Room stuff

It was cleaning day at my house, so I decided to change things around a bit in my room.
Mom gave me these really cool movie posters from the 50's. I love love LOVE Humphrety Bogart, so I was super excited!!! I haven't seen To Have and Not Have, but I saw a little bit of the African Queen, and, of course, The Big Sleep, where Bogie co-starred with Lauren Bacal again. I think it's sweet that the husband-wife duo starred in so many movies together!




Can't wait to see this movie.....




I saw a bit of this movie. It was one of Humphrey's last movies, I believe.

I painted two shelves last week, and finally put them up! I took the picture myself, and made the little sand-bear a loooong time ago. The china set was a gift from a friend, and the little dolls (can't remember what they're called!) my grandmother brought back from Russia.

And here are the posters, or at least for now. I have zero wall space, so they'll have to be on my door until something clears up. :)

Thunder, lightning, and rain.............OH MY!

The first real storm of the summer is up on us as I write this post. The rain is coming down heavily, the lightning is flashing like a camera, and the thunder is booming.

Times like these remind me how great God is and powerful God is.

I look at storms as God's way of reminding us how mighty God is: storms sometimes scare us, and yet we're awed by the beauty of lightning and the loudness of the thunder.

Just as we are sometimes afraid of God, so are we awed by how mighty and wonderful he is.

Hmmm.............song lyrics?

This post is going to be super random.................I wrote some lyrics to a song that just popped in to my head yesterday, after testing at Tara.

Tell me what you think, but please don't be too harsh! I've never written lyrics before. =)


When my world is dark
And everyone has left,
And I beat myself up,
You rescue me.

When all the lights have faded,
And all I have is gone,
And I blame myself,
You rescue me.

When I'm my own worst enemy,
And Satan has poisoned my heart,
You rescue me.

When my world is dark
And everyone has left
And all I have is gone,
You come to me,
With shining lights,
You rescue me.

Oh, you rescue me
You rescue me,
You rescue me from me.


First time I have ever even thought about writing song lyrics........feel free to leave a comment!!!

Public Speaking Awards

YIKES! I just realized that I never uploaded the video of my class receiving our public speaking awards!!! Here it is, unedited and uncut. Enjoy.



And, since poor Vincent didn't get an award, here it is:

The Award for Best Study Hall Student

goes to

Vincent Baldi

for

his tremendous concentration on schoolwork amidst the chaos of our public speaking class.

=D And now I must go eat a brownie. Ta ta!

Tenth Avenue North - "Any Other Way" Video Journal

This one is great too.

Tenth Avenue North - "You Are More" Video Journal

Love this video.

Graduations and Receptions

Yet another fun-filled weekend! The weather put a slight damper on things, but most of my activities were inside anyway. ;)

Saturday afternoon/evening was the Reston Homeschool Group high school graduation/annual awards. I am not part of this group, but Timothy was graduating, so naturally we went.

It was held at Grace Church in Vienna, about four blocks from my mother's childhood home. It was literally a 'trip down memory lane' as she showed me her friend's homes, her house, and the swimming pool.

Anyway, on to the graduation.

In addition to Timothy, Victoria M and Jennifer R were graduating, along with Ethan, whom I had never met. It was a nice, quiet graduation.................or at least until Timothy's dad got up to speak. Soon we were laughing hysterically.

Afterwards was the reception. Here are some pics from that fun-filled evening.





Me, Emily M, and her sister Hannah are the only ones looking! How annoying. Oh, Emily is trying to look, over my head. =D
Most of my Biology class attended the graduation. Not pictured are Jessica, James, and Josh.



Uh..............Josh. And James is right beside him.




Teehee! Emily, Victoria, and Joanna doing a beautiful flute trio.

The trio, along with some one's pretty messenger bag.

Mr. Rogers awarding Timothy his diploma (and embarrassing him!).

Jennifer and Mr. Raimundo. So sweet!

Ethan and Victoria.

Jenn and Timothy.

I love that the girls wore light blue gowns, while the guys wore midnight blue. Very nice.

And that's the graduation! So glad I still have quite a ways to go until then. ;)

Public Speaking debate 2010

Wow......................this was such a fun public speaking class!!!

