DATE NIGHT

This print available at Dream Weaver Prints!

Summer.  Summed up in one word: FULL.  As in: FULL of activities, FULL of family, FULL of fun.  A full car, a full calendar, a full onslaught of laundry.  Full bellies, full minds, full hearts.  For us, summer seems to get more hectic every year.  Make sense – kids get older, have more things going on, more independence for the older ones.  So, the management of this is really an ongoing, dynamic process.  Once again, I have to say how very thankful I am that I found Cozi a few years back (after making my own color coded Excel Spreadsheet calendar for YEARS!) to help keep me organized!  And without Nana the Wonder Sitter, well, all would be a huge mess.

The last couple of weeks were full of baseball, nature camp, baseball, friends over for dinner, baseball tournament, Father’s Day, Britt dressed as a Kangaroo, volleyball camp, sleepover wilderness camp, Kayleigh here from Texas, and looking forward to more baseball and another baseball tournament.  All of this can best be summarized in a few sunny and funny 

pictures and a short video:

Pirates end of Season Party

Last Pirates Game

Lara, Jake and Emma at Nature Camp

Lara's presentation at Nature Camp

Jake - warming up for Stampede Baseball

Me and "Kanga" Britt - March of Dimes Kangaroo-a-thon

Stillwater Stampede - 3rd place Eskimo Joe's Tri-State Shootout Tourney

Emma - Pioneer volleyball camp

Jake - Camp McFadden

Finn's Flags

Emma and Kayleigh with the Krazy Loom

(LOTS OF DREAM WEAVER PRINTS PRODUCTIONS IN THOSE PHOTOS AND VIDEOS!)

But the definite highlight of my summer so far?  DATE NIGHT WITH MY HUSBAND!  It’s been MONTHS.  And months and months. Since we have had the opportunity to be kid free and do something just for us.  Back on Valentine’s day, I was given this:

Last weekend, it finally was time.  We spent hours getting everything arranged for the kids.  The older 2 were with their Other Dad, but needed to come home and be cared for before we would get home.  The younger two would need care as well, so I hired a sitter to come hang out with them.  Nana the Wonder Sitter and Grandpa were road tripping south to pick up my niece Kayleigh from her mom.  I needed all 7 of those people to end up at one place at the same time while we were in Tulsa.  I made a spreadsheet.  It helps, I swear!  It was color coded, and had every phone number anyone on this carousel would need.  Quasi adults and adults each got a copy.  Digitally and in print.  There was NO WAY this was getting messed up!  I felt I had it all covered.  AND IT WORKED!  By late evening, all 4 of my kids and my niece were at Nana and Grandpa’s for the overnight.  #MommySuccess

So, what were WE doing is the big question, right?  Well, we left Stillwater mid-afternoon for a blissful, kid-free time in T-town.  That’s right, Tulsa was on the horizon and we wouldn’t look back.  For a few hours, at least…  First stop? GAS!  It’s so much cheaper in Tulsa (Sand Springs) than Stillwater.  This tank should last us a couple of days, right?  Then, the MALL!  We’re flatlanders in a flyover state.  The mall is a big deal.  Again, haven’t been inside one in YEARS!  And this one?  WELCOMED us!  Seriously – it’s like they knew we were coming:

Woodland Hills Mall

Wicked and OSU adorned the courtyard in the middle of the shops.  Yup.  All for us.  Even though we had agreed upon a STRICT “no shopping” policy, I somehow ended up with the CUTEST shark pajamas for Finn (dang you, Gymboree) and a fun baseball T (in Stampede colors) for by baseball lovin’ Jake (And dang you, too, Children’s Place)!  Time to get the heck out of there!  NO MORE SPENDING!  (I promised Britty I would sell extra stuff on the Etsy shop to make up for it, so go check it out!  I do custom graphics for just about anything!  What can I do for you?)

On to dinner.  Now, you know, we are on an ******** journey and we’re both droppin’ libbies right and left.  So, what’s a couple to do?  Why, go to CHEEESECAKE FACTORY of course!  All kidding aside, we had acquired a gift certificate to that restaurant last winter, and since cheesecake is may FAVORITE (all time, ever!) desert, I wanted to go there!  This was our first “cheat meal” (I hate that term) in FOUR MONTHS.  We knew we wanted to make good, sensible choices, especially since we KNEW there was cheesecake for desert.  CF made is easy for us!  They have an extensive (and delicious) “Skinny” menu.  (Again, small town dwellers that don’t get out much – we don’t know about these things!)  We chose from those items, and Oh. Em. GEE!  Love.  We ate it all (not really, I can’t eat like I used to).  Loved it all. AND had cheesecake for desert.  It was a truly wonderful experience.  And, YUM!

