Movie Review

Corey and I went to see this movie on Saturday night. I just have to say this was an amazing movie and I highly recommend it. I totally give it an A-. The minus is simply for a couple things that weren't really cleared up in the end.

It is a three hour movie but goes by in a flash. The screen play was done by the same person who did Forest Gump, and you can totally see the similarities in both films. It is just beautifully done!!!

I think the most amazing part of the movie is the make up. Seriously I have never seen such skill in movie make up.

This film is about a man named Benjamin Button (Brad Pitt) who was born an old man and aged backwards, continually getting younger and younger and the people around him grew older. The love interest in the movie is a beautiful woman named Daisy (Kate Blanchett), whom he has loved since the moment he saw her. I don't want to give too much away but, I liked the way it ended, and I liked how you knew that these two individuals loved each other unconditionally, especially because of how it ends.

I have heard mixed reviews about this movie, some saying it will win best film of the year, and some saying it was not such a great movie because it is so unrealistic. But the thing is, it is supposed to be unrealistic, its a fictitious, fantasy like story.

In addition, it has two of the most famous actors in the world.

Anyway I loved this movie.

Christmas Morning 2008! As usual we went over to my mom's to open presents. Conner is still a tiny bit too young to really understand the presents idea, but he will be better next year. He got this little book from Grandma Sylvia, he loves books and we were getting a little tired of the ones we had so some new additions will be fantastic.
One of the three best Christmas gifts for Conner. He LOVED this, just a simple snow shovel but he LOVED it. Now he can help my dad in shovel snow.

Here is my mom's gift from my dad, the perfect gift for Carma the germ-a-phobe. HIGHSCHOOL MUSICAL HAND SANITIZER! (he did get her a couple other things :)
My dad pretending to be Jacob Marley. Looks pretty good!
Conner showing off his very own lap top for Grandpa Rhodehouse. He loves this laptop from Grandma Sylvia.

My cousin Alan put this ribbon around Conner.


At my Aunt Ann's house for the best dinner of the year, every year. Corey ate some turkey and collapsed. He has a hard time with Turkey, he always falls asleep.

Well.....this was one of the worst parts of the day, Conner face planted into the corner of the coffee table and got a bloody nose and totally tore up his lips. He was swollen all day and was kinda having it rough.

The best gift ever, my parents got Conner his very own car. He has always loved these little cars.

A family friend, Jenn Cologna gave us this tool bench for Conner. Can you believe how wonderful this is and she just gave it to us? Its hardly been used and she found it at a garage sale and let us have it. We kept it a secret from Conner so we would have something fun and free to give him. HE LOVESSSS it.

At the end of the night, it was a good Christmas. But I'm glad it's over so we can clean up the house and get back on schedule. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts to our family for remembering us on Christmas and making it so nice for us. We love you all.

Christmas Eve Morning

Christmas Eve morning Corey wanted to take Conner sledding because often back home in Washington they would go sledding on Christmas Eve. It was such a cold and icy day that it wasn't much fun, but at least Corey got it out of his system.

This is how we left...Conner was not a fan of sledding today. His glove fell off and he hurt it on the ice somehow.

Christmas Eve Evening!

Christmas Eve Evening

I love this picture. And I love pizza! Here I am picking up the dinner for the evening.
We had a small crew for Christmas Eve so we invited my friend Megan and her brother Levi as well as a kid from my parents ward named Chris and Corey's brother Christopher. It turned out to be a lot of fun.
The group getting ready for White Elephant gift exchange. So fun.

This gift is my favorite. General Hospital Sound Track. YESSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSSS!


Tinkerbell blow up seat
Christopher recieved this gorgeous sexy scarf! (He later gave it to me :)
Christopher recieved this lovely scarf but he gave it to me after! You should hae seen his face when he opened it.

This was the most coveted gift of the evening. A hand made lamp shade that looked like it should have a leg with fishnet stockings holding it up :) I gave up my gift and stole this one, but its still at my parents because they want it. I will be stealing it back as soon as possible.

Book Review

Love the One you're with

by Emily Griffin

Kay, let me preface by saying THIS BOOK IS FICTION. I personally don't need any self help books at this point about "loving the one I'm with" as I am happily married.

That being said, lets move on to the review.

This book deserves 3 and a half stars. The author is enormously talented and I am now interested in finding some other things she has written, but the story was just, "ok."

I am confused as to why it was just okay, I can't decide whether it was the story that was just okay, or if it was just the honesty of the characters and the disappointing things we as humans sometimes do.

It is about a woman who's heart was broken when her first love left her. Later, through her best friend, she finds love again and marries. But, as you might guess, the old flame reappears and she is torn between lust and love.

You're typical tragic love triangle.

The book is very predictable, and I found it an easy read which I like, and the end was actually very comforting. But it took a whole novel to get to the last "comforting" chapter. So anyway, I did like it, but it was a little hard to read because I don't really like reading about infidelity.

I didn't really know what I was getting into when I picked up this story, other than the obvious title. I always refuse to read the synopsis about a book before I delve in, I like surprises, and synopses ruin it for me.

