roadtrippin'

So, we left for Rockport the morning of the 9th.
I know- first you're hearing about it! Anyway...
What were we doing the NIGHT of the 8th?

Making a roadtrip playlist.
Zach made one for his iPhone, I made one for my iPad. We hit the road, put them on shuffle and had good music the whole way down and the whole way back. Awesome.

Here's MY playlist-- what would YOU put on YOURS?

1. Say You'll Haunt Me -- Stone Sour
2. Poker Face -- Lady Gaga
3. Price Tag -- Jessie J
4. Timebomb -- Beck   **
5. The Crow & The Butterfly -- Shinedown
6. Californication -- Red Hot Chili Peppers
7. Scar Tissue -- Red Hot Chili Peppers
8. Under the Bridge -- Red Hot Chili Peppers
9. Like A Stone -- Audioslave
10. Hotel California -- Eagles
11. Devil's Dance -- Metallica
12. I Disappear -- Metallica
13. Of Wolf and Man -- Metallica
14. The Judas Kiss-- Metallica
15. Firework -- Katy Perry
16. Welcome Home (Sanitarium) -- Metallica
17. For Whom the Bell Tolls -- Metallica
18. No Leaf Clover -- Metallica
19. P.Y.T. (Pretty Young Thing) -- Michael Jackson
20. Smooth Criminal -- Michael Jackson
21. Smells Like Teen Spirit -- Nirvana
22. Death Of It All -- Rob Zombie
23. Dragula -- Rob Zombie
24. Scum of the Earth -- Rob Zombie
25. Judas -- Lady Gaga
26. Uprising -- Muse
27. Dude (Looks Like a Lady) -- Aerosmith
28. Wanted Dead or Alive -- Bon Jovi  **
29. Sweet Emotion -- Aerosmith
30. Jailhouse Rock -- Elvis Presley
31. Hound Dog -- Elvis Presley

I feel like I need to explain a couple-- namely the ones with the ** next to them. FIRSTLY, I'm not a fan of Beck. I couldn't care less about the rest of his music, but THIS song happens to be the song that was during the credits, and therefore the name of, my favorite episode of True Blood. It was a season 2 episode, the one where they escape from the Fellowship of the Sun church with Godric. I think that's right- and the episode ends with Luke blowing up Godric's house? Yes. And SECONDLY, I similarly don't listen to Bon Jovi. BUT this song is the theme song to Deadliest Catch, and when you're going to the coast to fish, it's necessary to channel your inner Hillstrand/Hansen/Harris and get your Wanted Dead or Alive on. 

Any of my songs your faves? Any you're surprised by?

image sources: {rhcp, eagles, metallica}

cinephile saturday: captain america

Y'all. 

You all know how I feel about X-Men. And Michael Fassbender. 

Even the Fassbender Factor could not keep X-Men in my top spot for the summer. 

It's all about Captain America: The First Avenger. 

I.

LOVED.

THIS.

MOVIE.

I realized the other day that I've "loved" everything I've seen this summer, with the exception of Bad Teacher (see the "fassbender factor" link). Probably because I will only pay money to go see movies I know I'm probably going to enjoy. Yes, that means big summer blockbusters. 

But. I will say that nothing else I've seen this summer can quite hold a candle to this movie. 

The cast was great.

GREAT.

When The Avengers comes out next May? I'm telling you, ONLY RDJ won't have to work hard to be overshadowed by Chris Evans. He was perfection. There is no other word for him in this movie.

The cast around Evans was great too. I actually have watched so many of these actors in my (ahem, let's get a little embarrassing!) Masterpiece Theatre versions of Jane Austen's books. Hayley Atwell I first saw in Mansfield Park, as the detestable Mary Crawford. Dominic Cooper, besides Mamma Mia!, was the loathsome Mr. Willoughby in Sense & Sensibility. And J.J. Feild, who also plays the baddie in one of my Fassbender films, Centurion, I first noticed as the darling Mr. Henry Tilney in Northanger Abbey. Yes. I have actually watched EVERY one of Jane Austen's stories in some fashion, and I happen to own... all of them. Yep. MOVING ON.

