Poor Photobaby...

Yesterday, we spent the afternoon at my brother-in-law's house for a BBQ. Photobaby was cranky because she didn't take a good morning nap and then skipped her afternoon nap in favor of being fawned over by her cousins. So, we ended up leaving early. Of course, that girl fell asleep in the car, so we drove around looking at houses we can never afford to give her some much-needed time to snooze. When we headed home, I was determined to keep her happy until 6:30, when I'd put her to bed (early - because she was soooo tired).

That plan came to a halt at 6:15, when I realized that I'd left Photobaby's formula at my brother-in-law's house. Our last can. We had two partial cans (I'm not even sure how that happened), so I'd combined them. So all of our formula was 30 minutes away.

I called my husband in and asked him to go get food for our poor, tired, hungry baby. What I meant was, "Please go to the Hy-Vee grocery store five minutes down the road and buy a can of formula." What he heard was, "Please drive 30 minutes to your brother's house and get our formula and bring it home."

Hmm.

After I'd done a song and dance for 45 minutes, trying to keep Photobaby from having a full-blown meltdown, I tried to call him. He didn't answer. Which of course made me certain he'd had a car wreck between our house and the store.

Thankfully - for all of us - he called back as soon as he got service (his brother lives outside our cell service area), and we realized that we'd completely misunderstood each other.

Poor Photobaby! She went to bed LATE instead of EARLY, and she has two parents who don't even speak the same language!

Let's Go To The Movies!

I've seen four movies in the past few weeks, and I thought I'd share some random thoughts about them.

Fool's Gold - It wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. How's that for faint praise? Seriously, I wasn't excited about seeing this movie, but I couldn't find anything else to rent that night. And hey, I liked Kate Hudson and Matthew McCaughney's other movie (I'll admit, I've seen it more times than I can count - but can you blame me? It's cute, they're cute, and it's on TV all the time!). So I rented the dumb movie about pretty people. And it turns out, I liked it, too. It's about treasure hunting - and I like treasure hunting movies. I also saw National Treasure 2 a while back, and liked it, too. (No, I'm not obsessed with treasure. I just like the history and mystery of it!)

Definitely, Maybe - This movie (like at least three of these flicks) didn't get great reviews. But I thought it was good. It was definitely a girl movie - all about romance. But I liked the way it realistically portratyed a young man being disillusioned by his career. I feel like that's happened to me - not because of lying politicians, like in the movie - but because of unmet expectations with the "real" world. The main character graduates college wanting to be president. He goes on to work for the Clinton campaign and then grow depressed years later as the Clinton scandal(s) break around the same time his love life tanks. I just thought it was refreshing to something more realistic than the typical young person has corner office and wild success even though he or she just got out of school.

Indiana Jones the 4th - My husband, my brother, my sister-in-law and I went to see this over the weekend. I didn't have huge expectations, but I did want to see it in the theater. I don't see a lot of movies in the theater (too expensive!), but I thought this one warranted it. And, we went in the morning so it was just $5 a person! Anyway - we grew up watching the original Indiana Jones movies with our parents. This is probably where my love of movie treasure hunters comes from. (For the record, I also enjoy Michael Douglas and Noah Wyle in this same role.) So, based on the many times we'd laughed so hard watching Harrison Ford and Sean Connery, my brother and I were really looking forward to this movie. So were the spouses, of course, but I kind of think we were the most excited. I had read a lot of reviews, as I tend to do. I'm pretty sure the other three had not. Because they were pretty disappointed by the movie. I thought it was good - the typical Indiana Jones stuff and the Shia LaBeouf character were hilarious to me. And my thought is that even though I don't doubt the reality of religious artifacts like the ark of the covenant and the Holy Grail, some people might find them as probable as aliens. So I don't think anything Indiana Jones could throw at us, any explanation for a crystal skull or any other mysterious relic, could be too crazy for me. After all, it's just a movie. About treasure. Right?

