Sick Boog

Boog just got sick on Saturday. It started with a runny nose and then turned into congestion and an ear infection. He also did a vomitis maximus Sunday morning and so off we went to the Insta Care. He's on an antibiotic and we suck out all his nose goo (which he so does not love) and give him plenty of Tylenol!!! So we keep him drugged up and for the most part he's feeling better and doing so good. It just breaks my heart to see him so sick and there's nothing I can do! Each stage is so new and different and heart-wrenching!

Sunday Samplings: Oregon

I thought for Sunday I would reflect on living in Oregon for three years. Right after I got married to Archie we headed on up to Gresham (a suburb of Portland) to live; Archie got a job offer and up we went.A beautiful sunset from our balcony

We moved up two weeks after our wedding in the worst snow and ice storm Oregon had had in years! I drove the moving van while Archie drove our crappy little Subaru (stick shift and I don't do stick shifts). I only slid off once in Boise! But after that it got so bad we dumped the moving van and I rode with Archie and prayed the whole way that we wouldn't die! Thank goodness there was a semi-truck in front of us so we could follow in its tracks!

Oregon Coast and Pirate Rock!

We made it safe and lived with Archie's surrogate Aunt Jean for two months while we saved up enough money to get an apartment. We finally found an apartment ten minutes away by foot from Archie's work! We saved a lot of gas!

I was scared to death to move away from Utah even though I had lived in the Canary Islands for 18 months! I know, so silly.

Eventually Spring came and we were able to enjoy what Portland had to offer! Beautiful, just Beautiful there! Everything is so green and lots of trails to go hiking and biking. Also there is no sales tax in Oregon! That was so nice and I miss it so much! And it was against the law to pump one's own gas so there were attendants to do that for you at every gas station. It sucked during the summer when they were busy, but great during the winter when it was cold and you could just sit in your car and wait!

Cutting our Christmas Tree!

I was also able to attend Portland State University and receive my Bachelor's degree in Applied Linguistics and Spanish. It was an amazing experience and one that will be with me forever. I had the opportunity to be a camp counselor for two weeks for children and adults with disabilities. It was one of the hardest two weeks, but the reward was amazing. I also had the opportunity to go to Guatemala for three weeks to help out some indigenous schools in the area of Panajachel. We brought them computers and school supplies and painted their schools. We also stayed with host families. Guatemala is beautiful and are is its people.

In Guatemala

I wandered the streets of downtown Portland since PSU is right in the heart of it. Downtown is amazing. They have the best public transportation I've ever seen. I never had to drive to PSU, I always too the train and the trolley and my own two feet. There are just so many things to see and do and almost always within walking distance from downtown. Their farmer's markets were wonderful as well; so many vendors selling many other things than just produce!Portland Zoo!

They also have the best food! We enjoyed Vi Thai, Mongolian Grill, and many Indian restaurants. We make sure to visit all these restaurants whenever we visit! And they have WinCo...the best grocery store ever!

I can't fail to mention Powell's Books. It's the biggest book store in the United States for sure. It takes up more than two city blocks and sells and buys used books as well. Oh, how I miss it!The Pod statue in front of Powell's Books

Let's see...we also got to cut our own Christmas trees up in the mountains! They were pretty scary and skimpy, but it only cost five bucks and it was good family times!

Wolfy also joined our family from the local pet shop around the corner!

We also made some great friends while living there...Catie, Trisha and Jeremy, the Browns...

And we were only two hours from the Coast, Tillamook cheese farm, Newport, and just a few hours from Seattle!Loving Darth Maul in Newport!

It was a great three years and we both miss it terribly, but a new job opportunity arrived in Utah and it was just too good to pass up. Plus if we had stayed Archie may lost his job where he was at...so it's been very good for us to be here now!

God bless Oregon for all the wonderful experiences I enjoyed and the beautiful people I met!

Everything Austen Challenge: Movie Review: Pride and Prejudice (1995)

Pride and Prejudice (1995), Grade: A

I didn't even realize there was a 1995 version until I saw the 2005 version. So when I learned of it I went immediately to my library and borrowed it and soon after I bought the 10th Anniversary Special Edition. It's been a great addition to my DVD collection and my hubby even enjoys watching it with me!

