I have to take a second to plug a great movie. It might not be for everyone, but I really liked it. It is quirky and unexpected and poiniant. The main reason why I choose to plug it is for it's pro-adoption viewpoint. I would even go as far as to say that it is on the anti-abortion side without being preachy in any way as to turn off hyper pro-choice advocates.

(I myself am personally appalled by the thought of abortion, but I stand in the pro choice shoes because I don't believe decisions of that kind of personal nature should lie in the hands of the government. I also don't believe that all unwanted pregnancies can be judged by one standard. I am a fan of choice...and accountability. I don't vote to take the right to bear arms away, even though I know that in this world, there is a risk of children being gunned down at school by a crazy person. I believe in the rights and risks involved with freedom, and accept that there are those who will abuse the freedom--and that abuse might even negatively affect me. I also believe that part of living on earth is making choices and that ultimately we all will learn the consequences of our good or bad actions. I don't ever vote to take away personal choice. Even when it means that someone can choose to kill a child on a playground or abort a miracle. I don't know what that means about me, but that's me!)

You can read the Juno movie review and see what you think. I loved that the show illuminated the blessing of adoption while still being fairly true to the pain of it as well. The birth mom is somewhat atypical in a way that does downplay the emotion that would be natural when giving up a baby, but again...it makes adoption look easy...even easier than abortion, and that is a rare stand to find in liberal Hollywood these days. For that reason, for the sweet song at the end and the intriguing dialogue, this movie gets two thumbs up for me.

Hubby Tag...

Mimi tagged me...I've been mauled by a sick toddler all week, so I was low on blogging juice. Thanks for giving me something to post. I tag Jeff, Heather, Jenny and Rachel.

What is his name? Chris

How long have you been together? We have some history, so hold on…We started dating Homecoming our junior year, though we weren’t an item until the summer before our senior year. We took a four year break (rather he did, I was pretty pathetically and privately devoted) and started regular, long distance contact by email and phone right when I got home from my mission in 2000. I saw him at a wedding right after I got home and his girlfriend broke up with him that night. YIPEE! I really didn’t think I was still interested, but I came home from BYU two months later and invited him to a YSA activity and he came. He called the next night and asked if he could see me again, and we spent that weekend going out every night. For a year, we saw as much of each other as we could when I was in town, and we talked on the phone and emailed daily. Still, no definitions or “more-than-friends” interaction. We even talked about other people we’d go out with and what not. However, I was smitten and told everyone I knew (at BYU) I was going to marry him. Then, in March 2001, I was only two months from graduation, and he came out to SLC. I picked him up at the airport and we drove to his parents’ house in Colorado. We held hands on the drive and he kissed me that night. We were married that December in 2001.

How long did you date? See above.

How old is he? 30

Who eats more? He can pack more in, but it depends on the food available because he’s really picky.

Who said I Love you first? Me. We were having an airport goodbye at Easter when he bought me a ticket to come home for a long weekend. Airport goodbyes are so romantic. I had been dying to say it to him because I’d felt that way for him for so long, and as early as it was (one month) into our romantic, adult relationship, I just could not stop myself from saying it. It felt so good to get it out there. He was shocked. Definitely.
I do have some college roomies and long time friends who read this, and they may remember that he did tell me he loved me for the first time in our earlier, young love when we were in college. We were at his sister’s house because I was going to stay there that night and she and her husband went to bed and he told me that he loved me. It was sweet, but then we broke up like a month later because he had a new girlfriend. Whoops!
Who is taller? He is taller by a foot.

Who sings better? Me.

Who is smarter? We have many of the same strengths. I have a degree in English, but I’d say as far as writing goes, we are equally matched at the kind of writing we do (self-writing). He’s a strong communicator, so am I. Well, maybe I’m a little more articulate in the heat of the moment. He is smarter at keeping his cool…wait, only in certain cases…I think we are very equally matched. He types WAAAAY faster than me.

Who does the laundry? Me. Loathe it. Recently I realized that he used the “it’s my love language” argument to get me to do more of what he wants (housework, not sex, I swear). I realized that my love language really could be spoken by one thing only: Chris doing the laundry every once in awhile! So when I went to my mom’s house a few days before him for Christmas, he did all the laundry, folded it and put it all away. That was so nice! Forget the love notes and romantic dates…I WANT LAUNDRY HELP!

