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Sunday, May 23, 2010

Weekend Links: 5.22.10

I’ve really got everything here. I’m talking parenting, faith, marriage, humor, conviction – it’s all here.

Well, not all. I mean, you don’t really want me to dump my whole Google Reader on you . . . do you?

[No. You do not. And how do I know this? Because I know you don’t want to read the blogs I subscribe to for work. Not that real estate and finance aren’t fascinating. But, um, they’re not.]

So, what are we left with? Just a handful of my favorite posts (and two videos) from the past few weeks. Enjoy – and share a link or two to your favorite posts in the comments! (And if your favorite post happens to be your own, link it up anyway!)

Television is a drug. (video)




Swagger Wagon (video)



These Delicious tags on a Sunday will be linked to Saturday Stumbles at It's Come 2 This. I know. I don't make any sense.

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Saturday, May 22, 2010

Giveaway winner: The Pioneer Woman Cooks

WOW. I can't believe how many people entered my giveaway for The Pioneer Woman's cookbook. I wish I could give one to EACH of you!

Unfortunately, I can't. So Random.org got the unenviable job of choosing just one. And he picked . . . drum roll, please . . . Commenter #89, KirstinMarie!

Kirstin, please e-mail me your address, so I can send you the book!

Thank you to everyone who made me hungry ALL week with your favorite comfort foods! I hope you get to indulge in your favorites soon. (And who would have guessed mashed potatoes would be at the top of the list? Okay...I would have guessed that. How about you?)

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Saturday Review: Make sure you do the dollar rental.

We’re going to see a movie tonight. It’s a date night. And we’re going to see Date Night.

Iron Man 2 looks more exciting, but it doesn’t have the same sort of ring that “date night to Date Night” does.

I’ve read some reviews of Date Night, and they’re not all great. Some were pretty good, though. And more importantly, my friends on Facebook (and friends of friends who commented after me) have loved it. So, Date Night squared it is.

All this movie thought reminded me that I haven’t reviewed any movies for quite a while. Unfortunately for us both, I remembered why when I looked at my list of recently watched movies.

Mainly – I haven’t seen any great movies lately. But, I do make it a goal (why, I don’t know, so don’t even ask me) to tell you my take on just about every movie I watch. So, here goes:


Post Grad: I loved Gilmore Girls, and this movie stars Alexis Bledel. On top of that, the preview made the movie look like it was about a girl trying to figure out her career path. And you know that’s something I’ve struggled with. The difference? I’ve been struggling for a decade and still don’t have an answer. The character in this movie struggles for a summer and – don’t worry, I’m not really spoiling anything here – finds an answer. So, instead of being helpful or inspiring, this one ended up being a little depressing for me. Almost as discouraging as reading another story about another “not yet 30” person finding wild success.

On a positive note, Rory is still as cute as ever. And her family was a larger focus of the movie than I expected, which I really liked. In fact, I think the family situations and relationships were my favorite part.

Did You Hear About the Morgans? I knew it. I knew this would be stupid. But I just can’t resist a romantic comedy. I should have, though. I don’t like Sarah Jessica Parker. I just don’t. I don’t think I ever need to see her in another film again. And Hugh Grant? Well, I like him and all. But really – and I know this is terrible, and I’m no spring chicken myself – I think he’s a little bit old to be playing the same old romantic lead character he has for years. YEARS.

Leap Year: Speaking of year . . . Do you see how that happened? I didn’t even plan it. It just . . . happened.

Anyway, this was cute. Silly, yes. Predictable, of course. But hello! It has Irish accents and Irish landscapes and even an Irish castle. You pretty much can’t go wrong with that. I do wish I’d watched it with the subtitles on, because the accents are pretty thick and I was pretty tired. But even though the whole thing was clichéd and silly, I liked it well enough.

(Ugh! Don’t be put off by my faint praise! If you like chick flicks, it really is fine. And, really, for a dollar?)

The Informant! I saved the best for last, but WOW, this was not what I expected.

I expected laugh-out-loud funny. I expected exciting caper. I expected to enjoy it much more than Mark and Smitty, who both had the nerve to (separately) watch the movie without me and then went on to say things like, “It wasn’t what I expected.”

But when Mark was sweet enough to secretly rent this for me after my second weekend of verge-of-death (also known as “sinus infection,” but really, that does not sound serious enough to describe my illness), I found myself saying the same thing: “It sure wasn’t what I expected.”

Was it funny? Yes, really funny. But in a smart, make-you-think sort of way. And definitely not in a laugh-out-loud sort of way.

It’s long, it’s interesting and it has more surprises than I can even tell you here. So, all in all, I’d highly recommend renting this one. Just don’t be expecting . . . well, anything.

Have you rented any good – or not good, if it so happens – movies lately?

