All About Me And A Bag Of Chips!

Weekend in Review!!

Good Monday morning peeps! I hope your weekend was as lovely and relaxing as ours was! I can't believe there is only one more week until both kids are back into their school like places, I am getting nervous about how L will do, but having his sister there full time for the first two weeks will be a big help, so I am trying to take deep breathes and think positively!!

In other news, I got in touch with my inner Martha Saturday and made some English muffins (<--LINK) They didn't have the nooks and crannies of store bought ones, but were pretty darn tasty, if I do say so myself! For some reason I can't find English muffins here, I have seen crumpets at Bilka, but alas no English muffins, go figure! Since we are already on the subject of Martha, I was over the moon excited to see that ZINIO.COM is now carrying MARTHA STEWART LIVING (<--link) It is a much better deal then having to stalk the Kiosks around here and pay 60 kr a pop for an issue!

We also saw two very cool movies this weekend...

First up was - Nostradamus: 2012 (<--LINK)

I found this really quite interesting, those of you who read this blog know how much a LOVE a good conspiracy theory and those types of things, so this was right up my alley!

The second movie was HOME (<--LINK)

"With aerial footage from 54 countries, Home is a depiction of how the Earth's problems are all interlinked."

This was just a visually stunning movie to watch, yes it can be a bit "preachy" at times, but the message is a simple, but important one. The aerial footage is just breathtaking and the soundtrack is gorgeous, definitely worth a watch!

So with that I am going to wrap things up for today, have a good one and until next time..TATA!!

Weekend in Review!!

Good Monday morning peeps! I hope you all had a great weekend. We were suppose to hit the mall, but we all woke up late Saturday and just decided to veg at home. DH will take a vacation day sometime this week and we'll all head to the mall then. Speaking of vacation, just two weeks until DH has a couple weeks off! To say I am excited would be an under statement! LOL

I have a bit of sad scrapping news, I decided to step down from all my creative team spots, with it being summer, my mojo at an all time low and an opportunity awaiting me starting in August, it was time to step aside and let someone fresh and new have my spot. I am totally bummed though and will miss all the girls like crazy! :(

We also were able to see two new movies this past weekend...

First up was BRUNO



Words cannot describe how in love I am with Sacha Baron Cohen, the man is just brilliant! This movie is not for the faint of heart or the easily offended, not even sure it is for the medium offended, but we laughed our asses off the whole time! So funny, though I will admit I think Borat was a tad bit better overall. Still Bruno gets two thumbs up from us!!

The second movie was THE SOLOIST



Really, Really liked this one a lot! Jamie Foxx was amazing in it and I just love anything Robert Downey Jr. does. It is a very powerful film that I believe makes a very powerful statement. Another two thumbs up for this one!

With that I will wrap things up for today, have a good one and until next time..TATA!!

Having trouble getting back into the swing of things...

Man, go away for a few days and it takes a week to get back into the swing of life! I am feeling all out of sorts this week, on top of that I missed the stupid sign up for Scott Kelby's Second Annual Worldwide Photo Walk® here in Copenhagen and it is now all filled up...sigh.

Since my Saturday is now free I need to hit the mall and buy some pre school stuff for my son. He starts August 3rd and I need to get him a backpack, lunch box, rain gear and some new outfits. My daughter doesn't start back to school until the 14th of August, but since the place me son is starting is the same place my daughter goes to after school and I am paying for the same amount whether she is there or not, I figured it would help my son to get settled in if his big sister was around to show him the ropes. Truth be told I think she is missing her friends and a little bored, so it will be good for her also. :)

Lastly DH and I saw a really good Danish movie the other night called Flammen & Citronen (FLAME & CITRON) if you get a chance to see it (it is available subtitled in English) you really should, it is a very good movie!

That will wrap things up for today, have a good one and until next time..TATA!!

The Start of a New Week!

So after sweating my butt off in the heat last week, this week is stating on a cooler note and will remain that way through the week! Of course the kids will be bummed since they really enjoyed going swimming every day. Speaking of which S. is really catching on and turning into a little fish! A lot of big firsts this Summer for her (learning to ride a two wheeler and swimming) L. is not overly crazy about the water, he will go in up to his waist and let DH hold him and dunk him quickly, but I think he finds the water too cold..c'est la vie. LOL

In other news I have been reading up a storm lately, so there is a lot of new reviews and things up on my book blog (Link to the right in the sidebar under my photo) so be sure to check that out! I was especially impressed with THE LOST CITY OF Z by David Grann. A fabulous adventure read that I just found out they may be making into a movie!

