I love Harry (and definitely JK)

Being at the beach last week with my family did not stop the fulfillment of my desire for all things Harry Potter. The family spent Monday night at the theater watching the latest movie installment. It was really good - and I was surprised. It was a tough book to read - Harry is having massive teenage angst and Umbridge is just beyond awful. Yet, the movie handled it all so very well and it moved so quickly. None of us could believe the 138 minutes were up at the end. One thing they could have written differently - the end of Harry and Cho's relationship - little too choppy and didn't flow with the book as well.

And speaking of books, I found a bookstore on Emerald Isle and got there about 10:30 Saturday morning. A good chunk of the day was spent reading this final installment of a truly great series. I could have finished it in that day if I didn't interact with my family or cook them dinner - but some things have to be done. I did finish Sunday morning. I started crying on page 53. I will mourn some deaths for some time to come. And the big twist at the end. Wow. Guess I can't really say anything else without giving stuff away. I just need to wait for the next two movies now, and reread the Hallows whenever Hubby finishes it.

Thank you, JK Rowling, for a truly great series and many countless hours of enjoyment.

How much do you like chocolate?

I don't think Hubby knew what I was doing with the camera, but I wanted evidence. Crushed m & ms were all over the side of his face. Some of the ones on the ear had fallen off, but the man's face was essentially covered in chocolate. How, you might ask, could this happen?

Hubby had just gotten off the cell phone when I smelled chocolate in the vicinity. I quickly followed my nose to Hubby's face. I went from there to the cell phone (just a few weeks old), which was also covered in smushed m & ms.

"Hubby, how on earth did you get mashed m & ms all over your cell phone, and did you know that they are all over the side of your face now?" I felt like Hermoine when she first meets Ron and points out the dirt on the side of his nose.

"Huh?" he responded as he walked to the bathroom to clean his face. "How did that happen?"

"You have crushed m & ms all over your new cell phone." He looked puzzled for a few minutes, and then pulled an open bag of m & ms out of his pocket. Apparently he put them in his pocket during the movie we had just seen and decided his cell phone belonged in the same pocket.

You just never know what will happen at my house.

Browsing through some cards...

I was at B & N the other night (my chosen place of escape) and started flipping through greeting cards. I wanted to find one for Sonny Boy, who was off at camp. I found this one, and then fervently prayed Hubby would never see it - because hope (on my part) does spring eternal.

"If you haven't grown up by the time you're middle-aged, it means you don't have to."

Anglophile in action

Sunday afternoon I was a good girl - I went to the Rec Center to put in my time on the elliptical. Thanks to my Mum, I have an Ipod which keeps me fairly occupied during those tedious 30 minutes. Since this is a university rec center, the tvs do not normally have fare which I deem worthy of my notice (and that does include the news channels).

Yet, this past Sunday, the Concert for Diana was on the telly. I couldn't take my eyes off it. Diana was a few years older than I, and we had similar tastes in music. And I have always loved many of the Brit singers - you can get a glimpse of the wonderful Lily Allen at an earlier post. And can I say that Take That has aged quite well in the 10 years I have not seen them? And did you know Duran Duran's Rio was written for me?

I think what was a little scary was that I knew who all the Brits were who seemed obscure to most the American audience. I also understood the entirety of Ricky Gervais' routine (and laughed hysterically).

The Princes did a great job. They raised a lot of money for a number of good causes, and I know their mum would be quite proud.

And did I mention I ended up spending an hour on the elliptical?

Wedding in Bath

I have many vivid memories of my Mum telling my little brother and me not to provide public entertainment when we were growing up. Of course, my Dad is the best at this particular pasttime :)

I had some wonderful public entertainment while in Bath. It was a beautiful Saturday, and in the park beside the river Avon there was a wedding party and their guests assembled. A large number of us were observing while they spent a fair amount of time trying to take pictures. I was particularly fascinated by the bride's attendants' attire. Olive green corset tops with white polyester, low ride, stretch pants. If one were skinny enough to pull off wearing the pants, then the upper regions were a little too sparse for the corset top. And of course if they filled out the top nicely, the pants were not the most flattering. Yet, I found the most interesting part of the ensemble was the baby blue caps perched jauntily on the side of their heads.

I sure hope this was not an indication of the usual bridal party attire in Britain. But I did appreciate the free public entertainment.

Good Sport

When one travels to a foreign land, it's not easy to find a present for a 13 year old boy. My Mum and I looked for several days before I finally settled on this tshirt. I knew it was a gamble - but thank goodness he liked it. I think he has watched enough Harry Potter to think that "Mum" is a pretty fun and British thing to say.

Bath billboard

Mum and I couldn't help but notice thuis board in Bath, England. Not much else to say, huh?