Vantage Point - I saw this movie last night and re-read a review this morning. I wasn't surprised to see a 1-star review and a 2-star review. It wasn't great. But how about these harsh words: 'There's no point to any of this. No insights on terrorism, no commentary about foreign policy, no human drama. 'Vantage Point' is a rotten action flick dressed up in artifice and pretension." Ouch! I did think this movie might have more substance. I don't need some big political statement...and I didn't get it. Or any statement, really. I thought the idea behind the movie - watching an event from several different viewpoints - was interesting. But I have to admit, it got old. And the ending was kind of satisfying. I guess. It wasn't what I suspected, that's for sure, but an unexpected ending isn't always a good thing!

So, in summary, none of these movies was terrible. Fool's Gold was better than I expected, and Vantage Point was worse than I expected. Indiana Jones was about what I thought it would be, and Definitely Maybe was a pleasant surprise. There you have it.

Am I Seeing Things?

So, I don't really think I'm hallucinating. But I seem to have seen a lot of groundhogs lately. By the way, in case you're wondering, groundhogs are the same thing as woodchucks. (The things you can learn while looking for a good image!)

Anyway, my office building is in an old farmhouse on about 10 acres, and a couple times a week, I see a groundhog in the yard as I'm driving up to the parking lot. But nobody else in my office ever mentions seeing a groundhog. And wouldn't you think that's something to talk about?

Then today, I was sitting at a stop light, on an exit ramp from the highway, and I saw some movement in the grass on the side of the road. What else would it be but another groundhog?! Right there by the highway! A groundhog!

And, now that I'm thinking about it, I saw one on my way home from work (in someone's backyard) a few weeks ago.

Is this weird? Do you guys ever see groundhogs? Is there a reason - like too much rain or not enough sunshine or something - that I would see more groundhogs this year than ever before in my life?

Because I'm starting to feel a little bit like Ally McBeal when she kept seeing all those dancing babies!

What Might Have Been

I have a tendency to think too much. To obsess. To overanalyze.

Lately I’ve been thinking about choose your own ending books. Did you read those when you were younger? I went through a phase when I loved them. Of course, I read them with my fingers stuck in all the choice pages, so at the end of the story, I could go back and see what would have happened if I’d make another choice.

In some ways, I think I’ve led my life this same way. My life has taken lots of turns, but most of the time, I keep one finger on the page of that choice, just in case I want to go back and try another path. (Case in point: leaving my dream job to go to grad school, going to grad school for one semester, quitting grad school, going back to my dream job, deciding I don’t love my dream job after all, and moving on to yet another job…)

The thing is, in real life (as opposed to book life), you can’t go back. We don’t get do-overs. So this has led me to spend a lot of time – probably too much time – thinking about “what might’ve been.”

When I was in high school, the Little Texas song, “What Might Have Been,” always made me think of boys. Two boys in particular who never realized that I was the love of their lives. But they should have, of course. So for several years, I would think of them whenever I heard this song.

That’s been so long ago, and today it’s just a pretty song. But I still have this tendency to look back. And that’s not really a good thing. (Just ask Lot’s wife!)

However, today when I heard this song, it hit me a bit differently. It made me think of what might have happened to me if I had never experienced the grace and mercy of Jesus Christ.

What might have been…if I hadn’t been blessed to be raised in a Christian home.
What might have been…if I hadn’t had Godly teachers and role models in my church family.
What might have been…if I hadn’t gotten connected with a body of believers in college.
What might have been…if I hadn’t found a new church home as an adult.

I would have been lost! I was lost, but thanks only to the grace of God, I live a blessed life with Him.

And yet…and yet, I still have moments of regret and wishing for a do-over. Sometimes it’s the same old, same old – wishing I could go back in time, make a different choice, live a better life. But other times, when I’m less focused on things that I can’t change, things I probably shouldn’t change even if I could, I still want to undo things I’ve done.

But – and here’s where my ramblings come full circle – again because of God’s grace, He does undo our mistakes, our sins. He wipes them away, like they never happened in the first place. Amazing.

And that brings me to another song, one that means something to me every time I hear it. But when I heard it today right after “What Might Have Been,” it just blew me away, thinking about God’s goodness. The song is by Rush of Fools, and it’s called, “Undo.” My favorite lyrics:

To label me a hypocrite would be

Only scratching the surface of who I've been known to be

And He loves me anyway. He loves you anyway.

