June 2009 Round Up

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Click mosaic to biggify, or see my June 2009 Project 365 Posts.

What books and/or magazines did I read this month?
Um, uh, er.... I am ashamed!

What movies and/or tv shows did I watch this month?
At the Theater: We managed two movies in June. Up (full review here) which was quite good, but not a good movie for Luke. Transformers: Revenge of the Fallen (not reviewed yet; it's coming!) was just eh. It was okay, but almost bordering on boring, if you can imagine. Needs to be seen on the big screen, because it is visually amazing, but the rest (story? what story? and don't even think about logic) is pretty blah. Definitely NOT for children.

Other New Stuff: Mythbusters was new for most of this month on Wednesdays. The Closer has started back on Mondays. Finished From the Earth to the Moon (last disc). Night at the Museum was just there (full review coming). Not bad, not good, but no laughs or smiles, which is not a good thing to say about a supposed comedy. A Knight's Tale was okay (full review coming); cute, kinda fun, not deep, Heath Ledger. What more do you want?

Old Favorites: Holiday Inn, Disney's Hercules, Toy Story, Firefly, Ratatouille, Bolt, The Other Sister, An American Tail: Fievel Goes West, WALL-E

What special days did I celebrate and how?
Sent cards for Mom's birthday and Father's Day. Not much else going on.

What gifts did I give and/or receive?
I bought clothes for a bunch of bears! LOL See full story here.

What illnesses or health concerns did I have?
Luke has been tripping over his own feet a bit, which is unusual. I can't say he's the most graceful kid, but he's not overly clumsy either. Seems to have worked itself out in the last couple of days, though. He's also been sleeping later than average. I hope it's just a growth spurt. I was very concerned that swimming would cause him ear problems (like it always did, and still does, for me), but he's done just fine.

What fun things did I do with my friends and/or family?
Well, been pretty busy with the whole swimming thing. That consumes 1/4-1/3 of our weekend right there.

What new foods, recipes or restaurants did I try this month?
Maddio's Pizza Joint (fine) and The Flying Biscuit Cafe (good; I'm obsessed with their grits!). Also tried a Golden Caramel Cake recipe, which was fine, but not worth the time and effort.

What special or unusual purchases did I make?
DH was in a spendy mood this month. He has purchased several new Transformers for Luke (one of which L has received, the rest of which are in the closet for his birthday and Christmas). There were also at least 4 unplanned new Wii game purchases: Guitar Hero Aerosmith (found it cheap), Tiger Woods 2010 with Motion Plus, Grand Slam Tennis (a Motion Plus game), and Boom Blox (which Luke loves, just as I suspected).

What were this month's disappointments?
Nothing really springs to mind. Pretty good and quiet month.

What were my accomplishments this month?
101 List Status:

62. Enroll Luke in a physical class (gymnastics, swimming, etc). (See next question.)

98. Decide on a better way to archive Movie Musings.
I didn't have much choice about doing this, since Geocities has decided to shut down. I want my own domain name, but any of the variations I am interested in are currently owned. Someone is just sitting on moviemuse.com with nothing there. They keep renewing it every year. I'll pay you for it, just let me have it! Anyway, in order to get them back up online as quickly as possible, I just started another blog. http://erinsmoviemusings.blogspot.com Boring, I know, but it is the best I could do. All old musings are now archived, and new ones will be posted to the blog in addition to being emailed out, so feel free to subscribe to the feed.

Doing just fine on Project 365, too. I can't believe it's half over already!

Not a whole lot else going on with me. Finished two projects at work, and received two new projects at work (yay for new work!).

What were Luke's accomplishments this month?


Luke started swimming lessons! That is really the major thing for the month. Found out lessons were offered on Monday, started him on Saturday. He is doing very well, and as mentioned previously, he isn't having any ear problems at all, which was a real fear. He was the first one to swim with a small floatation device but without assistance from the instructor. Yay! He really loves it, and I love watching him.

Anything else noteworthy to record?
Not for the family, no. Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson died on the same day, something I am unlikely to forget any time soon. Not sure I'll remember that 5 years from now, though.

Monthly Round Up courtesy of Katie the Scrapbook Lady.

Currently feeling: enjoying a great summer so far

Luke swim update - 4 classes down, 2 to go

I wanted to give you a quick up date on Luke's progress in swimming class. He is doing very well! I realized after his second class that he would most likely *not* be able to actually swim once his 6 weekly classes were over, which is a little disappointing. I do think he will be able to after the next level of class, though. The big question now is: do they offer the next class in the fall? I hope so.

The big news this week is that he swam one length of the pool by himself using only the marshmallow stick (thin plastic stick with foam cylinders on the end, about the size of toilet paper rolls), with no assistance from the instructor other than the occasional tug on the stick to adjust his heading (he's not so good at steering yet). He was the only student in his class who was able to do it so far. Go Luke! She was so proud of him, and so are we!

There are still several things to work on, though. He still sputters when he goes under water. I think he forgets to close his eyes, and I also think he forgets to keep his mouth closed. Then there's floating. He can float just fine on his back, as long as she keeps her hand on his back. She's not holding him up at all once he gets into position, it's just barely touching his back. "Relax and let the water hold you," she says. But as soon as she moves her hand away so that it's not touching him, he freaks out and sinks. We'll work on it. It's still nice to see such good progress!

Currently feeling: well on our way to having a little fish

License for a reality check

I renewed my driver's license by mail a couple of weeks ago, and it arrived today. I don't know why it shocked me so much to see "Expires 2019" on there, but it did. I mean, I knew I was renewing for 10 years, and obviously 2009+10=2019, but I guess I hadn't consciously done the math. I can't say that it bothers me over much to know that I will be 43 when this thing expires. So what is bothering me? That my son will be on the verge of getting his learner's permit when it expires! That will be the summer before he turns 15!!! I don't think I'm ready for this.
Currently feeling: what just happened here?