It was especially fun to have a party with tons and tons of food. Since we had all this food, we invited in Vincent, who sits in Study Hall. We felt kind of bad for him, just sitting out there with schoolwork. I think he enjoyed the 'class'................at least he didn't have to give a speech!

After we ate, we had a little mock debate on the topic of which is better: Homeschooling, or Public School?
The teams were Ben, Adam, Gabby, and Timothy for Homeschooling vs. Emily, Sarah, Jonny, me, and Vincent (he was an honorary member).

I'm the one who holds the camera, for most of the time. Gabby and Emily helped me out when I went up. ;) Thanks guys!!






And here is the wonderful debate. Thank you Adam, Timothy, Ben, Jonny, and Sarah for being representatives for the teams. And thank you Vincent, for giving the public school team valuable insight and good words to use against the homeschoolers. ;)
AND YES HOMESCHOOLERS ARE VERY OFFENSIVE!
But we wouldn't have it any other way. :)

Chronicles of Narnia

-sighs-
I'm still trying to come to grips that.....................CLASSES ARE OVER! I am deeply mourning inside, but I figured I should think of something that would take my mind off it.

Sooo.......what better thing to do when one is sad then to watch The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian?!?

Ah, what a wonderful movie. I remember, almost exactly two years ago, when my church went to see it in theaters. Everyone had a great time. Even though the movie was changed quite a bit, with more battle scenes and a -cough- love story thing going on between Susan and Caspian, I love it. I thought the scene where Peter and Susan explain they won't be coming back was done very well.

And now, this December, The Dawn Treader comes to theaters!! The Dawn Treader is my favorite Narnia book, so I'm excited to see the film adaption......and, of course, see my favorite character from the movies, Edmund.

Edmund, (aka, Skandar Keynes) played such an important role in Prince Caspian and The Dawn Treader. After all, if Edmund had not overcome the White Witch's craftiness and broken her ice sculpture thing, Peter might well have released her. Even though Edmund is such a brat in The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, he really redeems himself in Prince Caspian.
Also, Skandar Keynes makes a very good Edmund. (No, Emily, I'm not over him yet)

It will be sad in The Dawn Treader to say goodbye to Edmund -sniffles- and Lucy, but Eustace and Jane will pick up from where they left off, I'm sure. And if The Last Battle is made in to a movie, we'll be able to see Peter, Edmund, and Lucy again. (too bad for Susan)

So until December....................I LOVE THE DAWN TREADER I LOVE THE DAWN TREADER I LOVE EDMUND I mean I LOVE THE DAWN TREADER.

Peace out, ya'll. =)

A fantastic goal

And, what would my week be like without an amazing soccer goal?

http://sports.yahoo.com/soccer/blog/sow_experts/post/A-fantastic-45-yard-free-kick-from-Paraguay?urn=sow,241862

Granted, the commentator is super annoying, but check out that strike!

Iron Man

Sunday night, my family watched Iron Man for the first time. Yeah, I know, we're a little behind in our movie watching. And yes, I know it was all the rage two years ago. It's still just as good this year though!

Anyway, at first I was a little hesitant: I'm not usually one for superhero movies. I watched all the Spiderman ones, but didn't really like them that much. As for Batman---forget about it.
That being said, I was prepared to be bored out of my mind.

Boy, was I wrong.

Just a few minutes in to the movie, I was on the edge of my seat. Would Tony Stark give in and make a huge, atomic weapon for the bad guys? Would he be able to survive with that funky blue thing in his chest? Would his partner/friend/evil nemesis win? Would he ever realize that Pepper was the one for him? Would all his friends leave him?

Eventually, all my questions were answered. What really struck me was how patriotic and Christian-themed this movie was.

Patriotic, because Tony wouldn't make an atomic bomb for the baddies. Also, he realized how important the deaths of the soldiers in Afghanistan were to America: they gave their lives defending him and, ultimately, their country.