I also happen to L-O-V-E Stanley Tucci and Tommy Lee Jones. I think the cast as a whole was a big part of why I loved this movie so much. I think it's worth going to see, even if you're not IN LOVE with the comic book super heroes. It's got a really fantastic story, the artistic direction behind the film is brilliant and the way they incorporated elements from other Marvel/Avengers films was brilliant (hello, the whole Odin's Cosmic Cube thingy and Tony Stark's dad!). 

I think it was a little more gritty than Thor was, so I'm more apt to let Liam see Thor, Captain America might have to wait a little while.

All in all. 

Favorite movie of the summer.

And I don't see anything that's coming out any time soon dethroning it.

Image Sources: {poster, collage}

pinnable me: ashley brooke

Happy Friday, folks!!

I have a fun Saturday on the books for tomorrow, and because of it, I've completely lost track of what is going on with my blog. 

Which is to say, nothing. 

My mom even pointed out that I've skipped TWO Toddler Tuesdays in a row. It'll be back next week. Promise. 

Anyway.

TO TODAY'S TOPIC.

Today's post is all about Ashley.

Ashley Brooke, that is. 

Of Ashley Brooke Designs. 

She's the super-fab designer who made my blog header, and has done invitations for me, as well as oodles of beautiful stationery.

(by the way. StationEry when paper. StationAry when at a state of rest.)

Ashley also happens to be the sweetest, most wonderful, darling girl you could ever hope to meet. We met up last September when hubbers and I went to Disney World, and we've already made plans to meet up when we take Liam next year. She's that kind of awesome. 

She's the kind of awesome you WANT to plan a year in advance to see. 

I just wish there was a way Dallas, Houston and Orlando could be connected via supersonic trains in secret tunnels or something. 

Anyway, Ashley, obviously, has impeccable taste. She always looks as pretty as a picture, she's got an amazing design background and a real eye for making the ordinary extraordinary. 

I mean, her girl crush weekly blog post? My favorite part of Thursday. 

Further gushing aside, here are some of my favorite things that ABQ has pinned:

A wonderful idea for making custom pillows, at low cost. 

Dear Lillie via Ashley Brooke on Pinterest. 

Fantastic housewarming gift. Pack it full of the everyday things you always wish you had on hand.

Martha Stewart via Ashley Brooke on Pinterest. 

ABQ's dream pantry, my dream pantry. Oh the organization! The ability to hide away ugly appliances!

Houzz via Ashley Brooke on Pinterest. 

It's not Ashley Brooke if there isn't popcorn invovlved.

Bump Smitten via Ashley Brooke on Pinterest. 

Gorgeous exposed brick in a kitchen!

The Handmade Home via Ashley Brooke on Pinterest.

 See? She's got amazing style and taste. 

Here's the link up-- y'all are all SO AMAZING!

I'm glad you're all enjoying this weekly feature as much as I am. 

cinephile saturday: harry potter part 7.2

I'm sure you all knew this one was coming.

Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows Part II.

Let's be honest.

The movies are great.

They are not as good as the books. 

Having said that, I really love some of the films. I really love some of the books. 

I don't really care for some of the films. I could leave a book or two. 

This was definitely a spectacular way to end the series. We also saw it in 3D (we've seen a few in 3D this summer, and this 3D I liked a lot but Transformers 3 was the best utilization of it, hands down!), and the battle at the end was in-sane. 

I don't think there's a lot to say about this movie. I mean, if you like Harry Potter, you know what's going to happen, you know what's been going on, you know you'll enjoy it. I will say, this is hands down the most action packed of the 8 films (I'd say though, that the 4th and 5th films are right after...), and visually, one of the most stimulating. The acting is really great because they showcase some of the better actors (Alan Rickman, Maggie Smith, Ralph Fiennes, Helena Bonham Carter) in the Potter franchise in really poignant ways. 

Alan Rickman. Best part of the movie. 

That's all. 

Also, it's not my favorite of the HP films. If I ordered them... 

Favorite ----> Prisoner of Azkaban

Deathly Hallows Part I

Goblet of Fire

Deathly Hallows Part II

Order of the Phoenix

Sorcerer's Stone

Half Blood Prince

Least Favorite ----> Chamber of Secrets

There you have it.



Oh.
Wait.

SO.
There's a movie coming out in January that has MY number one from my Freebie Five AND Zach's number one from his in it. Together.
Here's the trailer: Haywire.

