Gage turns 5 today!

October 19, 2015October 19, 201513 Comments

I cannot believe my little man is 5 years old today. He is funny, smart, loving, goofy, social, curious, and opinionated. He continues to surprise me with his progress. I spend a lot of (way too much) time worrying about the important day-to-day struggles but today I just sit and appreciate him and how far he’s come. We had his (crazy) birthday party yesterday at the nature center where he went to camp and he had a blast. I like parties and I like to invite all of Gage’s friends because I want anyone who wants to help him celebrate to come. We had 21 kids (and 2 newborns) plus parents. It was chaos 🙂 The naturalist spent and hour with he kids, taking them on a walk outside to dig in the dirt for things to feed the center’s turtle and they were able to pet a snake. It was when they came back in for the cake that things got silly. We started singing Happy Birthday and I realized I had only put 4 candles on the cake!! I had to stop everyone and add one, jeesh! So we sang again and a friend next to Gage blew out the candles. Tears came and we relit the candles and sang AGAIN! But he was upset and despite lots of moist blows could not get that 5th candle blown out (more tears). But after that things went back to normal until the last few of his friends left and then he was sad 😦 My guy does not mind a crazy party!

Here he is through the years….

bdcake1 3!

And his birth story is here 🙂

The Blind Side by Michael Lewis

October 15, 20154 Comments

The Blind Side. Finished 10-6-15, rating 4.25/5, sports, 320 pages, pub. 2006

Unabridged audio read by Stephen Hoye. 11 hours, 47 minutes.

When we first meet Michael Oher is one of thirteen children by a mother addicted to crack; he does not know his real name, his father, his birthday, or how to read or write. He takes up football, and school, after a rich, white, Evangelical family plucks him from the streets. Then two great forces alter Oher: the family’s love and the evolution of professional football itself into a game in which the quarterback must be protected at any cost. Our protagonist becomes the priceless package of size, speed, and agility necessary to guard the quarterback’s greatest vulnerability: his blind side. from Goodreads

I loved this book, even the very footbally parts. Many people have seen the movie that won a Best Actress Award for Sandra Bullock and are familiar with the rags to riches story of NFL player Michael Oher. His upbringing was heartbreaking, but good fortune finally showed him some love by getting him off the rough Memphis streets and into a private Christian school in his teens and having the privileged Tuohy family adopt him as one of their own. His transformation was inspiring and proved so many things about race and wealth and the importance of a loving family.

The Tuohy’s seemed too good to be true in this book (and that fact that the author and Sean Tuohy are old friends should be taken into account). What they did was the epitome of charity, not just giving money, but charity of the heart. They saw Michael had a need, housing and someone to look after him, and they stepped in, arms wide open. When this large black man joined their Southern white Christian Republican family others may have had reservations, but the Tuohy’s paid no attention. The miracles they were able to make happen for Michael showed great love.

At its heart it is a football book and alternating with Michael’s story is the history of the left offensive tackle position, the very one that Michael would be called to play because of his size and athletic ability. It all started in the 1980’s with Lawrence Taylor and Lewis managed to make even these somewhat dry passages come alive with humor. It deftly explains why the position became so important and allowed Michael the privilege of becoming so sought after, essentially every college in the country making visits and calls to get him to their campus.

I did have my reservations about the way Michael was portrayed. So many stories about his lack of understanding of basic things, while highlighting the economic divide also repeatedly painted him in an unflattering light. He is still playing in the NFL and has recently talked about this in an interview.

“People look at me, and they take things away from me because of a movie. They don’t really see the skills and the kind of player I am. This stuff, calling me a bust, people saying if I can play or not … that has nothing to do with football. It’s something else off the field. That’s why I don’t like that movie.”

As much as Michael may not like it, the glaring light shone on privilege, be it the privilege of race or money, is an important one. The inner city public schools were, at best, negligent and the city not much better. The story of Michael Oher shows one of the few that made it, his last NFL contract paying him $7M over two years. And the story of the Tuohys show that with a charitable heart the world can change, one kid at a time.

This is a football book, but Michael’s story will appeal to anyone. If you don’t like football, you can just skip those parts 🙂

Aging Bestsellers Quiz – guessing closed

October 14, 2015October 20, 201510 Comments

Since it’s the week of birthdays around here I thought I’d see how well you can estimate ages. I perused the bestseller list this week and found these authors. You need to tell me which one you think is OLDER. Easy right? Leave your guesses in a comment. Good luck!

No Googling or looking at other commenter answers. Yes, we’re going by the honor system 🙂 Play every week or just one time, you are always welcome 🙂 It only takes once to be eligible for a prize.