Who pays the bills? Me.

Who sleeps on the right side of the bed? Until we got a bed where the mattress is uneven and your head is lower than your feet (in May or so), I slept on the right side of the bed. Now, I have been sleeping in our old bed in the guest bedroom. Sweeter dreams and the blood isn’t rushing to my head. Chris claims that the bed is level, though he knows it isn’t. Anyway, we haven’t fixed it yet.

Who mows the lawn? Duh. Chris. It takes him like three hours, too.

Who cooks dinner? I do, if I do. I don’t get fancy because Chris doesn’t usually come home hungry. I just make food for the girls and I most of the time. Chris has issues with family dinner. Don’t get me started.
Who drives? When I got a minivan, Chris refused to drive in it. Instead we are seen all over town in a monstrous F-350 loud--as diesel is, gas guzzling all the way. Even to church. It is hard to get into and I’m not even tall enough to buckle the girls in their seats. I just hate it. He knows that he has to compromise on the issue when my van is clean, but luckily for him, my van is never clean.

Who is more stubborn? Me... I am a Taurus…and I’m right too.

Who kissed who first? He did on both of our first kisses. The first kiss when we were 17 was a peck like you’d give your mom. The one when we were 23, not so much. Both kisses were anticipated for at least a year.

Who asked who out first? He first asked me out when he signed my yearbook. He asked me to Homecoming in my yearbook…yes, yearbook signing is the end of the year and Homecoming is after summer, the beginning of the year.

Who proposed? Chris. He took me back to the driveway where he grew up and we had our first kiss. It was sweet, I really just wanted the ring, and knew it was coming.

Who is more sensitive? Him. By far.

Who has more siblings? I do, by one.

Who wears the pants? We share, but I say that because I was born to wear the pants, I wear the pants in so many areas of my life. So, I say we share because it baffled me when I realized a couple of years into our marriage that he truthfully wears the pants! How did that happen to me? There’s nothing wrong with not wearing the pants if you aren’t a pants wearer…but I AM! It works, somehow.

What to do with my wall of windows?

It's funny, I like the advice I get from my blogging friends (you are all actually real life friends too, I realize), so here's something I've been unsure what to do with for a whole year. I have this wall of windows I have. I am pretty sure usually about what to do with a wall, but I don't know what to do in this house because everywhere I go there are either windows or built-ins. The wall adjacent to the window wall is 100% built-ins and fireplace, and the buil-ins actually go around the corner to meet up with another double french door to the den, and then there is a WALL that is only like four feet long, and it is rounded into the hallway.

Thankfully we have a really private yard, or I would have been forced to throw up some blinds by now. So...I was so tired of not knowing what to do that I decided to just buy some roman shades for all the windows (and doors) and mount them inside the window, so I could hang drapes/curtains (not sure the difference) to flank the sides of the windows. However, I got online and started looking at some of the places where I normally buy that kind of thing and it turns out the big windows measure 58 inches wide, and no one makes roman shades that size!!!!! I have so many sewing projects on my hands and now, I have MORE THINGS THAT I HAVE TO SEW! I could pay $600 for custom roman shades, but that would be if I had the money or the conscience to so so, and I don't.

I already started making the roman shades for the windows by the kitchen table, there are three of them and I have only one made. I was frusterated, so I decided to go up to Alice's room and take measurements for her windows so I could buy her shades and take that project off of my list. Now, she has three windows in her room, and two of them measure only 16 inches!!! Guess what? No shades in that size either!!! In her room, I really have to make the shades because the windows go out like the kitchen, but there's a window seat there, so I can't have curtains falling to the floor. ARGH!

Any ideas? Do I just do curtains in the family room (but what about the doors in there, should I pretend they are windows?

Don't hate her

Because she is BEAUTIFUL!

This is one of my "sister-friends", Kelly. I love her because she is so sincere and thoughtful. She knitted me the most beautiful scarf for Christmas, and is always making me gifts. She's made me an apron, and a bag I use for church all the time. She is a talented dancer and needed a head shot for the studio where she works. It was a good excuse to get together and catch up. Kelly is not overly outgoing, and I had to work really hard for a year to be her friend. It wasn't because she didn't want to be my friend, she was just content with her little family and didn't realize that I was trying so hard. We became closer while sharing the piano bench in the primary in my last ward as she was the chorister and I, the pianist (a joke in itself). We both wound up pregnant at the same time, and since the side of the piano where we sat was entirely hidden from the primary children and other leaders, we would set up quite the buffet back there and we'd much and whisper about ourselves. Kelly is one person who never initiates gossip and never shares information she's been trusted with with others. I really admire that about her.

