you love.
God. Jesus. Family. Books. Coffee. Chocolate. Fall. Knitting. Football. Snow. Church. Cooking. Peace. Games. Movies. Diet Mountain Dew. Being at home. Sex. (That was my husband's answer. I was sitting beside him when he took my survey. He listed it three times because he has a knack for subtle.) Creating.  (Funny that answer followed sex, eh?) My dogs. Being at home. Food. Free time. Grandchildren. Gardening. Tortillas. Christmas. Reading. Scrapbooking. Outdoors. Decorating. Coke. Wine. My job. Photography. Road trips. Cheesecake. Sushi. Sonic. Shopping. Hoodies. Sunsets. Flip flops. My pillow. Mountains. And so many more wonderful things!


8. Do you know me in real life?
Yes - 30%
No - 70%
Lots of you said you feel like you know me and that makes me smile.


9. What time do you wake up on weekday mornings?
4-5am - 8%
5-6am - 37%
6-7am - 38%
7-8am - 16%
8-9am -1%
I generally sleep past 9am - 3%


10. Why do you read this blog???
You guys blew me away with your answers. Thanks for your kind words!

I enjoyed reading everyone's answers so much that I want to try this again soon! Thanks again for playing along!

Quite Possibly The Best Money I've Spent All Summer

I bought this blow-up pool for the kids the other day and it might possibly be the best money I've spent all summer. They absolutely love it and they each have a bright pink sunburn to prove they've spent hours outside this week. I feel bad about their sunburns. Really bad. I re-applied sunscreen multiple times. We just live close to the sun!

It's been warm here lately. I'm tempted to say it's been hot, but the high 80s probably sound heavenly to all of my southern friends so I'll stick with "warm".

It's really only "warm" in the afternoons though. Most mornings and evenings I still need my Slanket (quite possibly the best money that John spent last winter) when I sit outside. I love Colorado! I also love the color orange. And I really, really love my Slanket!

pea green (with envy)

I Currently Envy:


People with iPhones and iPads.
My sweet friend, Carol, sweetly pointed out that Verizon offers similar phones. Uh huh. I know. But we're Apple people. So I wait (rather impatiently) for Apple to break their exclusive contract with AT&T, and for Verizon to offer an iPhone. And the iPad? Pure lust. Have any of you pre-ordered? 


People who can shop at Trader Joe's regularly.
Two of my neighbors were in AZ last week and both brought me some really great loot. I'm well stocked again. Thank you C and H.


People who are blessed with high metabolism.
Not fair. Just simply not fair.


People who are good at math.


People with amazing handwriting.

Like my friend, Shannan. (If her recipe intrigues you, you can find it in it's entirety here, along with the recipe for John's favorite chocolate cake.)

and another friend, Kathy.

Seriously, their handwriting should be a downloadable font, don't you agree? 

By the way, does anyone know how to convert your writing to a *free* font? I've only found sites that charge a fee. 

People who experience spring in the months you're supposed to experience spring (March/April). And people who don't get THREE big snowstorms during spring break. Sheesh.

But let's be clear. I know you'll all be envying ME when it's 70 degrees here in July and you're sweltering in the heat and humidity. And I'm starting to save now for Spring Break 2011. I'm bound and determined to head somewhere warm next March.


I think green is my color. Peace out, peeps.

This Just Makes Me Laugh!

Just walked past some folded laundry that I need to put away and noticed this.

My aunt gave Will this t-shirt for Christmas.

Makes me laugh every time I see it.

Evidently, the guy who created The South Butt is being sued by The North Face. Gee, I can't imagine why?

Anyway, maybe this logo makes you smile today too.

By the way, thanks, J, for helping me catch up on laundry this week! I love you!

AND if you want to buy a t-shirt like this one you can click The South Butt link above and it will take you to the online store. You're welcome.