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Friday, May 21, 2010

Summer in the City


Yesterday I met with my manager, and we talked about goals for the rest of the month. About one particular project, she said, “I’d like to finish that up by summer.”

Then we paused. And realized that summer is almost here. I suggested we go strictly by the calendar start, which is still a month away.

You might have guessed that I’m not fond of said project. And I’m not. But more importantly – where has the time gone?

Seriously! I know it’s cliché to moan and groan about time flying, blah, blah, blah. But come on, time! Slow the heck down!!

Okay. I gather, from my elders and, you know, clichéd blog posts, that time will not be slowing down anytime soon. So instead of letting another season fly by, I’m taking a note from the I Heart Blog and setting some goals for enjoying my summer.

Yes, you got that right. I’m making plans to have fun.


Iowa State Fair – My brother, sister-in-law and two good friends from college live in Des Moines. In addition, my brother once starred in a production of State Fair. (Is that true, James? It feels true, but who knows...) So I know well that the Iowa State Fair is the best state fair in the state.

And yet, we’ve never been. I plan to remedy that this summer. As a matter of fact, it’s already on the calendar. We’re going to a Keith Urban and Kris Allen (yee-haw!) concert with my brother and sister-in-law, then we’re going to see the animals and exhibits and butter cow with my friends.

I can’t wait. I might feel differently when it’s a million degrees and we’re sniffing barnyard animal fumes. But for now, I’m excited.

Outdoor Theatre – I’ve got two choices: free community theater a few blocks from my house or moderately expensive professional productions a short drive south. I know it seems obvious, but while I really like South Pacific (who doesn’t sing “I’m Gonna Wash That Man Right Outta My Hair” in the shower?), the pro theater is putting on Beauty and the Beast. And The Producers, but Beauty and the Beast! My favorite!

Side note: I cannot wait until Annalyn moves on from Cinderella to a real princess. And by “real princess” – because yes, I rank them – I mean Belle. My favorite, if I haven’t mentioned it.

Oh, one more thing. Both theater options? In August. The hot month.


Chalk Festival – Back in the day when our time was our own, Mark and I made an effort to enjoy all the fun our city has to offer. Well, one year we did. But that year was a lot of fun. And it introduced us to the city’s Chalk Festival.

I don’t remember how we stumbled on it, but I’m so glad we did. The creations those artists make – with chalk – on the sidewalk – are incredible. And I’m determined to go again this year.


City Market – Okay, if you must know, my whole plan includes not just visiting the farmer’s market downtown, but buying fresh vegetables to make my own salsa. Yep, salsa again.

And I might pick up some flowers, too. Just because.


The Zoo and/or Deanna Rose Farmstead – Big animals or small ones? Maybe both. It will depend on how the summer shapes up, but we’re definitely doing at least one.

The zoo pros are big, exotic animals, as well as an invitation from my new blog friend, Janna.

The farmstead pros are animals you can pet and feed, as well as rave reviews from all of my mom friends. Not my mom’s friends. Although, I don’t know, they might love it, too.

Okay, you’re right. I can’t choose. I’ll do both.

These five activities make up half of my summer list. I’ll share the other five next week. Until then . . . What are your plans for the summer?

This post will be posted to Show Us Your Life at Kelly’s Korner.

Images from Maureen Lunn, veritasnoctis, kansas_city_royalty and kcchalkandwalk.org.

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Thursday, May 20, 2010

When blog friends become real friends


Last February, I almost got to meet one of my very first bloggy friends. We were both scheduled to be in Nashville – for two different conferences – the same weekend in February.

It didn’t work out.

Then, this February, the same thing happened. We were both in town (neither one of us lives in Nashville, by the way), but again, we weren’t able to connect.

And just last month, I visited Nashville with my parents. I e-mailed another blog friend who lives there as soon as I found out about the trip and asked if we could hang out while I was there. She said, “Sure!”

Can you guess what happened?

Or, more accurately, what didn’t happen?

[Seriously, what is up with Nashville and me?]

I was so disappointed each time I was unable to see my friends. That’s the thing about becoming friends with people you meet online: they probably don’t live in your town.

And while online friendships can be meaningful and genuine, there’s just something special about seeing someone in person and hugging her neck.

So last week, when I heard that my friend Alece – who normally lives in Africa – would be visiting my friend Sara – who can’t leave her house for health reasons – just five hours from my house, I didn’t hesitate.

I e-mailed them and invited myself up!

Read the rest of my post at (in)courage.

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Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Protesting the Moonlighting effect



It’s that bittersweet time of year again. No, not graduation time.

Season finale time.

And as I think about some of my favorite shows that are coming to an end – at least for the summer – I can’t help but think about David and Maddie.

You know, from Moonlighting?

