Friday, August 28, 2015

An Indominus Follow Up

I posted a little while ago about my insanely juvenile adoration of dinosaurs. 

Tonight, I finally got to see Jurassic World. 

The only reason I didn't see the midnight premiere was Husband. He wanted to be there to witness the glorious sight known as me geeking out about dinosaurs. 

I had read reviews and blog posts and Facebook statuses dealing from "THAT WAS AWESOME!" to "WHAT A WASTE OF TIME AND MONEY!"

Well, I'm here now to give you the penultimate review of Jurassic World:

I can die happy.

 The one and only* thing I would change is lowering the bass on the T Rex roar so you can hear that iconic symphony resonate in your heart and take you back to a time when neckerchiefs were cool and they "spared no expense". 

*i would also add in a little topless Chris Pratt, but that's just extra.
                 
               No...not...not that. 


Don't look at me like that, just take off your shirt. 

This movie had all the Dino DNA I could have ever asked for in a film. The nods to the original movie throughout were an awesome touch and it contained juuuust the right amount of raptor glory. 

Raptors are my favorite. I love the sound they make, the way they move, the intelligence, and how frickin AWESOME they are! 

I've decided that all I want before I die is for a raptor to look at me with the same respect it gave Chris Pratt. 


Husband even tried to take pictures of me sitting on the edge of my chair, leaning forward, and grinning like its Christmas. 

Thankfully the theatre was too dark, so you'll just have to use your imagination. 

I will address the one thing most reviewers had issue with. The main girl, Claire, wearing heels through the whole movie. 

"It's sexist!"
"It's cliche!"
"It's unrealistic!"

Are you aware that Chris Pratt is riding a motorcycle with a pack of raptors as they hunt down a GMO dinosaur even Monsanto wouldn't touch?

 I don't think realistic was their intention...

Personally, I love that she wore those pumps and sprinted from a T Rex while flawlessly wielding a lit flare. Sexist that a businesswoman wore heels? Give me a break. 

I'm not lining up for the first boat to Isla Nublar, but I am pre ordering the BluRay. 



Sunday, July 19, 2015

The Beauty of the Earth


Fun fact: I hate Coldplay. I do love this lyric from their song Yellow. 

I've been absent due to medical school stuff, board exam study time, and finding a new house at our rotation site. All of those things are done now, so I'm back. 

Our current location is very.....desert. If you love cacti, rocks, and scrub brush then this is the place for you. 

We really don't. 

We're both from the Pacific Northwest and our blood runs green. 


We're not Vulcans, I promise

Husband loves the great outdoors and all that's included. Hiking, camping, kayaking, and geocaching while I enjoy it slightly less. 

However, down here in the great Phoenix Valley, it's all pretty much the same. 

Our new location is up north. They have trees, y'all. Pine trees. And mountains. And hills. And, and, and...NAAAAATURE!



In this nature I've discovered something. 

This world is beautiful. Even the cactus and rocks have a sort of minimalist charm. 

You know what else is beautiful?

It's for us to enjoy. 

This universe was created for us. 

"Look at the stars, look how they shine for you"

They do. They shine for each of us. 

When I've felt disconnected from Heavenly Father, the quickest way to rekindle that relationship for me has been to step outside on a clear night at look at the stars. Even the biggest cities will have at least one visible star. 

That star is shining for you. 

The flowers are blooming for you. 

The waves are crashing for you. 

The wind is blowing for you. 

This world was made for you by a loving father so you could learn and grow and live in beauty. 

Even when your life isn't beautiful. If you don't feel beautiful. 

Step outside. 

There will always be beauty to remind you that you are loved. 

Monday, May 25, 2015

Comfort Food

Food is necessary for life. 

Food is also responsible for my saddle bags. 

Actually, comfort food is responsible along with my inability to understand portion control. 

(Two cookies?! I eat 'em by the sleeve!)

