Mommy Brain

Is it really Friday already? This week sped by – in spite of the fact that I thought it would last forever, since Natalie was gone for most of it. She is home, exhausted and crabby, but home. And I’m a really mean mom, since I wouldn’t let her spend her first full day home at her friend’s house. Sigh.

Tomorrow is our monster-Tae Kwon Do day. Seminars from 8:30 till 11:30, then a tournament from 1:00 pm until whenever it gets over. Which means I will have lots of time to sit and read between the kids’ events.

Only nine days until we leave on our very first all-family vacation. We’re heading to the Oregon Coast, with a stop in Portland to go to the zoo and visit Kevin’s mom. I’m making lists for packing and hoping I’m not forgetting something hugely important.

I’ve got quite a few links for you today, so here goes.

~ 400-year-old Shakespeare volume recovered 10 years after theft.

~ Historical movies in chronological order. Cool resource – but make sure you check the historical accuracy on a film if you’re using it for homeschooling. Hat tip: Magic and Mayhem.

~ 100 Best Last Lines from Novels. Hat tip: Semicolon.

~ The Darrin Effect: 20 jarring cases of TV recasting. Hat tip: Hey Lady! Whatcha Readin’?

~ Also from Hey Lady! – Britain’s Got Talent: Great dance duo.

~ Feist’s “1-2-3-4″ song fits in perfectly on Sesame Street.

~ Trailer for the upcoming High School Musical 3: Senior Year.

~ Trailer for next May’s Terminator Salvation starring (the yummy) Christian Bale.

~ One of our favorite Avi books, The True Confessions of Charlotte Doyle, is being made into a film.

~ The Literary Feline is having a huge book giveaway to celebrate her blogaversary.

~ Peter David, the author of Tigerheart, posted the unique story of how he proposed to his fiance.

~ New teaser trailer for the upcoming movie version of Twilight.

Whew – that’s it for this week! Have a great weekend, everyone.

(Phineas and Ferb: The Fast and the Phineas was provided to me by Click Communications for the purpose of review.)

From the smash-hit Disney Channel Original Series Phineas and Ferb comes 5 hilarious episodes filled with awesome adventures! Plus, get the inside scoop on how Phineas and Ferb was first created and chill out at the amazing Homemade Tree Shade Arcade for some supercool games that will keep you coming back for more fun and laughs!

Nothing’s impossible for Phineas and Ferb! When school’s out for the summer, the stepbrothers plan all kinds of exciting and fantastic adventures for each day of vacation. Soup up Mom’s car and enter the Swampoil 500 Race? No problem! Form a rocking band and become a one-hit wonder? Sure! Rebuild a time machine and bring back a T-Rex? Excellent! Meanwhile, their big sister Candace is going nuts trying to bust them to Mom and Dad, and their pet platypus is leading a double life as “Agnet P,” who is secretly saving the world from Dr. Doofenshmirtz’s evil plots.

If they can imagine it, they can do it – and Phineas and Ferb are gonna do it all!

Phineas and Ferb is an animated series from the Disney Channel, and my boys are hooked. Since we don’t have Disney Channel anymore, this series is completely new to them, and they’ve watched each episode at least twice since the DVD came yesterday. The coolest thing is that Phineas and Ferb use their brains to fuel their adventures, inspiring some homemade adventures from my own kids. Nothing too messy so far.

Noah’s review: I think it’s very funny and every kid will like this. It’s got two adventures in each episode, where his pet platypus is a secret agent and also where Phineas and Ferb build something or do something cool. 5 stars.

Jonathan’s review: At the end there’s a T-Rex chasing after Candace and it’s pretty funny. There’s also a part where they tie a camera to a hungry monkey and Candace started running to try to stop it, but then Candace got beat up. 5 stars.

Josiah’s review: My favorite part is when they tie a camera to Ferb’s head and then Phineas says “Remember, Ferb hasn’t eaten lunch yet” and then Ferb started acting like a monkey. 5 stars.

Phineas and Ferb: The Fast and the Phineas will be released on DVD on July 29th.

