Weekend Happenings

Good Friday morning!

I've added a couple more "Cousin Pics" to the Gallery before the weekend. Enjoy the smiling faces. I have a feeling next week's Gallery is going to have a lot of buildings, plaques, etc., etc. I may be wrong, but we'll see.

Where in the world are Mike and Austin?

Sometime today, Friday, July 3, 2009, Mike and Austin will be returning home! They did get to go to the Spy Museum yesterday, as well as the Ford Theater and back to Arlington Cemetery to spend a little more time before starting the long trip home. Austin was rattling he had so much to tell me. He also said he almost filled his memory card which makes this Mom soooo very happy. It will be the first thing I hug (after Mike and Austin, of course). It was obviously a very good trip, and I'm sure we'll be hearing about it for weeks to come. That's okay, too. I'm ready, willing and able to listen for hours on end. I'll be going through the pics this weekend to share only the best of the 500+ Austin has taken.

One more little bitty Honeymoon Story to share... Mike has never been the "picture taker" in the family. He works the video equipment, but I've almost always taken the still shots. However, on our honeymoon it became apparent Mike was obsessed with the Washington Monument. He took picture after picture after picture of the Washington Monument. We have pictures from far away, from a few feet away, looking straight up, with the flag waving in front of it, on the side where the flag cannot be seen, etc., etc., etc. I picked the best one (it looked like a postcard it was so good), and put it in the scrapbook on the "Monument Page."

A few days later when he was looking at the book, he asked where his monument photos were. "I couldn't use them all," I said. "So I picked the best one."

"You didn't have to use them all, but there were 72 to choose from. I would have thought you would have used at least four or five," he whined.

"Nope. Just the one. And it's a very good one, I might add."

"There are four pictures of the American Red Cross Building in here," he mumbled.

"That's because that is part of a funny story. No one thinks the American Red Cross Building is the White House except us. See? That's funny," I explained.

"Just you. You're the only one who thought it was the White House," he corrected. "And the American Red Cross Building pictures aren't nearly as good as the Washington Monument pictures."

"Well, that's because I took them at night while it was snowing. Believe me. That page will get a lot more attention than 14 pages of Washington Monument pictures," I said as I closed the scrapbook.

I was wrong. As soon as everyone saw the postcard-like picture of the Monument, they couldn't believe Mike had taken it himself. As for the American Red Cross Building... Well, they just thought that was pretty dumb. Of course, Mike wasn't around when I was showing the scrapbook for the most part. That's pretty much a "chick thing," so up until now he has been oblivious to the fact he was right. I think after 21 years of wedded bliss I can let the cat out of the bag. (Code for YOU WERE RIGHT, MIKIE, AND I WAS WRONG!) There! I hope he's happy now.

Weekend Happenings

Five years ago, I received my first holiday. That is to say, my mother gave me the 4th of July to host at my home. The reason was simple. I have access to the community pool. When the kids were little, they were very happy with the three wading pools, water games, BB guns, etc., etc., at my Mom's house, but as they outgrew the pools, my house was the logical choice. I was thrilled.

Saturday we will meet at our house for lunch and my Mom's birthday. (Her real birthday is July 1, but we celebrate on the 4th of July at her request.) After we eat, we will run to the pool and swim as long as we possibly can before it thunders and the lifeguards tell everyone to get out of the pool for 20 minutes. Before the 20 minutes is over, it will thunder yet again and again. When it becomes apparent it will not stop thundering, we will dry off and return to the house for homemade ice cream and a nice long afternoon visit. (I'm not being negative about the thunderstorm. It has happened the past four years. If it doesn't thunder this year, it will be a first!)

However, this year we are going to do something a little different. As luck would have it, Ice Age 3 is showing at the Drive-In, so we're all going home to change after the ice cream and meeting at the Drive-In a little before 7:00 (it will be crowded, I'm sure) and watch a really good movie on the big screen. Fun!

Sunday, after church, Roxie leaves to go to Grandma and Grandpa's (Mike's parents) for a few days leaving us with just the guys to contend with. It's going to be a good weekend.

Book

I love movies. I always have. I love going to the theater. I love the smell of popcorn. I love the anticipation of watching a movie I've been looking forward to seeing for a long time. I love watching the coming attractions. I love the whole experience. I'm telling you all this so you will understand why I was so excited to find these two books a few years back.

The books you MUST go out and buy this weekend are Movie Nights for Kids and Movie Nights for Teens by Bob Smithouser from Plugged In Magazine. These are Focus on the Family Publications, and they are excellent.

In Movie Night for Teens, they list 25 movies (Father of the Bride, The Lord of the Rings, Spider-Man, That Thing You Do, Secondhand Lions, etc., etc.), and they build a devotion around that movie. You watch the movie as a family, and then you have a spiritual devotion regarding the secular movie.

For example, under Father of the Bride it gives you the rating and other general information. It then gives you the "Cautions" section (alcohol, language, sexual content, violence, etc.). Next, the "Story Summary" so if you haven't seen the movie before, you will know the plot line.

They even have a "Before You Watch" section which gives you things to talk to your kids about before even starting the movie. "Bible Bookmarks" lists all the scripture which will pertain to the movie you will be watching.

After the movie, you move on to "Talking Points" which lists several questions or discussions you can have regarding different parts of the movie. You can pick and choose which ones you want to use, or if everything is going well, you can use them all.

A "Follow-Up Activity" is the next-to-last portion of the devotion. For Father of the Bride it suggests you pull out your own wedding albums and talk about your courtship, engagement and marriage. I love the last sentence in this section. "Help your teen understand that an elaborate, romantic ceremony and reception shouldn't be the ultimate goal, but rather a spiritually grounded beginning for a lifelong journey."

Lastly, the "Just for Fun" section deals with bloopers or hidden things in the movie to look for.

Both of these books are great for Family Movie Nights, whether you have small children or pre-teens and teenagers. They are available at Christian bookstores and they are in paperback. Buy them both, and enjoy.

Have a wonderful 4th of July. Let's all remember to pray for our troops and their families who are paying the ultimate sacrifice so we have the freedom to celebrate as we choose in the United States of America. Be sure to spend some time this weekend explaining this to your children, also. It is one of the most important things we can ever teach them.

Take care, and I'll talk to you on Monday.