1.Harper Lee 89 or Margaret Atwood 75

2.James Patterson 68 or Jan Karon 78

3.Lee Child 60 or Kristin Hannah 55 KristinHannah

4.Lauren Groff 37 or Anthony Doerr 42 Anthony Doerr - Author - Peerie Profile

5.Karin Slaughter 44 or Jo Jo Moyes 46 Jojo-Moyes

6.Jonathan Franzen 56 or Jim Butcher 43 where I'll be No panels scheduled at this time.

7.David McCullough 82 or Clive Cussler 84 Clive Cussler is back on the list with 'The Striker.' Check out his ...

8.Sue Grafton 75 or Iris Johansen 77 Iris Johansen (born April 7, 1938) is an American author of crime ...

9.Catherine Coulter 72 or Danielle Steel 68

10.Bill O’Reilly 66 or Nora Roberts 65

Answers to last week’s Old School Quiz here.

Happy Birthday to me!

October 11, 201513 Comments

Another birthday and a check-in with the bucket list I made when I was 40. I did visit a new state and have managed to raise a pretty cool almost 5 year old and am getting ready to celebrate another year of marriage. But I really need to pick something to mark off my list by next year!

1. Write and publish a novel.

2. Open my own bookstore.

3. Spend a night in an English castle.

4. Visit Ireland.

5. Meet a US president.

6. Learn to start a fire without matches. (this probably comes from watching too many seasons of Survivor)

7. Learn to play the piano.

8. Raise a happy and successful son.

9. Celebrate my 50th anniversary. (almost 17 in)

10. Make exercise a daily priority.

11. Get back to my wedding weight, just once.

12. Try a vegetarian diet for a year.

13. Drive across the country.

14. Visit all 50 states. I got to mark off Indiana this year when I spent time at the University of Notre Dame, giving me 23.

15. Stay in an overnight car on a train trip.

16. Fly first class.

17. Take Gage to Italy.

18. Ride a boat down the Mississippi River.

19. Trace ancestry to when all branches entered the US. (we’ve been here a long time so this will take many more years of research)

20. Tour Napa Valley.

21. Live somewhere warm year round. (As a midwestern girl I love my seasons but I’d like to see if I’m missing anything :))

22. Volunteer on a political campaign.

23. Sit on a jury.

24. Buy only American for 1 year.

25. Have a library with wall-to-wall built-in bookcases.

26. Write and mail 1000 letters. These can include cards if I include a personal note.

27. Be an extra in a movie.

28. Watch a play from backstage.

29. Go skiing.

~~30. Attend a murder mystery dinner.~~ 9/2013

31. Volunteer weekly.

32. Read all the books I own. (I’d like to have no TBR pile just once. I can give away books to reach this goal)

33. Start my own book club.

34. See all 4 tennis majors. (2 down, Wimbledon & Australian Open to go) A few throwback pics for fun.

US Open 2005

French Open 2010

35. Give blood.

36. Sleep under the stars.

37. Have a hammock.

38. Fire a gun.

39. Own a B&B.

40. Do a random act of kindness every day.

Old School Quiz – guessing closed

October 7, 2015October 13, 201519 Comments

When I first started doing quizzes in 2009 I focused on classics so for this first quiz of the new round of quizzes (please join in!) I thought I’d go back to the Classics. I’ll be giving you a one sentence review (I’m using the Webster’s Dictionary of American Authors) of past Pulitzer Prize winners and since it’s the first quiz of the round I’ll even give you the choices with the year they won the Pulitzer. Leave your answers in a comment.

No Googling or looking at other commenter answers. Yes, we’re going by the honor system 🙂 Play every week or just one time, you are always welcome 🙂 It only takes once to be eligible for a prize.

Titles-The Age of Innocence (1921), All the King’s Men (1947), Beloved (1988), The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1928), The Confessions of Nat Turner (1968), The Good Earth (1932), The Grapes of Wrath (1940), The Old Man and the Sea (1953), To Kill A Mockingbird (1961), The Yearling (1939)

1. It concerns an old Cuban fisherman named Santiago who finally catches a magnificent fish after weeks of not catching anything. The Old Man and the Sea

2. The work presents a picture of upper-class New York Society in the late 19th century. The Age of Innocence

3. It takes place in a small Alabama town in the 1930’s and is told from the point of view of six-year-old Jean Louise Finch. To Kill A Mockingbird

4. The story concerns the rise and fall of Willie Stark, a character modeled on Huey Long, the governor of Louisiana during the late 1920’s and early 1930’s. All the King’s Men

5. A fictional account of the Virginia slave revolt of 1831, the novel is narrated by the leader of the rebellion. The Confessions of Nat Turner