Trafalgar Square

For many years, I have longed to go to Trafalgar Square. I don't know why that one spot has held my attention, but it has. Here are Mom and me in front of the beautiful fountain. Lots of people were there - it was one happening place. Yet, I will say that one event occurred which has been a lasting image in my memory of that day. In the midst of all the hordes of people, there was a rugby team getting ready for a match apparently. The stood, grouped together, stripping off the warmups and down to their tight team shirts and shorts. Women were standing around the group, mouths gaping open and camera phones clicking. I don't know why they decided to strip down in the middle of Trafalgar Square, but I must say that I'm glad they did.

Bruce Campbell

I LUVVVVV Bruce Campbell, and this commercial shows some of the reasons why. Genius (and much better than Duran Duran)

Interesting sights of London

Here are some sights of London you might not normally see. The first is a statue of Boadecia - the pagan warrior who, along with her four daughters, led the native Britons to fight the invading Romans. She was the original Xena, warrior princess, in my view.

The second is a piece of modern art found at Trafalgar Square. Admiral Nelson is found on a much higher pedestal in the central part, but to the side is this lovely piece that represents life and creation. I don't think I care to reflect on why she has no arms.

The last is a building that I thought looked kinda like a pineapple. It was recently completed, and the first night it was lit up in green - and thus the people dubbed it the Erotic Gerkin.

I love the British.

The Eye

Mum and I took a little cruise on the Thames one day, and you can see the monstrous eye behind us. It was raining some, but if it had not been raining off and on during the day - it just wouldn't have been London.

We're back!

Well, Mom and I are back from our 5 day adventure in England. We had 3 nights in London and 2 nights in Bath. I'll have lots to share in the coming days. Since I had never been to that part of the world (and have been dying to go since I was about 12 years old), I had so much I wanted to see and do. And Mom graciously let me drag her all over the place to do and see those things. We didn't slow down - we just keep going and going, seeing it all.

Mom is in great shape, especially for someone her age. She is a real trooper. But when she did finally get an opportunity to collapse on the bed, I could not help but record it for the world to see.

Lily Allen -

I'm heading to England tomorrow (first visit!). In honor of that, I'll leave you with my current favorite song from a young Brit. Nothing like a woman scorned!

Best Mothers' Day

Yesterday was the best Moms' Day. My family banded together to give me a U2 CD and chocolate (pretty good!). And Sonny Boy, after 7 months of confirmation class, joined the church. It was a very special service. My parents came - they drove 5 hours yesterday. Sonny Boy's godmother spent about 4 on the road herself (and left her 4 year old twins with her husband) so that she could be there. Sonny Boy didn't know his godmother would be there - his face when he saw her is one that I will never forget.

Yes, I did cry some - but thankfully, nowhere near as much as my Mom (Margery Kempe herself). He really is growing up, and is turning into such a wonderful young man - kind, creative, intelligent, outgoing, articulate, and compassionate. Hubby and I are so proud of him. He really took the step of joining the church very seriously and wants to make the world a better place. And if he can snowboard most the time while he's improving the world, then everything will be perfect!

Multicultural Festival

Princess is still in her Chinese Folk Dance class. It is a class taught by a wonderful woman with the Greensboro Chinese Association. Most of the girls come from native Chinese families, but the GCA has graciously invited adopted girls to participate as well. Ms. Shirley not only teaches a variety of dances to a variety of ages, but she also makes all the costumes.

The girl performed at a Multicultural Festival in Lexington this past weekend. It was a lot of fun and Princess did a great job!

Bag the Shopping

Sonny Boy has always had very particular tastes in clothing. He is very clear on what is "cool" and what is decidedly "uncool." I remember when he was two years old and I was getting him ready for church one beautiful summer morning. I just love little boys in those cute little rompers. I had a very cute light blue one I found at the Just Ducky closeout warehouse. He had worn it a number of times - he looked so precious with that romper and sandals.

Well, that morning he decided that rompers were no longer cool. He started saying rather loudly, "I don't wike wompers!!" I tried to explain this was a Sunday outfit and continued to get it on his struggling little body. He kept up with his exclamation and proceeded to rip the button off the strap - he was not going to wear a romper that day. I decided I didn't care - we found a tshirt and shorts. If people wanted to talk about the preacher's kid not being dressed nicely for church, let them.

So now he's 13 and thinks he is destined for a career as a professional snow boarder. He's also thinking when he is world famous for this career, Dancing with the Stars will ask him to be on the show. One of the very few stores that carries appropriately snowboarder cool clothing is Old Navy. Since I shop there so often, I decided to get one of the ON credit cards - I figured the extra coupons they sent were worth it.