Last night we also watched a really good Swedish movie "Låt den rätte komma in" (Let the Right One In) "Oscar, an overlooked and bullied boy, finds love and revenge through Eli, a beautiful but peculiar girl who turns out to be a vampire"

I read the other day that Hollywood is remaking it, which for the life of me cannot figure out why since it just came out last year?? Why not just watch the Swedish version, it comes with subs or overdubbed. I worry that the subtlety and whole feel of the movie will be lost in the whole Hollywood need for special effects and gore, we will see though. If you get a chance though you should definitely give this one a watch!

So with that I will wrap things up for today..I hope you have a good one and until next time...TATA!!

Related articles by Zemanta

• The Lost City of Z (telegraph.co.uk)
• Let the Right One In American Remake Planned For 2010 (pastemagazine.com)

Movie Review Monday!!

Good Monday morning peeps!! I hope you had a great weekend, ours was nice and relaxing! We actually got to see three new movies this past week, so I thought it was time again for a "Movie Review Monday."

First up is THE HANGOVER



"A Las Vegas-set comedy centered around three groomsmen who lose their about-to-be-wed buddy during their drunken misadventures, then must retrace their steps in order to find him."

Gosh was this movie ever a RIOT! Crude, rude, but oh so funny. I don't think we stopped laughing the whole movie, definitely gets two huge thumbs up!!

Next up..THE LAST HOUSE ON THE LEFT



"After kidnapping and brutally assaulting two young women, a gang led by a prison escapee unknowingly finds refuge at a vacation home belonging the parents of one of the victims -- a mother and father who devise an increasingly gruesome series of revenge tactics"

I am still undecided on this one, on one hand I thought it was a good thriller, lots of suspense, solid acting, on the other hand though there was an extremely graphic and way to long (IMO) rape scene that disturbed me a lot and a pretty over the top ending. I guess what I am saying is that I liked it, but didn't LOVE it!

Lastly we saw..ANGELS & DEMONS



"Harvard symbologist Robert Langdon works to solve a murder and prevent a terrorist act against the Vatican"

I was SO excited to see this one! I LOVED the book, in fact it is one of my favorite books of all time. Let's just say I was not disappointed! This one is leaps and bounds better then The Da Vinci Code movie (though I did enjoy that one also). This was an especially fun movie for us to watch because we have basically been to visit every place they filmed scenes for the movie in Rome and The Vatican (though they were not aloud to film in the Vatican and did an amazing job of recreating those places). Two very big thumbs up for this one!!

With that I will wrap things up for today, have a good one and until next time..TATA!!

Related articles by Zemanta

• McGregor: 'Angels' no challenge to Catholic faith (ctv.ca)
• Ron Howard accuses Pope of scuppering Dan Brown movie (theregister.co.uk)
• Movie Review | 'Angels & Demons': Holy Mystery! (movies.nytimes.com)
• 'Angels & Demons' Takes Box Office From 'Trek' (abcnews.go.com)
• Predicting Dan Brown's Angels & Demons silver screen reception (northbynorthwestern.com)
• 'Angels & Demons' actors: What controversy? (cnn.com)
• Exploring: Angels & Demons (dashpunk.com)

Movie Review...

The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas

"Set during World War II, a story seen through the innocent eyes of Bruno, the eight-year-old son of the commandant at a concentration camp, whose forbidden friendship with a Jewish boy on the other side of the camp fence has startling and unexpected consequences."

What can I say about this movie that would even begin to do it justice?? This was an amazing, heartbreaking and poignant movie. The acting was superb, especially that of the two little kids (Bruno and Shmuel), the story line heartbreaking, I was honestly already in tears thirty minutes into the movie! Like I said, words can't even begin to do this movie justice, it is a powerful, powerful movie of friendship and innocence lost. This one gets two VERY huge thumbs up, a must see! Make sure to bring your tissues though...you'll most definitely need them!

Related articles by Zemanta

• The Boy in the Striped Pajamas (cinemablend.com)

A movie review, A couple book reviews, A new LO and a Weekend update!!

Where to begin...we had a pretty nice weekend this past weekend, we did the weekly grocery shopping on Saturday and then had a family thing later in the day. Of course later on at night we took part in Earth Hour 2009, the kids loved going "lights out" and we used the opportunity to talk about energy conservation and the Earth. We also were able to see a new movie, which I will be reviewing in a bit and I also finished up two books (go me) and scrapped a new layout! Saturday night was also the night that we sprung our clocks ahead an hour and we are enjoying the extra light at night.