Did y'all SEE what's wrong? DID YOU?

HOW am I supposed to want to see this movie where Zach's female CLEARLY kills MY male? Just. Not. Okay.

{image source: poster}

pinnable me: men in robes

So, this week was really hard to come up with... 

I haven't actually written a live Pinnable Me in two weeks.

And we've had a bit of drama around these parts this week. 

It's been crazy.

Anyway, I thought I'd just pin some unrelated things with a fun tie-in theme. 

ENJOY!

Are y'all Harry Potter people? Have you seen 7.2? I'll review it tomorrow, but I love this pin. It cracks me up because hoooo boy! Is it ever true? Neville was definitely awkward come films 3,4,5,6. But, all's well that ends well, and he's ended up pretty "well."

We*Heart*It via Me on Pinterest.

I pinned this from People.com because I love Alexander Skarsgard, for the most part. But also, there's just something about it I love. The cap. The gown. (The grin!) But really, aren't the colors in this lovely? That robe is gorgeous!

People via Me on Pinterest.

  I told you these were randomly related.

HOW CUTE are these little stinkers?

And yes, I mean the kids, not the spiders, which is the *reason* behind this pin. I like the balloon spiders a lot, though, but I don't know how long they'd last in my house!

 Martha Stewart via Me on Pinterest. 

SORRY for the lame post this week. 

I'll try and do better next time. 

Thanks for keeping up with Pinnable Me while I was away, it was really great to come home and see so many people had linked up!

Have at it, friends!

cinephile saturday: rentables

So.

Today we're going to cover a couple of movies I rented last week. 

First up is Beastly with Vanessa Hudgens and Alex Pettyfer. 

Now, I know this guy is supposed to be super arrogant and a complete pain in the arse to work with, but he is a darn good actor. I liked him better in I Am Number Four, but maybe it was just that IANF is a better film. Dude's got a movie coming up where he plays Channing Tatum... costarring with Channing Tatum. I mean... come on. 

Alex Pettyfer aside, this movie is fine. I am not a big VH fan, so I thought she was kind of annoying the whole time. Mary-Kate Olsen and Neil Patrick Harris were my favorite parts of the film. NPH was really funny, and MKO was just magnetic. You can't take your eyes off her while she's on screen. I think the one issue I have with this film is the turn around of Kyle. It doesn't really feel real. He's just all of a sudden from one extreme to the other and there's no middle ground. I need middle ground in my transformation stories. 

All that being said, it's worth renting if you're spending a girly night at home,  or are in desperate need of  a teeny-bopper romance. I probably won't watch it again.

Next up.

Oh yeah.

TROLLHUNTER.

If I'm being honest, I decided I loved this movie LONG before I got to see it. 

We rented it via On Demand's "See it before it's in theatres" section. 

The movie is Norwegian, subtitled in English and features a university film crew of 3 who are tracking what they believe to be a bear poacher. Instead, he turns out to be a Trolljegeren (TrollHunter). They don't believe him, so they follow him around, filming what he does. 

It's so. much. fun.

I loved it. Zach fell asleep. But like I said, I knew I was going to love it before I saw it. I saw previews and I fell for it, hook line and sinker. I would recommend this to no one, but I will probably buy it. The scenery made me weepy, and I loved seeing my childhood fairy tales turned into a movie. I would say, if I'm allowed, that I think this movie perfectly embodies Norway. 

(just, don't come after me for the bucket of Christian's blood.)

There you have it. 

Movies to rent. 

Or not to rent. 

I'm just trying to help out.

{image sources: beastly, trollhunter}

pinnable me: mandy.

If you haven't been paying attention, you neeeeeed to be following my friend Mandy on Pinterest. 

She has impeccable taste. Impeccable. 

She pins the best stuff, the best food, the best, boldest, most beautiful interiors. 

So, Mandy needs a whole Pinterest post dedicated to her. 

Because she's totally worth it.

(Mandy, Ivy and I all worked together for many, many summers. They're two of my favorite girls ever, and I'm thankful that if ANYTHING came of those summers beyond a serious case of the creeps when I see the Rugrats on TV, it's my friendship with these girls.) 

 apartment therapy via mandy on pinterest.

a thoughtful place via mandy on pinterest.

elle decor via mandy on pinterest.

