Finish This: Week Forty-eight

This is a fabulous Wednesday for a link-up with Nicole at Three 31, Jen at The Arizona Russums, Lisa at Coastlined, and Becky at The Java Mama.

 

My biggest fan is my family. No matter what scheme adventure I'm on, they support, encourage, tease, and uplift me. Even if they don't understand everything I love {doula-ing, Doctor Who, cough cough}, they are happy I'm happy. 

My greatest blessing is the fact that God loves me. How great the Father's love for me!

Sometimes, all you need to feel better about life is a glass of wine and some Pushing Daisies. What can be wrong that a little Lee Pace can't fix?

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That's all I have to say about that!

 

Currently...

...listening to Imogen Heap's album Ellipse and loving basically every track.

...reading This Star Won't Go Out by Esther Grace Earl and her parents. Esther battled cancer for several years, was active in the Nerdfighter community, and wrote pages and pages in her journals. After she passed away in 2010, her parents published her journals, along with other stories and notes from friends and family. While The Fault In Our Stars is not written about Esther, John Green dedicated it to her and was inspired - in more ways than just his book - by Esther. 

TSWGO organization

...watching "Doctor Who" Season 8, Episode 3 tonight with Samara! I'm excited to see the interaction between Clara and Robin Hood :) And before tonight's episode, I will probably watch at least one episode of "Wonderfalls," a quirky one-season show with Lee Pace. Yes, I'm obsessed, but how can I not be?

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...working on a DIY project for a table lamp. I'm excited to share the finished product soon :)

...drinking lots of water. Feeling slightly dehydrated and I want to nip that in the bud. 

...wondering if I should have taken my sister up on her invitation to go to Wild Waves for one of the last nice days of the summer. She called this morning and I opted out - does that make me old?? Probably, but at least I own it, right?

...anticipating some packages in the mail. I ordered some clothing from Amazon and some sheets from Macys yesterday {thanks be unto whoever invented online shopping}, and both orders should be in here in a week-ish. {I think the fact that I'm excited for new sheets is confirmation that I'm old.}

...looking forward to a friend's birthday celebration tomorrow. Brunch, relaxation, and picnics in the park are all on the docket, and I'm thinking about making some sangria :)

...thinking that I should exercise and shower in order to fully appreciate this wonderful weekend.

Linking up with Bailey Jean today for Day Six of her Blog-tember challenge. Thanks for the prompt, Bailey!

Finish This: {Belated} Week Thirty-two

Skidding in late to join the link-up party hosted by Nicole at Three 31, Jen at The Arizona Russums, Becky at The Java Mama, and Lisa at Coastlined.

13 Things to Know About Me {in 13 sentences}:

1. The biggest love of my life is Jesus, followed closely by Lee Pace, ice cream, and blogs.

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2. I have three sisters, and you'll often hear me refer to something funny/amazing/brilliant that "my sister" said, and you'll probably have to stop me and ask which funny/amazing/brilliant sister I'm talking about.

3. Usually, I'm in the middle of at least 3 books.

4. Even though I have an iPhone, I still keep my schedule on a paper calendar/day planner.

5. One of my favorite memories with my bestie is watching "Leap Year" together over the internet on Leap Day, 2012.

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6. My friend Whitney pierced my ear cartilage in an epic tale involving hotel bathrooms and "Parent Trap" flashbacks. 

7. I'm convinced that there isn't a problem in life that can't be soothed/healed/improved with some sea salt chocolate and Menage a Trois.

8. Today I will attend a training so I can be a volunteer "baby cuddler" at the NICU!

9. Only four more weeks of Bradley classes - once these are over, I'm hoping to start BAI's online program within a month. 

10. I really love Birdy, and currently this song is on repeat:

11. When I really want to suffer feel the burn, I do this ab series, follow it with this leg and glute combo, and end my pain burn session with this arm routine. 

12. Laundry is soothing to me, no joke. 

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13. I have approximately three more posts drafted in my head, so it's a good thing we have reached #13 because my brain is D-U-N done. 

That's a wrap for Week Thirty-two - come back next time {meaning in two days} for another round of Finish This!

Life Update

Golly, "life update" sounds so serious and intense, and while that applies to some things, we're not gonna be alllll seriousness. It's a mixed bag up in he-ah, folks.

Since it's Tuesday, let's start with a Doula Adventures update. Bradley class was last night, and it was pretty fantastic. A couple from the last class came in with their 3-month-old and told us their birth story, which is basically my favorite thing since crunchy peanut butter. Then the class focused on stages of labor, which was great because I just read that part of Natural Hospital Birth by Cynthia Gabriel. I love it when different sources talk about the same topic.