Even though these aren't the healthiest foods, they possess mystical qualities to make me happy. I pass them along to you, blog readers, in hopes that you can enjoy them too. 

SNACK

My favorite snack is popcorn. I love it. I don't love it getting stuck in my teeth, but it's a sacrifice I'm willing to make for buttery, fluffy goodness. I was eating like a bag of microwave popcorn everyday when I decided that wasn't the best idea. I fiddled with the thought of an air popper, but couldn't find one with good enough reviews. So I turned to the Internet for a recipe and found this gem:

http://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/alton-brown/perfect-popcorn-recipe.html

I used a wok with 3 Tbsp vegetable oil and foil on top. I have a flat top stove and if you do too, I'm so sorry. I turned the heat up to medium high and it popped much faster than my first attempt in a bowl on medium heat. It's a little more work than microwave, but it's cheaper and healthier. Plus you can flavor it however you want!

Entree

I got this recipe from an issue of Bon Appetite and have since shared it with my mom and sister. It's referred to as "the soup" or "magic soup" or just "soup". We all know what soup it's referring to. 

http://www.bonappetit.com/recipe/spicy-pork-and-mustard-green-soup

I use kale instead of mustard greens but both are good. I also omit the peppercorns to make it less spicy for kids. The broth alone will heal your bones and PMS. 

Dessert

Whoever invented this mug cake is my hero. It's started a revolution among my friends and has addictive qualities. It's also started a hashtag of #momswhomugcake. 


The original recipe is huge. I make it in a bowl rather than a mug. I recommend halving the recipe first and using a regular 8 oz mug. I cook it for about 45 seconds for the half recipe and 1 minute 20 seconds for a full. It must be enjoyed with vanilla ice cream.  

Those are my three favorite recipes for comfort food right now. They're powerful though and like Uncle Ben foretold, with great power comes great responsibility. 

Stay hungry, my friends. 


Sunday, May 3, 2015

Mrs. Universe

Have you ever found the perfect ice cream flavor?

Shampoo?

Perfume?

Shade of foundation?

Only to have it be discontinued a couple weeks into your newfound bliss?

This seems to happen to me on the regular. Ben and Jerry's fossil fuel ice cream. Gone. Coach Poppy perfume. Currently being phased out of stores. 

I get this horrific thought when these things happen, "but I like it! Why would they get rid of it?!"

Like the entire company revolves around my interest in a product. Ben and Jerry sitting up in Vermont wearing tie dye organic cotton t shirts and Birkenstocks spitballing the new line of flavors like 

"Should we get rid of fossil fuel?"
"Is that the one with the little fudge dinosaurs?"
"Yeah the sales aren't doing too well, I guess people don't appreciate prehistoric shaped chocolate."
"No let's keep it. Because Kate appreciates it."

That didn't happen because this delightful treat is no longer in existence. 

The same thing happens when I DONT like things anymore. I stopped watching Glee long before Finn died (spoilers sorry), and it weirds me out that people still watch it. 

HELLO! Your queen has spoken! 
(Im awful)

A nasty byproduct of this mentality (which I am working on bt-dubs) is that I neglect to think about other people's happiness around me. 

I'm happy with my kids and our daily interactions so they must be happy too, right?

I'm happy with my marriage and the relationship Husband and I are cultivating so he's in wedded blissville too, right?

The thing is, I have no idea. I mean, I'm not being served divorce papers and my kids aren't screaming that I'm the worst mom ever, but that doesn't mean that they're as content as I am.

 I'm reading a book where the main character doesn't know if her husband has left her for good, or if he's just taking a trip to visit his family. I keep thinking how does someone get to that point?! You don't KNOW if your husband has left you? That seems like a fairly important point of discussion! However, if someone is so caught up in their own preferences, opinions, and universe, would they even know the discussion is being had until it's too late?

I'm working on a thing to help expand my little field of vision to include not only my nuclear family, but the whole world around me. It's almost finished, and I'm excited to share the results with you guys*. 

