Doctor Who, Holly Golightly, TVP, and you

What do Doctor Who and Holly Golightly have in common?

They both have a definite understanding of what's cool, be it bowties or little black dresses. They are both pop culture icons. And they have both financially supported The Visitation Project. (There's different levels of giving, beginning at $10, and each has a special Thank You gift to go with it.)

The Visitation Project is a radio show but I know a lot of our listeners do not listen over the airwaves, but treat TVP as a podcast which I think is awesome.

Listeners like Megan:

Right now TVP only broadcasts in one corner of the big ole USA. Our hope, though is that soon more and more radio stations will begin to pick it up.

Imagine if, while running errands you tuned into your local Catholic radio station and you were greeted by a Texan, a midwesterner, and a hippy. It's like I'm riding shotgun in your minivan!

Imagine if your Catholic radio station carried voices, perspectives, and conversations you identified with.

Imagine if not just women who are in the know about podcasts or have subscriptions to special radio stations were able to stumble upon a radio show that was a mix of pop culture, family life, and a vibrant faith.

But even for those of us who like our podcasts - for walks or chores or dinner prep - here's some good reasons why TVP is a little different, and why what we do, while is costs money, is beneficial to you.

-Recording together, in person means we benefit form a professional radio engineer and equipment. This allows for less technical difficulties and a clearer, more vibrant sound, which means no matter where you're listening you can hear us over your coworkers, sizzling dinner, or playing kids.

- Working in Catholic radio, we are trying to reach a group of women who have been largely unreached. We talk about mother-in-laws, Sacraments, pop music, depression, self-care, and Divine Mercy. We are not a news show. We are three friends who are having fun but also wanting to show the world that Catholics aren't sticks in the mud.

- Being a part of Catholic radio means we are listener supported, however we are essentially free. There are no membership fees, no "Cool Kids Club," and no fancy equipment you need beyond a computer or - hopefully some day - your local Catholic radio station.

Now, I know that money is tight for a lot of our listeners. I also know everyday it seems like someone is asking for money. Maybe you are asked out. Maybe you're budget is really tight. I get that. Believe me, I get that!

So that's why I'm very happy to let you know that for those of you who give just $10 there is a special incentive - a podcast that will only be available to our donors. If you can give at the next level, $25, you receive the podcast + a copy of my chocolate chip cookie recipe. If you give enough I'll even bake you some and ship them to your house. :)

We are so grateful for everyone who has given, beyond the Doctor and Holly. To those of you who have given and to those who will: Thank You!

To give, click here.

Seven Shows to Watch on Netflix

Travis and I are always tired at the end of the day and the one thing we want to do after the kids are in bed is to sit and barely think about anything.

So of course we watch tv.

A couple weeks ago I suggested the movie Chef, which I really enjoyed, but I've actually been compiling a list for a few months of shows and movies I have enjoyed and wanted to suggest to you. These aren't reviews and I obviously don't know exactly what you are sensitive to and how sensitive you are to it, and keep as a frame of reference that a short list of my favorite movies / shows are:

3:10 to Yuma
Sherlock
Jane Austen novel adaptations
Doctor Who
Life
Friday Night Lights
Silver Linings Playbook
The Walking Dead

So westerns, period pieces, zombies, crazy people, BBC stuff, Riggins, and a zen guy who loves fruit.

Not your cup of tea? Then you can probably safely pass these all up.

Sound good?  Then let's get started!

I didn't like the novel Jane Eyre when I read it in high school and I've never cared about any of the film adaptations I've watched before but this one was perfect. The spooky parts were spooky, the writing was fabulous, the locales were perfect, and the acting was superb. Michael Fassbender's portrayal of Mr. Rochester made me finally understand the character. Mia Wasikowska was perfectly perfect. And the moors were great. (I've watched it about three times in as many months.)

I am a sucker for a good Jane Austen period piece movie and this baby delivered. Death Comes to Pemberley was better than the novel, I thought. Matthew Rhys was an excellent Mr. Darcy. Clara, I mean Jenna Coleman was perfect as Lydia. And I love Anna Maxwell Martin and she did a wonderful job as Mrs. Elizabeth Darcy. (She's also really great in The Bletchley Circle, which is also on Netflix, fyi.) The story is a great who-dunnit but is even better because I love the Darcys and good manners.

