A Family Outing to the Movies

Well, the long-anticipated family outing to Twilight took place today. As I mentioned in my post earlier this week, my girls have been fans of the books for years, and Sterling and I joined the crowd when we read the book last week in Hawaii. So we were all looking forward to the movie!

We made a day of it. It was Megan’s birthday earlier this week, and her whole family came to town—her to see the movie and then they all went to THE FOOTBALL GAME (University of Utah vs. Brigham Young University, a decades-old interstate rivalry)—so we had a birthday breakfast this morning. We enjoyed the ham, eggs, and French toast (as the birthday girl, Megan got to pick the menu), then she opened her presents. But I have to admit that most of the conversation centered on the movie and game.

After breakfast, we headed off to the movie. There was Sterling and me, Megan (Nate wasn’t invited because he thinks the whole Twilight fervor is silly), Shalae and Jon, and Sage and Jason. (Sara went with friends in Washington, and she’s planning on going again with Sean next week.)

As with most books made into movies, the movie didn’t do the book justice. But really, how could it? When you read a book, your imagination makes it come alive, and it’s almost impossible to cram hundreds of pages of details and images and history and information into only a two-hour movie. While we were a bit disappointed in the movie itself, it was a very fun family outing.

There was certainly plenty of excitement in the theater—thanks in large part to the very enthusiastic, teenaged audience. (Almost all female, by the way; there were only eight men, and three were mine.) The age of many of those in the audience made me think a bit, and I realized some of the subject matter in the book and movie might be more appropriate for adults rather than teenagers.

While I don’t agree with some of the ideas in this work of fiction, the book is very clean—I mean, all they do is kiss! (They don’t even make out!) By the world’s standards, it doesn’t get much cleaner! But the depth of their love and the passion expressed is something that, for me, feels more appropriate in adult relationships, even though teenagers think that love doesn’t get any better than what they’re experiencing.

Anyway, it was a good day—especially if you’re a Twilight fan and/or a Ute. (I don’t get into football at all, but Megan’s family is happy tonight because the score of THE GAME was 48-24, with the U on the winning end.)

Home Again

After what seemed like an all-night flight and a day with our grandson Kona, I’m a little groggy, but I couldn’t go to bed without sharing a little bit about our trip to O’ahu (is that how you spell it?), Hawaii. One thing’s for sure, we weren’t ready to come home! It was so warm and relaxing, Sterling and I could have easily stayed for a few more days.

First, we were delighted when we checked in and found our hotel room was a corner room with two different but equally breathtaking views. We enjoyed both, depending on whether we wanted sun or shade or if it was windy or rainy.

So, what did we do all day, you ask? Aside from sleeping in until we woke on our own, eating plenty of fresh pineapple and papaya every morning for breakfast, walking along the beach, watching a few movies, and indulging in spa treatments, we pretty much read. That’s right.

It all started when the girls told me I couldn’t go with them to see the new movie Twilight (coming out this weekend) unless I’d read the book. So, dutifully, I began reading. When we were making our usual trip to the North Shore to attend the temple, I read silently while Sterling drove silently. Occasionally, I giggled, and after he could handle no more silence (I’m always jabbering about something...), he insisted that I read the book to him. That did it! We had both been bitten, you might say, and the rest of the trip was reading—here and there and everywhere!

And we didn’t stop at Twilight either. We read the draft online that describes Edward’s perspective, and then we made sure our Monday morning walk took us to Borders for New Moon! The books were fun and easy to read (sometimes annoyingly so), and now you know why I don’t read novels very often. Once I start, I can’t stop! Sage is bringing the next two books down on Saturday. Maybe Sterling and I can discipline ourselves to read a chapter a night—maybe!

We also stopped in at a quaint little restaurant named Cholos for lunch one day. Notice the cool car to the right of Sterling. I didn’t want to look too obvious by taking a photo of the car itself, but it was a beauty—surfboard and all!

And this photo reminds us of the fabulous flora and the countless waterfalls on the property (we could even hear waterfalls when our balcony doors were open) that muffled the sounds of Waikiki and made us feel like we were on our own little tropical island.

I’m already looking forward to next fall when we have our next trip to Hawaii planned. . .

Off to Hawaii

Well, I pulled another almost all-nighter last night (I did get a couple of hours of sleep), working hard to get everything done before I head out of town yet again. This time, however, I’m not going for work. Sterling and I are headed to Hawaii for a much-anticipated getaway!

One of the things I was frantically trying to finish was a quilt square. Justine’s sister is making a quilt for Dad (the deadline was last week), and she asked family members to make quilt squares. I intended to get it done earlier, but I haven’t made the time to finish it until now, so I have to do what I have to do! (smile)

 

I did like the way it turned out, though. I wouldn’t normally choose Tangerine Tango (definitely feels like Halloween!), but orange and black are Dad’s favorite colors. I sewed the alphabet letters on (made the letters using the Serif Essential Alphabet dies, of course!), but if you look closely, you’ll see I slipped in some stamping along the side too! I can’t do anything crafty without stamping being involved in some way!

Now upward and onward to Hawaii! It’s been at least a couple of years since we’ve gotten away, just the two of us, and Hawaii is one of our favorite places, so we’ve been counting down the days. I will work a few hours each day (I always do, it seems), but I stayed up all night so I didn’t have a ton of work to do.

