Monday Movie Review

The Avengers
With all the hype behind this movie there was no question that we were going to see it. In face the boy saw it twice, once with me, once with a friend while I was in California. And while I did enjoy it, I don't think it quite lived up to the hype I built for it.

Don't get me wrong, I still enjoyed the movie. It was a lot of fun, and I loved all the little jokes throughout. I thought it was really exciting to see all these different superheros together. But I still wouldn't give it my favorite movie of the year. (The Hunger Games still holds that honor.)

If you haven't seen it yet (and I'm guessing there aren't many considering the amount of money the movie has already made) be sure to stay for the scene after the credits. Don't be fooled by the first bonus scene halfway through the credits. Stay till the bitter end, and I promise you, you won't be disappointed.

Mother's Day

At the end of last summer my mom started feeling a little under the weather. It wasn't anything too extreme. She was feeling a little run down and had some sort of rash, but she attributed most of it to stress. After all I was getting married within the next year and there were all types of decisions to make, not to mention the money involved.

My mom in 1957 at 4-years-oldBut after a few weeks of not feeling normal, my mom went to her doctor. She prescribed her prednisone, which did help her rash at first, but they still had no idea what was actually wrong. It was only when my parents described her symptoms to a family friend at the end of September, that someone was able to diagnose her. After confirming with her doctor, my mom was suffering from a rare autoimmune disorder called dermatomyositis. (That's the link my mom sent me to learn about what she had. Although she told me not to worry about some of the more extreme side effects, because that wasn't what she would be doing with.)

My mom in high school in the center. My godmother is on the right.In October my parents flew out to Louisiana to visit me for my birthday. Throughout most of the visit my mom wasn't feeling well, but we did manage to make it out to a few of the boy & my favorite restaurants together. And on my actual birthday she baked me a cake using a recipe out of Joy of Cooking and flavoring it with the satsumas growing in the backyard.

My parents. I believe shortly before they were married.My parents were in Louisiana for about a week before returning back to California. About a week after they were back my mom was hospitalized. It seemed her disorder had started attacking her lungs, and in order for her lungs to work properly she needed additional oxygen. Because of the amount she needed, she needed to be in ICU.

My parents' wedding. June 6, 1982.
My mom's brother is on the left. One of my dad's brothers is on the right.After my mom had been in the hospital for about a week my dad called and asked me to fly out to California to visit. I thought the whole thing was ridiculous. After all, my parents had just been in Louisiana less than 2 weeks ago. And I would be flying home for Thanksgiving in a few shorts weeks. Surely by then she'd be out of the hospital and back to normal. It seemed silly to fly halfway across the country just to say hi. But considering how things turned out, I thankfully did make the decision to fly to California for a long weekend.

Me & my mom in the LouvreWhen I visited my mom in the hospital she seemed fine. Yes she was obviously not feeling well, and had difficultly breathing at times (but that's what the extra oxygen was for), but she was still herself. We had several interesting conversations, especially now in hindsight. We talked about how Joss Whedon had made a movie of Much Ado About Nothing, and how she couldn't wait to see it. I mentioned a few positive changes I had at work. We talked about the boy & my plans for starting a family. I remember my mom saying that she couldn't believe we were having this conversation about her daughter being a mom.
But the weekend came to an end, and it was time for me to fly back to Louisiana. My flight was early on October 31, and my last day at the hospital was the 30. I still remember telling her that I loved her and I would see her in only a few weeks for Thanksgiving. But sadly that wasn't the case since my mom's funeral was the day before Thanksgiving.
About a week into November my mom's lungs still hadn't gotten better. Unfortunately, even with medication they had been deteriorating. A decision was made that they would medically induce a coma. That way while she was in her coma her body could spend all of its energy toward repairing itself. But that isn't what happened. Yes, there were days where it seemed like she was getting better, but overall she wasn't. There was talk of moving her to UCLA so she could get on a list for a lung transplant. But that never happened.

