Watching Parenthood

I am a TV watcher. It isn't really that I sit and get so engrossed in the show or a movie. It is something to have in the background while I do five other things. Watching TV in 2013 is a gazillion times different than when I was 10 years old with only 3 stations to turn the knob to watch. With hundreds of cable channels and infinite more options on Netflix and DVDs, I am falling way behind on my TV watching.

There are a lot of shows out there. Some good and a lot more bad.
Then there are some shows I wonder why I continue to watch.
Take Parenthood. I started watching this when it first aired in 2010.  I remember liking it but after the first season I stopped. I thought I could get parenting tips from the show but surprisingly, there really were not many learning opportunities. I started back up watching it and the dialogue in some episodes, made me want to tear my eardrums out. When the parents and kids were talking over each other and screaming, I could not stand it. I literally wanted to scream at my 2 inch iPhone screen. I kept thinking to myself, this is the last episode for me. Part of it was I got flashbacks from my childhood. Part of it was my insane fear that when my kids are older, that will be us. I don't want my kids to not listen to me. I don't want my kids to be afraid to talk to me. I don't want my kids to grow up like a rotten drug addict or end up in jail.

I want my kids to listen to positive advice, to make good, sound judgements, to be independent. I want them to be loving, caring and compassionate and to just be good people.

But I know we don't always get what we want.

So I am watching season 2 and thinking I cannot watch anymore. These kids on the show are giving me undue stress. But when I get to episode 22, Hard Times Come Again, I realize I am going to watch this to the end. Because this is good parenting advice.


Sarah Braverman (Lauren Graham)
"No, you don't give them space. Just when they tell you they don't need you anymore is exactly when they need you the most. You have to fight it. You have to show up. It's when they're pushing you away, it's when they're telling you they know better, that's when you have to show up."

Yep, that's good stuff.

My Cups, my cups, my lovely Aca-Cups

I've seen Pitch Perfect twice. The second time around, I sang along a bit more.
But the one song I did not know was "When I'm Gone" from Lulu and the Lampshades. Anna Kendrick's voice is unique and I love her singing this song.

And because I am just that crazy, I went on a quest to learn the Cups song. I watched YouTube tutorials and practiced and practiced. Dean was very interested in learning it as well. However, being the crazy, stubborn child of a crazy, stubborn parent, he refused any instruction from me. He wanted to watch the videos by himself and eventually, he taught himself how to do it.
I was only able to capture part of his routine. This kid is pretty awesome.





Here is the music video that I want to learn the alternate ways to do cups.

Cups (When I'm Gone) Music Video




"When I'm Gone (Cups)"
I got my ticket for the long way 'round
Two bottle whiskey for the way
And I sure would like some sweet company
Oh, I'm leaving tomorrow, what do you say?

When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
You're gonna miss me by my hair
You're gonna miss me everywhere
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone

I've got my ticket for the long way 'round
The one with the prettiest view
It's got mountains, it's got rivers,
It's got woods that give you shivers
But it sure would be prettier with you

When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
You're gonna miss me by my walk
You'll miss me by my talk
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone

I've got my ticket for the long way 'round
These feet weren't built to stay too long
And I'll go there on my own,
But you'll miss me when you're home
It's for you, dear, that I sing this song

When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
When I'm gone (when I'm gone)
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
You're gonna miss me by my hair
You're gonna miss me everywhere,
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone

When I'm gone
When I'm gone
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone
You're gonna miss me by my walk
You'll miss me by my talk
You're gonna miss me when I'm gone

Why there won't be a Pink Lantern

In brightest day, in blackest night,
No evil shall escape my sight.
Let those who worship Evil's might
Beware my power:
Green Lantern's Light!

I am a sucker for a good comic book superhero movie. Especially ones with cutie patooties as the main character. And Ryan Reynolds, who plays Hal Jordan aka Green Lantern, has more patooties than even Sandra Bullock can handle.

If you have not seen the movie and do not want to know anything about it, read no further, may contain spoilers.

Green Lantern progresses at a very good pace, I don't recall there being a slow point in the movie. Well, other than the scenes with Ryan and Blake. I guess all that lovey dovey sensitive stuff is necessary for that love story to progress but blah, blah, blah. There is lots of action and the effects are pretty spectacular, especiallyduring the ring conjuring scenes.Blake Lively, oh how I want to not like her but I can't do it. Not in this film. She annoyed me in the pants movies but as Carol, the love interest, she was neither slutty nor blonde. The movie scored points for that.

