Classics

Unneeded background info: I coach a competition soccer team (girls U14) and drive my daughter and three other girls to practice each week.

Point of the background: During these drives, undoubtedly the girls will get into an arguement about which actor is the "hottest".

Why? One of the girls is a H-U-G-E fan of Johnny Depp, and another of the girls thinks Depp is the exact opposite of hot. I think they all get a kick out of the one defending Johnny and the other bashing him openly.

Now, in all fairness for this war, the one who doesn't like Johnny Depp is a superheros fan--she likes all actors who played Superman, Spiderman, etc. And the Depp stalker thinks that anyone who would wear tights to his job needs some serious help. (She does admit though that should Johnny wear tights, she would be more than fine with that. :) )

The conversation this past Tuesday turned to "Well, if you don't like Johnny Depp (or Christopher Reeve, etc.) who DO you like?

The girls all named some guys who surprised me (guys I agreed with) and some who I had never heard of (which made me feel old).

Surprisingly, the superhero fan mentioned one of my all time favorites..and it surprised me because of the fact that this guy is older than MY time, so I didn't think an even younger generation would mention him. But in thinking it over I realized that some actors are just flat out classics. Timeless. Some come and go, but others are going to always be revered as someone a little special. Who can make hearts beat a little faster long after they have passed on.

Here he is. I don't think I need to mention his name.

Favorite movies? I love 'An Affair to Remember', 'Bringing Up Baby', 'The Bachelor and the Bobby-Soxer'....

I will watch any movie he is in.

Some people say that George Clooney is the new Cary Grant.

I like George just fine.

But there is no one like Cary Grant.

If you have any timeless actors you'd like to add, please leave a comment. Current actors, actors who have passed on...

I'm fairly certain my 15 y.o. daughter would add Harrison Ford, and my mom would probably add Elvis to the mix.

But scroll back up and look at that face. Remember a movie you have seen him in.

[sigh]

Classic.

Moving Siblings

I am the oldest of six kids. All of us were fairly close--there is a span of only 7 years between me and my youngest sister--and we all basically ended up married and living in the same general valley where we grew up.


Before marrying, four of us went away to college--our first living away from home scenario.

Those same four also served missions for our church, so we had the opportunity to get out of our valley and taste a bit of independence before we found our respective spouses and married.


When my 2nd sister moved out of State with her husband for her work, I was happy for her because she was one who stayed in the valley for college and didn't serve a mission. So I knew that even though she has always been the more mature sister--even 3 years younger than me--I knew that getting away from the valley with her husband would be a good move for them. It would help her grow and learn things you can only learn when you leave the comfort of your extended family and have to rely more on yourself and your spouse to make things work.


She has since moved back to our State and lives about 15 minutes away from our mom and dad.


Same thing happened when the sister who is 19 months younger than I am moved to the other end of the State...far enough away to learn those same things--she moved to the town where the other four of us went to college, so I was also a bit jealous of that move. I love it where she moved. Now she lives in a different State even further away than before, and because of the type of work her husband does, I don't see her moving back to this State. Which is a bummer if truth be told. It's weird, because even if she lived in the same town I do it wouldn't guarantee I'd see her more often. I'd like to think I would, but life gets crazy. I think it would only make me feel better because I would know that we COULD see each other if we wanted. I could sign her up and make her play soccer with me so I'm not the only old fart playing co-ed soccer...:)


One of my youngest sisters moved out of State a couple of years ago and that was weird because even though she is 7 years younger than me--which actually makes her a bonafide adult to the rest of the world--I still think of her and her twin sister as 14, so for her to be married and the mom of four kids is shocking enough without adding in the bonus of her actually having the nerve to move 6 hours away.


And now as of a couple of weeks ago, my dearest onliest brother has taken his cute family and moved not only out of State, but across the country. He is proof that if a sibling lives in your same town it doesn't guarantee you'll ever really see them...they had been living not even 5 minutes from me and we really only saw each other when passing on info. etc. from our parents. Which is sad, really.


And the saddest part is that it shows that cliches are cliches for a reason--no one would say "You don't know what you've got 'til it's gone" unless millions of us do exactly that.


So now my brother and two of my sisters live out of State. And while I'm happy for them since the moves seem to be the best for them, I'm bummed for myself. (Since it is really all about me ;) )


Taking advantage of having family around is something I apparently haven't learned--even after going away to college and serving a mission. Taking people you love for granted isn't a very nice thing for me to do. I do the same thing with friends...so my family doesn't need to feel that kind of special. I'm lame on all sorts of levels.

I don't really think about siblings being out of reach until we have family gatherings or events and I catch myself looking around my mom's house wondering where so-and-so are and then realizing that they actually won't be there.

They will miss out on Mom's early Thanksgiving dinner of roast, having all the cousins getting to know each other, catching up on the mountains of meaningless gossip and sometimes inappropriate topics of conversation (I'll save that explanation for a different blog--something to look forward to :) )...

And we (I) will miss out on seeing their kids grow, having them have any idea who we really are...my kids will hear about a cousin of theirs and ask "Who is that?". Granted, with mom having 28 grandkids, my kids might say that anyway...but still. I'm trying to make a point here. We will miss out on their special occasions, and they will probably not actually miss the meaningless gossip and inappropriate conversations.

