Somebody get me a Coloratura Soprano, because we’re starting 2011 on a high note!
First of all, our condo in Utah FINALLY sold, right at the last minute (the sale closed on Dec. 30th and we got our copies of the papers signed, notarized, and FedEx’ed back to Utah on the afternoon of New Year’s Eve). We’re so glad that it was finally able to sell and that we could avoid a foreclosure. While the short sale and other dings on our credit aren’t ideal, they’re certainly preferable! It’ll be a while before we’re able or ready to buy a house again, but we’re not in any rush to do so, anyway.
CHRISTMAS EVE
As you know, Christmas Eve included homemade Chinese food:
We made beef lo mein, ham fried rice, and for the first time we made homemade pork egg rolls—those were the surprise hit—we didn’t know how they were going to turn out, but they were delicious!
Elliott loved the dinner (but then again, he’ll eat anything):
That night, the kids had homemade cocoa and homemade marshmallows (using a recipe from Nicole who always has great recipes for stuff):
And of course, we made Cinnabons, which were just as delicious as they looked:
For the Nativity story, we watched the church video “Joy to the World,” which we got at Goodwill for $1 (I think that’s a video that people can order free from the TV). Amanda and I enjoyed watching it more than the kids did, obviously. They were a little too impatient for the present-opening.
Traditionally, we give the kids pajamas and a new book on Christmas Eve—this year, we skipped on the pajamas to save money (and because Amanda was busy knitting/sewing too many other things for Christmas) and just got them books. Here they are with their books:
Abe was really excited when we let him know that we’d be opening the rest of the presents when we woke up Christmas morning. Apparently, because all our home videos show us in our pajamas opening presents when it’s still dark outside, Abe thought we would be opening all the presents on Christmas NIGHT.
CHRISTMAS DAY
The goal for Christmas presents this year was to scale back A LOT. OK, when money’s tight, it’s more of a requirement than a goal, but it turned out so well this year, that we’re hoping to keep Christmas simple every year from now on.
We feel very blessed that we were able to get a lot of presents for free (using certificates from the Nintendo points, Disney Rewards points, and MyPoints) or at cheap prices. Also, Amanda knitted several of the presents that turned out to be some of their favorite gifts. And the kids’ stockings were filled with free surplus toys from some Mindspace promotions and bags of Halloween candy we got on clearance the week after Halloween.
Here are some random present-opening photos:
Abe was, of course, excited for his giant candy bar:
The big hit of the morning was the collection of stuffed animals Amanda knitted, based on characters from the animated films, “My Neighbor Totoro” and “Ponyo”:
Amanda’s mom got Joel a remote-controlled helicopter, which is thoroughly frightening to Elliott and Amanda and me:
The rest of the day was spent relaxing and enjoying our new toys and games. For dinner, we fired up the barbeque:
And grilled some burgers and hot dogs:
WEEK OFF
I had the week off from work, which I spent doing some freelance animation, playing around with the 3-D program I’m trying to learn, and basically just hanging around the house. We’ve been watching some of our Netflix movies, including some more episodes of Doctor Who (we’re halfway through season 2 of the newest version of the series).
A few days ago, the kids watched Elliott (who was taking a nap—not hard work) while Amanda and I went to see “Tangled.”
Ultimately, I’ll say I enjoyed my time off, but I felt like I didn’t accomplish much—I was doing too much work to relax, but not enough work to feel like I got anything done. Oh well, at least I got paid for it!!
On Tuesday the 28th, we took a trip to the Mesa Temple to look at the Christmas lights and go to the visitor’s center. It was a nice change from seeing the Salt Lake Temple Square lights—we were in light sweaters instead of bundled up in coats and gloves. Here’s a side-by-side comparison of our Mesa Temple trip vs. our Salt Lake Temple trip from a couple years ago:
While we were walking by the front entrance to the temple, I saw two ladies that looked very familiar. It turned out that it was Wendy and Mandy Pfau from Tucson, who were visiting the temple with their families. It was nice to say hi and catch up with them a little—Maddy remarked how crazy it is that people that know each other from years ago happened to be in the same place at the same time. (Now sing to yourself, “It’s a Small World After All!)
MOVIE WRAP UP
As usual, I’ve got to go over my 2010 Movies. I only saw 14 different movies in the movie theater this past year (though I saw 3 of them twice each, for a total of 17 trips to the movie theater).
Here are my quick thoughts on all 14, ranked in order from FAVORITE to LEAST FAVORITE (note, these are listed in order of “my favorites,” not necessarily ranked by what were the most well-crafted or artistically superior):
Tangled
Finally, a Disney movie that FEELS like a Disney movie—it’s been YEARS since I could say that. Although I will always have a soft spot for hand-drawn animation, last year’s “Princess and the Frog” was very mediocre. “Tangled” had great 3-D animation (heavily influenced by Glen Keane, animator of Ariel, the Beast, Aladdin, and Pocahontas, to name just a few) and a strong story. The songs weren’t AMAZING, but they got the job done. Definitely one we’ll watch plenty of times on video. I thought the villain, Mother Gothel, didn’t look very “Disney” and actually looked more like a Dreamworks character (intentional???)