The movie has a PG-13 rating but there really wasn't much sexual content or profanity. Parallax, the evil, fear-harvesting being is very big and scary. And he gets bigger and scarier as the movie progresses so kids might get freaked out about that part. I will be getting this one on Blu-ray but definitely not letting kids watch it for a long while. You can always check out Kids in mind to get content analysis on movies.

As much as I like Supergirl and the Batman movies (yes, even Batman and Robin), Green Lantern is by far my favorite DC Comics based movie. Go see it. Make it a date night movie. Action, special effects and superheroes for him, Ryan Reynolds for her.

I like discussing comic book lore with the Hubs. I learn so much and it reminds me that he is still the geek I fell in love with.

The ride home went something like this:

Thao: I liked it. The action was good, the story was good.
Rod: Yeah, I thought it was good too. I think it made a much better movie choice than X-Men.
T: Yep. I never seem to have problems watching Ryan Reynolds in his underwear. Go figure.
R: Temuera Morrison who plays Abin Sur played Jango Fett
T: Really? Looked nothing like him. How do you say his name? Avin thur? Advent sure?
R: Abin Sur
T: That's a cool name. If we have any more kids, we should name him Abin Sur.
R: I don't think so. We are not naming kids after the Green Lantern Corp
T: How about Hal Jordan? Hal Jordan Powell. That has a ring to it.
R: haha, ring. you're funny.
T: I know. But you like Hal Jordan Powell don't you?
R: Yeah, it would be a cool name. I liked the way they used the color yellow for fear and green for will. The comic books never went into that. Now that they have the yellow ring, they should make a red one.
T: For anger?
R: For hatred.
T: Won't work. You can't have 2 bad rings and only 1 good ring. The balance of good and evil will be torn asunder. If you have a red one, then you need a pink one. For love.
R: Now way.
T: Why not.
R: All the other Lanterns would make fun of him.

And that is why there will never be a Pink Lantern.

Life As We Know It

I am a sucker for romantic comedies. But I am a sobbing wimp when it comes to romantic comedies with kids. I rented Life As We Know It thinking I was going to get a good laugh. Little did I know that I was going to cry almost as much as I did with Joy Luck Club.

This is one of my favorite Katherine Heigl films. I read that as she was making this movie and going through the new mommy experiences on film, we was also going through it in real life with her newly adopted daughter.

The story is about two people who happen to have a child thrust upon them after their best friends die. It's about Katherine (Holly) and Josh Duhamel (Messer) learning how to make it work and make it not work then make it work again. Sophie is played by triplet girls who were preemies. I have not idea what kind of baby whisperer they had on set but those babies were amazing.

There is one scene where Holly has taken Sophie to the pediatrician and has a mental breakdown. She tells the doc that she doesn't know what she is doing. I think every new parent has some kind of breakdown. It was especially true for me as a new mom to twins. My mom was in town helping me at the time and I just started crying because I wasn't sure I was going to be able to care for two babies at one time. How was I going to nurse them, bathe them and entertain them and also try to get some rest. I was exhausted from lack of sleep because I tried to nurse them every 3 hours and still try to pump. Luckily for me, my mom had little compassion for me or my postpartum depression at the time and gave me an Oscar worthy, Cher-like virtual slap and told me to snap out of it. She said that I wanted these babies so badly and now that I had them, I was crying about it.

For the next five and a half seconds, I felt very sorry for myself. I had wanted a baby for many long, infertile years and when I was finally blessed with two of them, I was wasting my time boo-hooing about it. So I snapped out of it. It would have been comforting to have my mom hug me and tell me I was doing a fantastic job but then I would have wondered when the aliens had abducted her. If I could bottle that slap in the face magic to get folks out of a funk, I would have put Prozac out of business long ago.

This movie is now on my top 32 favorite movie list. Once of these days, I'll actually make a list and figure out what the other 31 movies will be. Get it. Watch it.

Squee! Nanny McPhee!

Yes. Squee is the actual noise that emitted from my mouth precisely at 3:52 PM at work today when I saw a Facebook blurb. It is not because Lady Gaga is playing in Houston. It is not because Camp Rock has a sequel. It is because Nanny McPhee, in all her warty, lessen teaching goodness is returning.

I love the first movie. I love Emma Thompson. I really love Colin Firth. And I loved the story. I would marry them all if I could. But that would just be weird.