Liked: The excellent cinematography, filming, and acting. Elizabeth, Lydia, Mrs. Bennett, and Mr. Darcy (Colin Firth), and Bingley were excellent!

Not-liked: The actors who played Jane and Wickam and Caroline Bingley. Jane wasn't the purported beauty that everyone said she was, no offense to the actress who played her, but Miss Ehle is just a much prettier lady. And I always pictured Wickam a little more handsome and dashing than the portrayal of Adrian Lukis. Caroline was a bit old for the part, I thought.

It's a wonderful adaptation and I absolutely love it!

Everything Austen Challenge: Movie Review: Northanger Abbey (2007)

Northanger Abbey, Grade: B+

I really enjoyed this version of Northanger Abbey. The 1986 version wasn't very well done, but this version was just delightful. The actor who plays John Thorpe...you just want to strangle them! I love the innocence of Catherine and how she wants to be good and yet she is so naive when it comes to society. We also get a better picture of Isabella and what kind of person she is...her foray with Captain Tilney. I just love the themes of Jane Austen. It's so important to marry for love (and hopefully money as well)!

Everything Austen Challenge: Movie Review: Emma (1996 TV)

Emma, Grade: B+

I must admit that I'm biased to the Gwyneth Paltrow version. It's the first one I saw and I fell in love with those portrayals of the characters. This movie also got me interested in reading the actual Emma so while I read it I imagined the characters from Gwyneth's version.

So I wasn't quite sure how I'd take to this version. I'm not a big Kate Beckinsale fan anyway (I thought Pearl Harbor was dreadful). So the first time I watched it I thought it was a bit boring and too long and I hated all the portrayals except for Harriet Smith (Samantha Morton is an amazing actress and she played Jane Eyre in the A&E version). But for this challenge I figured I'd give this one another go. It was a lot better the second time around! I think it has to do with reading Jane Austen For Dummies. I understood the story better from understanding the culture better and thus the dialogue became more witty.

And for some trivia: Mark Strong who play Knightley is the seventh brother in the movie Stardust. He's so hilarious in this movie; a comic genius towards the end!

So both are definitely great to watch and I added this version to my DVD collection as well! I'm so glad I took a second look at this version and am excited to reread the book and then rewatch the movies to see how things are different and similar!

Six Month Checkup!

Gabe is now officially six months old. Where has the time gone? He's so big now!

Well, he is still a nail: tall (27 inches), large noggin (17.5 inches), and skinny (only 16.11 pounds). They said for his height he should weight 18.4! Oh well. He's not a big eater. The doctor wasn't concerned so he's still growing fine and healthily. We're now going to start him on a few Cheerios to see how he likes those!

There are also bumps where his teeth are starting to grow in! Poor little guy. His teething days are not so fun. He also got his vaccinations today as well. He didn't like them, of course (who does, except sadists and masochists???). But he did really well after I got him calmed down and Tylenol down him and food. He even slept while Archie and I headed out for breakfast to celebrate his six months! Hee hee! And he slept really long for both his naps which was really nice for me! I got so much done today! So no shots for his nine month checkup and we're really happy about that.

He has to have surgery at the end of this month to fix his pee-pee (he was born with hypospadius, which means his pee hole is underneath instead of at the end). So they're going to fix it and they say it's pretty routine and that 1/200 baby boys are born with this so it's pretty common. But it'll still be rough on us and on him...so not looking forward to it.

Life moves on and we continue to learn from each other!

Everything Austen Challenge: Movie Review: Mansfield Park (2007)

Mansfield Park (2007), Grade: B

I love all things Austen, so I thoroughly enjoyed this movie. But Mansfield Park isn't one of my top Austen novels. Fanny isn't my favorite heroine nor is Edmund my favorite hero. I think I enjoyed the older BBC version a lot better. In this version you don't quite get the abuse that Fanny has to endure while she's with her cousins. Aunt Norris is a horrible person, yet you don't quite get that feeling in this movie. And I just kept hoping that Edmund would wake up and smell the coffee when it came to Mary Crawford! He does, but it takes forever. The movie shows a lot of her and her brother as they talk of their schemes to marry into the family. Hayley Atwell was an excellent Mary Crawford. Fanny was played as more of a tomboy in this one. She seemed more of a genteel sort of personality in the other version. So all-in-all, it was a fun version and worth a view!