(The Year My Parents Went on Vacation was provided to me by Special Ops Media for the purpose of review.)

When 12-year-old Mauro is left to fend for himself when his parents go “on vacation” during the military regime in 1970s Brazil, a classic coming-of-age story unfolds. Director Cao Hamburger’s beautiful and touching story embraces the excitement of the era as the culturally diverse community of Sao Paulo unites to watch Pele lead his country in winning the Wolrd Cup of soccer. Filled with warmth, love, heroism, nostalgia, and humor, The Year… is sure to become a family favorite.

The Year My Parents Went on Vacation is a wonderful film. The young man who plays Mauro is extremely talented, and made the film a delight to watch.

When Mauro’s parents drop him off at his grandfather’s apartment to stay while they flee Brazil’s military regime, they don’t know one important fact. In the minutes since they talked to Motel on the telephone at his barber shop and told him they were leaving Mauro with him, Motel has died. Because Mauro’s father and father-in-law don’t get along, they say their goodbyes on the sidewalk, fully believing that Motel is waiting in his apartment upstairs. He isn’t. He is laying dead and awaiting burial.

Mauro’s parents have told him that they are going on “vacation” and would return in time for the World Cup. In reality, his father is a communist and is fleeing the police.

Motel’s neighbor, Shlomo, finds Mauro sleeping on Motel’s doorstep and takes him in. He doesn’t want to deal with the boy, but his rabbi tells him that if God has chosen him for this purpose, he must take on the challenge.

With the rest of Brazil, Mauro cheers for Pele and the Brazilians in the World Cup, all the while waiting for his parents to return for him.

One thing I’ve noticed about foreign films is that they seem to rely much more on scenes that are heavy on visuals and character behavior, and much less on dialogue and constant action, than American films do. It takes some getting used to, but once I settled in to the slower pace, I really enjoyed this film. The unlikely friendship between Shlomo and the boy Mauro is touching, and the acting is very well done.

The Year My Parents Went on Vacation is in Portugese with English subtitles. It is available on DVD now, with special features that include an inside-the-movie featurette, interviews with the cast, extended scenes, and outtakes.

(The Wizards of Waverly Place: Wizard School was provided to me by Click Communications for the purpose of review.)

Meet Alex, Justin and Max Russo. They’re just your average, ordinary kids living in New York City, except they’ve got a powerful secret: They’re wizards in training! Turn up the magic with four extraordinary episodes from Wizards of Waverly Place, the smash-hit Disney Channel Original Series. Plus, join cast memebers for a high-flying virtual magic carpet ride to their favorite haunts – including backstage where secrets to the show’s spectacularly cool spells will be revealed!

What would you do if you discovered you had awesome, supernatural powers? New “wizards in training” Alex (Selena Gomez) and her brothers Justin (David Henrie) and Max (Jake T. Austin) love to use magical potions, brews and spells to cut corners on things like homework and chores. And when the kids practice their newfound wizardry skills, things really get tricky – and hilarious! You’ll be spellbound when they adopt a pet dragon, try to learn the ropes at wizard school and attempt to charm their parents into letting them use more magic – all with super-cool, supernatural results!

Okay, The Wizards of Waverly Place: Wizard School is Disney’s attempt to capitalize on all the wizard super-popularity surrounding Harry Potter. They even admit it in a tongue-in-cheek way, when in the first episode Alex tells her brother that with his black robes and glasses, he looks like a certain famous wizard, but she can’t remember the name.

Regardless, my kids are enjoying watching this series, which employs the same scenery-munching, over-acting and comic hijinks that make The Suite Life of Zack and Cody, Cory in the House, and Hannah Montana so popular.

Noah’s review: I thought it was really funny. The DVD doesn’t have that many episodes on it, but it’s still cool. 4 and a half stars.

Jonathan’s review: It was the funniest movie I’ve seen in a long time. There was this one part where they can do magic whenever they want and this boy says that brownies are against the law because he put a spell on his mom and dad and if they eat the brownies the spell will be gone. I liked it. 5 stars.

Josiah’s review: I don’t have a favorite part, I like the whole thing. 5 stars.