The King is Dead, Long Live the King

Michael Jackson died today at the age of 50. I have to admit, it is a bit of a shock. He was the self-proclaimed King of Pop. I even remember when he was called that. Seems like ages ago. There is no doubt that Michael Jackson left us a musical legacy unlikely to be rivaled for many years. He *still* has the #1 selling album of all time, and that was 25 years ago. (And I still have my vinyl copy somewhere.) But in recent years, he was much more well known for bizarre behavior. I've often wondered what my son will know of him. Is it his music or his life that will be remembered 25 years from now? I hope his music. Whatever else he may or may not have been, he was a good musician and a fantastic performer. I hope he has finally found peace.

Currently feeling: long live the king

Secret Father's Day: A Conversation with Luke

DH was in the kitchen making Luke's lunch (long story, don't ask). I was in the living room. Luke was playing. I quietly call Luke over to me.

Me, whispering: Luke, take these cards into the kitchen and tell daddy Happy Father's Day!
[Luke runs into the kitchen]
Luke, whispering: Here Daddy, Happy Father's Day!

Currently feeling: too funny!

Playing Fairy Godmother

Every Tuesday is field trip day for the 4 year olds at Luke's daycare. We paid a small "activity fee" at the beginning of the summer to cover the cost of the outings, but there was one activity that would require additional funds: Build A Bear. I asked about this one a week or so ago, since I really didn't want him coming home with an $80 bear! They said that the activity fee covers the cost of the bear itself, so everyone gets a bear. They then ask parents to contribute $20 for accessories, and the staff would help guide the choices to make sure it stayed under the $20 limit. They also said that there were a few free decorative items (like ribbons) that could be used for children who could not afford other bear adornments.

This has been eating at me every day since, just the unfairness of it all. My father has always said, "I teach my children that life isn't fair. That said, I try to make sure it is as fair as possible." $20 to us at this moment in time is nothing. How fortunate are we to be able to think of it that way! There was a time that it wasn't nothing, and I also know that $20 is *not* nothing to a lot of people, especially now. How much would it hurt, as a child, to see your friends all getting bear accessories, and you being left with just a ribbon or something? And how much more would it hurt, as a parent, to have to explain to your child that while the other kids are getting fun stuff for their bears, they cannot? Especially when these are the same parents who have already had to say over and over that they can't get something else because they don't have the money. It is just so unfair!

So, yesterday afternoon, without even consulting my husband (who I knew would agree with me), I decided to ask how many kids they thought would not be able to afford bear accessories. I was given an estimate, did the math, and volunteered to sponsor any child whose parents could not afford the $20. I also told her to "bump" any child who had less than $20, so that everyone had an equal amount to spend (unless their parents had provided more). I think everyone was crying by this point except me, mainly because I was just so happy to be doing it! When I explained to DH what I had done, he whole-heartedly agreed that it was the right thing to do. "It will be fun to play fairy godmother," he said. I dropped off the estimated amount plus some (just in case) this morning.

The director called this afternoon. She had receipts for all of the money that was spent, the leftover change, plus the remaining unneeded $20 bills. She said that all of the parents had requested that she pass on their thanks (we asked not to be identified), and most had gotten teary when she explained that their child would still get to participate. I've been walking around with the biggest grin on my face all day, just knowing that we totally made the day of several children (and parents). Is this what Santa Claus feels like? That must be the best job in the world!



I'm sure I could have done something "better" or "more worthwhile" with the money. I could have donated it to cancer research. I could have spent it on food for the food bank. But this opportunity presented itself to me, and I felt called to do it. No one asked for money for the other kids, it is just something small that I realized we could do for them. I'm not writing this to brag on us. I just want to share how much fun we had today, and how much joy we got from this small gesture. I hope it will encourage you to give when you can, where you see a need, whether you give money or time or something else. "Practice random acts of kindness and senseless acts of beauty," as the bumper sticker says. It thrills my soul to know that there are several more children with smiles (and bears) like these tonight:



Go out and try some spontaneous charity, if you can. It feels awesome!

Currently feeling: bibidi-bobidi-boo

Movie Musings on Up, and a New Website

Greetings movie fans! LOL Sorry, I couldn't help it. That's how I start all of my Movie Musings newsletters. As most of you know, I write my own movie reviews. I realized this week that I have officially been sending them out to friends and family for 7 years now. I know, I couldn't believe it either!! As mentioned in my last news letter (but not on my blog, I don't think), Geocities is shutting down sometime this year. I haven't seen a firm date yet, but I figured I had better get all of my archived reviews off of there before they disappeared. I've been thinking for a while now that I needed a better way to archive them, preferably something with a search function. You know, something more like a blog where each one is stored as its own entry. I even made it one of my 101 Things, and that was before I knew about the Geocities shutdown that forced my hand.

So this week, I finally bit the bullet and created a blog here on Blogspot to hold all of my old musings, and the new ones of course. The very original URL for this new site is: http://erinsmoviemusings.blogspot.com All previous entries (all 155 of them!) are now on the site. An additional advantage of having them on a blog is that you can now get new musings via RSS feed. I will still send out the email newsletter (drop me an email if you want to start receiving them: moviemusings AT yahoo DOT com), which does sometimes include some extra tidbits of information, but the actual reviews will also be on the new site. Please check it out and let me know what you think. http://erinsmoviemusings.blogspot.com Thanks!

And if you would like a direct link to the latest musing on the Disney/Pixar film Up, just click!

Currently feeling: like flying