It will be in theaters August 20th in the US. Looks like it was released in the UK last year as Nanny McPhee and the Big Bang because it is out on DVD.

The Boys Are Back

I ordered The Boys Are Back on Netflix because I thought it would be a nice movie to watch with Rod. However, I did not realize that Clive Owen's character's wife dies of cancer. Watching the part where he took care of his wife and helped her with her oxygen hit a spot in my heart. if I had known this about the movie, I would not have gotten it so soon after my father-in-law passed away from cancer.

On top of that, I cried at all the parts where his wife was talking to him about helping his son cope with her death. I am crying now just thinking about not being able to ever hold my boys or kiss them or tell them how much I love them. I know that Rod would always tell them how much I love them and I know he would take great care of them.

This was a long and sad movie for me but I liked it. Who knows, I just might come back and tell Rod he can finally get the motocycle with the sidecar for the boys.

My new crush

I am liking this Bublé kid. He has such a nice voice. Really nice and old school. And even good enunciation. He is super cute and funny. Like Matthew Perry before the drug thing. Almost Charles Grodin-ish but not as dry.

This is what started my crush: Haven't Met You Yet

I don't do concerts but I would pay to see him. I might even scream and dance a jig.

Through the Wardrobe

I am on vacation this week. Whoohoo! I cannot express how happy I am to get to stay home from work, spend time with my babies and take cat naps.

Houston Museum of Natural Science opened a site in Sugarland. The museum is small and looked like it took over a pre-existing building. There were places where walls looked like they were knocked down. Their first big exhibit is the Chronicles of Narnia. Lucky for me, I found discount tickets and we were off to see the White Witch.

Preview: The Chronicles of Narnia: The Exhibition from HMNS on Vimeo.

No picture taking was allowed inside the exhibit which was a shame because there were so many costumes and props I wanted to take pictures. It would have been so fun to get Sam and Dean sitting on the white witch's throne. Incidentally, the arm and seat of the throne were cold and wet.

After the Narnia exhibit, we took the boys to see the frogs. They don't quite know what frogs are or what to look for but Sam enjoyed slapping the glass to get their attention. We also saw some awesome quartz formations and we touched the oldest rock and a Mars rock. A very exciting day indeed.

Brought to you by the number 40.

Today is Sesame Street's 40th anniversary. I grew up watching this and love the show. I am glad it is still on and the boys will probably watch it when they are older.

When I lived in Dallas, there was a Sesame Place, in Irving. I think it was by the Crystal Palace and I would always see the big structure from the highway. I got to go once and I remember having fun but cannot remember any details of the rides or activities. I cannot wait for the kids to get older so they can enjoy amusement parks. I can live through them.

Happy 40th Sesame Street and may you be around another 40.

The Proposal

We watched The Proposal tonight and it is hilarious. Love Sandra, love Ryan and love this movie. It doesn't matter that this movie is cookie cutter and predictable, I enjoyed it. Betty White looks great for being 120. At least that is what hubs says.

There is a funny naked scene where Ryan is taking his clothes off on the balcony. Who does that?

And where can I go to witness this?

What's the Big Idea?

I bought a double feature DVD of Veggie Tales and it has been a big hit with the boys. I have been scouring eBay for DVD lots but I cannot afford shelling out big bucks for them right now. I plan to sell some items on eBay so that I can replenish my PayPal account in order to buy more videos to rot my children's brains. I am hoping the Christian overtones of Veggie Tales won't cause too much damage.

Big Idea, the creators of Veggie Tales, is offering a free video and song download of their new song, "I can love (because God loves me)"

A new video, Saint Nicholas - A Story of Joyful Giving, will be released October 3rd. Santa just may have to get this stocking stuffer for the boys because they love the Veggie Tales.

9

Our wonderful friends John and Kristi offered to babysit the boys so we could have a date night. As much as I love being with the kids, we jumped at the chance to go for Mexican and catch a movie.

My movie choices were All About Steve and 9. Rod chose 9. I liked the movie OK. The digital animation was good and the story line was interesting. Rod really likes movies that utilize everyday objects as weapons so he was all into the rag doll weapons. I think the ending could have used more work.

Was it coincidence that 7 or 9 is the only girl? I think not.






All About Steve trailer

I still want to see Sandra and Bradley in this movie. I will need to find another date though, because Rod cannot stand Bradley Cooper. I'll just Netflix it and sneak it in.