Last week, I received a plastic bag in the mail - everything stuffed in it would be an extra 25% off with the use of my card. Sonny Boy was growing again, so off we went. We arrived at the counter with five shirts, four pairs of shorts (all big enough for a 5'5, 110 lb boy) and one little sundress for Princess. The cashier apolegetically told me that the clothes actually had to be in the bag for the discount. Sonny Boy and I started laughing rather loudly, and then removed all the coat hangers and crammed every bit of clothing into the small bag. The bag had a couple rips, but the clothes were in. The cashier then took each item out, rung it up, folded it nicely into a large bag and put all the coat hangers in the bag as well.

Sonny Boy and I laughed all the way to the car. I'm sure the manager didn't appreciate us too much that night, but we did provide some entertainment for the other customers.

Virginia Tech

Being a campus minister hasn't been easy this week. Not only do all the students and community here identify with the people of Virginia Tech - but some have lost very dear friends. One of the girls in my group has lost her best friend from home. It's hard to walk around campus and not continually be reminded of what horrific thing occurred.

The campus ministers had a service of remembrance and hope this morning here at UNCG. The house was packed (even media), and fortunately God was with us so that people found the service meaningful. One of my colleagues, Zach, wrote a reflection that you must read. They are words we need to hear

Caught

Here's a good story from my weekend at Davis Cup. The interesting thing about watching tennis is that you can't get up and wander around at concessions and bathrooms at will. One has to wait until after odd numbered games or in between sets or matches. Therefore, the time in between matches can create unbelievably long lines for the bathroom. Our line wove through a good part of the concourse and by a concession stand. And you know women - we have the longest line and we always start talking.

A couple women behind me (who were about my mom's age) started talking about the good looks of several of the tennis players. Then they decided that entire Spanish contingent was really hot. I decided to chime in at that point. "Especially Feliciano Lopez," I added. "I haven't minded watching him play at all!"

Then from behind me I heard a voice, "Talking about the hot Spanish players again?" I turned to see Hubby holding popcorn, and then rolled my eyes.

"What makes you think that?"

"You had a particular grin on your face." I rolled my eyes again and let my fellow waiters know that this man was Hubby. Hubby laughed.

"I swear I didn't start the conversation. I just joined in." And throughout the afternoon, anytime I took the binoculars during Lopez's match, Hubby started laughing again. You'd think a women's bathroom line would be a safe place to talk.

USA Davis Cup vs. Spain

Davis Cup is an international tennis competition. Teams play for their country, and the USA team hosted Spain in the quarterfinal this past weekend in Winston-Salem. I can't quite express how excited I was to be able to go. Not only was I seeing professional men's tennis, I was able to enjoy it with my family and with my tennis buddy, Restless Mama, and her two boys. We saw Andy Roddick, James Blake and the Bryan brothers take on a Spanish contingent that included no. 6 Tommy Robredo.

This weekend's Davis Cup was a sell-out. Supposedly George Clooney was even in the crowd (he has been filming in the area). The USA won and the players attributed it in part to the enthusiasm of the crowd. It has even prompted Bob Bryan to request that if they make it to the final it should be played in WS.

I have lots more pics I'll post in the coming days. Being able to see a Davis Cup match was certainly one of the highlights of my life, and being able to see these particular players was an added bonus. Sonny Boy, who resisted our family outing because he thinks tennis is not as cool as snowboarding, was even heard to say, "This was more fun than I thought it would be."

How hard can sewing be?

When I was in high school, most the girls I knew took home ec. I didn't want to waste my time - I wanted to get all the AP courses I could and besides, surely someone else would cook and sew for me. But we all know what happens to our best plans.

I have learned to cook (fairly well, I think) over the years. I can follow directions, and I do love my cookbooks. Sewing has been a different story. I still save hems and buttons for my mom. Mom has taught Princess to sew. She even bought her a sewing machine for her birthday last August. I have quite a collection of pillows now.

Last Friday I reached a crisis with the window covering in our guest room. The cheap blind (which came with the house) had finally fallen apart. I went to the discount bed and bath store (Anna's Linens) but could not see anything at all that I liked. A fabric store was right next door, so I walked in and immediately saw the perfect fabric. How hard could it be to make a basic panel? I bought the material I thought I needed and had them point out the correct thread. I had Princess thread the machine later that day. And then while she spent the next day Geocaching with the Girl Scouts, I had a pleasant day of sewing. Well, perhaps except for the carpal tunnel, the couple desperate phone calls to a student who sews and a friend who was carting around 3 feuding girls all day, a flung bobbin or two (who the heck ever named those ridiculous things bobbins?), a flung instruction book, and a few choice words mumbled here and there.

And didn't it turn out well? (and please, never look too closely when you come to the house)