5 Guys

No, I'm not talking about the fast-food restaurant, Five Guys Burgers & Fries. And nor will I on this blog until they start serving a REAL vegetarian burger. Yes, they have pretty scrumptious fries but can you imagine how insulting it is when I ask if they have any vegetarian options and they respond with "Uhhh....you can order a cheeseburger without the meat?" What is that? A bun with ketchup, cheese, and some pickles? No thanks.

Anyway- what I'm really talking about on this do-nothing Sunday (kiddos and I all got sick AGAIN this week) are my 5 favorite male actors. They're not your typical heart throbs we hear about all the time such as Brad Pitt or George Clooney, but to me they're worth mentioning FEATURING in this post. These intriguing hunks (aside from my husband of course ;)), are perhaps a bit overlooked in the Hollywood celebrity circuit but from my teen years - on, have consistently caught my interest.

Here they are in no particular order.....

JASON BATEMAN

I had to list him first because of my recent discovery (thanks to Netflix) of the television series, Arrested Development. I know I'm waaaaaaay late in catching on to this show (think it first debuted back in 2003), but better late than never! To both my husband and I, this show has just the right kind of humor as well as the perfect cast of actors. If you too are in search of a good television series (love their quick 22 min. commitment) to get hooked on, you should seriously check this one out. Plus, it stars Jason Bateman. Someone who I realized I've always liked watching ever since The Hogan Family (remember that show?!). To me, this man  does a really good job at carrying the funny, responsible, and reliable male role all while being entirely likeable. I guess I just really like those witty, down-to-earth, caring types.

PAUL RUDD

What can I say about Paul Rudd other than that he just has that special twinkle in his eyes? This dude has consistently caught my attention ever since one of all-time my favorite movies, Clueless. I like how keeps things plain and simple, acts with true sincerity (in anything I ever seen him in anyway), and shows how nice guys can win.

DERMOT MULRONEY

First off, I love his name. Did you know the meaning of Dermot is Irish and means "free man?" I also love how authentically he pulls off his ruggedness and tenderheartedness at the same time. Many know him from the movie My Best Friends Wedding, but I thought he did the most touching performance in the movie Griffin & Phoenix. I also totally believe what they say about men getting handsomer as they age....do you think he meant to match the gray of his hair with his shirt?

DYLAN MCDERMOTT

Ever since the movie Jersey Girl (the first one- NOT the Jennifer Lopez & Ben Affleck one) I couldn't believe this man was for real. He has the darkest of dark hair and the bluest of blue eyes.....then I met my husband who also has dreamy dark hair and blue, blue eyes. ;) In addition to being beautiful, I also liked watching his smart intensity on the t.v. show Boston Legal.

                                                   

VINCE VAUGHN

For those of you know me, this one comes at no surprise. I caught on to him my junior year of college when I randomly rented the movie A Cool Dry Place (not expecting anyone to have ever heard of it). I liked how vulnerable and loving he was as a single dad and how he also just had this certain "coolness" about him. I then rented (even purchased) other films he was in and was not at all surprised when he became more mainstream....like 10 years later. I admire his timing, a bit off-styled humor, and his overall friendly appeal. He always seems to be up for a laugh, which to me is very important quality. While he and I never crossed paths while in Chicago (his hometown), I did once meet a guy who once had Vince over for dinner at his family's home in Brigham City, Utah while he was there filming the movie Clay Pigeons (I am serious). I also proudly own a framed poster of him and John Favreau from the movie Swingers. Bart even approves of that!

So that's my list. Yes, I do find it a bit silly that I shared this (btw- while I was posting my husband caught glimpse of the computer screen and began to laugh....that's okay, I know I'm kinda hopeless when it comes to certain famous people). Other male actors who I consider worth mentioning are Justin Timberlake (thought he did a really good job in the movie Trouble With The Curve) and Chris Pine (can't wait for the new Star Trek to come out on May 17th!).  I'd love to hear your favorites!

Also, so I don't leave out the ladies ~ here's a recent post Kelle Hampton did on the importance of women. And click here for the revealing of Julianne Donaldson's (the author of Edenbrooke) newest book ~ BLACKMOORE set to come out on....September 28, 2013!!!


p.s. Got to thinking after I posted this about how there are female actresses who I really enjoy watching too.....my 5 gal faves are Natalie Portman, Kiera Knightly, Keri Russell, Amy Adams, and Reese Witherspoon.