*meaning my mom and possibly Husband

In the words of one of my favorite hymns "then wake up and do something more, than dream of your mansions above"

Let's set our alarms and wake up. 

Thursday, April 16, 2015

Run, Forrest, Run





I'm not a runner. 

I hate running. 

Even if I was being chased by zombies, I would give it a try and then succumb with a justification that being eaten alive can't possibly be any worse than the cramp in my side and the burning in my lungs. 

I've got a set of P90X DVDs sitting on a shelf, gathering dust. Who has an hour and a half to do yoga? Who wants to do cardio or pull ups with a guy who reminds me of a buff Michael Scott? 

Long story short, I'm not an exercise person. 

As a result, I'm in horrible shape. That zombie scenario? I would last maybe ten seconds at a full sprint. That's factoring in adrenaline and the fight or flight mentality. 

I've since gotten tired of being tired and flabby and unable to survive the first fifteen seconds of a zombie apocalypse. I've decided to force myself to be fit. 

I signed up to run a 5K. 

I'm stupid and smart. 

Stupid because I signed up for a 5K and smart because it cost money to register so I HAVE to actually do it. Since then, I've started running. It's not pretty. 

It's really not, but I keep going when I can. I've run a full mile without stopping and I've run for 13 minutes straight without stopping. That's not impressive but it's a start. 


I get body envy of all the super fit moms I see on Facebook and pinterest. The ones that have multiple kids and multiple abs and cute little butts. It makes me sad to see my love handles and saddle bags and pooch. It kills me when another pair of jeans has been relegated to the "not gonna happen" pile. 

So what do you do when you want something? You make it happen. I've cut out pop (as of yesterday because I got a Dr. Pepper as a treat for surviving Walmart) and I'm trying to go running every day. It's hard when I have two kids at home during the day and only a single stroller. I've tried putting Boy child on his tricycle and Smaller girl child in the stroller, but boy couldn't keep up and kept trying to ride in the street. 

So I started running at night when husband was home. We don't live in the ghetto, but it's not Pleasantville either. Each night run was accompanied by paranoia and anticipation of kidnap/murder/rape with each car that drove past. I'm still trying to find a happy medium, but the best I can come up with is running early in the morning while everyone is still sleeping. 

I'm even less of a morning person than I am a runner. 

Plus husband sometimes bikes to school so he leaves super early meaning I have to get up even EARLIER on those days. 

But I am trying. And that's what matters, right?

Like the zombies will be all "guys, let's give her a break. I mean look how hard she's working! It can't be easy to run from a murderous horde of the undead, right? You go, human! You keep on shuffling awkwardly!"
 

Monday, March 23, 2015

Sunday Giggles (On Monday)


I took a four hour nap today after church, so it's now 10:15 and I'm wide awake. 

I finished watching Friends on Netflix last night (I still cry when Rachel gets off the plane) so I'm laying in bed going through my funny stuff board on Pinterest. 

Husband has a test tomorrow for some doctor thing that I think is about STDs. All I know is he was trying to show me some NASTY pictures earlier from his lecture slides. Anyway, he has a test so I'm laying here trying not to wake him up. Which leads that the laughter where you plug your nose and air comes out of your tear ducts and you're going to have some rockin abs the next day. 

Would you care to laugh with me? 

I have a weird sense of humor, but some of these are universally hilarious. 

       I really love the floating dog leash

     Lord of the Rings humor is the best



   I sent this to a friend who is 37 weeks  pregnant. She laughed too. 




       I actually did this today (Monday). 


Remember when I said I love whale humor? Yeah, this one makes me almost pee myself. 


This one is dedicated to Sarah Tobler. Because we both hate Samuel L. Jackson

        Oh Dumbledore, you're so wise. Funny story: yesterday (Sunday) my ten year old Sunday school boys and I got into a small argument about the difference between hippogriffs and Griffins. There has never been a time I had wished so hard I had the Harry Potter books on my Kindle than that moment. I'm also appalled that one kid actually said "I don't read the books. We watch the movies. So much better." WHAT?! He almost got sent to the hall. 