Yep. The ones who ruined it for all of us.

Surely you’ve heard of the Moonlighting effect, right? The so-called rule that says if you allow romantic tension between the male and female lead characters to actually develop into a relationship, then it’s all over.

Never mind that according to most reports, Bruce Willis and Cybil Sheperd hated each other by the end of the show.

But regardless of the reason, most TV shows avoid the situation at all costs. And if you want to know just how extreme “all costs” can be, think back to the last couple of seasons of Gilmore Girls.

My very favorite show, Chuck, has bucked the trend and finally (finally!) put Chuck and Sarah together. But most of my other favorites? Still toeing the David and Maddie line.

Exhibit A: Bones
Exhibit B: Castle
Exhibit C: NCIS

One surprising coupling (is that weird? Maybe I should find another way to say it...) is Betty and Daniel in the series finale of Ugly Betty. Then again, not so surprising, since they waited until the very, VERY end to give us even a sliver of hope that it might possibly happen after the screen went dark.

Who are your favorite couples – or non-couples – on TV? Either now or in the past. (Feel free to go retro with a Sam and Diane or Tony and Angela.)

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Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Pink toes

Pay no attention to the Skittles on my mouth!

As I buckled her into her car seat, she said, “I have white toes.”

Okaaaaay.

Then, “Elise has pink toes. I have white toes.”

Oh! I get it now. Her friend Elise has painted toenails.

“Would you like me to paint your toenails pink?” I asked.

“Yeah!”

And just like that, I made her day. Actually, based on the way she showed off her pink toes and “stingers” [fingers] over the next several days, I made her week.

I couldn’t help but think just how easy it is to make her happy now. Two year olds throw fits over the most ridiculous things, but they also delight in the simplest pleasures.

Like pink toes.
Or princess band-aids.
Or a new bouncy ball from the store.
Or blowing bubbles on the front porch.
Or rediscovering a bucket of stuffed animals that have been neglected for six months.

It’s so easy now. But it won’t always be that way.

I think of the times my parents just couldn’t – or wouldn’t – do what I wanted to make me happy. I think of dance lessons we couldn’t afford and extracurricular activities they didn’t approve. I think of church camp and parties missed and rules and budgets enforced.

But then I remember hugs and lessons and support and love. And I know that they gave me everything I ever needed – and so much more. Like piano lessons and Camp Fire uniforms. Like a second pair of basketball shoes, after my first pair got stolen. Like a dress for a dance that I never got asked to.

And I know that my little girl will be just fine, even if she doesn’t get everything she wants.

Still, I’m glad I can give her pink toes.

This post will be linked to What I Learned This Week at Inmates to Playdates and Tuesdays Unwrapped at Chatting at the Sky.

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Monday, May 17, 2010

Giveaway: The Pioneer Woman Cookbook


I had grand plans to make something from the Pioneer Woman’s cookbook this weekend, take beautiful photos in the natural light and then write all about it in today’s post.

As you might have guessed from the way I said, “I had grand plans,” something went awry. Mainly the daycare germs striking again, although the rain and the clouds and the no natural light didn’t help.

I won’t whine for long (Although I could. And I want to. Believe me, I want to.), but this was the third weekend out of three that someone has been sick at our house. And it was the second weekend out of three that someone has, in fact, been ME.

Last time, my co-workers and I just suffered through my 10-day-long cough. But since this bug – whatever it is – has returned as quickly as So You Think You Can Dance after a fall season, I went to the doctor yesterday.

Well, I went to the CVS clinic. And saw the “doctor,” who gave me the weakest antibiotic on earth (Yes, amoxycilin, I’m talking to you.) and told me I should feel better in three to four days.

THREE to FOUR DAYS.

Needless to say (is it? Because I seem to be saying a lot here.), I didn’t do any much cooking this weekend.

I did, however, make it to the store to buy groceries, so I now at least have the ingredients for the PW recipe I picked out. Because, no, I don’t normally have Crisco on hand.

So, I’m sure you’re wondering – especially if you came over here from a cooking carnival – what do I have for you, anyway? Is there a giveaway or what?

Yes. Yes, my friend, there is a giveaway. But first, I thought I’d tell you – because I’m feeling really inferior when it comes to my cooking skills, now that I admitted I don’t keep shortening on hand and all – that I have tried a few of PW’s recipes.

Here are the few I’ve tried (I tweaked each one of them, but LOVED them all):

Now, on to the good stuff. I’m giving away my last copy of The Pioneer Woman Cooks. So if you like good food (and, really, who doesn’t?), I suggest you enter this one.

To enter, leave a comment telling me your favorite comfort food.