Turn. Oh dang. We just plowed through the first season of this AMC show and we loved it. It takes place during the American Revolutionary War and it's really cleverly written and very interesting. The character Anna Strong drives me crazy, but I love Caleb Brewster so it kind of balances out. The main character in the show is Abraham Woodhull and he's not perfect though he is very well acted by Jamie Bell (who plays St. John Rivers in Jane Eyre). I also really like how they use a lot of music in the show - songs that are appropriate to the period are often sung or performed, but the theme song sounds a lot like The Walking Dead, as a complete aside.

Broadchurch is probably not for everyone. It takes place in a small coastal town in Britain and centers around the death of a boy and the investigation that follows. I didn't predict any of the twists and I found it to be well written and well acted. It was a bit suspenseful, but not too much so (too much suspense gives me nightmares), and another great who-dunnit. Also, David Tennant is the lead so a big yay for Doctor Who fans everywhere. If you have watched The Bletchley Circle and you enjoyed it I do think you'll enjoy this one.

If you liked Broadchurch then you'll like Hinterland. This show a lot like Wallander or even Sherlock at its more intense moments, except this show is a bit creepy and makes Wales seems really, really creepy. I loved it. It's intense, smart, edgy, and its characters have a lot of back-story and dimension. Great writing and wonderful acting.

(Okay, totally cheating and throwing this in here. If you like mysteries / detective shows that aren't as flashy as Law & Order and you like westerns, but not so much these Brit shows I'm telling you about then you should watch Longmire. Travis and I both enjoyed it. A lot.)

And now for something totally different: Unbreakable Kimmy Schmidt. For very different reasons than Hinterland  this show is not going to be for everybody but I thought it was hilarious. The theme song has been stuck in my head for over a week now. The show is almost silly, the characters are kooky, and the cultural jokes are often spot-on and really funny. The show pokes fun at everyone, which I appreciated, so no one can feel like they're being ganged up on, and overall I think the show just exists to make us laugh. If you liked 30 Rock you will enjoy this.

I love Good Eats because it combines useful information, delicious food and drink, and campy humor. This is a show I think the whole family can watch and everyone will enjoy - science, humor, recipes, history - it's all there!



Okay, another cheat:

Begin Again was on Netflix for awhile but is no longer so you'll have to go to your local video store to find this one, which is what we did because I was binging my way through Doctor Who for the third time while it was online. Travis picked this one up and brought it home to me after a long rough day, thinking it looked like a movie I would like. He was right.

The movie is about a singer-songwriter (Kiera Knightley) whose musician boyfriend (Adam Levine) breaks up with her, leaving her stranded and alone in New York City. She finds her friend (James Corden) which leads to a washed-up producer (Mark Ruffalo) hearing her perform. And in between it all some really wonderful things are said and the right people end up with the right people and I just really enjoyed it.


Okay. Enough. Thank you so much to Kelly for hosting the link-up. Have a great weekend, everyone!

It was a good weekend (I got Matt Damon)

Monday was a bit of a rough day but the weekend? The weekend was great.

For starters, I got a new laptop. My old one works well but a hinge had broken and it was just a matter of time before the other one went, too. With my upcoming travels we knew I needed a new one and with our tax refund in our bank account that's what we did. During set up the computer wanted to be named. I chose Matt Damon. Travis raised his eyebrows until I explained all the fun things I could say.

"I'm going to the coffee shop with Matt Damon."
"I'm taking Matt Damon with me to Portland."
"Travis, have you seen Matt Damon? I thought he was in the kitchen."
"Kids! Do not touch Matt Damon! He's mine!"

See?! Brilliant!

Then Travis told me he should name his computer Jennifer, for Aniston, Garner, and Lawrence. I didn't think that was funny at all.

~~~~

Do you remember my friend Laura? She wrote a fabulous guest post on being a creative mom (and if you haven't read it you really, really should!). Well, she won the "People's Choice" at QuiltCon over the weekend. It has nothing to do with me but I am really proud of my friend. I have admired her creativity since the first day I met her almost 20 years ago. I hope you'll forgive me for bragging on her.

But now that you've seen the quilt surely you understand, right? She designed and sewed that! Amazing. You can read about her quilt and see more of her craftiness at her site.