Anybody in particular you're really enjoying following?

Who's YOUR Mandy?

Link up!

birthday boy.

SOMEBODY is TWO today!!

Here's to two fantastic years, babers. 

And a thousand more. 

And that's as mushy as I'm going to get people. 

I love my kid, but it's more important to me that HE knows it and sees it every day, rather than finds it written on my blog. 

toddler tuesday: phineas and ferb

 I am not lying when I tell you that Liam is obsessed with Phineas and Ferb. 

He loves that show SO much.

We have it set to record on the DVR every time a new episode runs.

We watch those episodes over and over and over again. 

We have the CD. Oh the CD, in my car, and we play those songs over and over and over again. 

I can sing the PFT song. Bow-chicka-bow-wow/ that's what my baby says/ mow mow mow/ and my heart starts pumpin'/ chicka chicka chew wop/ never gonna stop/ gitchie gitchie goo means that i love you!

I bought Liam a large stuffed Perry that makes the Perry noise a long time ago, and then for Christmas, I put Phineas in his stocking and Ferb in Zach's, knowing full well that Liam would accumulate them both. He takes Phineas and Ferb everywhere with him. They go to bed, they'll go on vacation, they go in the car... 

He's so in to Phineas and Ferb that he's getting a party next year for his birthday: Liam's Phineas and Ferb's Backyard Beach Birthday Bash! 

Oh yeah. 

I know what we're going to do today... 

nailed it 002: how i do it.

So I've gotten questions about HOW I do my nails, and WHAT I use. 

I'm a firm believer in Essie's Protein Base Coat. Use it.

 Apply one coat after the base has dried. It WON'T look good:

Take the brush down the middle of the nail, then sweep on either side of that middle stroke. Three swipes of the brush should cover the nail.

A second coat of the polish, if applied evenly will cover the whole nail and even out the inconsistencies of the first. 

To add the glitter:

I use Martha Stewart glitter because it is the BEST.

 Firstly, sweet a little bit of top coat over the tip of your nail. 

Dip a paint brush (one you don't plan to use again) in the glitter and dab it onto the nail tip. You will get stray glitter. I like the way it looks, so I work it in. I tend to add a little extra sprinkle to the rest of the nail to make it look a little ombre. Or something. 

Once you've applied the glitter, let it dry.

Then, use the brush to remove excess glitter before you cover the whole nail with top coat. 

I like to use my extra paint palette to catch stray glitter. 

Martha's glitter isn't cheap, so I don't like for it to be wasted. 

Over the nails I don't put glitter on, I use Essie's top coat:

Over the glitter nails, I use OPI's Designer Series Top Coat. The DS makes a difference.

I put the top coat on the glitter nail pretty thick, to cover the glitter completely. I don't like rough, ragged edges. The top coat seals it all in.

The removal of the glitter isn't really very fun. But, it's no harder than any other glitter polish.

I also don't like OPI's nail polish with the glitter. I find the Essie holds better. 

Give it a try! See what you come up with!

{colors above: Essie's Absolutely Shore & MS glitter in Aquamarine Crystal}

cinephile saturday: transformers: dark of the moon

Over the long weekend, we took in a movie.

Not shockingly, it was Transformers: Dark of the Moon.

It's Zach's favorite movie of the summer, and I will admit that I thoroughly enjoyed it. 

The 3D was really, really incredible. Worth seeing just for the effects.

Without giving too much away, at one point some soldiers are gliding through a city using wing suits and the effect is just insane. 

I did agree with my friend MM, it was a leeeeetle bit too long. 

And I thought a lot of the stuff at the beginning was extraneous. I love the parents in the other films, but they just seemed a little out of place in this one. They didn't belong... in my mind. 

Also, I hate Patrick Dempsey, I always have for some reason so it wasn't hard to watch him as a bad guy and really root for his comeuppance. And the cars. Oh myyyyyyyy the cars. 

That 459 is enough to drive anyone crazy. 

I think it's worth seeing, especially if you enjoy this kind of movie. 

It's fun and the story is better than it's been in the past. 

I did miss the roommate, he was so funny in the second one. 

But yeah.

Far and away Zach's favorite movie so far this summer.