So, once again, you get a glimpse of how weird I am. I may look relatively normal on the surface, but I can assure you, I am really REALLY weird sometimes*

*all the times





Thursday, March 12, 2015

A lookie loo at how weird I am

I don't even know if that's how you spell "loo" in that phrase. It could possibly be "Lou" like a name for someone...

Like a silly Sally
Or a Debbie downer
Or hungry Henderson 
That last one isn't too mainstream. 

I digress in my first paragraph. It's that kind of day. 




So I was on facebook talking about the new Jurassic Park movie and if you know anything about me, know this:

I
Love
Dinosaurs

Not even in a science way. In a five year old boy with plastic Dino toys going "RAAAAAAAH!!!!" kind of way. So the Jurassic park movies are a big deal to me. 

I was watching the Super Bowl (this is the only time I will speak of that game) when suddenly, this happens:


I stopped dead. I couldn't take my eyes off the screen. I may have yelled at our party guests to "SHUT UP THERES A DINOSAUR". My breathing became rapid and shallow and my pupils probably dilated to anime status. 

                  Raaaaaptoooors!!!!!

When it was over I looked at husband in shock and awe and squeaked out "there's a new one?"

He then informed me HE KNEW. HE KNEW AND HE DIDNT TELL ME. 

I almost left him*.

*not really

I've spent the last twenty minutes watching the trailer over and over again on YouTube and reading the comments and getting psyched all over again. 

Why? 

Dinosaurs are incredible. Especially the fantasy kind that can be trained to run next to you while you speed through the jungle on a motorcycle to hunt down a genetically engineered dinomonster that is threatening a dinosaur theme park. #ilovechrispratt

So here's your glimpse into my weird interest. Enjoy your lookie loo...Lou...lu?

Monday, February 16, 2015

Comfy and Cozy

Like a warm towel fresh out the dryer. 

Hand knitted socks from mom. 

Caramel apple cider from Starbucks.  

A tiny baby sleeping on your chest. 

Some things in this world are too comfy for their own good. Things that make you go "aaaaaaaaaahhhhh" and relax in a melted puddle of bones and contentment. Everyone has their own favorite comfies. Their routines. Their safe zones. 

But what about the whole wide world outside the coziness? 


For Valentines Day I wanted to try something different for our date and my gift to husband. Usually we go out for dinner at a restaurant and maybe a movie and then exchange gifts. My gifts to him are usually returned or exchanged because I never know what to get him. 

This year I talked with my mom and sister and got the idea to paint him a picture. Soooo I did. 


              (Not exactly Van Gogh)

I'm not a painter, obviously, and this project took a lot of reassurance from a lot of people for me to even try. This was 110% out of my comfort zone. Even so, I finished and concocted scenarios in my head to be prepared for any reaction. 

My favorite was presenting the picture to him and he stares at it, gaping in amazement before proclaiming, "YOU made this? It's AMAZING!!" 

More realistic scenario being me sheepishly handing him the canvas where he studies it while stuttering, "you must have worked hard on this....it's...........interesting."

The reaction I got was somewhere in between. I mean he didn't slam it down in the closet of forgotten junk, but he didn't book me wall space at the Louvre either. 

The other part of our date was a picnic at the park with a playlist of romantic songs, martinellis, and candles. Well, I forgot the bottle opener so we had to pry the bottle open with a fork. I also forgot a lighter soooo we just had unlit candles in the center of our picnic. I felt kind of stupid for not just going to Red Robin or PF Changs where everything would be perfect. 

I also planned to go rock climbing. 

FUN FACT: I'm terrified of heights. We went on a skyride thing at the zoo once and I almost passed out. 

Rock climbing was ridiculously out of my comfort zone, but I knew it was something husband enjoyed and he would be surprised I had planned something so out of the ordinary. Unfortunately, I forgot he hurt his shoulder so we ended up at the mall shopping instead. 