~~~~

Also, I started watching Doctor Who again a little while ago and this weekend I made it through the Donna Noble episodes. I always cry when the Doctor explains to her mom and granddad  how important she is. I'm to Amelia Pond now. Oh I love this show!

~~~~

Then, there was the competitive potluck we held Saturday night. I am feeling so restless from all the cold of this Midwestern winter. So Thursday I invited some friends over and a good handful of them came. There were so many kids and so much delicious food. Travis' pizza ended up winning for best in the Savory category and my friend's daughter's brownies won in the Sweet category. There was online voting and and jokes about the Illinois political machine.

Oh and when it was past bedtime and I couldn't take the kids anymore... there was Frozen.

~~~~

I also had a crazy dream about an upcoming, regional Catholic women's blogging conference I'm helping organize. I dreamed that I hadn't done all the work I was supposed to do so in the end, because of my ball dropping, the group of 30 women were sitting on wooden bleachers in my high school's old gym. A woman with crazy, red, Effie-like hair was doing a horrible introduction; I hadn't arranged for the photographer to do headshots; my college philosophy professor (not a woman, a Catholic, or a blogger) arrived in footie pajamas with a sweater pulled over - ready for his presentation. So today I dotted some 'i's and crossed some 't's. But that dream!

There's about 5 spots left in you will be near the University of Notre Dame on March 7th.

~~~~

I loooooove Abbey's #HolyLens photo series she does every Lent. If you use the hashtag and prompts let me know so I can follow you!

Mine are sometimes hard to do since Travis takes the ipad to school to use with his coaching, but I really do love that she does this.

~~~~

Also!

After so much searching I came to believe that someone had thrown away 2/3 of my record collection on moving day. It made me sick to my stomach every time I thought about it and I was so sad.

But then:

Billy Joel, Simon and Garfunkel, INXS, soundtracks, Christmas albums from my childhood, The Specials, and Springsteen's iconic Born in the USA. I am so, so, so, so happy!

~~~~

Finally, today, to fight a good case of the Mondays, Mary from Sometimes Martha Always Mary is having a couple of giveaways in honor of her blog relaunch. After working with me through my blog consulting business Mary hired a graphic artist and a tech guy to help her get her blog to exactly what she wants. The transformation is amazing.

I am really honored to be part of her Giveaway - head on over, tell her how great the site looks, subscribe to follow along, and enter to win a free blog consultation. I would love to work with you! Good luck!




Whew. My first post, written with Matt Damon. ;)

Seven Quick Takes

1 - JJ Heller and her husband wrote a new song for those of us who are trying to get our acts together.


2 - Speaking of which, thank you for the overwhelmingly supportive response you gave me to my post about my health. A lot of you suggested PCOS and thyroid issues as the culprit and you may be right. I left many, many viles of blood at my midwife's office earlier in the week with high hopes that the more extensive lab work will show something that my primary physician's lab work didn't.


3 - Are you praying for Paul Coakley? Oh man, am I ever. When I first heard his story from his very good friend Mary the first thing I thought was, "Fulton Sheen, you need to get on this." And then I saw that the Coakleys are specifically asking for Blessed Margaret of Castello's intercession and so I thought, "Fulton Sheen, you need to talk to Margaret up there! Let's get this job done!"

Then I got an email from a woman I know; she's the mother of my friend Maria. She was reading Mary's blog and saw my comment on the post about Paul. She emailed me and told me this:

4 - Also, Maria's mother and father have in their possession Fulton Sheen's traveling Mass kit. (I know, shut the front door, right?) 

This has all the prayers on it... in Latin.

When they travel they take it with them and offer priests to celebrate Mass using it. Last summer they were in the area visiting their daughter and brought it to my house. It was amazing. If my kids weren't running around like crazy and I wasn't incredibly afraid that they'd ruin something I probably would have cried. 

They had no idea how cool it was, but I was sneaking kisses.

And just to show you how much they didn't get it, the boys insisted on getting out their play mass kit and having them take pictures of it. 

5 - Thank you to everyone who submitted nominations for the Sheenazing Awards. Over 250 came in! The voting will begin next week. It'll be fun! 


6 - In case you haven't heard the sad news, Netflix is getting rid of The Walking Dead, My Little Pony: Friendship Is Magic, and Doctor Who. Guys, I love all three of those shows. Zombies, ponies, and time traveling aliens - three of my favorite things. 

They better bring Endevour back. 

Here's some other shows I love, if you're looking for suggestions. 


7 - Okay. I know a lot of people don't watch videos that are embedded in blogs. BUT! If you grew up in the 90's, or remember the 90's, or are just interested in pop culture trivia you really, really, really should watch this video. 

"Closing Time" - it's not about what you think it's about. 

A busy life

Life is a thrilling, wonderful, beautiful adventure.

And sometimes it just feels busy.

That's the season of life I'm in now: busy.

Busy avoiding the packing up the house that needs to happen. Busy daydreaming of paint colors for the bathrooms at the new house.

Busy running my kids to school and keeping the house tidy. Tidy enough.

Busy spending time with my husband at the end of the long days and busy saying YES to my kids when they want to snuggle, play Memory, or go for a walk to the park.

Busy nursing my baby who is almost not a baby any more and in a blink of an eye will not be interested in nursing but in running and jumping and coloring.

Busy failing at Lent and busy restarting. Busy with wondering how many additional sacrifices I should be making when I already feel stretched so thin at times.

Busy trying to lose all the baby weight, to be healthier, to have a strong body and a strong heart.

Busy trying to figure out gluten free eating for a boy who is also allergic to eggs, dairy, and nuts. Busy fighting the sinking feeling of buying expensive gluten-free food products and busy cutting up fruit.

Busy reading and researching and working on projects I'm really excited about but have nothing to do with this little blog.

Busy watching the latest season of Doctor Who with Travis, who was converted to a Whovian over Christmas break.


Writing all of this out, though, I see that I'm not busy: I'm living. I'm living out my life and it may feel busy but really it is thrilling and wonderful and beautiful and an adventure.


In the coming weeks - when we pack and move and school ends and birthdays and holidays are celebrated I will not be around this blog much. I have a few guest posts lined up and will be sharing my favorite links every now and again but otherwise ye olde blog will be a bit quiet.

But I'll be praying for you. Please pray for me.

7QT for my 7 in 7

1 - My friend Alisha asked if I'd ever included this song in my 7QT, because obviously it is so good and deserves a spotlight.

Alisha used to live 20 minutes away but now she's in Louisiana. However we're attending The Edel Gathering together and I don't know what I'm more excited about: seeing her or the conference.


2 - Instagram. I'm on it. I don't have the little camera button with my other social media buttons but it'll be coming. If you're there let me know so I can follow you!