[I’ll go first with an embarrassing example. In college, my favorite once-a-month, if you know what I mean, comfort food was macaroni and cheese. Made from a box. With water and not milk. In the microwave. See? Even if I make my meatloaf in the microwave now, my tastes have clearly improved. Somewhat.]

For additional entries, subscribe to Giving Up on Perfect, follow me on Twitter or join my Facebook page – and then tell me in a separate comment. (That’s a separate comment for each one, if you’d like. And if you already do these things, just say so in that separate comment.)

I'll use Random.org to draw a winner after midnight on Friday. Good luck, and happy Monday!

This post will be linked to Mouthwatering Monday, Tasty Tuesday, Tuesdays at the Table, Tempt My Tummy Tuesday, What's Cooking Wednesday, Friday Food, Foodie Friday and Food on Fridays.

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Saturday, May 15, 2010

Saturday Review: The Hole in Our Gospel


The first time I heard about The Hole in Our Gospel was in a blog post by Pete Wilson when he went to India with Compassion. He said it rocked his world.

That scared me. And intrigued me.

So when the book became available for review, I jumped on it. And then put it off. For almost a year.

I’m not exaggerating this time. I took the book with me on vacation. Last June.

See, Pete wasn’t the only person I’d heard talk about this book. Written by Richard Stearns, the CEO of World Vision, the book’s subtitle is “What Does God Expect of Us? The Answer That Changed My Life and Might Just Change the World.”

Yikes. Does that not intimidate you??

Eleven months later, I’ve finally finished The Hole in Our Gospel. Actually, I finished it a while ago, but I’ve been letting it settle in my soul.

I’m still pretty unsettled, if you want to know the truth, but it’s time to review the book.

Richard Stearns begins The Hole in Our Gospel with his personal story. It’s an incredible one, and it blew me away. He was a very wealthy, very successful CEO of a corporation when God CALLED him to World Vision.

I don’t want to ruin the story by telling you the details. You really need to read it yourself! I’ll just tell you this: God is amazing, and Stearns’ story is an amazing testimony to that fact.

The middle part of the book contains fact after statistic after story, illustrating exactly how bad the poverty in our world is. One thing Stearns pointed out that I hadn’t realized (okay, he pointed out TONS of things I hadn’t realized, but this one struck me in particular): the deficit between the richest and the poorest people is HUGE. Ridiculously huge.

In the last part of the book, Stearns offers suggestions for addressing this problem, and what has stuck with me most was his encouragement to not get overwhelmed and apathetic.

Even though he spent many pages breaking the heart of his reader, he doesn’t want to stop there. He wants us to act. To actually – don’t be shocked – live like Jesus.

This book was challenging. It was eye-opening. It was HARD to read.

And I’m so glad I did.

I highly recommend reading The Hole in Our Gospel by Richard Stearns. But don’t be surprised if it changes your heart, too!

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Friday, May 14, 2010

I've lost that loving feeling.


No, not that loving feeling.

I mean my love of reading. And I wouldn’t say I’ve necessarily lost it yet. But it’s definitely not as fun as it used to be. Unfortunately, I know why.

The culprit? Too many book reviews. Too many books on my must-read list that are also on my must-review list. Too many books stacked next to my bed that don’t look quite as fun or interesting or moving now that they arrived in my mailbox. Too many books that do look fun or interesting or moving, but because they’re a “to-do” instead of a “wanna,” I just don’t feel like reading them.

Book reviews are sapping the enjoyment straight out of my reading these days.

It’s not that I don’t like the books I’ve read and reviewed. Once I've managed to start them, I've loved almost every one. I wouldn’t suggest them to you if I didn’t like them.

But they aren’t necessarily the books I would pick out for myself. And, as Chelley has heard me say more than she likes, I’ve got a towering stack of books that I have picked out for myself already waiting for me.

And because I’ve committed to review them, they come with a price. Sure, the books are free. Unless you count the expectation that I will, you know, read them, take notes and then post an honest, well-written review.

That’s a lot of pressure, you all.

I know that sounds crazy. But the way I normally read – super fast, sometimes [don’t judge me] even skipping the boring parts and for pure escapist pleasure – is not conducive to deep thoughts or insights.

Much as I enjoy free books – especially books that I wouldn’t necessarily have picked up myself or would have waited years to borrow from the library – I don’t think the “free” part of this deal is working out for me.

And that is why I’m going to stop doing book reviews.

[Insert dramatic music here, if you like that sort of thing.]

Okay, okay. I realize it’s not really an earth-shattering announcement. Unless you’re my mailman, and then you might be glad for fewer boxes to deliver.

I’m not saying I will never review another book. [Let's be honest: sharing my opinions is kind of what I do.] I’m just saying I’m not going to do any right now.

[Unless you count the book I’m reviewing tomorrow. But that’s the last one. For realz.]

So, what do you think?

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