The Marriage Ref

I want to jump on the reality TV show bandwagon. Well, I got on the reality bandwagon years ago when I submitted an application to The Mole season 2. That show is one of the best reality type shows I have seen. It is thought provoking and I liked the concept of the challenges. No bug eating or swapping spouses. I made it to the phone interview and I submitted a video.

I just wasn't outgoing or entertaining enough to go any further. I was a little perturbed that the winner of that season was an Asian chic.

The parents of multiples reality shows are getting out of hand so a show about our family with just one set of twins would be uneventful. It's not like I thought of a name for our show or anything but what do you think about "Two by Two"? Catchy, right?

Now here is a casting call for a show I want to be on. Jerry Seinfeld is the creator and executive producer of The Marriage Ref, a show where couples who disagree on various topics can have their disputes settled my different refs. I have many issues with Rod, some I have written about here and others I keep to myself. I know Rod hates airing our "dirty laundry" but as he has said to me many times, I have no friends, so I must vent somehow.

The application deadline was July 28th but lucky for me, there is a casting call in August in Houston. I mentioned this to my dear husband and he is fearful that I will give him a public beat down. One of the reasons I would love to go on this show is not to publicly beat down my husband but to get some sort of resolution to our issues. It would be a different story if every time I bring up an issue, we talk through it and get it resolved. But when we have "disagreements", it is rehashing old issues because nothing ever gets resolved. I get the typical "I'll do better next time" or "it won't happen again" response but it doesn't get better and it does happen again.

Now I just need a way to get Rod over to the casting call...

Tan Farmer

This is what Tang calls Transformers. Or at least that's what it sounds like with her very thick Thai accent. She was talking to Rod about the movie he was watching (the first Transformers) and it took Rod 30 minutes to figure out that she was trying to say. It's only been a month so I don't expect her English to have improved much.

Since I got Friday off from work, I decided it was time to see a movie. I can't remember the last time we went but it was definitely before the babies were born.

I am not sure if it is because I am a mom now and worry about decibel levels but I have to say, this movie is LOUD. And busy. I really enjoyed the movie but there was so much action at times, I could not keep up. Especially in the battle scenes between the Autobots and Decepticons. So much metal was flying, I couldn't tell who was who.

Let me just say that Megan Fox may have the body but her voice is just annoying. I don't recall it being that high or irritating in the first movie but every time she opened her mouth to speak, it grated on my nerves. It was like nonstop baby talk. But according to her, I wasn't there for the acting.

The next movie will be Harry Potter HBP. Tang likes Harry Potter so I plan to take her. She is so funny sometimes, especially with her Engrish. She saw a picture of Daniel Radcliffe and was so surprised that he got old. And Hairy...

Signs of exhaustion

6/1/09

Putting on a diaper inside out. Learning that the outside of diaper not as absorbant as inside.

Waking up during a feeding to find the bottle nipple halfway out of baby's mouth. Feeling bad for baby who has been struggling to wrangle said nipple into mouth for past 5 minutes.

Forgetting to construct components of Dr. Brown bottle and tightening the cap properly only to have all the milk pour all over very hungry and fussy baby.

Watching late night tv and thinking the Time Life Romancing the 70's cd set is the best thing since sliced bread and lanolin nipple cream. I love this music. I am getting this for Rod for Father's Day. The boys would want him to have it. And so would Captain & Tennille.

Babies like 007

11/19/08 - 20w7d

Rod and I went to Alamo Drafthouse today to watch the new James Bond movie, Quantum of Solace. I guess the twins could hear the movie noise or felt the acoustical vibrations because the babies were really moving throughout the whole movie. Now in my 35 years, I have felt some weird things moving internally but nothing compares to two living beings dancing a jig in my stomach. I love that I can feel them, it's such an awesome sensation. At the same time, it's unnerving, bordering on creepy. But good creepy.

One minute, my stomach will be kinda squishy, the next minute, a baby will be pushing so hard against by belly that there is a hard lump. Seriously weird. Rod has felt the baby lump but has still not been able to feel any real movement or kicking.

I have been feeling the baby A on the right for almost a week and finally tonight I felt baby B on the left. I am so excited about that because it makes it more real. For the last two days, one of them has been putting pressure on my lungs because I have moments where I am short of breath. I gasp almost like I got the wind knocked out of me. I think it's great now but I'm wondering how long it will last when they get bigger and demand more belly real estate. I'll complain to get sympathy but inside, I'll be loving it.