Amazing.

Help Me Make it Through the Day...

At one of my former jobs, a co-worker and friend of mine was an avid KU fan. So in order to make sure everyone around her knew this – even the diehard MU fans – she had a stuffed jayhawk on her desk. As a joke, another co-worker kidnapped her jayhawk and left a ransom note, asking for a 3-lb. bag of M&Ms.

This particular office prank did not go over well.

Some jokes do, though. On that same co-worker’s last day at our office, another friend dressed up in a clown suit and hid behind her desk. That might be a little funny, but it got a lot funnier when we realized that the departing colleague really meant it when she joked about being afraid of clowns. Fortunately, she took that joke a little better. How could you not, when one of your friends is walking around the office in full clown dress?

It’s pranks like this – and games like Buzzword Bingo – that help us make it through the monotonous or particularly stressful times at work.

One of my favorite illustrations of this is from an episode of The Office. It shows the Dunder Mifflin crew in the meeting room, listening to Michael (the boss) drone on about, well, I’m not sure what but it was clearly not interesting. Meanwhile, we see the employees looking very interested in something just beyond their boss’s talking head – the television. The television has gone to a screen saver of sorts, showing a multicolored DVD logo bouncing from one side of the TV to another. As we watch them watch the TV, we learn that they have created an office game of it – waiting for that wondrous day when the DVD logo actually makes its way into the corner instead of just missing it and bouncing off the edge of the screen.

As much as I love The Office, this episode has stuck in my mind for some reason like none other. I think it’s because it captures office life so well. (If you’re really intrigued by the DVD Logo Game, you can learn more here.)

What office/work games do you play to make it through the day?

Am I Seeing Double?

Since I wrote about a "soundalike," I just can't resist talking a bit about lookalike celebrities. I love playing this game, you see, and my best friend (who indulges me and puts up with me saying, "See, see - they really do look alike!") is out of town all summer. So, I need an outlet! I'll just do a couple. Well, three. But that's all, I promise.

Most Obscure Lookalike: Actress Michelle Monaghan ("Made of Honor") and Dancer Courtney Galiano ("So You Think You Can Dance")












They don't really look alike, alike, but they really remind me of each other: Actor Seth Green ("Austin Powers") and Actor Josh Gomez ("Chuck")













And finally (for now), the one that fooled me good: Actress (and activist) Alicia Silverstone ("Clueless") and Actress Maggie Lawson ("Psych"). I watched an entire movie one Saturday starring Maggie Lawson, and I swore it was Alicia Silverstone. My husband looked at the TV for a minute and said, "Hey, she looks like Alicia Silverstone, but her mouth is different." And I said, of course, "Duh! It is Alicia Silverstone."

Yeah. It wasn't.

Haven't I Heard That Somewhere?

Do you ever notice soundalike songs or musicians? I wouldn’t say this happens to me all that often, but recently, I’ve been struck by a soundalike playing on my radio. The pop stations (and a commercial – I think for Sirius radio) are playing a song by Sara Bareilles called, “Love Song.” I really like it – it’s catchy, and I like acoustic music and the singer/songwriter vibe. Plus, I'm a sucker for the piano.

A few days ago I heard a song on the contemporary Christian station called, “I’m Letting Go” by Francesca Battistelli. First of all, I just like the song. The words are meaningful to me. But second of all, Wow! It sounds soooo much like “Love Song!”

Or maybe it’s just me. Take a listen. Let me know what you think.

Sara Bareilles – listen here.
Francesca Battistelli – listen here.

Another soundalike for you country music fans (are you out there? anyone? Bueller?): Rodney Carrington sounds just like Tim McGraw to me. Just like him! When I hear a new song by Rodney, I always, always think it’s Tim!

Have you heard any soundalikes lately?

I don't know what kind of girl I am.

Yes, it's another quote from Juno. I like the movie, okay? For some reason, it just moved me. I mean, yes, of course, it's really funny. And fo-shizzle, it has groovy music. (Just kidding - I don't talk like that.) But parts of it - and the whole theme - were moving.