3 - Today begins the Behold Conference weekend. I'm so excited. Kendra is coming. And Molly. And Mother Assumpta, Diedre, Marie, Nancy, Katie, and so many more.

Tonight is a special gathering for bloggers and then later a speakers' reception. I'm going to both and I'm planning on wearing my black heels.

Also, I plan on tweeting and graming the conference so you can follow along if you want. #behold2014


4 - Did I tell you that I finally got Travis to watch Doctor Who and he loved it? Well I did, he did, and now we both want t-shirts that say "The angels have the phone box." Here's some Doctor Who pins I loved.

5 - Speaking of Doctor Who and Edel. Do you think these shoes could win me the contest?

6 - True or false: Women dress for women.
Tonight, along with my heels, I'll be wearing a cute shirt and my red lipstick. If I could do the Dutch braid crown I would totally rock that, too. If I dressed like that to go somewhere with Travis he would ask me, "You're wearing that? Is it okay if I just wear this?"


7 - After months of trying to arrange something with our budget and a homeschooled teen we know from church I finally have a mother's helper. 12-3:30 every Friday. She plays with the kids and right now she's vacuuming the stairs so I can type this.

Seven Quick Takes

1 - As I was making the Google Doc for the Sheenazing Awards Nominations I couldn't help but sing this song. I know the song is about a broken heart (country music and all) but some of the lyrics still fit, right? ;)

Anyways, nominations will close later today (probably around 9pm) for the Sheenazing Awards. Originally voting was supposed to begin on Monday but I'm going to move that to Wednesday. That will give me more time to focus on taking care of JF, contact all the nominees, and make up the ballot.

Since the whole thing is just for a bunch of fun I'm not gonna stress about it.


2 - On to an update on JF. As of 10pm Thursday JF was doing great. THANK YOU for your prayers! Really, really, truly, completely. At some point Friday we will get results from the MRI (which should show a normal brain) but it may take a little bit longer to get the results from the spinal tap thingy. So it'll be another day and night and maybe day of the hospital for JF.

But power of prayer, guys, power of prayer. Shortly after I posted my prayer request yesterday I headed out to the hospital to find my poor little man flipping out. For over 2 hours he cried and screamed and fought and begged for food, water, and to leave. And then he just fell asleep on my lap and napped for most of the rest of the afternoon. When he woke up after his MRI he looked at Travis, pointed at some blocks, and started building and crashing them down.


3 - Some awesome links you should check out:
Kelly wrote the most hilarious post about the past winners of the Sheenazing Awards.
Kendra was featured on the Today Show website. How cool is that?!
Jenna did a short series of vlogs on how to begin embroidering and then a follow up post on how to transfer patterns. Maybe that's how I'll spend my February, learning to embroider.


4 - How's this for cute:
Ben: (sweetly) How about a kiss?
L: (cheerfully) Um, no thanks.

L: Ben, I folded these [towels] all by myself.
Ben: L! I'm so proud of you!


5 - I have finally gotten Travis to watch (and love!) Doctor Who with me. Right now we're on the Pompeii episode. In one little room you've got Mosley from Downton Abbey, the cabbie from Sherlock, and Doctors number 10 and 12. What a wonderful British tv moment.
Do you think it's because the island country is so small?
That's not supposed to be insulting.


6 - I am not yet tired of hearing the song Roar by Katy Perry. This slightly surprises me every time it comes on the radio.

7 - My mom got all the girls in my family boots for Christmas. I don't know where they came from since she ordered them all online but I love them. I am especially in love with my galoshes. Check out those bling buttons on the top! As I would say, "Too cute to boot!" which I say because I'm a dork. But a dork with fantastic boots.

10 Shows to Love on Netflix

Snow day? Sick day? Introvert-post-social-function-recovery day? Wanting a show to watch, episode after episode? Or maybe you're just looking for a new show to enjoy a little at a time, not something to binge on in one day.

Whatever your reason, if you're looking for some good television viewing here my top ten picks, all of which are available for streaming from Netflix.

(Disclaimer: Some of the shows have mild language, some scantily clad women, some guns. I don't know what will offend you or be fine by you but I am definitely not encouraging you to sit down with the whole family and a bowl of popcorn before you preview them for your kids.)

Life

Detective Charlie Crews was framed for murder, spent several years in jail, and was then exonerated. After prison Charlie gets a whole lot of money and his job back, where he begins to investigate who framed him and why. The show is told a bit like a documentary, especially in the beginning as they are establishing Crews' back story. The things I love about this show: how quirky and funny it is. While in prison Charlie missed some advancements in technology (like phones have cameras), he really missed fresh fruit, and he picked up Zen thinking to help him cope. I'm not sure why this show was cancelled - it's so good! - but the writers saw it coming and were able to wrap the show up nicely by the end of the second season.

White Collar