Next stop: Tulsa Performing Arts Center to see WICKED!!!!!  Back where it all started!  The first time we saw Wicked, I surprised Britt with a trip to Tulsa and tickets for his birthday in August of 2009.  We saw it once, and were hooked.  This past weekend marks the 5^th time we’ve seen it!  We’ve been changed for good and can’t help but to keep dancing through life as we defy gravity and spend one short day reveling in all things popular.

This performance.  Whoa.  Hands down, the best we’ve been too.  Tulsa, Wichita, OKC, Dallas, and back to Tulsa.  It was WONDERFUL.  Through and through.  The last time we say it was in Dallas for the girl’s 8^th birthday; that was 4 years ago.  (We’ve had a hectic few years…)  A lot of the costuming has changed (The flying monkeys got scarier!), and so has almost ALL of the choreography!  While we both have favorite scenes we were looking forward to that were completely different this time around, the show was fabulous.  This Elphaba (played by Emma Hunton) was by far the best I’ve seen.  And her chemistry with Fiyero (played by Nick Adams) was unmatched in anything I’ve seen – it made the show that much better.  Glinda (Gina Beck) had the best ad-libs and was very convincing.  The entire cast was stellar.  The dancers and ensemble were just incredible.  I was bawling at the end of Act 1 (typical) and still crying at the curtain of Act 2.  I can’t explain it, but this Musical has my heart.  I can’t wait to go again!  Where to this time, My Love?

We got back to our home in Stillwater in the wee hours of the night.  During intermission and after the show I had read texts from Nana describing the musical beds situation going on at her house, but I think they all finally got a few winks before Sunday morning rolled around.  We spent a leisurely summer day – resting, playing in the yard, doing chores – before wrapping the night up at church.  The twins are old enough to serve in the little kid rooms during the service.  How is that even POSSIBLE?  Sunday was their first time.  They did GREAT, and they loved doing it!  So proud of them as they start this new chapter of life.  This is a summer they will never forget as they step into the role as servants for our Lord with the Church in our local church.  They are the hands and feet of Jesus for these small fries in the yellow hallway on Sunday nights at LifeChurch Stillwater.  To sum it up: they are changing lives.  And because they are committed to serving, Britt and I added more to our serving plates as well.  That’s what leaders do, right?  Lead by example.  Love.  Serve.  Summer. Full of awe.

Lara and Emma - Swerving for the 1st time!

I Shall Blow a Fanfare

(My review of Oz The Great and Powerful)

As a Spring Break gift, the Dean of my college encouraged all staff to take a 2 hour lunch each day this week.  Since I typically lunch with my husband and he was not afforded this luxury, it really meant nothing to me.  But, as the week wore on (and my kids wore my mother out), I had the idea to take a long lunch on Thursday, and take the big kids to see a movie.  I have been a Wizard of Oz fan since childhood, having seen the 1939 version with Judy Garland MANY times; and I can genuinely declare Wicked as my favorite Broadway musical of all time, having seen 3 different touring companies perform it in 3 different cities – 2 more on the horizon for the next 18 months!  Britt is as well, and we took the big girls to see Wicked 2 years ago in Dallas.  So, it was a forgone conclusion that the Weavers would see the new Disney prequel, Oz The Great and Powerful.  It was just a question of WHEN?  So, a two (or so) hour lunch on Thursday it was – and a complete surprise to the big kids!  We are not 3D fans AT ALL (especially since one Dream Weaver wears eye glasses and that makes it hard to wear the 3D glasses, plus it costs more), but to catch a matinee at out little theater, we had to go that route.

I went in with low expectations of the story, but HIGH expectations of the cast, scenery, costumes, make-up, set design, cinematography, and music.  LOL!  I really like the technical stuff!  And, since we have 3 elementary aged kids in our house, we watch the Disney channel A LOT, so I had seen countless trailers, as well as the little behind the scenes things they do between shows about the next HOT movie.  I am very pleased to say, I was not disappointed AT ALL!  It started with the opening credits, which were spectacular!  I am so glad we were watching it in 3D – it really added to the effects!  And the MUSIC!  I have been a Danny Elfman fan for a long time, and he did a fantastic job with the score – again from the opening credits to the last curtain.  And it just got more beautiful from there.  The first part is at a carnival in Kansas in 1903, and it is all in black and white.  But you can still see the excruciating detail that was taken with every scene, set and prop – as well as costumes and make up.  It was visually stunning!  Then, when they get to Oz?  Magnificent!  It was just so fun to watch and see all the colors and the creativity of the characters and the animation of the inanimate ones.  I think I had a smile on my face the whole time!  Except when things in 3D were scaring me, flying at my head, or causing one of my children to grab me as they were startled!  I loved it!  Visually, the move really had them mesmerized and drawn in the whole time.