6. Set in the backwoods of northern Florida, the story concerns the relationship between 12-year-old Jody Baxter and Flag, the fawn he adopts. The Yearling

7. The plot centers on five travelers in 18th century Peru who are killed when a bridge across a canyon collapses. The Bridge of San Luis Rey

8. The work examines the destructive legacy of slavery, as it chronicles the life of a black woman named Sethe. Beloved

9. Set during the Great Depression, it traces the migration of an Oklahoma Dust Bowl family to California and their subsequent hardships as migrant farm workers. The Grapes of Wrath

10. [It] follows the life of Wang Lung, from his beginnings as an impoverished peasant to his eventual position as a prosperous landowner. The Good Earth

The Space Between Us by Thrity Umrigar

October 6, 20155 Comments

The Space Between Us. Finished 9-29-15, rating 4.75/5. fiction, 321 pages, pub. 2005

Unabridged audio read by Purva Bedi. 12.25 hours.

Poignant, evocative, and unforgettable, The Space Between Us is an intimate portrait of a distant yet familiar world. Set in modern-day India, it is the story of two compelling and achingly real women: Sera Dubash, an upper-middle-class Parsi housewife whose opulent surroundings hide the shame and disappointment of her abusive marriage, and Bhima, a stoic illiterate hardened by a life of despair and loss, who has worked in the Dubash household for more than twenty years. A powerful and perceptive literary masterwork, author Thrity Umrigar’s extraordinary novel demonstrates how the lives of the rich and poor are intrinsically connected yet vastly removed from each other, and how the strong bonds of womanhood are eternally opposed by the divisions of class and culture.

from Goodreads

This is a tough one to review because I have such mixed emotions about the book. I’ll start with where I picked it up, at a 2012 book signing the first time I met Thrity and thought she was smart and engaging. So, it makes sense that I’m only reading my first book by her over three years later, right? Sadly, it seems par for the course for me these days. As I make more of an effort to read what I already have on my shelf I often start with the audio and pick up the book if the time allows. This was such a perfect choice with this book. For almost two years Gage had a play date/social group every week with Advi and during these two hours I got to know his mom, who is a doctor from India. This group stopped meeting in August and listening to this perfectly read audio made me miss her. The accents were uncanny in their similarity. Anyway, this led to warm and fuzzy feelings about the narrator, Purdi Bedi and I resisted picking up the book just so I could listen to the whole thing.

This beautiful look at Bombay’s unforgiving class issues was at times slow, but always had me wanting to hear more. Bhima, living in the slums with her pregnant granddaughter, was all old-school subservience. Sera, living in comfort with her pregnant daughter and son-in-law, while more advanced than her friends, still harbored feelings of superiority toward Bhima even after all of their years and trials together. The stark contrast of their living circumstances and intimacy of their working relationship lend both women to question where loyalty and friendship end and the status quo remains. I wish Dinaz, the bright light for most of this story, could have provided a much-needed shot of happiness, but in the end, no one is unscathed.

The gritty reality of Bombay became almost another character. I was there, thanks to Umrigar. The city, the issues concerning women, friendship, class, and how you deal with heartbreak, all combine to make this story completely satisfying. I wish there had been different fates for some, but that’s because I want everyone to have a happy ending.

Quality storytelling in the alluring city of Bombay is why I loved this one so much.

Traveling the States with Gage- Hawaii

October 4, 2015October 4, 20159 Comments

Hawaii: The Aloha State Exploring the States:Hawaii, the Aloha State

Gage has always had a soft spot for Hawaii, who doesn’t? We started by reading through the book and then I chose some 5-10 minute activities over the next week. My goal is really just two activities for each of the three days and then a book or two.

He traced the state map and marked the capital.
He made this very cool state flag out of colored tape. I did the rough cutting ahead of time and then he had to use the picture from the book to recreate it.

3. I wanted to make a lei, but decided instead that we would learn about deconstructing. So, we deconstructed a lei and tried to put it back together again. Well, the joke was on me because the wire they used was way too hard for 4-year-old hands to work with, so I had to come up with an alternate plan the next day. We used pipe cleaners because that’s what we had. He really didn’t like this activity and even with me helping him it was a struggle to finish – not that you can tell from the ‘after’ pic!

4. And, of course, no Hawaii project would be fun without making a volcano!

(we used 2/3 cup water, 3-4 TB baking soda, 1 tsp dish soap, paint to color and stir. Add 1 cup of vinegar to erupt)

Dog-of-the-Sea-Waves by James Rumford was a great book on the settling of Hawaii. Although fictional, the story of the brothers, Hoku, Na’ale, Opua, Makani and Manu featured animals unique to Hawaii on every page and a story that could have taken place. The Polynesian brothers explored and Manu found a friend in the Monk Seal and his friend would eventually save his life. There are scary parts but everything is okay in the end. Loved this book and it’s sure to please animal lovers. It even told the story in Hawaiin at the end, provided a glossary of all of the animals in the book and the story of the Islands. 40 pages.

