Tuesday, July 31, 2007

Not a diet...

Last night we decided to eat terribly one last time before our healthy eating initiative began today. I refuse to call it a diet, because I hate being on a diet. Plus, this initiative is more about feeding my family well, and I don't need to put my 3 year old daughter on a diet. So, we splurged and went to CiCi's pizza...it's difficult to find a better place to kick off the initiative than a pizza buffet where you can also have cinnamon rolls for dessert. We enjoyed ourselves immensely, and went home stuffed. We went grocery shopping after supper and I even passed up buying Baby Ruth ice cream (I love ice cream, and Baby Ruth is my favorite candy bar) because I knew I couldn't finish it all last night. So, the intiative began this morning with a healthy bowl of bran cereal and blueberries. I think we are having BLT's for supper....bacon, you say? No, we are not doing Atkins, but because this is not a diet, we are trying to eat balanced meals, and bacon in small amounts is fine. So I'm looking forward to my first BLT of the season!

Monday, July 30, 2007

Bed and Breakfast...

This weekend my husband and I had the pleasure of celebrating our anniversary at Anniversary Mansion, a bed and breakfast in Lincoln, NE. We have never stayed at a B & B so we weren't quite sure what to expect, but the website description sounded wonderful, so we thought it would be worth a try.

Well, it was better than we could have imagined. The suite was fanastic, the home was beautiful, the sheets were luxurious, the chocolates were delicious, the fresh flowers were beautiful, the whirlpool was therapeutic....I could go on and on. We enjoyed every part of our stay. The breakfast in the morning was out of this world, and we really felt like royalty being served a candlelight breakfast on fine English china. Every part of our weekend was very special because of the wonderful hospitality we found at Anniversary Mansion.

Thursday, July 26, 2007

Hot day...

Today my applause goes to sun tea. I've heard from a lot of people that making a jar of sun tea is difficult, but I grew up having it almost daily and have continued the tradition in my home. There is nothing better in the summertime than bringing in the jar of tea and pouring it over a glass full of ice. Refreshing and delicious. And today, at 95+ degrees, is a perfect day to enjoy a glass.

Which I think I will go do right now...

Wednesday, July 25, 2007

Flushed Away...

This morning Leah and I went with friends to see Flushed Away in the theater. AMC movie theater have a summer movie camp where they offer a free movie each Wed. morning in the summer, and this morning the movie was Flushed Away. It was Leah's theater movie, so I was hoping it would capture her attention for the duration. She loved it! Combine the movie with their special kid pack snack (small popcorn, drink, and candy for $3...not bad theater prices) it was an inexpensive morning out. I'm going to go tomorrow morning to pick up tickets for next week, as I've found out it's best to get these in advance.

Flushed Away was not a movie I'd heard a whole lot about, but I found it to be very entertaining. There were even things that made me laugh...not quite up to Shrek-standard, but still a fun movie. I thought Kate Winslet did a remarkable job voicing the sewer rat "Rita". I remember seeing her interviewed about this movie and she said she was glad that she had a movie she could bring her kids to. On a slightly deeper level, I thought the movie portrayed nicely the need that we have for relationships, and the benefit of befriending someone not exactly like us.

All in all...a good, inexpensive way to stay cool on a hot July morning.

Tuesday, July 24, 2007

Bohemian Highway...

Mike and I enjoy trying different wines, but we try to keep the cost of the wines we purchase down. Lately I've been stuck on Barefoot wines, which are very good and reasonably priced (usually between 5 and 6 dollars). A few weeks ago we took wine to a family reunion and I decided to bring a bottle of Bohemian Highway California Merlot. It was a little bit more money (about $8) but I thought for a reunion it was worth it. :) It was a hit...both to our tastes and other people there who enjoy wine as well. Last week I noticed that a local grocery store had Bohemian Highway on sale for $4.77 a bottle, so I went and picked a few up. The last few nights I drank their Chardonnay, and while I'm not always a big fan of whites, I really did enjoy this wine. It's always fun to try new things, but it's also nice to know that there is something to be a guaranteed hit as well.

Cheers!

Monday, July 23, 2007

United 93...

I finished watching this movie this weekend. Mike also tuned into the last part of it, and we both were struck by how well the movie was made. Sometimes movies like this can get almost campy, but this one was dignified and almost seemed like we were watching a documentary. Because it was so well-made, it was almost harder to watch I think.

On a much lighter note, we are also keeping up with Entourage. I think this season is one of my favorites. I love what they are doing with the relationship between Ari and Lloyd, and Eric and Billy Walsh. It definitely keeps us laughing, and we keep tuning in.

Saturday, July 21, 2007

The Devil Wears Prada...

Mike and I had a chance last night to finally sit down and watch a movie together...a rare treat. So in between our babysitting duties we managed to watch The Devil Wears Prada starring Meryl Streep (fantastic as always) and Anne Hathaway (also very good). Mike's comment was that at first he thought it was going to be just another chick-flick type movie, but he was pleasantly surprised when there was some actual depth thrown in. I enjoyed it as well. The thing I kept thinking about was that there are people who are actually like Miranda, Streep's character. And there are people who will give their lives to be at her service. It's not the life for me, certainly. I was really glad that the movie showed not only the "glamour" of this lifestyle, but also the sadness that goes along with forsaking all else in the name of a career. I think those of us who watch from the outside can find freedom in knowing that our lives can be so rich when they are not encumbered by a false sense of what is real.

All in all, a good movie...perfect for a Friday night at home.

Friday, July 20, 2007

Starting a new thing...

It's time to head in a new direction blog-wise. I am still keeping my xanga account, but will now be using blogger for other things, such as books I'm reading, things I'm watching, thoughts I'm thinking. Tonight we're sitting at home, watching a friend's baby, and enjoying watching Leah be the "big girl". I started watching the movie United 93 today, something I recorded off of HBO several months ago. Mike was saying tonight that he still doesn't feel like he's ready to watch it. I made it half way through and had to stop, although I think I will finish it this weekend. It's amazing how after nearly 6 years the emotions are still quite raw and very real. The movie is very good, which is probably why it's so difficult to watch. But, on a weekend where we have nothing planned, it's something that I can watch in bits throughout the day.