Latest Loves of Spring

After a heartbreaking loss last night by the Utah Jazz (which sadly ended their season), I'm ready to jump into spring by saying hello to baseball (go Twins!), wearing dresses, and going sockless. I'm hoping now that we're more than half-way through April that we can officially say goodbye to temperatures below 50 degrees as well as those random snowfalls. It is Utah though, so I guess one can never can quite say for certain....
Here's a list of my lastest loves, all certainly worth sharing!

I know what you're probably thinking...who doesn't already know about the handy dandy stain lifter, SHOUT? But I really came to love this product (notice it's the ADVANCED kind) after it was becoming a battle to get my two boys to wear bibs (apparently that really goes against their cool factor). And as I'm sure you can imagine, pretty much every piece of their clothing was in need of a SHOUT-down before washing. So, I'm here to give this stuff a SHOUT-out because it not only magically deletes any spots, but also works wonders on set-in stains. I honestly buy this stuff in bulk and go through about a bottle every month and a half. So worth it to me since I happen to really like my kids clothes and preserving them as long as possible makes me feel good and keeps them looking good. :)


                                      
I forgot to include these in this post that I did earlier this year (they were a Christmas present to us), but wanted to still share their awesomeness. For those of you unfamiliar, they're called MagnaTiles. Basically they're a really fun take on building blocks, but since their magnetic they have WAY more building possibilities. We first came across them at the children's Treehouse Museum, then again at Benjamin's former preschool. They're pretty pricey (I recommend getting at least the 100 piece set), but made very well and suitable for a variety of ages. You can find here or at local toy stores. Oh, I almost forgot to mention that Bart and I enjoy playing with them too!

                                            
With the amount of eating we do, let's face it- silverware is important. Well, about a few months ago my husband and I decided that our youngest (almost 2 yrs.) was ready to say goodbye to his silicone covered baby spoons. So we bagged them up and moved on. Since the best utensil for him to use right now is a spoon, I hunted every grocery store here in Logan for a set of nice toddler spoons. SO HARD TO FIND! They either came with a fork (have enough of those), or they were all plastic and cheap-o looking. So, I hopped online and found the brand NUK here (sometimes combined with Gerber packaging) and bought 2 sets for a total of 6, which have been working out great. Quick funny story is that while I was buying the boys spoons, I decided Bart and I should get a few more small spoons (I HATE using big spoons!) for our adult silverware. So, I bought a set of these thinking nothing of actually checking the measurements since they looked just the right size in the photo. Then about a week and half a later I realized they hadn't arrived....thought that was odd since normally Amazon is pretty speedy. So, I waited until one day the doorbell rang. It was the postman asking me to sign for an international package. Huh? I wasn't expecting anything overseas. I even asked him if he was sure he had the right address.....sure enough it was me. So, I signed and opened up the mysteriously small sized box which contained 4 itsy-bitsy (we're talking teaspoon sized spoons) that had been shipped all the way from KOREA! Oops. Good thing is that they are actually very nice silver spoons, and we've got a baby on the way who I'm sure can use them when he/she is ready for solids, plus we'll always have this fun little story to tell. Oh, and if you too are looking for additional smaller sized silver spoons, go to Love To Cook Kitchen Kneads. You can buy them there singly and save $ spent on silly overseas shipping.

                                                         

                                                    
There's only a couple of make-up items that I insist on buying at a department store make-up counter. First is Estee Lauder's brow pencil (I am a devoted fan to the Soft Blonde color), and the second is eyeliner. I've tried a few different brands and kinds but so far this one is my fave. I've also recently become more consistent in wearing eyeliner now, probably because I found that dark brown is less dramatic on me and way more forgiving to smudges/fading off. I also really like a crayon because I find that it doesn't skip as much (big for me since I am always applying make-up in a hurry!), and draws a thicker line. This new eyeliner by Clinique is pretty genius with the sharpener built right in the lid, so no more dull tip. Rejoice!



                                                         
My mom bought a pack of these for us from COSTCO and my whole family loves them! I'm sure you've already heard how Quinoa is so so so good for you, but for some reason I've always been intimidated by making it. Well, thankfully this microwavable pouch makes them incredibly convenient and they're very filling too! I like adding some chopped avocado and cherry tomatoes to mine...yum yum!



                
                                                          
Normally I'm waaaaaaaay behind when it comes to keeping up with the latest movies. But for some reason, a commercial for Rise Of The Guardians caught my eye last year and I miraculously remembered to add it to our Netflix queue. Last weekend we all had a chance to watch it (also very rare nowadays) and all really enjoyed it! At first I was a little worried about it being too violent (cover looks like a lot of fighting and mean scowly faces and it's rated PG), but in my opinion it wasn't bad at all for the kiddos and has a relatable and cute story line  You can watch a preview of it here.

