updates!:)

My goodness, I haven't been on here in awhile! It would be impossible to fill in all the details of the last few months so I think I'll just run through some quick updates.:)

Maxfield update:
This guy makes the world a better place.:) It's hard to believe how quickly the last 10 and a half months of gone. My little man is closing in on a year old. He loves life and seems to have quite a sense of humor. He laughs and still smiles all the time and generally charms most people he crosses paths with. It's next to impossible for me to make it through the grocery store or anywhere else without having to stop for ladies to chat with him-- as usual, he gives them a winning smile.:)

Max continues to be a chatterbox! (As Luke and I are his parents, we cannot for the life of us figure out where that came from.:) He seriously talks like 92.3% of the time that he is awake. I keep trying to convince him to say "ma-ma", which usually results in him laughing at me and giving me an ornery smile. What a little pistol. When he figured out how to stand up, his joy was (for the moment) complete. He now spends a lot of time standing up and cruising around furniture and has just recently learned to climb stairs. I believe walking is in the all to near future. I don't think there is a still bone in this kids body. Cuddling is not one of his fortes.:)

Max overall likes eating, but is definitely a bit picky and likes things a certain temperature.:) His favorite foods seem to be avocado, banana and sweet potatoes. Applesauce is somehow one of his extreme dislikes. Even if I try to mix it in with his beloved cereal, he immediately sniffs it out and will have nothing to do with it. He's becoming more independent all the time and has recently decided to feed his bottles to himself. We are kind of on a half breastfeeding, half formula plan these days, so he has ample opportunity to practice his bottle feeding skills.:) He also LOVES drinking water and finally learned how to use a sippy cup-- a new favorite object.

He loves playing, but prefers for it to involve anything that is not generally considered a toy. Remotes and cell phones seem to be particularly attractive "playthings".:) He absolutely loves doing patty-cake and cannot resist the urge to clap his hands together once you start the rhyme. He's also learned to high-five (courtesy of aunt Marge:) and wave goodbye. Both of which are adorable.:) Books have become a favorite and one of the few things to cause him to sit still and relax for a minute. This of course makes my heart very happy.:) He doesn't always have the patience to be read to, but loves turning the pages and looking through them.

For the most part he is an excellent sleeper. There are, of course, teething incidents etc that cause disrupted sleep, but most nights he goes to bed without too much fuss and sleeps straight through the night for about 10-12 hours. He has us so spoiled, that when the bad nights come along we are completely out of practice and put off guard by the whole thing.:)

Here are a couple recent pictures of the man himself:



Life update:
Life feels insanely busy. I imagine that will just always be the case and I should probably get used to it.:) We are house-hunting in earnest these days. This is an exciting, overwhelming and frustrating experience all in one.:) We are excited about being homeowners and settling in somewhere, but definitely looking forward to this process being over and having the paperwork complete.

I'm still working 3 days a week at the bookstore. It is our goal in the near-ish future for me to be done working there, so we are working on making that happen. It has been a great job, but we feel like it's time for me to be home more and to not have to work weekends and be able to focus more on my kiddo and my art. To that end I have started teaching a few art classes here and there. Teaching art is not necessarily my passion or my particular gift, but I know that I am capable and it's a good way to pass on the knowledge I have acquired. (not to mention it's one of the few ways to consistently make money as a fine artist:).

Things at my studio are good. A couple of years ago I started doing small paintings/illustrations on book covers that I salvaged from the trash at work. Little did I know these would pretty much pay my studio rent every month. I'm able to sell them fairly cheap because they are very inexpensive and relatively quick to make and they seem to be pretty popular. I currently have a couple of book cover pieces that I manipulated with a scroll saw and painted on in the "Put a Bird on it" gallery show at the Harrison. I still do more traditional work as well, but I've enjoyed discovering different ways to use book covers. It's a natural progression of my love of both literature and painting. Most of the covers are from reader's digest condensed books, which I don't feel too bad about destroying.:)

Luke and I will be celebrating our 5th anniversary this weekend. I can't believe it! What a crazy 5 years it has been. We've learned and grown a great deal and shared lots of tears, laughs and love. I'm so thankful for the perfect man for me and for a great father for our son. This weekend we are getting away to Chicago for an overnight while Max stays with my parents. I'm looking forward to it!