As for Christian aspects-----man, they're everywhere!
When Dr. Yinsen gives his life so that Tony can escape from captivity, it's (quite) like Christ giving His life so we can escape from Hell.
Right before Dr. Yinsen dies, he tells Tony not to waste his life. Tony eventually comes to realize that he 'was put on this earth for a reason.'

His reason, obviously, is to save mankind. Kind of like other superhero movies, but Tony is different.
Tony wasn't born on a different planet, nor bitten by a spider. He's just.................Tony. Tony, with a very cool bluish-light thing in his chest.
And he certainly has his faults. Of course, he doesn't really give up his temptations, but he realizes that he should change.

After he realizes that his business partner, Obidiah, had him kidnapped and wants him dead, he tries to stop him. After that fails, Tony is ready to die with Obidiah if it means saving Pepper and the world.

Of course, he doesn't die. And at the end, when everyone is telling him to pretend he had nothing to do with 'Iron Man,' Tony admits that he is.

And there the story ends. It was a fantastic movie, and I can't wait to see the second one! Of course, Mom and Dad will have to read the Christian reviews.
I know for a fact that some inappropriate scenes were in the movie, which I don't get: Why ruin a perfectly good movie with junk like that? Also, some language, which I also don't get.

But, that's a topic for another blog post. See ya!



ps--One thing that I absolutely loved: At one point, Tony hands Pepper (her last name is Potts, mind you) a little tiny teacup that looks an awful lot like Chip from Beauty and the Beast. It could just be my imagination, but Pepper Potts holding a teacup? I don't think that was just a coincidence.

Not just another princess

Here's another excerpt from The Two Towers that I like.
When they had all drunk, the king went down the hall to the doors. There the guards awaited him, and heralds stood, and all the lords and chiefs were gathered that remained in Edoras or dwelt nearby.

'Behold! I go forth, and it seems like to be my last riding,' said Theoden. 'I have no child. Theodred my son is slain. I name Eomer my sister-son to be my heir. If neither of us return, then choose a new lord as you will. But to someone I must now entrust my people that I leave behind, to rule them in my place. Which of you will stay?'
No man spoke.

'Is there none whom you would name? In whom do my people trust?'

'In the House of Eorl,' answered Hama.

'But Eomer I cannot spare, nor would he stay,' said the king, 'and he is the last of that House.'

'I said not Eomer,' answered Hama. 'And he is not the last. There is Eowyn, daughter of Eomund, his sister. She is fearless and high-hearted. All love her. Let her be as lord to the Eorlingas, while we are gone.'

'It shall be so,' said Theoden. 'Let the heralds announce to the folk that the Lady Eowyn will lead them!'

Then the king sat upon a seat before his doors, and Eowyn knelt before him and received from him a sword and a fair corslet. 'Farewell sister-daughter!' eh said. 'Dark is the hour, yet maybe we shall return to the Golden hall. But in Dunharrow the people may long defend themselves, and if the battle go ill, thither will come all who escape.'

'Speak not so!' she answered. 'A year shall I endure for every day that passes until your return.' But as she spoke her eyes went to Aragorn who stood nearby.




Eowyn is not an ordinary princess. Her people love her, respect her, and follow her. Even the great chiefs and lords of Rohan would have Eowyn rule in her uncle's place.

Not many princesses would be willing to take on such a heavy burden, but Eowyn is ready and willing.
But that look at Aragorn as she spoke..........................ah, she was already so in love. How sad that she should love him, heir of Gondor, and love of the fair Lady Arwen.


She'll learn soon enough, I suppose.

Saturdays

Mmm...............today has been gorgeous.

Today has been the perfect Saturday.

I woke up early so I could listen to the Top 20 Countdown on 89.9. It's a show where they run through the top 20 Christian songs for the week. I was very happy that Tenth Avenue North debuted at #17 with 'Healing Begins.' If you haven't heard that song.............you're definitely missing out. :)

That went on until ten, and then I read a little, wrote a little, painted a little, and sanded a little.
I sanded two shelves for my bedroom. They've been in my brothers' room, and so they needed sanding and painting. I painted them the same green as one of my walls, and I'll be putting them on one of my pink walls for some contrast. I would have used purple, but sadly the paint was all dried up. :(

In a couple hours we leave for my soccer game. We've lost all our games this season, so we're ready to win. ;) Hopefully we will!