Still hasn't debunked X-Men for me!

{image source: transformers}

pinnable me: chalk it up.

We're back!
This week, I'm obsessed with all things chalkboard.

I have a project in mind for my house involving a chalkboard, but I'm not yet willing to share.

So for now, these will have to suffice.

I really, really, really want to do both of these projects. 

Especially the globe. How much fun for learning geography. I'd have aced every single one of my quizzes in GEOG 101 if I'd had this to draw on. 

Design Sponge via Moi on Pinterest. 

I love this board too, I think it's a fun, clever way to keep things that you're looking forward to in a place you can always see it. 

I'm thinking I might make it and give it to Liam next year for his birthday, with a countdown to our big Disney World trip on it. 

Infarrantly Creative via Moi on Pinterest.

What about y'all?

What did YOU find on Pinterest this week that makes you swoon??

Link up!
And, if you wrote a post last week when we were on hiatus, link up both posts!

random thursday musings

Okay, so I have about fifty thousand things on my mind right now. I just have to get a few of them off my chest...


My biggest pet peeve watching So You Think You Can Dance is when the individuals don't pick music that matches their dance. If you're leaping across the stage, flipping your limbs around and making quick, angular motions, WHY don't you pick a fast paced, upbeat song? It makes no sense to pick harp music and then act like you're dancing to 'Hey Mickey!' I'm just saying. And yes, I did dance for a long time and we never had such disjunction in our combinations.


Next, I got a new iPad cover today. It's a sleeve with a zipper at the top. I wanted something like to travel with, but when it came today? No padding. NONE. The regular price on this thing is $48. I'm telling you right now, if I had paid full price, not the $4.99 I did pay, I would have sent it back. As it stands, I am going to have to make a sleeve out of something to slip on the inside to add some protection. I wish they made indestructible bubble wrap...


I decided to take Liam on an impromptu trip to Sonic for a chocolate shake. He was so pleased when I handed it to him. However, he got too excited on the way home and dumped it in his lap. I had chocolate shake all. over. the backseat of my car. When he finally went down for a nap, I had to pull the car seat out, I had to Magic Eraser my car... It was a disaster area. Then, before nap time, I sat the little man on the potty and he leaned all the way back before going. So that was another mess to clean up. If I can manage to get out of this week without another bodily fluid clean up, I'll be happy.

I am watching TrollHunter again this evening. I watched it last night. It's a Norwegian film and I will review it in my Cinephile Saturday feature, but I want to say now... I would be back in Norway tomorrow if you gave me a ticket. And this movie, its scenery, makes me miss it even more. Favorite. Country. Ever. Also, I might have busted out my favorite picture book to reread some of the troll legends.

I miss troll traps.
And saft.
And smil.
And mozelle.
And walking streets.
And tunnels.
And rosemaling.
And everything.

I get to have lunch with someone pretty soon that I didn't think I'd get to see until October. I am so, so excited. There is nothing like finding a true kindred spirit, and someone whose conversation, be it meaningful or materialistic, you so thoroughly enjoy. I wish we were neighbors on a pretty regular basis.

My nails are awesome right now. I have Brisbane Bronze by OPI on my toes, the big toe has an accent of turquoise Martha Stewart glitter. My fingers have Essie's Beach Bum Blu, and the ring fingers have an accent of tourmaline MS glitter. I think I prefer the accent nail to be on my first finger. I am loving this glitter application process. It's a lot of fun, and I don't get a lot of strange looks. It's more... mature (?) looking than the standard full on glitter over nail polish look. Which I also love, by the way.

Zach opened a bottle of my favorite wine this evening, but our corkscrew broke IN the bottle. I was thinking it was going to be a problem. This is hands down, the yummiest wine I've ever had. And I'm not going to tell you where to buy it, because they get it in limited quantities and rarely, so I'd rather not have a bajillion new people to compete with for it. So, needless to say, it would have been an EPIC FAIL if we couldn't have gotten in.




I think that's plenty for tonight. PINNABLE ME is back tomorrow, be ready to play along!!

toddler tuesday: animal lover

I always joke that in 25 years, it's going to be Clark & Clark at BBAH.

I'm not 100% sure I'm far off base with this one. 

Liam loves animals.