Keep sending me ideas for your state – especially book ideas!

Our Arizona activities. Indiana activities. Michigan activities. Ohio activities. Pennsylvania activities. West Virginia activities.

October’s Movies and $ for Charity

October 2, 2015April 8, 20173 Comments

Another month and another chance to contribute money to charity. Add your 5 words (or less!) to mine in a comment and earn $1 for charity. Once we get to $100 the person with the most reviews will choose the charity. Click here to see the past winners, the charities they chose and the other reviews you can add to. Anyone is welcome to join in at any time.

We’re at $9.

I hope that you will take a few minutes to participate when you can each month. It’s fun for me and for everyone else who reads it. I’m not looking for a critical review, just a few words about how you felt about the movie. This is ongoing so you can leave your 5 words anytime.

Begin Again, 2014 (Cast-Keira Knightley, Mark Ruffalo, Adam Levine, Hailey Steinfeld, James Corden, Catherine Keener) Grade A

Lovely take on musical dreams.

Unbroken, 2014 (Cast-JackO’Connell, Domhnall Gleeson, Miyavi, Garrett Hedlund, Finn Wittlock) Grade B

Inspiring athlete goes to war.

The Martian, 2015 (Cast-Matt Damon, Jessica Chastain, Jeff Daniels, Chiwetel Ejofor, Kristen Wiig, Michael Pena, Sean Bean, Kate Mara) Grade B

Upbeat astronaut left for dead.

great movie, book way funnier! (Sheree)

The Ghost Writer, 2010 (cast-Ewan MacGregor, Pierce Brosnan, Kim Cattrall, Olivia Williams, Tom Wilkinson) Grade C+

Complicated political thriller turns deadly.

Snowpiercer, 2013 (Cast-Chris Evans, Song Kang-ho, Tilda Swinton, Jamie Bell, Octavia Spencer, John Hurt, Ed Harris) Grade F

A bloody train going nowhere.

October is the bestest month of the year

October 2, 2015October 2, 201512 Comments

Oh, how I love October in Ohio. The leaves change color, the air turns crisp, and sweaters and jeans are brought to the front of the closet. But there are a few other very important reasons that October is the jam. On the 11th, since the day I was born people celebrated ME!! Woo Hoo! I have my own day. And then 27 years later on the 17th I married the greatest guy and people came out to celebrate then too. And, of course, the love of my life was born on the 19th to much fanfare by the family who loves him. It is a month of celebration around here! I already have 15 kids rsvp’d for Gage’s party and the only reason I’m not freaking out is that we’re having it somewhere else 😉

These are the things that were happening the week I was born. Wanna take a guess on how old I’ll be this month?

The French Connection with Gene Hackman was the #1 movie in theaters.

The Exorcist by William Peter Blatty was atop the New York Bestseller list.

The #1 album was Every Picture Tells a Story by Rod Stewart and the #1 song was Maggie May from the album.

Ike and Tina Turner were on the cover of Rolling Stone.

What year do you think I was born? There’s a small prize in it for the first person who guesses correctly 🙂

September’s Movies & $ for charity

September 30, 2015September 30, 20154 Comments

I caught a few old movies on TV as I’ve been cleaning and decluttering this month. The movie Straight Outta Compton was good but I question its complete accuracy since the men who it’s about are also the producers and they all came off looking just like they wanted to. Hope to see some better movies in October!

We’re at $9.

Straight Outta Compton, 2015 (Cast-Corey Hawkins, Jason Mitchell, O’Shea Jackson Jr., Paul Giamatti, Neil Brown Jr, Aldis Hodge) Grade B

Compelling tale of hip hop.

Runaway Bride, 1999 (Cast-Julia Roberts, Richard Gere, Joan Cusack, Rita Wilson) Grade B

Love the Gere-Roberts chemistry.

A Walk in the Woods, 2015 (Cast-Robert Redford, Nick Nolte, Emma Thompson, Mary Steenburgen) Grade C+

Quiet, meandering oldies road trip.

The Terminator, 1984 (Cast-Arnold Schwarzenegger, Linda Hamilton, Michael Biehn) Grade C

Future killer will be back.

Liked Arnold – loved Michael Biehn! (Kay)

Just Friends, 2005 (Cast-Ryan Reynolds, Amy Smart, Anna Faris, Chris Klein, Christopher Marquette) Grade D

A jerk, skinny or heavy.

Stacy's Books

books, movies, and boy