FUN FACT: shopping is 9000% inside my comfort zone and 9000% outside of husband's. 

Even with a wrench thrown in our plans, we had a great Valentine's Day date. We both wiggled a pinky toe outside our comfort zones and it was more memorable than just another restaurant and movie date. The rock climbing groupons are good until May...so there's still an opportunity to step out of my comfort zone for a memorable date. Hopefully my harness doesn't fail as I'm climbing up and my hand slips off the grip and I hurtle downward toward ultimate doom while horrified patrons look on helplessly. 

Seriously, heights are a problem. 


Sunday, January 4, 2015

Marriage Is Work?

I recently read the Mindy Kaling book "Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me?" and she had one part where she was talking about a guy she knew that made marriage seem terrible. 

Just awful. 

The people who are all "marriage is WORK."

Yeah. I get it. Marriage isn't just snuggles and his & hers towel sets and lovingly feeding each other bites at a restaurant in the candle light. 

Excuse me while I barf from that previous paragraph. 


That's better. 

Now I'm gonna get all philosophical. Kind of. 

I don't think marriage should be WORK. I think marriage should be natural. 

 I don't view marriage as work. I think of work as something unpleasant, yet necessary. 

Like your first job in a dark basement, opening and sorting mail for an insurance company that pays slightly more than minimum wage. 

Now, I know what you're thinking. I'm not saying marriage is without trials. Sure, there are moments when you've asked for a chore to be done and it goes unheeded for days on end. There are disagreements about how to fold towels and the amount of hair on the shower wall.

       I need this pillow for obvious reasons

Is marriage hard? Sometimes. Is it maddening? Often. Is it worth it?

In the words of Severus Snape,

"Always."

Because even when the arguments and annoyances arise, and they will, you're still facing off against someone who is ultimately on your side. Someone who vowed to weather the storms of life or PMS or cooking your first thanksgiving.  

Those are the things I try to remember when I'm on some tirade about being the only person "who even gives a crap if dinner gets put away and how many times do I have to sweep this frickin floor today?!" 

That's when it's hard. When I feel unappreciated and that my hard work goes unnoticed. I get a little selfish and play butwhataboutme. 

A charming game where I think of all the things Husband does, and then think butwhataboutme?

"Sure he goes to school and studies a bunch of stuff I have no clue about and sits in uncomfortable chairs listening to boring lectures...but I'm at home with kids all day and cooking and cleaning and grocery shopping and laundry."

It makes it so easy to belittle what he actually does. I just see him getting out of the house without worrying about the number of wipes left in the diaper bag and galavanting off to higher education and intellectual conversations with adults. REAL adults! I overlook the fact that he's exhausted from staying up until one am studying, only to wake back up at four to study some more. I glaze over the Tupperware of leftovers eaten cold from his lunchbox and that the adult conversation is really sitting at a laptop texting classmates about exam material. 

I also forget to mention the two (sometimes THREE) hours of nap time that I get almost every day to do whatever I want. Sure he thinks this nap time is probably spent prepping dinner menus and folding clothes and cleaning counters. 

It's not. 

Most of the time I'm parked on the couch with a pile of snacks and either my kindle or Netflix. 

Moral of the story is: you can't compare your contributions. They're separate, but equal. I scoff at the notion of him being "mom" and he chortles imagining me learning about Dopaminergic pathways from the ventral tegmental area to the nucleus accumbens and 
prefrontal cortex.  

I even had him type that out for me. 

Don't compare his apples to your oranges. That's not innuendo either. Even though it made me giggle. 

Marriage is difficult, but so are a lot of recipes. However, if you pay attention, make sure you have all the right ingredients, and keep trying even when you mess up, you'll end up with something wonderful and fulfilling. 

Like cheesecake. But sexy. 

    Even though we piss each other off.          .......................Frequently.........................