Here's a couple of more recent book cover paintings (you'll have to excuse the lack of editing of these photos):

It's hard to tell from the photo, but this bird cage one is actually about 3 feet from the top of the chain to the bird.

Movie update:

With the recent Academy Awards, we have been on a new movie binge around here.:) So here's 5 second reviews/opinions of the newest movies I've seen (these don't really include plot line):

"the Girl with the Dragon Tattoo"-- I enjoyed the Swedish version and was wary of an American remake until I heard David Fincher was at the helm. Very well done! Rooney Mara played Lisbeth Salander excellently and overall the story line followed the book pretty closely, although in a somewhat simplified way. The ending was slightly different, but not in a way that bothered me or really changed things. Having read the books and seen the movies I can't really recommend seeing the films unless you have read the book first. They deal with some pretty hardcore stuff that I think is best to be prepared for before seeing it.

"Drive"-- I really liked this movie- and not just because it included Ryan Gosling.:) It had a sort of 80s grunge/b movie feel to it in an awesome sort of way. I can't exactly put a finger on why I liked it so much, but I really dug it. There was something badass about it that got me pumped.:)

"the Artist"-- probably my top recommendation out of all of these. This film is brilliant! As a new silent film in black a white, I could not have been more excited about it and I was far from disappointed. It was a bold and wonderful way to make a movie. The story is simple, but great and includes both drama and comedy. It really adopted the feel of an old silent film.

"Moneyball"-- This movie was very well done and very well acted. As a true story, it's quite fascinating- especially for being about baseball.:) I found myself wanting to read the book as I'm sure it would include even more of some of those interesting statistical details.

"Tree of Life"-- this is a very cinematic movie. Some people found it pretentious and it seemed that most reviewers truly loved it or truly hated it. I'm in the mostly loved it camp. It's not so much a movie as a work of art, though, which puts it at a different level and I understand why a lot of people didn't care for it. If you like cinematography, interesting framing of scenes and ethereal cosmological effects, you'll probably enjoy it. It is long though, and I don't think it was a perfect movie. It is beautiful, though.

"50/50"-- Great movie! It's about a very serious subject (cancer), but balances the drama with the comedy extremely well. The background of the movie is quite interesting as it is based on the true life experience Seth Rogan had of supporting his friend in his battle with cancer. Basically Seth Rogan plays Seth Rogan. And he does it well.:) Joseph Gordon-Levitt is also great in this movie.

"Hugo"-- What a beautiful movie!! Although this was somewhat geared towards kids and is based off of a young adult novel, I think most adults would find it appealing. It is very artistic and the movie is beautiful to watch (I loved the coloration of the whole film!). The references and snippets of old silent movies also made my heart very happy.:) I highly recommend this one!

I would like to try and blog more frequently, but really don't have much extra time these days, so no promises.:)

getting alphabetized

Our move may have been 6 months ago, but somehow we're still getting organized.:) We've made quite a bit of progress and after the purchase of some Dvd/Cd shelves from Ikea, our living room is really starting to shape up. We have even gone so far as to alphabetize our dvds and cds as well as our record collection. Considering the ridiculous amount of media we seem to have, this was no small task.:) But it looks really good and we should be able to find things pretty easily now. Incidentally, if you need a good foreign film look no further.:) Hopefully I'll get pics posted eventually...

Avatar--- an opinion

Luke and I finally put ourselves through the arduous task of watching "Avatar". We'd had a copy of it in hand for awhile and finally forced ourselves to watch it (over a period of three days:). I figured if I wanted to be able to judge it, I'd better watch it.:) We were both very underwhelmed by the film. I can see where in the theater and IMAX 3D it would have been visually entertaining, but the story line was quite melodramatic and cheesy. It tried to be far too political and was extremely predictable. And calling the "element" that the military was after "unobtainium" has to be the weakest link. Are you kidding me? Unobtainium? Sounds like they should probably just give up on that one.:) At any rate, I've now seen "Avatar" and have the right to legitimately voice my opinion and distaste for it.

grey gardens

I recently watched the HBO film "Grey Gardens" and I've been thinking about it ever since. In 1975 there was a documentary made by the same name directed by Albert and David Maysles that became something of a cult phenomenon. The documentary and more recent film are about Edith Bouvier Beale Sr. and Edith Bouvier Beale Jr. the aunt and first cousin of Jacqueline Bouvier Kennedy Onassis and their life in their East Hampton home Grey Gardens. At the time of the documentary their home was in a state of great decline and Big and Little Edie were living in squalor almost without even being aware of how bad it was.