I'm going to have to actually put myself out and be a normal human being who remembers birthdays and sends Christmas cards in order to stay connected to my siblings. It will probably be good for me. Make me grow and progress into becoming someone decent.

So thanks for moving and making me be a better person. (Because remember--it really IS all about me...)

But if you don't mind, I'll keep on missing you guys anyway.

And that has nothing to do with me, and everything to do with what great people you guys are.

I love you.

(Even Brian ) :)

Things I Wish

I wish chocolate was a diet food. Man, I would look smokin' hot....

I wish my house was always as clean as it is when I know I'm having company stay over. Enough said.

I wish my kids minded me the first time. Not the twenty-third time--if I'm lucky.

I wish I had snappy comebacks for all occasions. Not snappy comebacks an hour after it would have been useful.

I wish I were as funny as I think I am...but I'm positive real comedians probably don't make themselves laugh harder than those hearing the jokes....

I wish I were more smarter. :)

I wish my suburban got 36 miles to the gallon. Instead of 36 miles to the tank.

I wish I had a better memory--but then I would probably hold grudges, so I'll have to think about that one for awhile...

I wish there really were time machines. But there were wacky restrictions, like you could only use it three (round trip) times in your lifetime and couldn't change anything major...it would be fun to go make different choices now with hindsight and all. You couldn't change life or death situations, but maybe you could go be nicer to someone who you find out later has a difficult life. Or maybe work a little harder on your mission, or grades, or friendships. Or maybe just go back to re-live something that was perfect but that you aren't 100% clear on anymore, like your wedding day or a family vacation, or whatever.

I wish I knew where the book I'm trying to write is going. I really should work harder on that.

I wish this blog wasn't so lame. I am in something of a rut I guess, but that's what wishes are for, right?

Just some ramblings for you.

I am consistent. Remember that. :)

Crazy Family Ramblings Today

I won't apologize for my ramblings today...mostly because I don't feel like apologizing.

So there. :)

First up for the big ramble is that today my newest nephew Dylan had heart surgery yesterday. He was born on August 1st and is a doll. He was born with truncus (sp??) and if you go to my sister Cindy's blog site you can see photos of him and figure out what his heart issue is. Go there. To her site. He is a cute baby and she will probably keep everyone updated...

So yesterday was a worry day. Which is probably why I'm in full ramble mode.

My other worry yesterday was my 15 y.o. daughter trying out for the high school soccer team. She made first cuts and yesterday was the last day to tryout before final cuts and then the roster getting posted. Luckily for everyone involved, tryouts ended at 5:30 and the coach was going to post the results online around 7, so with travel time back home and then my daughter showering, we only had to fret for about an hour before she got the good news that she made the team.

My daughter squeals when she is excited. At a really high pitched frequency. I had no idea.

I'm glad I don't have to find out what would have happened if she hadn't made the team this go around...

For tonight, I had my second to last DCFS training class (for foster care licensing). Hallelujah. 32 hours of training is not my idea of a good time. Not when you realize that if you had just kept your license current--even if you didn't want to foster for a bit--that I would have only had to take 12 hours of training spread out over 12 months instead of 32 hours jammed into one month.

So I sit through the classes that I have already taken before and listen to random people make comments to the teacher just to hear themselves speak. And of course I am thinking the whole time that if they would just shut their yap we could get out early and still get full credit. Which then starts my mind wandering through the comedian Brian Regan's routines and I have to force myself to not laugh out loud for no apparent reason.

Of course, being the crazy one in class might have benefits...I should have figured that out on the first day instead of waiting until the end...:)

So to end my rambling, here is some Brian Regan for you to enjoy. I'm not smart enough to figure out how to post the youtube directly here, so check out the link and then do yourself a favor and take the time to watch some of his other clips:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k9m2FLHlEwA

Who Knew What Making a Sandwich Means?

I have created a monster.

My 4 1/2 year old daughter asked me the other day if she could make her own peanut butter and jelly sandwich. Make it all by herself. Because she is fairly certain that she is a 'big girl now'.

So, what the heck. Right? I let her make her own sandwich. She did a lovely job. Only got a few streaks of peanut butter on the table...and the side of the jar...and her hair...but overall quite well done for a rookie sandwich maker.

The problem?

She is now convinced that she IS a big girl. After all, if you can provide sustenance for yourself without relying on an adult, that must mean something.

Now she is asking me all day long if she can make herself a pb&j sandwich. Breakfast, lunch and dinner.

And she tells me she is certain she can now walk to the park by herself. You know, because she is big now.

And--this is my personal favorite-- calling to me from the bathroom and saying "Hey Mom! Since I'm a big girl now, I'm pretty sure I can wipe my own bottom."

'Pretty sure' isn't very settling in the minds of this mother....and for good reason, but I won't go into that here. (you can thank me for that later).

Until this week, I had no idea that being able to make your own peanut butter and jelly sandwich meant so much.

It means a few more messes for me to clean up while she learns and becomes more confident.

It means having a little girl bursting with happiness at something as simple as making sure the jelly gets all the way to the edges of the bread. Practically a work of art.

It means wishing sometimes that a little girl would stay little just awhile longer.