Grey Gardens

I saw this on HBO several months ago and never got around to posting about it. I knew close to nothing about the original documentary but once I heard Drew Barrymore was involved in the "remake," I was excited to see it. To say it simply, I was blown away. The acting was amazing, and very quickly I forgot I was even watching acting, and not peeking into the lives of two amazing, eccentric women.

I sat down thinking I would channel surf if I didn't like it, but I ended up sitting on the edge of the couch the whole time, pretty much enraptured. Now that it's out on DVD, I fully expect everyone who reads this (all three of you) to run out and get it and fall in love. Then watch the original and see how spot on Drew and her equally talented co-star, Jessica Lange are. Come Emmy time, it's going to get pretty interesting.

Latest Music Obsession

Whenever I get a new album, or even just a new song, I tend to listen to it on repeat until I know every word. I recently bought Demi Lovato's newest album, "Here We Go Again" and it is no exception. Unlike several Disney creations, this girl can really sing, and the stuff she writes is pretty great. My favorites are "Here We Go Again", "Every Time You Lie" (great jazzy style), and "Catch Me." Definitely worth a listen.

Fourth of July

I know this post is super late, but better late than never, right?

Fourth of July is by far my favorite second-tier holiday. I love fireworks, picnics, America and seeing family, but put that all together and it's a pretty magical day. This year, I made dinner and invited the grandparents over. I was excited to try out some new recipes, and I think everything turned out pretty well.



The Menu:
Barbecued Chicken


Roasted Red Potatoes
Roasted Green Beans (thanks Aunt Charlotte!)
Boston Baked Beans


Flag Cake

not really a cake, but I don't know what else to call it. Pretty easy, just store-bought sugar cookie dough, cream cheese frosting, and fresh berries. Too bad no one wanted to eat the blueberry part.

Chocolate Honey Almond Tart (from Giada At Home)


I was really excited about the Chocolate Tart and using my new springform pan for the first time. It was really rich and creamy, but the graham cracker crust was super crumbly. Next time, I think I'll try more butter and see if that helps it stick together better.

I'm already thinking about next year and what I'll make!

Summer Mix Tape

Music is crucial in the summer, especially if you're driving around a lot. Here's my perfect summer mix: a little old, a little new, but all good

Walking on Broken Glass--- Annie Lennox
Crazier--- Taylor Swift
Waking up in Vegas--- Katy Perry
Fallin' Apart--- The All-American Rejects
Paranoid--- Jonas Brothers
One Love/People Get Ready--- Bob Marley
Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough--- Michael Jackson
That's Not My Name--- The Ting Tings
I Can't Forget---Evan Olson
Working for the Weekend--- Loverboy
Someday Soon--- KT Tunstall
Saturday in the Park--- Chicago
Miss Independent--- Ne-Yo
Strawberry Swing--- Coldplay
Don't Stop Believin'--- Glee Cast (Check this out, it's awesome!)
Sunshine--- The All-American Rejects
You and I--- Ingrid Michaelson
When The Sun Goes Down, Summertime, or Beer in Mexico--- Kenny Chesney (wouldn't be summer without a little Kenny)
Lovefool--- The Cardigans
I Could Break Your Heart--- Mandy Moore
Rise Up--- Diane Birch


What's your soundtrack for the summer?

Utah Trip

For my graduation from BYU, and to pick up Lindsay from school, we drove to Utah last month. All of us. In one car. It was glorious. No seriously, we had a lot of fun. We watched a bunch of movies, nobody got really carsick, and we enjoyed the forced bonding. While we were there, we ate super delicious food (Costa Vida- which we decided was way better than Cafe Rio, sorry!- Old Spaghetti Factory and Kneader's), sat on uncomfortable seats for way too long, got up really early for convocation (who wants to walk at 8 in the morning?!), visited with family and saw some amazing things.

Amazing thing #1:
While driving through BYU campus, we had to stop for a family of ducks. They were trying to get to one of the many ponds on campus and we all just died watching them. I got some pretty great pictures from inside the car. We could not believe how many ducklings this mom had! Talk about a handful! They had to jump the curb to get to the pond, and we weren't sure they were going to make it because the first duckling kept missing it. Luckily, they made it, and dad duckling was anxiously awaiting them just on the other side. Tender, really.



Amazing Thing #2:
Friday night we took a mini-trip up to Salt Lake to walk around Temple Square and find something to eat. The girls had never been, so it was fun to look at everything. We got to talk to some wonderful sister missionaries from cool places and guess where they were from based on the flags on their nametags.



Afterwards, I decided since we were in SLC, we needed to stop at one of America's most famous high schools. (Thanks, Shan, for the prompt address look-up.)



When we got to East High, it started pouring and mom and dad wouldn't get out of the car. It doesn't mean as much to them, I guess. It was up to us girls to get a good picture. We walked around to the back where you could look in from huge floor-to-ceiling windows. A woman was leaving right as we walked up and I'm still kicking myself that I didn't stick my toe in the door and get in. Didn't want to risk the jail time. These were the best pictures I could get, and we all had a moment of silence and awe to be standing where Zac Efron once stood. Just so you can compare, here's pictures that I took of the cafeteria and then some from the movie.






Amazing Thing #3:
While walking around Salt Lake, we stumbled upon this amazing house. We all decided we would move in on the spot and it would be amazing. Anybody know how much something like this costs? I'm sure we could swing it, if everyone pooled their allowances. That is, if we even got allowances.



pictures of actual graduation to come soon

Movie Review

Star Trek



People keep saying how they didn't expect Star Trek to be good but were pleasantly surprised. I actually expected a lot from the movie, and I thought it was pretty great. J.J. Abrams, the director and producer, is the mastermind behind shows like Felicity, Alias, and LOST. I knew he was going to make Star Trek relevant and yet still appeal to hard-core fans. I loved how he snuck in favorite actors like Greg Gunberg, Amanda Foreman, and Jennifer Morrison. I was also so excited to see Zachary Quinto in such a big role. I've loved him since day one on Heroes, even though he was a super bad guy. Chris Pine was also great, and I think he does really well in the leading man role. I'm now very intrigued with the whole Star Trek franchise and want to see some old episodes and compare.

Wicked

Since I missed Wicked the first time it came into Portland, I was so excited to hear it would be coming again this Spring. We managed to get pretty good seats for all six of us (Lindsay was still at school, although she saw it on Broadway) and even though it was way too expensive, it was so worth it.


Once the original cast finished their run, I made up my mind that the other performers couldn't possibly be as good. Idina and Kristin are pretty much the best, in my opinion, so I honestly didn't have high expectations, but I was blown away! I was moved to tears probably three or four times. The staging was amazing, the ladies who played Galinda and Elphaba were phenomenal, and I loved finally learning how the story and the songs fit together. I hope the trend of turning musicals into movies continues with Wicked.

on a side note, was anyone else loving seeing Idina and husband Taye Diggs together on Private Practice? with fellow Broadway alum Audra McDonald as a series regular, I was a little disappointed they didn't break into song!