Speaking of books, I started listening to Rose Under Fire by Elizabeth Wein. She also wrote Code Name Verity which quickly became one of my favorites. I'm waiting for this one to grab me like the first one did, but we're only on the second disc. I'm sure it's going to get intense here very soon.

Still speaking about books, Jen Hatmaker just released a new one. Interrupted is the prequel of sorts to 7: An Experimental Mutiny Against Excess, which I loved, as you might remember from Christmas. Well, Jen gave away 350 copies of her book to bloggers who would agree to review it before August 15th. Guess who got a copy?! This blogger! Guess who will be reading a review very soon?! You will!! Brace for impact, because Jen never fails to pack a wallop in her 200 pages.

Exiting the library now and continuing with the update...

My friend Laurie is coming next week! Actually, a lot of people are coming in town for a conference with my dad, but Laurie is the only one who is going to stay with me. I'm so excited to see her, but my house needs some serious cleaning before I let her in the door. Some weeks are easier than others to stay on top of the housework, and the past few weeks have been of the not-easy kind. Sometimes you just have to go to bed before 8pm #trueconfession

Victoria and I had a phone date last week, talking of all things doula certification and blogging. {Side note: isn't it awesome when you're real-life friends with someone in the blogging world? I'm a fan.} We talked about why and how doulas should be certified, her experience with a friend filling the doula-role, and then we talked about blogging. So much fun!

I started watching "Pushing Daisies" and am already anticipating withdrawals. The first season is great and I watched it in a couple weeks, and now I'm 3 episodes into the second season and am dragging it out as long as I can because this is the end. Isn't that always how it goes? You blow through the first season in excitement and over-eagerness, and then by the last season you don't want it to end. Well, it especially sucks when the entire show is only 2 seasons long.

When you start the first season and realize how wonderful the show is:

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When you start the second season and realize that the end is near:

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Bee tee dubs, can we pause for one moment and just appreciate the gorgeousness of Lee Pace? Hot dang. That was a good moment. Thank you for participating. 

Well, I don't know if anything can follow up Mr. Pace...nope, nothing comes to mind. Have a wonderful Tuesday, friends!

Finish This: Week Twenty-eight

Linking up with these marvelous ladies: Nicole at Three 31, Jen at The Arizona Russums, Becky at The Java Mama, and Lisa at Coastlined.

The only thing standing between me and doula certification is $400. Right now I think I can afford it, but I want to wait a little bit longer just to make sure all the medical bills are covered for good and for sure. Thank the Lord for babysitting jobs on the weekends!

I don't have to be perfect to be used by God as a Client Advocate. When clients come into Care Net and I fumble my words or forget to pray with them, God can still use me. When I don't know what to say to a client facing a crisis situation, God can still use me.

I would improve Goodreads by adding a feature for re-reading books. I would love to be able to easily keep track of how many times I've read a certain book, because some {like my summer recommendations} books need to be read more than once! Oh, Goodreads, why don't you understand?

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Thanks for reading! If you want to participate, I'm sure you know the drill by now :) 

"The Fall"

"We all need a movie that wrecks us emotionally," says my friend via text message yesterday morning. She said this because Sunday night we sat down and watched "The Fall" together.

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I cried myself to sleep Sunday night.

Monday, I watched "The Fall" again. Six tissues were sacrificed on Tarsem's alter.

Words are pretty inadequate when it comes to describing this perfect film. I wish I could articulate all the emotions and thoughts that this film evokes, but I am still processing. "The Fall" is both sad and hopeful, painful and beautiful.

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The plot is fairly simple; the visuals are simply stunning. Roy {Lee Pace} is an injured stuntman in a hospital who makes friends with Alexandria {Catinca Untaru}, a little girl with a broken arm. They become friends, and he begins telling her an epic; he narrates, and she imagines, and the result is beautiful.

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That little outline reveals only a portion of "The Fall"'s depth. It is much more than a story-within-a-story.

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There are many amazing details about the making of this film that I could share with you, but that feels like a cheap sell. "The Fall" deserves more than fun facts and trivia; it deserves to be viewed for its own sake.

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"The Fall" is breathtakingly perfect. Telling you "just go watch it" is impossible...you can't just watch this movie. Plan for an evening to experience Tarsem's masterpiece with its magnificence and extravagance. You will love every second. 

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