The documentary basically went in and observed them as they were living at the time it was filmed. They had been living in an unsanitary and shocking environment. I have yet to see it, but it is next on my list. The HBO movie spans four decades and shows the decline of "the Edies" and why/how these women of wealth and class (not to mention relatives of Jackie O) became two eccentrics living in a decaying summer home in the East Hamptons.

I highly recommend this movie. It is definitely somewhat depressing, but is very worth seeing. Jessica Lange's and Drew Barrymore's performances are extremely impressive. It is interesting to see how the decisions the Edies made and the strange bond they formed created this world that they lived in.

If you haven't seen the original documentary you should watch the the special feature on the new film called "Grey Gardens then and now". It shows parts of the documentary and compares it to parts of the film. It's amazing what a great job they did of re-creating the sets (not to mention the women). Initially it might seem like Drew Barrymore was over acting, but once you see the real "little Edie" you'll be shocked at how great of a job she did in taking on the eccentric behaviors and speaking style of the young Edith.

At times it's almost hard to believe that this could be true- that these two women could live like this and that they could fall so far/hard from grace. But that's what makes it such a fascinating movie and story. You should watch this film!

apparently football could be even more awesome:)

In keeping with his other films...

Wes Anderson's "Fantastic Mr. Fox" is pretty fantastic!:) You should go see it.

cars, vacation, movies, life...

I've been on vacation this week, which has been a very welcome break.:) I've been able to rest up as well as get some things done around here. We had originally planned to camp this week, but since Luke got that security job he's had to work, so we aren't going anywhere until tomorrow morning when we will head to Chicago until Sunday. I'm very excited to get away for a bit; we always have a great time there and we've found that using priceline etc can make it much more affordable. We are planning to visit the Chicago Museum of Contemporary Art and take in a White Sox game among other things. We'll be spending an afternoon in Wicker Park area too, which is always a highlight for me.

A couple of weeks ago, after much consideration, we decided to take advantage of the cash for clunkers program as our '89 f150 has been pretty unreliable (not to mention unsafe & terrible on gas). Ordinarily we never would have considered getting a brand new car, but being able to get $4500 out a truck we would have been lucky to make $700 off of was a huge blessing. We've been planning to get a car for sometime and had been saving toward that end, so we kind of felt that this was just another way God was providing for us. Our truck didn't have air bags or a horn and the drivers seat belt definitely wasn't up to par, and neither of us wanted the other party to drive it, so we thought it was time.:) We found a car (nissan versa) that we felt we could afford and bought the very base model (not much to it:). We are pleased with our purchase and it has made car logistics much easier. It's nice to have two reliable vehicles. As many issues as there are with the cash for clunkers program, we felt that it was great solution for the position we were in.

Movies are obviously a frequent topic on my blog (in fact I'm considering starting another blog for my own persoal movie reviews) and I hope that doesn't bore people too much.:) Luke and I both just happen to love movies and it's one of favorite evening activities (complete with our own discussion & assessment:). We recently decided to join Netflix and we are pretty excited about it. When we moved to the southside, we quit getting cable; it was too expensive and we watched movies alot more anyway. We figure netflix is a lot cheaper (ours is $9 a mo.) than cable and for us will be more enjoyable. You can get great classics, documentaries and foreign films that would be hard to find otherwise, not to mention the fact that they arrive in your mailbox.:) We already added over 100 movies to our queue; it can be a bit addictive. I'm not sure how we'll ever get them all watched.:) We just watched "Watchmen" (very good, by the way) and are eagerly awaiting our next selection.

In other movie news, I will be seeing "Julie and Julia" tonight, which should be good. Also, I am ridiculously excited about Tarantino's new movie, "Inglorious Basterds" which opens this weekend. Luke and I seriously can't wait to see it and so we may be finding a theater in Chicago to view it at.:)

Fantasy Football season is quickly approaching, which means fall is almost here. It's hard to believe that summer is all but over. It's felt like a strange one; definitely out of the ordinary. Life has been good, though. Not without it's challenges or moments of being overwhelmed, but God is good and it is such a comfort knowing that He is there taking care of us.

the week in review...