Sunday we had to do a bunch of cleaning, laundry etc. I noticed all day though that Sophia was just lying around, wasn't hungry, just didn't seem herself. She has been sick with a cold all the previous week, but it seemed to be getting better, anyways, shortly after she went to bed she started throwing up, so I kept her home today for observation. She seems fine now though and ate a carrot, apple and granola bar for her breakfast, so back to school she will go tomorrow! Since the inlaws came home and we had to give up the car, dh headed down to our basement to get his bike ready for taking back and forth to work. He came back up and told me someone had picked his lock and stole his back tire! Can you believe that?? In our LOCKED basement, so anyways, he went looking around the buildings basements to see if he could find it and what do you know, he found it on another bike. He contacted the caretaker of the building who is majorly pissed off since these basement are suppose to be were we can store stuff safely. So he is going to consult the police today and keep an eye on the person he suspects. DH just wants his bike tire back! lol

Ok, so as I said we got to see a sneak peek of a new movie coming out here soon on Saturday..

KNOWING

"A teacher opens a time capsule that has been dug up at his son's elementary school; in it are some chilling predictions -- some that have already occurred and others that are about to -- that lead him to believe his family plays a role in the events that are about to unfold."

This was a pretty good movie, suitably creepy, good acting, pretty good storyline. The ending was a bit dubious for me, but I can't say more without giving it away. LOL Oh and it did have some kick butt special effects!! One thumb up from me, wort the watch! :)

On to my book reviews...

The Casebook of Victor Frankenstein by Peter Ackroyd

rating: 4 of 5 stars
What can I say, this was a cracking good read! A very interesting take on the Frankenstein story. I really enjoyed this one!


The Poe Shadow by Matthew Pearl

rating: 3 of 5 stars
I was intrigued by the use of Edgar A Poe's death as a plot for a fictional story and found it to be quite fascinating! There is a lot of detail and plot twists, and a plethora of characters to this novel that sometimes can become tedious and confusing in some parts. The entire story is told through the eyes of Quentin Clark, a lawyer and to be honest a somewhat lackluster character, but none the less the book held my interest and kept me interested enough to want to finish and find out how the mystery ended! I look forward to reading more from this author. :)

And finally, last but not least I finished a new layout. I used the new rawking 2Scoop kit from Dani and Libby over at Sweet Shoppe Designs. It is called THAT'S HOW WE ROLL and is very cool kit, so be sure to check it out!

Holy long winded much huh? With that I will wrap things up for today, I hope you have a good one and until next time..TATA!!

Angels & Demons

Anyone else as excited as me to see this movie??!! I read Angels and Demons ages ago, before Dan Brown had even released The Da Vinci Code and became this HUGE bestselling author. I loved it then and I still love it, in fact I think it is an even better book then The Da Vinci Code (one of my favorites also).

I thought The Da Vinci Code movie was OK, when I read the books the main character in my head looked nothing like Tom Hanks, but I think he did an OK job in the first movie. I am excited to see how he does in Angels & Demons. They filmed most of the movie in Rome and around, so I can't wait to pick out all the places I have been to! LOL

My one pet peeve though is how they are promoting this as a sequel, HELLO, Angels & Demons was the first book, out before The Da Vinci Code. It is NOT a sequel, stop trying to act like it is!! Whew, that felt good to get out of my system! LOL I hear he has a new book coming "THE SOLOMON KEY", I think it was suppose to be already released, but hasn't yet. I wish they would hurry up, I really want to read it!

Well that will be it for today, I have a busy week of running around. I need to run in a few and take the little man to the dentist, then ballet class tomorrow for my daughter, then a dr. appointment for my daughter on Wednesday, then I go to get my hair cut on Thursday..whew, I am tired just typing it all out! Have a great one and until next time..TATA!

A movie review, a book review and a new LO......yipeeeee!!

Another day, another dollar, as they say. Of course dollars are a little hard to come by lately, but anyways...LOL I have a movie review, a book review and a new LO for you today, so sit right back and you'll hear a tale, a tale of a fateful trip, that started from this tropic port aboard this tiny ship...sorry got side tracked there...I miss Gilligan's Island..sigh....

First up is my movie review. I had the pleasure of watching THE SECRET LIFE OF BEES the other night!

"Set in South Carolina in 1964, this is the tale of Lily Owens a 14 year-old girl who is haunted by the memory of her late mother. To escape her lonely life and troubled relationship with her father, Lily flees with Rosaleen, her caregiver and only friend, to a South Carolina town that holds the secret to her mother's past. Taken in by the intelligent and independent Boatwright sisters, Lily finds solace in their mesmerizing world of beekeeping."

I thought it was just a really great movie! Solid acting, stayed fairly close to the book (which is even more fabulous then the movie BTW). Have a box of tissues handy though because you will need them! It's one of those movies that makes you just want to curl up on the sofa on a rainy day and get lost in the story. Two thumbs up from me!