Smart, witty, beautiful: this show is really different than a lot of television. White Collar follows Neal Caffrey, a con artist who does white collar crimes like art and bond forgery, as he works off the remainder of his prison sentence by serving as a consultant to Peter Burke, the head of the FBI's white collar division in New York City. Things I like about this show: the characters are all smart and are pursuing important pieces of art, history, and culture. (I know that sounds snooty but you'll like it too.) Peter and his wife have a really great marriage. Also, Tiffani Thiesen stars in it and that makes me happy to see "Kelly Kapowski" again. The best part about the show: MOZZIE! 

The Walking Dead

Zombie apocylpse, at it's best. The Walking Dead is based on the graphic novels by the same name. It follows police officer Rick Grimes and the band of survivors as they try to find a safe place to live and try to thrive in a world filled with the living dead. The show is gory, scary, and gruesome and, speaking as a parent, the premise is 100% horrifying. The first time I watched the show I literally watched through my fingers as I covered my eyes with my hands. The show is interesting and really well done. It's scary but it's worth the lack of sleep.

Friday Night Lights

"Clear eyes, full hearts can't lose." Okay, really I never know what Coach Taylor is talking about when he says that but I was never an athlete. Yet I still love this show. Despite the fact that it's about high schoolers and some of the characters are just annoying (Jason, Lyla, Julie). Reasons to love it: Coach and Tammi Taylor's relationship, Tammi Taylor, Landry, Seracen, Seracen's grandma, football. It's a sweet show about relationships, small town life, and how sports can build community.

Lost

A plane crashes on a mysterious island and the survivors try to figure out what the heck is going on. You try to figure out what is going on. And then it ends and you're still trying to figure it out. But just enjoy the ride. There's so many interesting, likeable characters and I found myself really invested in what happened to them. The other nice thing about Lost is that so many of its actors have gone on to star in other shows. I love flipping on the tv and bumping in to an old friend from the island.

Sherlock

A modern retelling of Sir Arthur Connan Doyle's classics, which I've never read so I have no idea if they "get it right" and quite frankly I don't care. Sherlock is brilliant. Each episode is movie length and those 90 minutes are filled with excellent writing, clever characters, fantastic dialogue, and British accents. What is not to love?! And please allow me to go on record and state that I love Molly Hooper.

Jericho

If you're looking for a more family friendly end of the world type show this is it. Jericho isn't a very slick show, it's simple and sweet, though, and a nice watch. It takes place in a small town that remained safe from a series of nuclear bombs that took out all major US cities. It's borders on cheesy from time to time but, quite frankly, I'd prefer some more cheesy, sentimental, "we'll-pull-through-it-together" type shows. Some books are "light reading" - this is "light viewing."

Freaks and Geeks

Freaks and Geeks just might have been the perfect show about teenagers ever. It's the most real account of high school and adolescence I've ever seen and watching it is like looking at old pictures from my family album. I appreciated Lindsey and Millie's friendship, Mr. and Mrs. Wier's marriage, how the show talks about sex, and Bill's peanut allergies. It's funny, sweet, and really well done. The only problem with the show is that there just one season. And how it ends (What the heck, Lindsey?!?). So two. There's two problems. But that's not bad for tv!

Doctor Who

The Doctor is an alien, of the Time Lord race, who travels through all of space and time in his Tardis - a spaceship that is disguised as a blue, British police box. He travels with companions and they go about saving the day. Also, he can regenerate so start with the 9th Doctor (I know, living mannequins, but it gets so much better.) and hold on to your hat. The show is a little silly, a little goofy, a little sentimental, and a lot of fun. Watch it and finally get all the jokes about Whovians, bow ties being cool, things being fantastic, and not blinking. Allons-y!

The Chicago Code

The Chicago Code follows a small group of police officers as they work to bring down the most powerful and corrupt city alderman. Good writing, good acting, and a really good story - my husband and I are still unsure why this show was cancelled. If you usually like cop shows then you should definitely watch it. If you don't usually "do" cop shows you should still give it a try, especially if you love Chicago.



So there you go. My ten favorite series, all available for streaming on Netflix.
Did I pick your favorites? Did I overlook any? I'd love to hear about your faves in the comment box.

And happy viewing!

Eight Images That Tell You Everything You Need to Know About This Blog

Jennifer Fulwiler posted a hilarious list of the ten images that best represent her blog and what she writes about. She encouraged other bloggers to do the same. 

Challenge happily accepted.

I went through the pictures from ye olde blog and found the ones I thought were the best representations of what I write about. So here goes...

{ a good example of this sentimentality }

{ read this }

{ this and this are my two faves on this topic }

{ Not necessarily the ones above, but I do get geeky about things. Like Lost, Doctor Who, and Sherlock.}

{ Peter Mark }

 { Most related post }

{ zombies in general }

{ and I love it and hate it }

Jen was right, it was a lot of fun to do this post. Let me know in the combox if you wrote one too.