The only thing that would make this day better would be to have a great dinner and..............oh wait, we are having a great dinner! Mom is making Martha's Casserole that we will have this evening. Martha's is a delicious mix of noodles, sour cream, cottage cheese, and ground meat. MMMMMM!!!
Delicious. Doesn't sound very good, nor really look good, but the taste is fabulous. Whenever I get a new wire put in my braces, Mom makes Martha's that night, since it's nice and soft and doesn't hurt my teeth.


So that's how my Saturday is going. Enjoy the weekend, everyone!

Awesome lyrics

Here's another song that has great lyrics.

"Forgiven" by Sanctus Real

Well the past is playing with my head

And failure knocks me down again

I’m reminded of the wrong

That I have said and done

And that devil just wont let me forget

In this life

I know what I’ve been

But here in your arms

I know what I am

I’m forgiven

I’m forgiven

And I don’t have to carry

The weight of who I’ve been

Cause I’m forgiven

My mistakes are running through my mind

And I’ll relive my days, in the middle of the night

When I struggle with my pain, wrestle with my pride

Sometimes I feel alone, and I cry

In this life

I know what I’ve been

But here in your arms

I know what I am

I’m forgiven
I’m forgiven
And I don’t have to carry
The weight of who I’ve been
Cause I’m forgiven

When I don't fit in and I don’t feel like I belong anywhere

When I don’t measure up to much in this life

Oh I'm a treasure in the arms of Christ.

I’m forgiven
I’m forgiven
And I don’t have to carry
The weight of who I’ve been
Cause I’m forgiven

Isn't it great, knowing we're forgiven?

Weekends

Sorry it's been a while......this weekend was just slamming busy for me!

Saturday was fun: I had a soccer game (we lost), then ate dinner with the grandparents. Afterwards, I went to a Washington Freedom game with my friend and her family. They won, which was nice.

Then yesterday, up early for church. We had a guest pastor, and he only preached until 11:30!!!!! which was kind of nice, since my family had to leave right after the service.
For her Mother's Day present, my mom wanted us to go and help out one of her friends with a Mother's Day brunch at a nursing home. So the whole family went, along with my aunts and cousin. We served fruit, cookies, cake, and drinks to all the older people. It was a really nice time, seeing how the older folks appreciated our kind words and actions.

After that, we scurried over to my cousin's house for a Mother's Day dinner. This is the first Mother's Day without Mom-mom, so it was kind of bittersweet. It was nice to get together with all my family members though, and reminisce about all the good times we had had with Mom-mom. My favorite part was listening to stories told by my dad and his siblings about growing up with Mom-mom.
Then, as we were all getting ready to leave, Aunt Becky gathered everyone together to share our favorite memories of Mom-mom. We started off with my cousins Kylie, age 6, Mason, age 4, and Skylar, age 3. It was a little sad listening to them, because they really don't remember much about Mom-mom. I feel so bad for them----I have all these great memories of living with Mom-mom for 14 years, but here they had her only for a snippet of their lives. At least I know they'll be able to live with her forever in heaven.
When it was my turn to share a memory, I could only think of one thing: Whenever me, my brothers, or our cousins would say something mean or do something bad, Mom-mom would say some made-up word, like "happachinymama!" or something like that. It would make us laugh, even though we were technically in trouble. As I tried to remember her exact words, I felt tears come to my eyes. I don't like to cry in public, so I held them back as best I could. All my family members laughed as they remembered her saying that too. Then it was on to someone else, and I was able to collect myself.
The really hard thing I've been dealing with Mom-mom being gone is talking about all the memories and old days. I can look at pictures and not feel sad, but once we talk about her sandwiches or Christmas parties or anything else, I start to cry. I feel silly saying that, but it's true. Then I just have to remind myself that those times are past, and I have a whole eternity to live with her in Heaven, where tons of other memories and fun times will be had.


I love you, Mom-mom.

