Category Archives: movies

right now all week, this week

Posted on by
2

This week’s Focus 52 prompt was right now:

Keep your camera close this week and take a moment (or two or three!) to capture what you’re doing ‘right now’, right at that exact moment. And umm … keep it clean, will ya? heh. I think this could be an exercise where the technique of ‘just a glimpse’ would work quite well…Absolutely anything and/or everything you catch yourself doing this week could become your photo for week twenty two.
You could take this one step further too, if you’re so inclined. Pick a time of day, and take a photo of what you’re doing every single day this week at that same exact time.

Ever the over-achiever, little brown-noser I chose to go the one step further. My camera is always handy because I am the mamarazzi here under the Big Top. I decided to pick the five o’clock hour…okay, the five to somewhere around the six o’clock hour because there is always something going on in the early evening around here. Yes, the kids were absolutely thrilled that I was working on this project with camera in hand. Some were so thrilled they told me to NOT take their picture. Tempted…I was so tempted. But I respected their wishes…this time.

So here you are, right now under the Big Top this week.

Monday: National Burger Day this year just happened to fall on Memorial Day. You know, that day where everyone barbecues and celebrates Summer’s return after honoring those who gave all. Well, I had to work Monday night and my darling husband and daughter were laying wood floors all day so no barbecue for us. An In n Out double-double cheeseburger will do just fine thank you very much. It is also the perfect after 5 mile run meal…because I logged five miles before work that night.

Tuesday: It’s that time of year again! The end of year dance recital is almost upon us and Jodie and Hazel are so ready for this. It’s a good thing Hollie and I got our tickets when we did because they sold out in ONE DAY! Yes, dance mom crazy did rise up. So if Abby can’t get the afternoon off from work I wonder just how much that ticket would be worth?

Wednesday: The Avengers 3D, popcorn, licorice and Coca-Cola slushees with one of my favorite boys. Life is good. And The Mighty Thor is hot and remains my favorite Avenger! Daniel tells me that The Black Widow looks like me. It’s the 3D glasses I’m sure.

Thursday: My Zoë and Josh are moving even farther away from the Big Top. I’m beyond sad even if it is a great and exciting adventure for them. But standing behind our promise to support these clowns in all that they do I’m sending the boys to Monterey with a big ol’ U-Haul so that they might pack up all their worldly goods and move them all down to LA. Daniel is ready to lend a hand.

Friday: It has been a long, hot day. Finally, the cooling Delta breezes are kicking in. The boys are in LA, the girls are at the mall and swim parties and I am here on the back patio with just this delicious glass of Sangria. Right here, right now, this week, life is good!

domestically awesome

Posted on by

Have to say, without bragging, that I like to think I am a pretty good mom…no, not an AMAZING mom…but I am definitely a better mom than say my own Mommy Dearest. Oh I have faults. So many. Just ask my kids. Still I think I have managed to shake off most of the bad from my mom’s nurturing…or lack thereof. I like to imagine that the next generation will be even better. I’m certain they will be watching my daughter Holly raising her own children.

Still I can’t help feel guilty sometimes…like when I lose my temper…or when I struggle with my own demons…or when I watch my daughter try to sew her ribbons onto her own pointe shoes…or when I realize that I rarely have ever taken any of my children grocery shopping.

Grocery shopping?

Yes, grocery shopping.

I selfishly guarded that as my “me” time. No, really. I certainly never had me time in the bathroom or anywhere else…not when I have been juggling, raising, caring and feeding these clowns all these years. But give me an hour once a week at Safeway…HEAVEN!!! Providing for my family and giving me some quality me-time to get lost in my own thoughts…what is not to love? But at the expense of my kids not learning the art of bargain grocery shopping, meal planning, label reading…whatever! I learned on my own, they could too. Apparently they have…some of them. I guess the mommy guilt is unnecessary as it is part of the whole growing up and becoming a grown-up.

But this weekend…this weekend was pretty awesome…pretty fun. Together Holly (a very busy mom) and myself (another busy mom – duh) planned some make ahead and freeze meals for the next 2-3 weeks…thanks to Pinterest…and recipes from here and here…and went shopping.

Yeah…together at a grocery store…without any kids…HEAVEN!!!

Yeah, we talked about the fact I rarely, if ever brought my kids grocery shopping. Guess I’m not so bad after all. At least she gets it. That’s a win for sure.

Spending around what we spend for a weekly grocery shopping trip, complete with a little couponing, we got a lot. I could say she got her savings skills from her mama but I’d be lying. Together we saved quite a bit.