My mom & I in JapanFriday morning, November 18, which was the Friday before Thanksgiving, my dad called me and said I needed to fly home. I left work, re-booked my flight, packed, flew to California and was at the hospital around 10:30pm. A few hours after I arrived, early in the morning of November 19, my mom had officially passed away.

My family in my parents' backyard.I'm not sure what to say to end this post, but I think no one ever knows what to say when they lose a loved one. I can't believe I'm sitting here writing this today. If someone had told me a year ago what the following 12 months would bring, I couldn't have even fathomed it. It all just happened over such a short period of time.

Me, my parents, and grandmother at Houmas House Plantation.With Mother's Day today, all I can say is be thankful for the time you have with you mom and all the other women in your life, because you never really know how much time you have left.
I miss you mommy & love you. Happy Mother's Day.

On Masada

The Dovekeepers by Alice Hoffman
As soon as I heard about this book I knew I had to read it. First it's a historical fiction, which I'm always happy to read. Second it's a Jewish historical fiction, and some of my favorite books (such as the Rashi's Daughter trilogy) have fell into that genre. And third it takes place at Masada, which I was able to climb and view the sunrise on my Brightright Israel trip to Israel 4 years ago. Basically it was the perfect book for me.

Except when I started reading it, it felt a little slow and took me a while to get into it. It was such a let down to think that this book that I'd been dying to read wouldn't live up to my high expectations. Although, I told myself that once the action actually moved to Masada it would get better. And while it wasn't immeadiate, as the story progressed I started to fall in love.

The story follows the 4 female dovekeepers on Masada. The book was broken into 4 sections, so each was able to tell their story. There were some whose stories I enjoyed more than others, but within each one's story is the story of Masada.

For those that haven't heard of Masada, which I hadn't until I actually climbed it, it was originally built as a summer palace for King Herod. One hundred years later as the Romans started enslaving and killing Jews, many fled to Masada where they had their own outpost. The Romans weren't able to climb the narrow snake path up the mountain to capture the city. So instead they built their own ramp out of dirt to climb to the city. But when the Romans got city to capture the Jews, everyone was already dead. The Jews had decided they would rather die at their own hands than at the ends of others.

For such a tragic story to tell, I found the whole book beautiful. As soon as I finished the book I was ready to pick it up and read it again. Reading the words I really felt like I was at Masada, although I think the fact that I've been there helped me picture it. And I shed a few tears by the end of the book, although not neccessarily where I would have expected. I'm glad to say that even with the slow start, this held up to my expectations, and definitely will join my list of favority books.

5/5

And for fun, and since I wanted to share, here's a few of my favorite photos from when I was lucky enough to visit Masada.

View of Masada

The snake path, which the Romans weren't able to climb with their troops.

The Roman ramp which allowed them access to the city.

Ruins of a Roman camp. Since the Romans spent so much time building the ramp, they left their own ruins behind.

Ruins at Masada. This was actually the synagogue.

These were the Roman baths during King Herods time, but used as a mikvah before the seige at Masada.

My maid of honor and me standing on top of Masada at sunrise, with some of the ruins in the background.
Have you ever read a book where you felt like you were able to get more out of it because you've visit the place where the story takes place?

Today I'm linking up with Blonde Undercover Blonde for Book Club Friday!

Bridal Shower Preview

I know posting been a little light the past few days, but with good reason, since I spent this past weekend in California for a bridal shower. I'll be posting more about the long weekend next week, but untill then... here's a small preview!

The Cake Way

We've talked about our first dance song, but we've yet to talk about all the other songs we're planning on using for the wedding. Expect a few more posts on this topic, if only because we haven't made most of the decisions yet, but until then...

To say that the boy shot down my suggestion that we use a Backstreet Boys song as our first dance isn't unexpected, at least not for him. But I think anyone whose known about my obsession since high school would be a little surprised. My thought was that even if we aren't using them for our first dance they could still be present. After all, why can't we play every single Backstreet ballad throughout the night? Unfortunately, for some reason the boy shot that down as well. But we did at least come to some sort of compromise.