Who are you??

So I put that map feature on my blog a few days ago (thanks, Season) and I am so curious to know who YOU are! Most of the entries are knowns, but I don't know who on Mercer Island would be looking and I don't know who in Sunnyside, WA or Chicago is checking in. I know I check in on blogs that I find on other people's blogs, but I'm still curious.

Quirk...

So I have a quirk, or maybe it is a soapbox, but I'm curious if anyone else feels the same way.

I know traditionally, and certainly according to some stuffy etiquette books, you are supposed to list a man's name first on an envelope if you are sending something to a family with a man as the "head of household". Now, I'm no man hater or anything, I just like to go with the natural flow of things and do what makes sense.

Think about it. In your family, if you are married (if not, think of a sibling that is or your own parents), people on your side of the family most likely refer to your "couple" as "your name first, your spouses" name second. In my family, "Rebecca and Chris. Now, the opposite is true on his side, they would refer to my couple as "Chris and Rebecca". I'm not saying that my family never refers to us as Chris and Rebecca, because it happens, but in most cases, if you go through your aunts and uncles even--it will be the blood related name first and the in-law second.

This just makes sense! It naturally occurs. When I get a wedding announcement from a mission companion, for example--someone who has never even met Chris, I am always surprised to see his is the only name on the invitation. Sorry, but it just doesn't thrill me to have someone who knows me so well, address an invitation to their wedding to "Mr. and Mrs. Chris Pierce" or even to "Chris and Rebecca Pierce"...why not, "Rebecca and Chris Pierce?"

I don't really impose my odd rules on this matter on others, and I don't bother with really caring how others approach addressing etiquette. I even understand that many people would prefer to be traditional and proper, but just know if you receive something addressed from me with your name first, it is because I am first and foremost sending it to Y-O-U!

Am I alone on this?

Update by Chris...

Every month, Chris' family puts together a family letter. This would be impossible in my family, but on his mom's side, it is just "Nana" (Chris' grandma), Chris' mom, Chris and his three siblings and his mom's brother's family and their five kids. So...12 families in three generations. Anyway, Chris never posts, but he is well written and it is always entertaining to read his perspective (at least I think so). Here's his entry for January (December re-cap, even though he didn't mention Christmas!)...

Well, it is still raining up here and getting dark at 5:00. That limits the things you can do outside of the house. I have been taking the girls swimming a lot. Ruby is a stellar swimmer. She can swim the full length of the pool now by herself and her teacher told me she is the best "back floater" in class. She can also do something resembling a back stroke pretty well (also resembles a dying fish). She also has the earsplitting ability to scream at a window breaking octave on her way down the waterslide. You can actually see the sound coming out of the bottom of the slide as it shoots out like a bazooka. I told her once to scream on her way down and now she does it every time. Sometimes she recites the ABC's as she goes down to see how far she can get before she comes out the bottom. Either way it is hilarious to see people plugging their ears that are 50-60 yards away from the source. She heard me tell some boys how to go down faster and decided to try it on her own by lifting her body up on her heels and shoulder blades. She comes shooting out the bottom and almost clears the ropes that section off that part of the pool. She had the sweetest swimsuit wedgie I have ever seen after the first time.

Ruby asked me last night at bedtime if the next time we saw a dead animal we could stick around and wait for Heavenly Father to come pick it up and take it to Heaven so she could talk with him. She wanted to do this in the woods where nobody could get in her way.

Alice is talking more and more and can now turn the lights off by herself - not quite tall enough to turn them back on yet though. She chooses of course to do this quite often. When she is not cutting the lights she is tormenting the new kitten we got. She likes to follow it with little pieces of food stolen from the dish and try to feed it. It has been a real treat to find the cat food all over the house. Another favorite trick is to screech "Hi Kitty! Hi Kitty! Hi Kitty!" in a voice resembling a Whistling Pete. The cat comes out less and less when Alice is around. It found a home under the washer and dryer pedestal that Dad and I built that is "Alice free".