Christian theme

Here's another passage from The Two Towers that has a very Christian theme:

'Now, lord,' said Gandalf, 'look out upon your land! Breathe the free air again!'
From the porch upon the top of the high terrace they could see beyond the stream the green fields of Rohan fading into distant grey. Curtains of wind-blown rain were slanting down. The sky above and to the west was still dark with thunder, and lightning far away flickered among the tops of hidden hills. But the wind had shifted to the north, and already the storm that had come out of the East was receding, rolling away southward to the sea. Suddenly through a rent in the clouds behind them a shaft of sun stabbed down. The falling showers gleamed like silver, and far away the river glittered like a shimmering glass.
'It is not so dark here," said Theoden.

That passage has such a Christian meaning: Even in the darkest times, there is still hope. For Middle Earth, that hope was Frodo and the Ring, heading to Mordor. As Christians, our hope is in Jesus Christ.

Eowyn

Here's one of my new favorite passages from The Two Towers.

"Go, Eowyn sister-daughter!" said the old king. "The time for fear is past."
The woman turned and went slowly into the house. As she passed the doors she turned and looked back. Grave and thoughtful was her glance, as she looked on the king with cool pity in her eyes. Very fair was her face, and her long hair was like a river of gold. Slender and tall she was in her white robe girt with silver; but strong she seemed and stern as steel, a daughter of kings. Thus Aragorn for the first time in the full light of day beheld Eowyn, Lady of Rohan, and thought her fair, fair and cold, like a morning of pale spring that is not yet come to womanhood. And now she was suddenly aware of him: tall heir of kings wise with many winters, greycloaked, hiding a power that yet she felt.
For a moment still as stone she stood, then turning swiftly she was gone.

Dad was reading The Two Towers to us tonight, and he came upon that paragraph. I just love how Tolkien was able to capture the essence of Ewoyn in that one small paragraph. I'm also amazed at how well Peter Jackson was able to cast the role of Eowyn---the actress who played her was amazing. As Dad read this passage, I could see a clear picture of Eowyn in my head---and the actress in the movie matched it perfectly.
I also think it's interesting how Tolkien writes that Aragorn specifically saw Eowyn for the first time. I suppose he's setting us up for later meetings between the two.
Of course, I'm thinking of the movie again....gotta stop doing that! Die-heart LOTR fan that I am, I am ashamed to say I haven't read all the books myself. This is the first time Dad is reading the series to us, and it's quite different than the books. We all agreed that the scene where Gandalf casts Wormtongue/Saruman from Theoden's mind is better portrayed in the movie.............sorry Tolkien!!!!

Anyway, back to my original point: Eowyn is such a perfect beauty: fair and beautiful, yet stern and cold. Just as a Lady of Rohan should be.


More later!

funny!

I laughed at the writer of this story/preview.

http://movies.yahoo.com/feature/movie-talk-batman-3-summer-2012.html

Can't wait for Cars and The Hobbit!!

A mighty God

The Lord reigns, he is robed in majesty;
The Lord is robed in majesty and is armed with strength.
(Psalm 93)

Now, here is a song I love...that kind of goes with this verse, telling how mighty God is:

"When Everything Falls" by Fee

When everything falls apart

Your arms hold me together

When everything falls apart

You're the only hope for this heart

When everything falls apart

And my strength is gone

I find you mighty and strong

You keep holding on

You keep holding on

Isn't it wonderful, knowing we have a mighty and strong God who loves us?

Another uplifting song

As I'm sure you know by now, I love Tenth Avenue North.

My most favorite song by them is 'By Your Side.'

When my grandma died, this song really helped me remember that she is truly in God's hands.

I remember one Tuesday night after she died, I was having a really hard time. I wasn't able to turn in any assignments for classes the next day, because we had been so busy with funeral preparations and family commitments. I was upset, because I like to have my schoolwork done on time. My parents assured me I could do it all by next week and that my teachers wouldn't be angry (and they weren't!). I was still stressed out though.
I was lying on my bedroom floor, writing in my journal. All of a sudden I just started crying. I'm not sure why I started crying......everything just flooded out.
Then I heard By Your Side come on my radio (it's always set to 89.9). As the first lyrics came on, I stopped crying to listen. Then the chorus came on, and I was reminded that Mom-mom and I and everyone are in God's hands.......we don't have to worry about death or late schoolwork or anything. God is holding us in his hands. And we don't have to worry.