Anyway, this part of the movie is very brief. It happens right after Juno has told her parents that she's pregnant. Her dad, understandably disappointed, says he thought she was the kind of girl who "knew when to say when."

And that's when Juno says it: "I don't know what kind of girl I am."

When I saw that the first time, I just kind of sat back in my seat and thought, "Huh." (Eloquent, right?) Seriously, though, it hit me that what she was saying wasn't just another witty or flippant statement. At least to me, it was more. It summed up a lot of "stuff" I've been thinking and feeling lately.

See, I've been struggling for a few months. Well, really for several months. It's been the culmination of my 10-year high school reunion, being laid off from my job that I didn't even like that much, having my first baby, taking another job that I don't really love, and now facing my 30th birthday.

But I haven't figured out how to say any of this. Maybe it's because (and I've been waiting for the right time to use this great quote!), like Stephen King said, "The most important things are the hardest to say, because words diminish them."

However, I still have this crazy urge to share with you (or, I should say, anyone who will listen or read) what I'm thinking and feeling. So, here goes.

I'm not who I think I should be. I'm not where I want to be. But to be perfectly honest, I'm not really sure who I am OR who I want to be. And of course, if I don't know those things, I clearly don't know where I want to be or what I am supposed to be either. What I do know is that God made me who I am, whoever that is. And I'm 100% sure He made me to do something BIG. I just have no idea what my "BIG thing" is!

So there it is. My big crisis. Dilemma. Question. Situation. Whatever it is.

If you're wondering why I decided to tell you about it tonight - and even if you're not - it's because I heard a new song. It's by a Christian artist, Kelly Pease. I'm sure she's new, because I can't find much info about her. I'm going to post the lyrics here, but I might have a few wrong. Because I couldn't find the lyrics online...so I listened to her song on MySpace over and over until I could catch all the words. Anyway, here it is:

Original
by Kelly Pease

So long I’ve been trying to please so many people,
Most of whom don’t even know my name.
Somehow if I could only be what they are buying or selling…
In my trying I found out just who I am.

I am an original.
I am fitfully, wonderfully made.
I am an original.
I discovered the name that the artist has placed on my heart,
And that makes me an original work of art.

Somewhere along the way I bought into some crazy notion
That I could be to everybody all things.
So long I’ve been beating my head against the wall…
Through my trying I was crying, “Show me who I am.”

I am an original.
I am fitfully, wonderfully made.
I am an original.
I discovered the name that the artist has placed on my heart,
And that makes me an original work of art.

My face, my smile, I’m just your child. That’s all I am.
I don’t have to be anything but what you have made in me.
I don’t have to look, think, talk, sound, walk like anyone else.
I’m an original work of art.
I don’t have to look, think, talk, sound, walk like anyone else.
I’m an original work of art.

More on all that later. But for now, I'll leave you with one last quote that I think fits in with all this jumbled stuff rattling around in my brain (from the wisdom of Ugly Betty): "Maybe you should stop worrying about what you're supposed to be...and just be."

Pregnancy...it can often lead to an infant. *

Well, I haven't heard the details yet, but congratulations to Triple and Mad Dog on their new baby! I can't wait to meet her!

On that note, I've been thinking that I'm not really living up to my screen name. I've been going by "photoqueen," but I haven't been sharing my photos with you. So, here are a few pics of my infant. (Officially eight months old on Sunday! Where, oh where, did the time go?)

Don't worry - I won't turn this into a baby picture blog! (I do have other, non-baby photos to share with you!) But inspiration hasn't struck for other deep topics that I'm pondering, so photos it is.

* Quote from Juno, one of the best movies I've seen recently.

My New Favorite Blog

I've been reading blogs for a while. Then, when Chelley started her own site, I began reading other people's blogs a little more, especially her friends'. And then I discovered Michael Hyatt's blog. Mr. Hyatt is the CEO of Thomas Nelson Publishing, and I found his site when researching his company. From there, I have found so. many. new. blogs!

The best one so far is by Cool Dad and Cool Mum, a couple of new Christian parents who are veddy, veddy funny! To sum it up, the sidebar says, "This blog is for current or future parents, and anyone who loves Jesus, humor, or geeky behavior." Fun, right? Check it out.