He loves ALL animals.

We go on play dates, and my kid is the one off playing with the animals while all the other kids play together.

He's just so funny. At night, when we're getting ready for bed, I tell him to go say night-night to everyone and he goes and kisses Jethro and Lily (not usually Shiner, because she's usually bedded down in her cage) every. single. night. 

When we keep Spike for Zach's parents, the poor dog can't sit still for a split second, else Liam is trying to pull him into his lap. 

It is just... it's the funniest thing.

I'm certainly not going to force him down any certain path, but I wouldn't be shocked to see Zach putting a grey shawl on Liam at graduation one day. 

cinephile saturday: 3 for 1

So I'm writing this at 3:00 in the morning on Wednesday. 

I've already seen 3 new movies to me since then, so I thought I'd write the post while they're still fresh in my mind. 

Also, I can't sleep.

We are just getting stuff taken CARE of! Ha!

Sunday last, we went and saw Bad Teacher with a couple of our friends, who both happen to be teachers. 

It was fine. I mean, I guess I'm glad I saw it, but I wouldn't buy it, or even rent it again. 

I think it's a whole lot funnier if you are a teacher, because you've had experience with all the characters in the film. I mean, you've got to have worked with the over-zealous freak, the mousy doormat, the ignorant one... You know. 

Or whatever.

It has firmly taken the bottom spot on my list of movies I've seen this summer. But.

I will say this.

Cameron Diaz was funny. I thought Justin Timberlake was just annoying. There was no charm to the character he played, and that's no fun. Also, I needed more Jason Segel. If the sole reason I'm willing to go see a movie is because of one of the actors, he better be in the film a little bit. 

I didn't love it.

It kind of left a bad taste in my mouth.

So, instead, on Tuesday, my hubbers volunteered to stay home with Liam while I ventured out to Alamo at West Oaks for one of the last screenings of X-Men: First Class.

Yes, again.

It's still my favorite movie of the summer. 

And helllllllo, Erik! 

The man does a turtleneck SO much justice. SO much.

If you wanna read what I thought about X-Men: First Class, click that link.

Tuesday NIGHT, we rented a couple of movies. 

Or rather, Zach and I rented one, and when I couldn't sleep, I rented another. 

First, we watched Sucker Punch. 

We enjoyed it. 

I can safely say this is not something I would recommend to most of my friends. 

At first, it was a little hard to follow, and it was also a little creepy that Baby Doll didn't talk until about 25 minutes into the film. 

Since she's the main character.

It was a little odd to see Vanessa, the Disney darling, running around in next to nothing, cursing and shooting and fighting. Refreshing, though. 

I dunno, I don't feel like I can really communicate much to you about this movie.

 I think if you watch the trailer and are all excited, rent it. If not... eh, maybe leave this one alone. 

We agreed, we wouldn't buy it, but we're glad we saw it. 

And we'd watch it again, should it come out on HBO in a year. 

After Zach went to bed, I rented Red Riding Hood. 

 Let me say, if you like Twilight, but want better actors, you'd like this. 

I love Gary Oldman, and his Father Auguste is properly fanatical scary. 

Amanda Seyfried is what you'd expect and her two men Shiloh Fernandez (who I think looks just a leeeeetle bit creepy) and Max Irons are much more serviceable than you'd think. 

Also, Max Irons is Jeremy Irons' son. The boy is talented. 

And cute.

I was a much bigger Henry fan than Peter. 

It's definitely not scary, and I'd say it's probably one you'd want to watch sans hubby. 

It's a girl movie, I think. 

Okay, so as of 3:40 on Wednesday morning, that's what I've got for you. 

I'm expecting to add one more to the report before I post this on Saturday, since Transformers: Dark of the Moon came out today. 

Y'all, I realize I watch a lot of movies that my friends don't want to watch, but I love what I love. And thank goodness, that's what they put out during the summer. 

{image sources: bad teacher, erik, sucker punch, red riding hood}

take a break.

In case you hadn't noticed...

Toddler Tuesday and Pinnable Me weren't featured this week. 

We're going to take a break leading into the long weekend, since so many families are away from their computers and unable to participate (at least in the latter).

The weekly features will be back next week!

Hope y'all save up some really great stuff for the next Pinnable Me post!