I need to get back in the swing of this blogging thing.:) I just haven't felt like I have much to say... and I've been pretty worn out lately. I have completed 4 days of the "thirty day shred" work out dvd (by Jillian Michaels), which is one of the reasons for my tiredness. Some of you have probably heard about this and/or are doing this dvd. I was hearing alot about it, so I decided to give it a try and I am impressed with it so far. It is definitely challenging and I like the fact that it only takes 20 minutes (albeit a hellish 20 minutes:) a day. That's exactly what I need. Something that requires minimal time but delivers maximum results. I am already seeing my endurance increase and can tell that this is going to be really good for me. Now I just need to make sure I stick with it.:) I am in two upcoming weddings, so that helps motivate me, but I also have been realizing my need to get some exercise in my life and this seems like a workable solution for me.
Enough about exercise...:) Last weekend was great. Friday night we went to the IMA to see "Fight Club" during their summer nights movie thing. We invited several people and alot of them were able to come, which was fun. We got to hang out and enjoy some food and games and then a great movie. I also got to spend some time with my sisters and sister in law last weekend. We wanted to do this before Marge's wedding, and I am so glad that we made a priority out of it. We had a great time relaxing, enjoying good food, games and fellowship. Of course one of our favorite things to do when we get together is talk, and we got plenty of that in.:)
Work has been a bit overwhelming this week, so I have really been looking forward to today (my day off). I got to sleep in a bit and then Luke and I went to the store and picked out some food for grilling out. We've enjoyed being able to grill since we are no longer in an apartment complex. Nothing says summer like grilling out.:) So sometimes we like to go to the store and just pick out a big meal. This is usually quite a bit cheaper than eating out and is alot more fun.:) This evening I went to a bridal shower for Marge, which was alot of fun. I'm very excited for her upcoming wedding and am thrilled to have Philip as part of the family. They make a great couple.:)
Tomorrow I head back to work to mountains of books/records to deal with... good times.:)

i suppose it's time for a post:)

I don't really have a whole lot to say, but I figured it was time for a new post.:) Life has been alright... not a whole lot has changed, which sometimes gets discouraging. We have a lot to be thankful for though, so we are trying to focus on that.:) We really appreciate everyone's prayers for Luke's job situation and all that it entails.

We celebrated Luke's birthday last week-- he now joins my age group and can no longer call me "old" as he likes to do for that month and a half that we are different ages.:) His birthday fell on my day off, which was nice. We were able to sleep in and go see "Slumdog Millionaire" (highly recommended) and then I prepared the meal of his choice (italian beef, asparagus, mashed potatoes, balsamic strawberries and lemon glaze cake:).

Luke and I will soon be celebrating our 2nd anniversary (time flies:). I have the weekend off and we haven't really been anywhere in awhile, so we decided to do an inexpensive South Bend/Chicago trip. We wil be driving up to SB Thursday night and staying at Steph and Jeremy's and then taking the train to Chicago Friday morning and staying over to Saturday evening before returning to SB. Using priceline we were able to get an awesome deal on a hotel and we are hoping to maybe go to a museum and just do some sight seeing. Steph and Jeremy are going to join us Saturday for the day, which will be fun. We are looking forward to it!

Another fun thing we did since my last post was to go see "the General" at the IMA. This is a Buster Keaton classic, but neither of us had ever seen it. It's a silent film and the IMA presented it with a live chamber orchestra playing the score. We both had a great time. The movie is hilarious and having the live music made it pretty awesome. I loved the emphasis on visual humor that the movie employed. If you haven't seen this movie, you should. You will enjoy it. I guarantee this.

I guess I had more to say than I thought...:)

a night out...

This year for Valentine's day, Luke and I decided to take in a play at the IRT and try a new restaurant downtown. I worked from 9-5 and then came home to a beautiful bouquet of red roses that Luke had waiting on the table for me.:) After quickly getting dressed up for the evening out we headed to the theater for a 6pm showing of "To Kill a Mockingbird." I always enjoy attending plays and this was no exception. "To Kill a Mockingbird" has long been one of my favorite books, and this adaptation was very well done. I'm always impressed with the IRT's productions.
After the play we headed to a new-ish restaurant downtown, that we had never eaten at, called Zing. It's a small plate dining place (similar to tapas, but not just spanish food), and the idea is basically to order several different items and share them. You can order as much as you want at any time throughout the meal and they just bring stuff out to you as it is ready. We tried several different items (of which the fish tacos were my favorite:) and really enjoyed our meal. We also ordered dessert: chocolate covered strawberries and balsamic marinaded strawberries both of which were served with whipped cream. They were delicious! It's a pretty cool little restaurant and we would definitely recommend it. It would also make a great place to go with a group of friends.
Luke also got me a couple of movies (japanese samurai films) by Akira Kurosawa, a director we've been enjoying recently. We haven't watched them yet, but i'm very excited about them.:)
Margaret called about halfway through the evening with news of Philip and her's engagement! We are very excited for them.