I kept finding myself wanting to scream sense into Ellen

Ariane comes home!

It is something that I HAD totally given up on, but now, after SEVEN years of not seeing each other, my best friend from high school was able to receive a VISA and come back to Salt Lake.

After high school we went to the University of Utah together until her student VISA expired, and she was basically forced to leave the country and return to Brazil. Ever since then she has tried and tried every Christmas to receive a VISA and was always turned down. This year a miracle happened and they gave it to her. It was the neatest thing in the world to see her again. Think how cool it is when you see a returned missionary who you love return home from a mission. Well this was not two years, this was SEVEN years! Seriously amazing.
Many huge events in our life have happened while we have been apart, including marriage and children. It is a complete miracle that she was able to come back. We hadn't even met each others husbands. Corey came with me to the airport, he was so excited to see them, he even shed a tear because he said he knew how much it meant to us to see each other again.

Coming out of the terminal, Ariane and her husband Roger and their four month old daughter, Lucy.

Happy tears!
(you think I'm emotional? She is even worse!)

Ariane meeting Conner for the first time
Marveling over his blonde hair, she isn't used to seeing blondes :)
I got to meet her little girl Lucy for the first time. Conner wanted to offer her some of his drink

Anyway thanks for reading about this amazing experience I had this week. What a great Christmas present right?
Unfortunately she will have to go back to Brazil after her visit but maybe someday she will be able to move back and be with her family who live here.

Although this child is giving me a run for my money these days, he really is the most beautiful thing that I have ever seen. Joy of my life, thats for sure.

First snow storm! Corey was DYING, absolutely DYING to go buy a sled and play in the snow with Conner. It was so freaking cold but he was insistant. So we went to Target and got a sled. Conner is all decked out in his snow clothes, we were excited to let him wear them for the first time.

This picture makes me laugh, he didn't understand how to sit up in the sled, so he just laid down while corey's pulled him around.

Now every time he sees the sled he points and says, "Weeeeeee, Weeeeeeee!"

Here we are at Kneaders on the first morning it snowed. I promise we don't eat at Kneaders every morning, but we do go about once a week. We can't help it! Its just so good. This perhaps might have something to do with why I can't lose my belly!!! :)
"Stop taking pictures of me mom!!!"

Here we are going to the Christmas Concert. It was so fun, its our favorite thing about Christmas. We look forward to it each year. Thanks Chris for watching Conner, we owe you one! On a side note, I was in the cart on the way into the concert and looked down and almost fainted when I realized one of the diamonds was missing from my ring. I looked at Corey and he could tell I was about to lose it and he said, "I will take care of it tomorrow, and if you promise not to cry I will buy you something." Talk about a smooth talker right? We had some of his co -workers with us so I think he was worried I was going to break down and make a scene! Funny what he pulls out of his hat when he wants to calm me down! Anyway.....today, I was taking a little nap and Corey came into the room and said, "Where is your purse I have a feeling I need to look for your ring." So he got my purse and cleaned it out, (which if you ask him he will tell you it was the biggest mess ever,) but anyway he didn't find it so he went out to his car and searched with the flashlight and guess what, HE FOUND IT. It really was a miracle. It was amidst the rock salt on the floor mat on the passenger side...wow.

Christmas Spirit is growing on me

This evening for Family Night we went and picked out a little tree. I swore up and down that we weren't doing a tree this year because Conner would be a terror with it, but we figured that we could improvise. We decided to get a mini tree and put it up in the middle of the kitchen table. Conner was so interested in what we were doing when we started setting it up. I can't imagine how much better its going to get every year as he is more able to understand Christmas. It will just be more fun than anything else in the world!

I wrapped him up in lights, he wasn't sure what to think.

The tree is UP!!! These two boys are my life. What would I ever do without them?

Finished project. Now time to wrap...my favorite part of Christmas.

I have to thank Corey for putting me in the Christmas spirit finally. He is the only one that can do things like that for me. I am now excited for Christmas.

Some beginnings of Christmas season

Conner has started to like to color. He calls it "colors, colors."

We were so amazed and thrilled that we got Conner keep this hat on all evening.

And the car that he is holding is a car that Corey saw at TJ Max while I was pregnant and he HAD to buy it for his little boy. It was kinda weird because Corey was never very into us spending much money on the baby. So this was his first real gift to Conner just from him.

Oh my gosh so me and Corey were having a war on who could bounce the ball longest on their hands without stopping and my dad decides he wants to get in on the fun and good o'l dad gets like three bounces as it flips off his hands and hits the lamp and breaks it. I couldnt' help it, I busted up laughing sooo hard. My mom looked like she was about to get mad but me and my dad and Corey (oh and of course Conner) were laughing so hard she couldn't get mad.

Conner playing "on the horsey" game with his grandpa. My dad rocks at being a grandpa. Sorry your back hurts dad.

laters

So i had some trouble making my blog private. I don't have the time to figure it all out right now so that will be on the back burner till further notice.

I'll get some pictures up soon!