A special Saturday....

Yesterday was a great day, aside from me feeling sick. That was bad. But the rest of my Saturday was terrific!

I had pretty much the whole morning to myself. Mom and Owen were at gymnastics, and Dad and Aiden had scrimmages. So I stayed on the couch and watched Barcley's English Premier League soccer games!!! So glad the season has finally started!
That took up my morning, then everyone got home. I was still feeling pretty sick, so I stayed on the couch and watched more EPL soccer!

As I have said before, watching soccer is one of my favorite things to do.

Then we had fajitas for dinner, with fresh red and green peppers from our local farmer's market. Yummo!
After dinner, Aiden and Dad went to rent a movie from Blockbuster (we were all in the mood for something new to watch).

When they came back (about an hour later) they had not one, but six movies with them!
They had bought the Pink Panther and the Pink Panther 2, along with Inkheart and Nancy Drew! They had also rented Castaway and the Blind Side.

So we settled down to watch some movies! I really wanted to watch the Blind Side, since we had not seen it yet (yes, I know we are way behind in our movie watching) but everyone else wanted Inkheart. So we went with that.

I normally don't ever say this about a movie based on a book, but the movie is extremely better than the book. Sorry Cornelia Funke, but Inkheart just went on for too long. The movie summed everything up better, and I preferred the characters from the movie to the book.
With that over, I can move on to the Blind Side.


I knew even before we watched it that Mom would be crying during this movie. All the feedback from our friends had been good, but sad. And the first scene definitely portrayed sadness: Lawrence Taylor breaking Joe Theismann's leg.
I had no intention of looking. I don't do so well with body parts going ways they should not, so I turned away. I don't see why they had to play that scene over and over! Seriously, isn't once enough? But they were trying to make a point--------and I am certain they succeeded.

After that, the movie was great. It amazed me how quickly the neighborhoods changed in Memphis: one mile, you're in the rundown, crowded neighborhoods. The next, beautiful mansions with pristine landscaping.

A thing that stood out to me was how ignorant the richer people of Memphis were of the poorer section. I mean, poor Michael was sleeping in the gym, and no one seemed to notice or care?
It was a good reminder for me that poverty is not just in far off places like Ethiopia and Haiti, but also right here in America, right on the other sides of our towns and cities. Kids with not enough to eat, people with nowhere to sleep at night. Michael Oher's story truly is a miraculous one.

One thing I liked was how the movie portrayed the love and sincerity the Tuohy family showed to Michael, once they got to know him. He wasn't just a poor kid from the streets, he was part of their family. Once Collins realized that, she wasn't embarrassed to acknowledge Michael as her brother, even at school. Of course, S.J. was just the ideal little brother: A know-it-all, funny, loving, and goofy little guy. And Leigh-Anne loved Michael right off the bat. Sean took a little longer, but eventually he came to know Michael as his son too.

One of the best moments (in my opinion) was when Leigh-Anne is showing Michael his new room and she's talking about the futon and such. Michael says, "I've never had one of my own before." Leigh-Anne grins and says, "What? Your own room?" Michael, his face serious, shakes his head and says, "A bed." Leigh-Anne is silent for a few moments, obviously trying to process what he had just said. Finally, she replies simply, "Well, now you do." Then she walks out.
Leigh-Anne realizes that her world, full of expensive designer furniture, big houses, and overpriced luncheons is not what everyone experiences. Some, like Michael, don't even have a bed to sleep in.

I also liked when Leigh-Anne helped Michael learn how to tackle properly and why he should. Just as when he put his arm out to stop the airbag from hitting S.J., she says, he should keep the other team from getting to his quarterback. After it's put in to those terms, Michael does what he's supposed to do: protect his quarterback.

There are so many more things I could write about this movie. Sandra Bullock truly embraced the role of Leigh-Anne Tuohy, and brought her to life on the big screen. Sandra certainly deserved the Academy Award she received for that role.

And now, I'm going to rest. I still feel pretty sick----pray that is nothing serious and that I recover quickly!

Love always,