I am taking a novel to read, which is kind of different for me. I love to read, but I usually choose nonfiction books. My daughters love the Twilight series though, and we already have tickets to see the movie the weekend it comes out, so the girls insisted that I read it. This trip is the perfect time to do that—I would never make the time to fit it in otherwise.

Other things I’m looking forward to are the warm weather (always a selling point for me), lots of time with my sweetheart, no meetings or appointments, walks along the beach, a few sightseeing adventures, and eight hours of sleep every night!

I don’t know if I’ll be posting or not. I am taking my camera, so if I don’t post from Hawaii, you know you’ll get a report when I come back. In the meantime—Aloha!

An Anytime Game from Virginia

I came back from our Virginia Beach regional yesterday, and it was another great event. We had almost 700 demonstrators there, so it was one of our larger events. I was worried that it might not have that intimate feeling that I love at regionals, but it was still cozy and comfortable. I chatted with lots of people, everyone was warm and welcoming, and I thought it was a wonderful success.

I demonstrated this fun Thanksgiving game, which I’m making for my grandchildren’s Thanksgiving gifts. I adapted this from a project that a demonstrator gave me at a regional earlier in October, just substituting the turkey image for the skull image. You could actually do this same thing for just about any time of year or occasion, just by choosing different images.

 My game is a finished size of 2-1/2 x 2-1/2, which means that the DSP (which is the bottom layer of the game) is 3-1/2 x 3-1/2, with ½-inch score lines on all four sides.

The other layers are watercolor paper, foam, and card stock, all cut slightly smaller (one little notch on the paper cutter) than 2-1/2 x 2-1/2.

I used the Crop-A-Dile (large punch on the watercolor paper, smaller punch for the foam) to create the holes for the BB’s to land in. I created the top and sides of the box with thick acetate, also cut 3-1/2 x 3-1/2, with the corners cut out so I could fold them.

And because I didn’t want this to EVER come apart, I used Sticky Strip on everything!

I’ve had this game sitting around the house, and I’ve laughed as people pick it up and start to play with it. Nobody can put it down until they’ve gotten the little BB’s into the holes. The games I’m making for the grandchildren only have two holes, so the kids won’t get frustrated, but if I have time, I’m going to make an extra game with a hole in every turkey feather (five holes in all) for every family so that the grownups can enjoy a little harder challenge.

Several demonstrators at the regional asked me how Dad was doing, so I thought I’d share a quick update. I had lunch today with Dad and my brother Kurt, and it was great. Earlier when I was talking to Kurt and we were talking about eating, he mentioned that I could “feast on Dad’s energy and positive attitude.” And then when I actually saw Dad at lunch, he gave me a big hug and kiss and said, “Shelli, you’ve got your old Dad back.”      

 And we just about do! It’s amazing the difference in just a week (it’s been about that long since I’ve seen him). He looks great and feels great, and I feel so thankful and grateful for his recovery. Everything could have been so much worse!

I did notice while I was gone that I had a guest poster. Sara jokes about having to sneak in a post while I’m away, but she knows she’s welcome to post anytime. In fact, I’ll have to invite each of the girls to take a turn if they’d like. It’s always fun to see what they’re thinking and doing! I hope you enjoyed her projects and ideas as much as I did.

A Sneaky Guest Post--By Sara

OK, Mom and I have talked about me guest posting before, and I figured this was the perfect time. She’s on her way back from the regional in Virginia, so she can’t edit what I have to say! HA!

The time was right—PLUS I have something I’m kind of excited to share. Last night I demonstrated a Workshop Wow at a group meeting I attended, and I actually kind of liked the samples. I always like most of my samples, of course... But, we all have our favorites. :-)

So I’m in stealth mode here, sneaking in and sharing these fun samples. Actually, I’m sure I won’t get in too much trouble—Mom and I talk about the blog all the time, and I’ve loved checking it out every time she posts something new.

When I moved up here to Washington more than a year ago, I discovered one of my neighbors was a Stampin’ Up! demonstrator, and we became friends. She’s invited me to her swaps and group meetings on occasion, and I’ve loved spending time with my fellow demonstrators. So when one of her upline, also a friend of mine (aren’t we all friends as Stampin' Up! demos?), invited me to demonstrate at this last meeting, I was honored—and very nervous!

When I got there, I found out I was last. That means I had to be nervous through the whole meeting. It didn’t help any that the women who demonstrated before me showed fantastic samples; I chose easy and simple, so I was worried. When it was my turn, I told everyone that I could demonstrate at a workshop, no problem, but I was plenty nervous about the 10 minutes I was supposed to take in front of them. The difference, of course, is that the audience at a workshop doesn’t always know a lot about stamping, so if I mess up they won’t know. But at a group meeting, everyone is an experienced stamper! Everyone welcomed me warmly, though, and it was a great experience.

I had lots of fun coming up with the sample. I called the technique I showed “a different twist on emboss resist,” but one of the demonstrators at the meeting told me there was a more official term: faux emerging color... sounds good to me.

Start by stamping image(s) in VersaMark on Designer Series paper; the greater contrast the better. Emboss with clear embossing powder, then rub Chocolate Chip ink on top of that with a dauber. The DSP shows through.

I demonstrated the Kindred Spirits card at the meeting and also displayed the other five samples. I really liked the way it looked, and it was so simple and fast! With five little kids, that makes it a Wow for me. I hope you guys like it too. And if you like me guest posting, maybe I’ll sneak in here again sometime!