The Wizards of Waverly Place: Wizard School will be available on DVD on July 29th.

Natalie is back home.

It’s up.

Drop whatever you’re doing and go watch it now. I mean it, now. Go. What are you waiting for?

You wouldn’t think a house that still contains three boys could be quieter due to the absence of one girl, but it is. I’ve discovered that boy noise is much different than girl noise. Natalie is chatty, like I am, and I didn’t realize how much I was used to her popping into whatever room I’m in to say, “Mom, guess what happened in my book?” or “I found a new Twilight link online.” or “One of my blog friends got her own horse!” or “I only have one chapter left in my book and you read so much faster – could you read it aloud to me?”

The boys can be chatty, too – but more so when I get them one-on-one away from the house. At home their boy noises tend to be more along the lines of “Jon, did you see that – Pow! Got you!” and “Oooo, I took you out!” and “What type is that Pokemon?” Especially during this week, since Kevin promised them lots of extra gaming time since Nan got go go to camp, and they didn’t. (Noah will join her next year, and Jonathan probably the year after that.)

I was very excited that the camp allows us to e-mail our happy campers every day, with the e-mails being printed out and delivered at lunch time. Natalie made my promise to e-mail every day – and this was on top of the little notes I wrote for her to open each morning when she awoke.

Last night, I went to the camp’s web site to send Nan a message for tomorrow, and found that I had to register. Okay, no problem. Then I had to wait for an approval code. Good thing, I guess – they don’t want just anyone sending e-mail to their campers. But, it’s Monday morning, and I still haven’t received my approval code – and Nan’s expecting an e-mail at lunchtime! Aargh!

I wouldn’t be upset except that my dear little Natalie tends to be a worrier. She doesn’t like it when I go on long car trips, and I must always call to let her know I’ve arrived. She worries about little things, big things – it’s something I pray about every day, that God would teach her to rest in His peace. But now I’m worried – because I don’t want her worry and disapointment over not receiving an e-mail to ruin her fun today. So, if you think about it, could you please say a quick prayer for Natalie? And another that they’d send me my gosh-durned approval code already?

Te Deum
Charles Reznikoff

Not because of victories
I sing,
having none,
but for the common sunshine,
the breeze,
the largess of the spring.

Not for victory
but for the day’s work done
as well as I was able;
not for a seat upon the dais
but at the common table.

Well, we had a little excitement in our neck of the woods yesterday. Winds that were 55 to 60 miles per hour hit our town. We were lucky – we still have power, and we don’t have any trees down in our yard. Others weren’t that lucky – including our city park, where a few trees were uprooted by the wind. Here are some pictures, if you’re interested – click on slideshow.

While the winds were dying down, and our husbands had the kids at Tae Kwon Do, Michelle and I went to see The Incredible Hulk. Not the usual chick flick for a girls’ night out – in fact, I think we might have been the only women there who weren’t accompanying children of the male gender. But, we both needed a night out, and we both like Edward Norton, so…

No big plans for the weekend, other than sending my only daughter off to sleep-away camp for the first time. Sniff. Any of you done this before? How do you not worry?

At Books and Movies this week:

~ Thoughts on the film Into the Wild.

~ Review of Booked to Die, the first of the Cliff “Bookman” Janeway mysteries.

Other links:

~ Anyone else excited about TNT’s The Closer returning Monday night? Here’s an interview with Kyra Sedgewick.

~ William-Adolphe Bouguereau is an incredible artist – I love his paintings of children:

~ I may not agree with Christopher Hitchen’s views on religion, but this article he wrote for Vanity Fair about the interrogation practice of water-boarding is chilling. He agreed to undergo the procedure for research – but be warned: the video is disturbing.

~ On a completely unrelated and much lighter note – I scored 15 out of 20 on this Candy Bar Identification Quiz. Not sure if I should be proud of that, however.

~ This video of a new instrument called an Air Piano is pretty cool.

~ Stephen King’s advice to aspiring writers.

~ A scene from the BBC’s Black Books about responding to a rejection letter from a publisher. Hilarious!

Have a great weekend!