i think every night should be movie night.:)

I LOVE film. And I don't think I'm over emphasizing this.:) I come by it honestly; Dad has always been a big movie buff (while Mom didn't really see the point so much:). Luke loves movies too, which makes us a good match (well, that's at least part of it:). Our movie tastes have rubbed off on each other over time. Luke showed me how epic Bruce Lee and other old Kung-fu movies can be and I've helped him to appreciate art films and other foreign films. Together we've discovered several great directors, many genres we enjoy and tons of movies that we will excitedly watch over and over. We seriously watch several movies a week.

This week we saw two good movies. Since Thursday is my day off, we decided to catch a matinee at the Keystone Art Cinema (one of our favorite movie theaters). We love this theater because it shows alot of foreign and art films, as well as movies that are difficult to find at other local theaters. And, I'm not going to lie, we like the fact that they have a lounge where you can buy drinks to take into the theater (although we can rarely afford this luxury:). Plus if you can make it to a showing before 6pm ticket prices are just $6.50 (a far cry from $9.50). Anyway, we decided to go see "the Wrestler". We've been excited about this movie because it's by Darren Arnofsky, a director we really enjoy (Pi, Requiem for a Drean, the Fountain). The movie was quite good, although definitely depressing, in keeping with Arnofsky's usual. His movies can be hard to watch because they are brutally honest, focus on tough life situations and are extremely depressing, but his style and honesty are also a great thing. The people feel very real.

The other movie we saw this week was "Seven Samurai". This is a classic and epic movie, but somehow neither of us had ever seen it. The IMA does a winter movie nights program on the weekends and this was the movie for tonight, so we decided today to go. While the movie is 200 minutes long, it doesn't feel too slow and it is very enjoyable to watch (although you need to be awake as this is one you read). I would highly recommend this movie (if you ever have a spare 3 and a half hours:). We hope to attend more of these IMA movie nights. It's kind of fun to see old classics on a big screen.

I'm sure this won't be the last time you hear from me about movies, as they are a big part of my life and one of my favorite forms of entertainment. I think it's important not just to see them as an entertainment thing though, but to view them as an essential art form. Movies should be viewed intellectually, with intelligence and an open mind.

everyone should be relieved to know that...

as of yesterday, our Christmas stuff has finally been taken down and put away.:) I was very pleased yesterday to receive a phone call in the early morning hours that Half Price Books would not be opening until 1 p.m. I was even more pleased to receive a later phone call telling me that we would not be opening at all! I had heard of these inclement weather induced closing days, but had never been the beneficiary of one.:)
Luke and I slept in a bit and then got up and lazed around for awhile before deciding to get some stuff down around our apartment. We had some growing stacks of DVDs and Cds that needed gone through and put away, so we put on Kill Bill Vol. 1 (and later Vol. 2) and got down to business. I like having a movie on that I am very familiar with while I work. That way I'm not too distracted, but if I need a momentary diversion I can just concentrate on it for a bit and quote along with it.:) Marge dropped over after work and watched some of the movie and then napped on our couch for a couple hours while we took down Christmas decorations and vacuumed the living room (and yes, she slept right through the vacuuming process:).
In the evening, Elliot and Ashley came over for dinner and for me to cut Elliot's hair.:) I made Alaina's cream of broccoli soup from her recipe blog. It's good stuff.:) Plus I had broccoli, green onions and celery that all needed used and this is one of the few ways that Luke actually enjoys eating broccoli.:) After supper, I cut Elliot's hair while Luke and Ashley played bananagram. It was an enjoyable evening and a great day to get a few things knocked out. I had today off as well, which made it extra great since I rarely to never get 2 days off in a row.
Today was a good day too. Maybe I'll tell you more about it tomorrow...