Well, that's it from me ~ hope you all have a wonderful weekend. We'll be partying it up here as we celebrate our youngest turning 2 years old!

So me.

Cathy Thorne

This cartoon is so me right now. A few weeks ago Grant (our youngest) gave up his nap. Kinda. Now it's more like....I-will-play-and-play-and-play-until-I'm-exhausted-then-maybe-I'll-fall-asleep-amidst-a-story-or-a-show-but-don't-plan-on-it. So we don't. We simply set up the scene for when we think a nap could occur, and try to still run a *normal life* otherwise. Recently he's been going down crashing around 2:00/2:30 p.m. In some ways I like this because I don't feel as much of a rush in the morning to get something fun in our day, in other ways it's harder because he stays up a bit later at night....and when my almost 4-yr old knows it's time to get ready for bed, there's nothing he seems to like more than to get all rowdy and crazy with his little bro. Some kids calm down after bath time- ours like to run around naked while screaming. :O Good news is that Bart (aka Super Dad!) has taken over bedtime which has become simplified now that the two boys are back to sharing a room (this time for good).

Advice I received when we announced we were expecting our second was that it's wonderful and fun, it just takes a lot more planning. Like I wrote about once in this post, I like planning..... some what. I still NEED the do-nothing times between all the scheduling. That's when I've learned I have to get creative and find happiness wherever I'm at. I caught on to this after watching parts of the documentary Happy. If you haven't already watched it, I recommend it. Sidenote: while searching online for the link for that, I came across this blog who summarized happiness as this:

Happiness means being at peace with where you are right now no matter where that is or how you got there.  - Kahuna-pule Kimo

Powerful, right? 

I've also come to the realization that it's time for me cut back on the number of outings I take on solo with two toddlers. I knew I would HAVE to do this at some point towards the end of this pregnancy because both my husband and I believe it's very important for me to stay as balanced, healthy, and well-rested as possible, but at first I was like "Nooooo, I really like being a Super Mom!" Then I looked at our calendar....I mean took a good look and realized that we don't really have anything incredibly important going on for about the next 5 months. PERFECT. Just how I want our lives to be with the arrival of our new family member coming up in just 2 1/2 months. Yes, there's still a part of my mind that says "But how will we keep having fun if we don't stay busy?" Then I remind myself to just STOP. Nothing is worth more than This Moment (ha ha play on words, and I also am currently enjoying that song) ~ and there is SO MUCH beauty and joy to be found in simple days. Days when my husband spends his entire lunch break with us. Days when we accomplish nothing more than a couple baskets of laundry. Days when we stay in our pj's too long and watch too much Netflix. Knowing these breaks are possible has helped me through my days without hitting exhaustion. I often recite this quote to myself too....

"Don't judge each day by the harvest you reap, but by the seeds that you plant." - Robert Louis Stevenson

I also draw upon the strength and insight from other mothers who truly embody all that I admire about motherhood. Blog posts like this one, this one, and this one, encouraging talks with my mother, along with finally getting around to reading this book on raising children have helped tremendously with how I choose to frame my current motherhood view. And no matter how tired this pregnant mama can get, it is a view that I can't stop taking in ~ hopefully, humbly, and peacefully.

On that note~ here's some beautiful quotes from the talented, wise, and insightful Helen Keller.... 

• "Life is a succession of lessons which must be lived to be understood."

• "The best and most beautiful things in the world cannot be seen or even touched - they must be felt with the heart."

• When Helen Keller was once in an interview her interviewer commented on how hard it must be for her to be blind. Her response was a revelation: "It would be hard if I had no vision. We really see with our hearts."

 *In the course of writing this one post, I got up at least 6 times to do some form of preparing food, providing an activity, wiping, and/or hugging for my children....I still find it (the KIDS and blogging) incredibly worth it. ;) 

3 Little Piggies

Here's a simple little craft idea that I recently did with my 3 1/2 year old. Ever since I can remember, he's loved the story of the Three Little Pigs. We both had fun thinking up which kind of food to use for each of the houses, which also made for a yummy snack! I think the pictures make each of the steps self explanatory (for a list of materials see bottom of the post). 

Hopefully it's a fun craft for you to do too on these rainy days that we so often have in April. Enjoy!

Here's a list of the necessary materials:

• A few sheets of thick card stock or good quality art paper
• Markers
• Craft glue (I like Weldbond brand because I find it to hold stronger than Elmer's but is still non-toxic)
• Shredded wheat cereal (house of straw)
• Pretzel sticks (house of sticks)
• Nibs licorce (house of bricks)