So here are the lyrics that really touched my heart that Tuesday night:

And I'll be by your side
Wherever you fall
In the dead of night
Whenever you call
And please don't fight
These hands that are holding you
My hands are holding you..........


Thanks so much, Tenth Avenue North, for that wonderful song. And thank you God for sending it at just the right time.

Bunkers and Forts

Ah.......remember the rainy days, long ago, when you would take all the blankets in your house, find your siblings, and build a blanket fort?

Those were the days, weren't they? Well, it seems my brothers haven't grown out of this little quirk: Which is fine with me!

Gotta love boys who still have enough imagination to build a fort in their bedroom!

Says Aiden, "This is our bedroom, and as you can see, we are fabulous artists at making forts and bunkers."

lol =D

Yawns

Ugh, I am quite tired. Maybe that's why I didn't write all of yesterday........and Sunday. I'm quite proud of myself, I must say! :)

I thought I would share some lyrics from one of my favorite songs of all time.

Times by Tenth Avenue North

I hear You say, "My love is over.
It's underneath.It's inside. It's in between.
The times you doubt Me, when you can't feel.
The times that you question, 'Is this for real?
The times you're broken.The times that you mend.The times that you hate Me, and the times that you bend.
Well, My love is over, it's underneath.It's inside, it's in between.
These times you're healing, and when your heart breaks.
The times that you feel like you're falling from grace.The times you're hurting, The times that you heal.
The times you go hungry, and are tempted to steal.
The times of confusion, in chaos and pain.
I'm there in your sorrow, under the weight of your shame.
I'm there through your heartache, I'm there in the storm.
My love I will keep you, by My pow'r alone.
I don't care where you fall, where you have been.
I'll never forsake you, My love never ends.
It never ends........

Oh, how I love that song. That's only part of the song......the other part is a person talking to God, whereas this part is God talking to us.
I love this part especially though: it says that no matter where we are, in pain, hunger, or sorrow, God is always with us, shielding us with his love. Just thinking of that makes me feel good.......like God always knows where I am and what I'm going through.

I'll never forsake you, My love never ends. It never ends........

I am a victim

As the title above states, I am a victim. No, I have not been injured-----at least not physically.

No, my pride has been injured.


For the past few weeks, "Funnybandz" have become quite popular among my peers. For those of you who haven't yet been introduced to this fad, here is a picture of what they look like: That's what they look like off your wrist.






And here they are on. Very stretchy, thin, and tight.

Anyway, my younger brothers have been fascinated by these Funnybandz and wanted some of their own. So on the way home from church (of all places!) we stopped by the Hallmark store and the boys bought a pack. They were kind enough (ha!) to give me some bands. Yes, the above pictures are mine. I normally try to stay away from fads, but these seemed okay....harmless enough, that is.

They are quite costly: a pack of 24 costs $5.00. And they tend to break or stretch out after numerous wearings. So they're not the most cost effective buy, but they do look kind of cool.
And while I'm not too proud about wearing these Funnybandz, I will be willing to trade some of my own for a pig or hippo or whatever. :)

I love yard sales!!!!

I love yard sales.

My neighborhood had their annual yard sale today. My family had to get up early, but it was worth it! We sold lots of stuff that was just sitting around the house collecting dust. Lots of my childhood toys were sold, which made me kind of sad. :( But all the toys are now in good homes, so I feel satisfied.

Anyway, there were also a few good deals around town. My most favorite is this one right below:



This bike is normally around $150, in stores. I got it for.............................$5!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Yes! I'm absolutely telling the truth!
When the lady told me the price, I was shocked. I had just been riding around on my old bike when I saw a bike in front of someone's house with a dog crate next to it. I decided to stop by and see if it was for sale, out of curiosity. When the lady told me it was $5, I nearly fainted.
I have always wanted a bike like this: Old fashioned, yet working, and baby blue!

It does need a little work: The tires need to be pumped and the handles are loose, but in just a few hours I'll have my dream bike!!!!