We piled it all on the kitchen table…

and kitchen counter and got to work chopping and doing a little cooking and putting everything into freezer bags.

Of course there was wine. Some of the recipes called for it.

Two to three hours of prep work and we had this

and this

Two freezers full of enough meals to feed everyone under the Big Top and the Jacques Love Shack for the next 3 weeks or so…

AWESOME!!!

Of course we celebrated our domestic awesomeness the best way possible.

What can I say? We were hungry.

Seriously, a golden day with one of my clowns…priceless.

babysitting tonight

Posted on by

Hazel and her parents came by this afternoon to let us know that…guess what…the baby isn’t here yet! Actually they came by so that Hazel’s Baby Daddy could pick up Hazel for his weekend and Ben and Holly could perhaps watch a little Harry Potter and The Deathly Hallows Part 2 since they have yet to see it.

Coming in from the pouring rain came Holly, looking exhausted and great with baby, Ben looking exhausted and Hazel in an absolute fearful panic.

Why?

Gizmo was in her arms and…oh no!!!…it looked like he might have gotten wet.

Y’all know that you can’t let a mogwai get wet, right?

Hazel’s panic explained.

Of course, Mommy and Daddy just didn’t seem to understand…or perhaps they are just too exhausted timing contractions that never seem to progress anywhere past exhaustion. I have to give them the benefit of the doubt here because I have walked a few miles in those shoes.  But…OMG!!!…it was pouring down rain outside and from the car to the front door of the Big Top Gizmo might have gotten wet. Mi-ma understood and immediately grabbed a towel and gave Hazel’s mogwai a good rub-down. If there was a rain drop on him it was gone now. Crisis averted. Hurray for Mi-ma…once again! No wonder Hazel declares that I am the best.

So guess who is babysitting Gizmo this weekend?

Yeah.

Of course I promised not to get him wet, not to feed him after midnight and no exposure to bright lights. It’s because I am the best.

discovering the heart of the ocean

Posted on by

A boy and girl from differing social backgrounds meet during the ill-fated maiden voyage of RMS Titanic…

And now my fifth circus clown discovers Titanic. We are right on schedule too as he is around the same age as his four sisters before him watched this epic story as told by James Cameron. For the girls it was the star-crossed lovers story that lured them in. For Daniel it is the fact that Jack Dawson is cool…oh, and when the ship sank. THAT was really cool!

My favorite part watching it with him?

When he turns to me and states, “You know this really happened, Mom. There really was a Titanic and it is at the bottom of the ocean.” That’s my favorite part, my favorite part each time I have watched it with each of my circus clowns for their very first time.

Of course this means that my Little Man is growing up. Up next in the horizon up ahead, god help me, puberty.

bump watch 30 weeks

Posted on by

At 30 weeks, the Coming Attraction 2.0 is about 16-17 inches long now, and she weighs almost 3 pounds. A pint and a half of amniotic fluid surrounds her, but that volume will decrease as she gets bigger and takes up more room. Holly is definitely looking forward to that part for the next ten weeks. Her eyesight continues to develop, though it’s not very keen; even after she’s born, she’ll keep her eyes closed for a good part of the day. When she does open them, she’ll respond to changes in light but will have 20/400 vision — which means she can only make out objects a few inches from her face. Still, at this point, her vision is a helluva lot better than her Mi-ma’s. Although her auditory system isn’t fully developed until the 8th month, the Coming Attraction 2.0 definitely hears and responds to the muffled voices of those who love her…especially her big sister, Hazel.But as eager as Hazel is for her baby sister to come out, it is good that the baby stays put right where she is as there is still ten more weeks to go.

As for the mama, Holly might be feeling a little tired these days but it doesn’t show as she started working in a new salon a week ago…more hours, more clients, more money to earn hurray, hurray, hurray! It’s a big hurray too that she is physically able to work as last time around with Hazel, her midwife had taken her off work due to low amniotic fluid and other concerns.  She has complained of trouble sleeping which is perfectly normal at this stage of the gestation game and also because the baby girl has settled with her feet pushed up against her ribs right about where her big sister like to rest her feet but she swears by her snoogle in helping her to get a little bit comfortable. It won’t be too much longer and given that fact, she and Ben managed to get out for a movie date the other night.  She has declared that seeing Contagion while pregnant is not the wisest thing to do. Knowing what I know about potential pandemics or even your average nasty bugs nurses like me encounter all the time, I would probably concur. No, I’m not planning on seeing that movie. I get scared enough by the bugs I encounter in the workplace thank you very much!