Random Recaps

Last night, Ace and I had free tickets to pre-screen the movie Angels & Demons that is released today. This movie is based on the book by Dan Brown, which is the sequel to the Da Vinci Code. I was wary of this movie because I really didn't think the Da Vinci Code movie was all that good. But, I had read the book first, and movies based on books never seem to measure up, do they? I have not read Angels & Demons yet though, and I thought the movie was EXCELLENT! And as a Catholic, I felt that it was much nicer to the Church than the Da Vinci Code was, which I appreciated. It did not really so much bash the church or make it suspect, yet it still had all the amazing "factual" and historical intricacies of the Da Vinci Code.

The fight scenes were awesome, as were the special effects. The actors were all very good, and the scenes really looked like the Vatican! I highly recommend this to anyone looking for something fun to do this weekend. I can't wait to read the book now!!


This week, I also finally finished reading The Mommy Wars. It was o.k. Yes, just o.k. I felt like the author picked mostly her friends and acquaintances to write the articles, so there didn't seem to be a wide variety of experiences or demographic represenation. Mostly, the contributors were all career writers. I found that most of them worked from home at least in some capacity. There were very few articles by women who are exclusively stay at home moms. There was very little of the divisive extremism that the real-life mommy wars are known for. All of the authors were very conciliatory about their choices and opposing choices. Not that it was a bad thing, but it was kind of boring after the first five articles or so.

One thing that struck me reading the book, is that very few of the contributors really seemed completely content with their choice to work or stay home. I know there are pros and cons to both sides, but reading this book left me with a sense that women (in general) aren't going to be completely happy no matter what we decide to do. That was ... disappointing ... for lack of a better word. Particularly from the stay at home mom side, I wanted to hear someone say "I absolutely love what I do, and here is why."

So how about that diet, huh? Well, I made it a whopping 5 days before I cracked. My blood sugar kept dipping too low, no matter how much I was eating. I guess the fact that I started out hypoglycemic and am still nursing didn't help. So, I switched over to Phase II, with limited complex carbs, and am doing better with that. I cheated a lot over Bennett's birthday weekend. During Phase I, I lost 5 lbs total. I've gained back 1.5 lbs as of this morning. I am recommitting to doing better on Phase II and adding in exercise this coming week! I set my alarm for 5:30 a.m. every.single.morning. this week, and slept in every day. We're going to Virginia Beach next weekend for my nephew's first birthday (a mini-escape of sorts), and will be required to don a bathing suit. This is problematic because I don't own a one-piece, and I'm no wear near an acceptable level of skinniness/fitness at the moment to rock a bikini! So, momma is going to be VERY good this week!

We have an exciting weekend ahead of us! I hope you all do too! I'll see ya Monday!

Lady luck is not my friend

What a weekend! Had I known how it was going to turn out, I'd have flown to Bermuda instead. Except for, with my luck this weekend, my plane probably would have crashed!

Friday went alright. I tried to leave the office early, but those efforts were thwarted by another attorney at my office who thought 4:30 on a gorgeous Friday afternoon was perfect timing to discuss a case we have together. So, we had to nix our plans for a picnic dinner because we had tickets to see the Seussical Musical put on by the middle schoolers at Carter's school. It was sooo cute! But Bennett decided to rival the performers, so we had to leave at intermission.

Saturday, we were heading to West Virginia to visit my best friend Melissa and her family. We were sitting at a red light right before the exit we get off at for her house, behind at least 10 cars, for at least 30 seconds...when I glance back in my rear view mirror and see this F-250 truck speeding up on me, braking hard, fish-tailing....then BAM! Yep, smack into the back of my new (used) car. With my baby in the back seat. (We'd dropped Carter off with my parents to go to a Children's Museum just minutes earlier). I FREAKED. Bennett was fine. I was ok (neck really sore, ears hurt, wrist hurt, shoulder and knee sore, etc.). Ace was fine. Car... not so fine. *sigh*

I tried to report it to my insurance company to get set up with a rental, but they aren't open until Monday. Of course, I have to be in court in D.C. at 9:30 Monday morning...

We went ahead and went on to Melissa's house and had a very lovely afternoon grilling out, loving on the babies, and plotting to take over the world. Went to pick up Carter, and headed home. Put the kids to bed, popped some pain pills, and watched the movie "Yes Man" with Jim Carey. HILARIOUS!!! Definitely recommend it! Crashed.

Woke up bright and early with Bennett this morning. Nursed, played, cleaned. Took him upstairs for a nap. Come down, and my entire foyer is covered in....TERMITES!!!!!!!!!!!! OMG!

WHY ME?!? Seriously. Why????? We never seen a hint of a termite on our property before. Where did they come from??? Luckily, we had some insecticide spray from an ant infestation we had in our garage about two years ago. That killed them on contact and we were able to clean them up easily. Once those were gone, we haven't seen anymore. Terminex is coming tomorrow to give us a quote. Lovely. Just what we need right now.

On top of that, we found a hornet in the living room. Ace caught it in a ziploc bag and wanted to set it on fire. I, the logical and level-headed one, forcefully protested to this dangerous and bad-example-setting behavior.

Then on top of that...our camera is about to die. You can't have two gorgeous adorable kids and not have a camera. So....now we need to crunch numbers and figure out all these expenses that have suddenly popped up over the weekend. *sigh*

So, as you see, lady luck has a vendetta against me and carefully executed it this weekend. I pray she's finished exacting her revenge and we can now call it a truce. What are the chances?

My mom, on the other hand, had a rather fantastic weekend! She finished her half-marathon in 2 hours 52 minutes. In the heat! Here is a picture of her and my little brother Jimmy crossing the finish line. YAY MOM! We're so proud of you. And you too Peanut :) We are planning on doing the Disney half-marathon together next November, and making a vacation out of it! I guess I ought to start training....

I know I'm biased but, is this the face of an angel?

After a long day at play...this is what Bennett does to "chillax"! What a face.

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Now on to more important topics!

Avoid the new movie, The Soloist by Robert Downey Jr. and Jamie Fox. It is a complete waste of time. If you think I'm speaking from a chauvinistic male perspective (because my taste in movies involve BIG guns, fast cars, and tight abs), consider this:

1. Over 2 Minutes of screen time wasted by showing psychedelic, epilepsy inducing images of random swirling colors that practically gave everyone a minor migraine.

2. It uses 7th-grade humor relating to urine, which does not really fit with the theme of the movie.

3. Dramatic elements were not thought or emotionally provoking.

4. There is no climax, just seemingly random set of events that will leave the viewers highly disappointed.

5. The story could have been told in under 20 minutes, instead it dragged on for two hours.

In light of fair and honest "reporting" here are some of the goodies.

1. Beethoven.

2. Timely cut scenes and understandable dialogue.

To summarize, save your 10 bucks and buy a Beethoven CD then find someone intelligent to have a conversation with.

You'll thank me later when you are flippin' through the channels and you happen to catch this movie on TNT.

Ace Custodio