Ruby and I are coming down to Colorado later this month because she really wants to see her Nana. She has broken into tears enough times about not being able to see her Nana that we finally broke down and decided to bring her down. I am sure there won't be any crying when it is time to leave and come back.

Speaking in Church...Matthew 6:33

I have/get to talk in church today. I am speaking on Matthew 6:33 (to paraphrase, or maybe I do know it by heart), "Seek ye first the kingdom of God and his righteousness and all these things shall be added unto you."

It has been an interesting two months around here for various reasons that I can't casually blog about (yet), and as a family, we have been faced with a degree of uncertainty. It is a blessing when these things come up and as big and important as they are, you realize, THANK GOODNESS we kept a true focus on what is important, because literally everything can and will fail but what cannot: our relationship with our Savior and the treasures we "lay up" in heaven. It is also such a help when you evaluate how you should behave toward people who wrong you and use you...the most important thing is still seeking to be righteous and following the example of Christ so that when that person is no longer a part of your life, your integrity has not been compromised. I love the Gospel.

Wish me luck! AMEN!

My Alice's Wonderland...

It is funny that we've lived here a year now and with all the plans I have to make the place mine, I have hardly done anything! We did paint Alice's room last month, and that is the extent of the work we've done inside, other than taking down some window treatments and a wallpaper border in the kitchen.

Anyway, Alice is now crawling out of her crib at night and it is time to move her to her big girl bed, so I am getting on with the task of making her bedding and stuff. This fabric is the fabric I chose to make a duvet cover out of. I love how bright and loud it is, just like my Alice.

So...I have this great little book, "All Things Alice" and I am trying to decide what quote I should put all over one of the walls. I want the font to change up some and the quote might be applied kind of nutty, not like in straight lines...that's not wonderland-ey at all...but I can't decide on a quote. I need votes!

Quote 1: In every corner--"She grew, and she grew and she grew. And in a very short time the room was full of Alice: just in the same way as a jar is full of jam! There was Alice all the way up to the ceiling: and Alice in every corner of the room!"

Quote 2 (37): "Your Majesty must excuse her," the Red Queen said to Alice, taking one of the White Queen's hands in her own, and gently stroking it: "she means well, but she can't help saying foolish things as a general rule."

I don't want the quote to sound negative (2).

Quote 3 (47): "How puzzling all these changes are! I'm never sure what I'm going to be, from one minute to another!"

Quote 4 (55): "Consider what a great girl you are. Consider what a long way you've come oday. Consider what o'clock it is. Consider anything, only don't cry!"

Quote 5 (60): "Would you tell me, please, which way I ought to go from here?" "That depends a good deal on where you want to get to," said that Cat. "I don't much care where--" said Alice. "Then it doesn't matter which way you go," said the Cat. "--so long as I get soewhere," Alice added as an explanation. "Oh, you're sure to do that," said that Cat, "if you only walk long enough."

Quote 6 (66): "Dear, dear! How queer everything is today! And yesterday things went on just as usual. I wonder if I've changed in the night? Let me think: was I the same when I got up this morning? I almost think I can remember feeling a little different. But if I'm not the same, the next question is 'Who in the world am I?' Ah, that's the great puzzle!"

I hesitate on this one (6) because I really do know who I am and who my girls are, and I teach them that they are children of God, and I don't want this to undermine that sacred knowledge.

Quote 7 (141): "There's no use trying," Alice said, "one can't believe impossible things." "I daresay you haven't had much practice," said that Queen. "When I was your age, I always did it for half-an-hour a day. Why, sometimes I'e believed as many as six impossible things before breakfast."

I love being a person of faith and believing "impossible" things, so this one is fun for me for that reason.

Quote 8 (323): Wouldn't it be a nice thing to have a curious dream, just like Alice? The best plan is this. First lie down under a tree, and wait till a White Rabbit runs by, with a watch in his hand: then shut your eyes, and pretend to be dear little Alice.

Twinkle Talent...

I know I've raved about the Suzuki method preschool piano class I have Ruby in before. Anyway, Ruby is so motivated to learn, and she worked hard during the break and now knows all her Twinkle variations (four rhythms) and how to play the actual "Twinkle, Twinkle, Little Star".

She'll perform her hard work at class next week and receive what is called a "twinkle trophy". She is so excited!