I have a agreed that we won't be playing any other BSB songs on the condition that I would choose a Backstreet song for our cake cutting song. As for my choice, I'm going to go classic with "I Want it That Way." Tell you why? 'Cause I want it that way. (Sorry... I couldn't help myself there.) But since I know you've all heard the song, this is my video of the guys performing it last summer at the Louisiana NKOTBSB concert. You'll have to forgive the fact that I turned the camera sideways halfway through, and the fact you can hear me singing in the background. But at least it's an original.
As for the real reason I think it's the perfect song, well... to put it mildly the boy isn't a big fan of dessert. So if anyone of the two of us will be looking forward to cake that night, it'll me. Then it only makes sense that I get to choose the cake song, right? Plus if there's anything I want, in general, it's probably is dessert. Basically I think IWITW is the perfect song for us. The boy might disagree, but at least he's not fighting me here.

And while we talking about the Backstreet Boys, I figured I'd share a few big pieces of news, in case you're not in the know like me! First the guys are working on their next album. But more than that, Kevin decided to rejoin the group, so all 5 of them are working on it. Plus AJ recently announced that his wife is pregnant, which means Nick is not just the only one who isn't married, but he'll soon be the only one whose not a father. Which I guess means, there's still a shot for me, right? Ha!

Are you choosing to feature any of the songs you loved in high school at your wedding. And finally, the epic question... Backstreet Boys or NSYNC?

Man Woman on the High Seas

The Discovery of Jeanne Baret by Glynis Ridley
I enter a lot of giveaways for a lot of different books, but this one, which I won from Linda at Silly Little Mischief is one that I think is the "best" win for me. It isn't necessary my favorite our of all the books I won. But when you compare the likelihood of me discovering it on my own with how much I enjoyed it, the payoff is high.

The book is a biographer of Jeanne Baret, a female botanist who dressed as a man, and without much of the world's knowledge became the first woman to circumvent the world. I always love reading books where I learn new things, and this was such a book for me.

I didn't just learn Jeanne's story, but a brief history of botany, as well as what it was like to sail the world. It also did a good job at imagine what it may have been like to discover new lands that Europeans had never discover. And one thing I especially loved, was there was a brief part about Peter Piper (of the pickled peppers), who I had no idea was a historical figure.

But while there was a lot of historical facts, there was not a lot about Jeanne herself. Yes, there are a few historical documents that mention her, but so much of the book felt like speculation. I would love to be able to know more about her, but unfortunately it doesn't look like there is a lot of information. We do have a few key facts, but without quite a bit of speculation it is hard to tell her story.

Even so I really enjoyed her story as well as the rest of the book. (Although I would have loved to have had a map included so I could easily trace Jeanne's passage around the world.) I did see that the author has another historical book, Clara's Grand Tour: Travels with a Rhinoceros in Eighteenth-Century Europe, which I think I would love as well, and probably should pick up at some point.

4.5/5

Today I'm linking up with Blonde Undercover Blonde for Book Club Friday!

Color Pop

There's a new-ish trend in weddings that involve the bride wearing a pop of color that I definitely plan on joining. To start with I absolutely love the idea of wearing a colored crinoline under my dress.

via Mrs. Poodle

via Mrs. PineappleI would love to be able to pull this off an make it happen. My only concern is I'm not sure what type of shoe I'd wear that would match this. (Is is any coincidence both these brides have on cowboy books?) But while I love the idea of a colored crinoline, I feel that for me, colored shoes are slightly more practical.

via Mrs. Hamburger

via Mrs. Labrador

via Mrs. ColaI would love to do blue shoes, to match the bridesmaid dresses. Plus that would take care of my something blue as well.

via Mrs. Teaspoon

via Mrs. PenguinI guess all that's left now is to actually find and buy the perfect shoe. But until then, here's a few more of my favorite shoe shots.

via Mrs. Toucan

via Mrs. GazelleAre you planning on adding a pop of color to your wedding look? And do you prefer the look of a colored crinoline or pair of colored shoes? Or do you think one could pull both off?