The move was long.  We went to a 1:00pm start time, and we left the theater at 3:30.  The run time is listed at 130 minutes (2 hours, 10 minutes), so I guess we endured 20 minutes of previews and commercials (which were all PG-13,and 2 were basically the same movie with different actors – about post-revolution futuristic America with space ships and aliens…  SO not my thing, but I digress…).  The opening credits were quite possible the longest I have seen in AGES, but they were so entertaining and delightful I was OK with it.  Then, as I previously mentioned, it opens with a black and white scene in Kansas.  That lasted FOREVER.  It was to construct the back story, but it was painfully drawn out.  I don’t know how long it lasted, but I would guess 20-25 minutes.  Could have all been covered in 10.  Once we (finally) got out of Kansas, and into Oz, the story ran at a much more tolerable pace – although the slow spots crept up several more times.  Honestly, what kept me hooked and paying attention was the visual aspect of it.  It truly was a superb movie as far as the sets, costumes, make-up, props and CGI animation went.  Quite charming, and stunning at the same time.  I had a little trouble with the writing as well.  This movie is supposed to take place during the turn of the century, but the language was very current and almost too modern-day at times.  It was as if they forgot what time period it was.  It was strange at times, and off-putting at others.  My favorite characters were Finley, the flying monkey in a bell hop’s uniform, and China Doll.  What can I say?  I am a kid at heart!  I also enjoyed the sour attitude of the herald and trumpet blower, Knuck.  I think James Franco did an amazing job as Oscar Diggs (Oz), and I loved how he portrayed his character.  A classic tale of a con-man turned good because of a woman.  I also think Mila Kunis and Rachel Weisz were perfectly cast as Theodora and Evanora, respectively.  They were GREAT!  I had a little trouble following the story of the 3 sisters, since I have the other 2 stories in my veins, but I did figure out the hook pretty quickly on that one.  Once I could predict how the story would unfold and quit obsessing about how they were not Elphaba and Nessarose (Nessie), I really enjoyed watching them!  The power struggle is great and an exciting plot to watch unfold.

Now, I am a Glinda girl ALL THE WAY!  I like the good girls!  I love that Kristen Chenoweth played her on Broadway.  I love the blonde hair and the sweet, caring manor.  I do not, however, like Michelle Williams.  Didn’t like her on “Dawson’s Creek” back in the day – never have.  So, I was already predisposed to not like her as Glinda.  And it worked.  She was drab.  Made the character dull and uninspiring.  *YAWN* In this version of the story, there was a lot riding on her shoulders and she was under considerable pressure.  But you couldn’t tell it by the way she acted.  And of course she loves Oz, and that was prophesied in the opening black and white scene, so we all knew it was coming – like a brick.  But, I suffered through the performance and did enjoy the way it all worked out for them in the end.  Open ended for a sequel (2^nd prequel?) for sure!

As for the kids – they are still talking about it a day later!  Jake loves movies. LOVES them!  Watches movies endlessly.  Quotes them tirelessly.  And he has favorite things from this movie that he has already worked into his everyday vocabulary!  The girls are both very skittish and easily startled, so they were “mad” at the movie for scaring them! LOL!  It was a very intense movie.  I would not have taken the girls (now 10) at Jake’s age (6) because of how jolting it was at times.  But, they loved the story and really got in to it as well.  Lara had the same trouble I did with the witch sisters’ storyline, since she too has seen Wicked and tried to make this movie fit with that retelling.  They want to see it again in 2D this time, and Jake wants to make sure we buy it “in case” when it comes out.  (That’s what he calls a movie on DVD that we own at home.)

Overall, it was a success for our family!  It was a GREAT break from the monotony of a Spring Break with nowhere to go, and it was a fun movie to see together as a family.  It had its weak spots, but my love for the Emerald City made it a must see!  There are some GREAT lines, wonderful scenes, and it was simply stunning to watch.  It’s also fun to see a new spin on an old familiar story.  (This story takes place 20 years before Dorothy hits Oz, so in that sense it is completely separate.)  It was a little sinister in places, and very intense in others, but if you have ever read any of L. Frank Baum’s works, he is dark and twisted.  I would recommend it to Oz fans, fantasy fans, fans of the visual aspects of movies, and anyone who wants to get away for a long 2 hour lunch to see the “Number 1 Movie in the World 2 Weeks in a Row”!

(Oh, and the title of the post is a line from the movie by Knuck the Trumpet Blower.  He was funny!)