That brings us to my book review. My friend Mel says I am always reviewing movies and that I should also review books, so this one is for you Mel! ;)

Last night I finished reading THE THIRTEENTH TALE by Diane Setterfield.

"Vida Winter, a bestselling yet reclusive novelist, has created many outlandish life histories for herself, all of them invention. Now old and ailing, at last she wants to tell the truth about her extraordinary life. Her letter to biographer Margaret Lea - a woman with secrets of her own - is a summons. Vida's tale is one of gothic strangeness featuring the Angelfield family: the beautiful and willful Isabelle and the feral twins Adeline and Emmeline. Margaret succumbs to the power of Vida's storytelling, but as a biographer she deals in fact not fiction and she doesn't trust Vida's account. As she begins her researches, two parallel stories unfold. Join Margaret as she begins her journey to the truth - hers, as well as Vida's."

This was a really good read! It pretty much sucked me in right from the first page and held me all the way through to the end. I was especially drawn to Margaret because I have a secret (well not so secret now lol) longing to spend my days working in a little antique book store in London. I know I am odd, what can I say! lol I am really looking forward to see more from this author, so make sure to add this to your "must read" list!

Lastly, I have a new LO to share with you today! I was so excited when at the end of January when my guest spot was up for Cre Bisontine, that she decided to keep me on permanently. I simply ADORE her stuff as it allows me to step out of my box and create pages that are pure fantasy! This latest LO is using her new SONG OF LOVE KIT and a few other bits and pieces of hers from other kits!

That will wrap things up for today! I hope you have a great one and until next time..TATA!!

Movie Review Monday!!

Good Monday morning peeps! I have a few movie reviews for you today, it was a pretty laid back weekend here, so we were able to see three outstanding movies. As some of you know from reading my blog regularly, I have this "thing" about seeing all the Oscar nominated "best picture" films before the actual telecast. I came thisclose to seeing all of them last year, just did not get to see Micheal Clayton in time, turns out I didn't like it very much after I saw it anyways, so c'est la vie! LOL This year I am going to try and be a bit more ambitious and try to not only see all the best picture nominees, but all the best actor/actress and maybe the supporting ones also.

Anyways, this weekend I saw three very good films, two that have Oscar nominations and one that appeared to have been snubbed by the Academy, and they should be ashamed of themselves, you here me snotty Academy peeps, shame on you!! LOL

Friday we saw GRAN TORINO

"Disgruntled Korean War vet Walt Kowalski sets out to reform his neighbor, a young Hmong teenager, who tried to steal Kowalski's prized possession: his 1972 Gran Torino."

This was the film that appears to have been left out in the cold when it came to Oscar nods and a shame it was because this one one of the most amazing movies I have seen in a long time. Now I am not really a Clint Eastwood fan, so I actually passed on seeing it a bit ago, but friends kept telling me how good it was, how I HAD to see it etc. They were SOOO right. Clint Eastwood gives the performance of his LIFE in my opinion! The story was sad, inspiring, upsetting. I really don't know what else to say, just an outstanding film that everyone should see!

Saturday we saw DOUBT

"Set in 1964, Doubt centers on a nun who confronts a priest after suspecting him abusing a black student. He denies the charges, and much of the play's quick-fire dialog tackles themes of religion, morality and authority."

This was another OUTSTANDING film! Philip Seymour Hoffman and Meryl Streep both getting Oscar nods for their performances and both well deserved. In fact the whole cast was amazing. If I am not mistaken I believe this was actually a play that they made into a movie and it transitioned well to the big screen. A sign of a really good movie to me is if I am still thinking back on said movie days after seeing it, and I am still thinking about it, still mulling it over, still talking about it, still having my "doubts" ;)

Finally last night we saw THE READER

"Post-WWII Germany: Nearly a decade after his affair with an older woman came to a mysterious end, law student Michael Burk re-encounters his former lover as she defends herself in a war-crime trial."

What can I say, this was another powerful and outstanding film! An amazing performance by Kate Winslet, whom I might add is becoming one of my favorite actresses. The character she portrays in this film (Hanna Schmitz) is difficult for me to get my thoughts and feelings around. On one hand I feel for her, feel her embarrassment over certain "deficiencies" on the other hand the atrocities she had committed and never outwardly shows any remorse for, make it difficult for me to feel those feelings. Gosh, ya this was just a really powerful, thinking movie. Difficult to watch in certain places, but definitely should be on your "must see" list!!

Well that will wrap things up for today. I hope you all have a fabulous Monday and until next time...TATA!!