Harry Potter 7 part 1
The first time I saw this I really enjoyed it, but I felt like it was very “rushed,” like it just moved from scene to scene, ticking off the required sequences in the adaptation of the book, and shortening some of my favorites in an effort to cram it all in. The second time I saw it, I got to enjoy it for what it was, instead of what I thought it would/should be, and realized it was a really, really good movie—one of the best of the series (though the stylized nude scene was unnecessary).
Tron: Legacy IMAX 3-D
Exactly what I thought it would be: great special effects, great action sequences, plain story. Shots from that movie are burned into my brain (I thought that only happened with the old computer monitors?!?) and when we saw it in IMAX, the floors and seats were vibrating from the booming sound effects and music—it was great. And those TRON girls…HOTTTTT!! (At first, I wrote HOOOOT, but that looked like “hoot” instead of “hot.”)
The A-Team
I went into this one with low expectations, but it was tons of fun. The perfect movie for the 8-year old boy in all of us (or in Joel’s case, the 8-year old boy himself). And after watching some A-Team episodes on Netflix, it’s clear the movie is in the same tone as the show.
Toy Story 3
The “Toy Story” movies have never been at the top of my Pixar list; in fact, they’re down at the bottom beside “Cars” and “A Bug’s Life.” But this one was very well-done, and like most PIXAR films, more clever than it has any right to be. And the short film before the movie, “Day and Night,” is the kind of unique-concept experimental film I always wanted to make.
Alice in Wonderland
I’m one of the people that think Tim Burton has improved and matured as a filmmaker over the years, and that his more recent movies are far superior to his earlier films. Not a perfect movie, but still very fun. Amanda, who hates any “Alice in Wonderland” type movie, hated this one.
The Social Network
Lest you think I only like overly art-directed kids’ movies and dumb action flicks, I present to you “The Social Network,” which was just as interesting and fast-paced as The A-Team, but all about the drama behind the creation of Facebook—clever script and great performances—makes you wonder how many other human dramas are occurring behind-the-scenes of all the other media, political, and social events we come across on a daily basis.
Inception
Not as clever or as good (or as confusing) as people said it was, but still an interesting sci-fi action movie (I’ve always had a soft spot for “real-world” sci-fi). Loved seeing the layers of the dream states and how it all worked together.
How to Train Your Dragon
One of the few Dreamworks movies I actually enjoyed, with some great action scenes and humor and even some interesting character designs (I usually find Dreamworks designs to be pretty bland). Definitely more sincere than something like, say, Shrek—which we have avoided like the plague; I think they’re realizing that they need some of the Disney/PIXAR emotion instead of just the wacky/hip Looney Tunes-type humor.
Clash of the Titans
I actually preferred this version to the original—though I wish the metal owl had had more than a 2-second cameo. The Kraken, Fates, and weird guy that looked like he was made of tree bark were all awesome. Made me wish I still had my Calibos action figure and “Clash of the Titans” lunch box…
Sherlock Holmes
I’d forgotten all about this one, since we saw it in January (it came out LAST Christmas)—Fun, smart, and entertaining. Story was “meh” but with enough mystery-solving and twists and turns to keep me interested.
Date Night
OK, we like “The Office” and “30 Rock” and we’re a couple in the midst of parenthood, like the main characters—so this was fun—a little too PG-13 to recommend overall, but if you don’t mind that, you’ll probably enjoy it.
The Lovely Bones
I thought this movie was really well-made, but it’s not one I’ll ever watch again—just too creepy and sad.
Iron Man 2
This is the movie I was most disappointed in. Long and boring and without a really interesting villain. The best part of the movie was the parody (ok, not really a parody, but a “strongly inspired by” imitation) of Walt Disney and his TV appearances/”world of tomorrow” plans—complete with a song by the Sherman Brothers!
Movies we’re (meaning me and/or the family) looking forward to seeing in 2011:
Battle: Los Angeles 3/11
Thor: 5/6
Pirates of the Caribbean 4: 5/20
Kung fu Panda 2: 5/27
X-men: First Class 6/3
Super 8: 6/10
Green Lantern 6/17
Cars 2: 6/24
Caesar: Rise of the Apes: 6/24
Transformers 3: 7/1
Harry Potter 7 part 2: 7/15
Winnie the Pooh: 7/15
Captain America: 7/22
Cowboys & Aliens: 7/29
The Muppets: 11/23
Mission: Impossible 4: 12/16
Sherlock Holmes 2: 12/16
The Adventures of Tintin: 12/23
So that wraps up 2010 and points us to 2011. We’re so excited for the possibilities that this year holds in store for us, with the hope that we can continue to get back on our feet financially, grow closer to the Lord spiritually, and settle in even more comfortably to our new life in Arizona. Hope you all have a great year!
