My Sister's Keeper....sort of.

This past week I went to see "My Sister's Keeper" with my good friends Jenn and Liz and their mom, Diane. I read the book by Jodi Picoult about 3 years ago. If you have not read a Jodi Picoult book, I highly recommend you do so. For me, they are soooo intoxicating that I can't put them down. My Sister's Keeper was my first Picoult book, and she writes in an interesting manner...from everyone in the story's perspective. Each chapter is designated for a different character's side of the story. That being said, she is probably one of my favorite authors. She writes about real (not necessarily true) things, things you can feel yourself going through. And she makes you think about situations from the "other person's" perspective. Obviously, with this glowing review, I highly recommend you read one of her books ;).

That being said, the movie was not much like the book. The premise was the same, but tons of things were changed. I can honestly say I prefer the book to the movie...it is much more descriptive and heart-wrenching. The movie totally changes the plot of the story. Normally, this makes me very upset, but I can understand why they did this. If they followed the book, it would have been a 5 hour movie! I highly recommend that you see the movie, but keep kleenex close...you'll need a whole box! It would be a great rental!

Canine or human?

This has always been the question with my dog, Butch. He is a canine, but he thinks he's a human! I swear, if you look into his eyes, you can tell what he's thinking. Take, for example, the other night. My brother is back from Florida, but to Butch, he "Stranger Danger." When Brad is around him for the first few days, Butch gets this fearful look in his eyes, like "He's okay for now, but please don't leave me alone with him!" The other night, I heard Butch push my bedroom door open and kind of pace around. He eventually laid down and slept on the floor. When he woke me up to go outside, he "herded" me to the living room. That is when I saw my brother, passed out on the floor in the living room (he'd been out for quite a while the day/night prior to this! Welcome home!) Butch stopped, looked at Brad, then me, then Brad, then me with a look that said "Do you believe the balls on this guy? He's sleeping in MY living room?" He entertains me.

Last week we had some pretty fierce storms. Of course, when it storms, I go to the fire station and usually end up out in the middle of nowhere checking for tornadoes...God love small towns! Butch is not a fan of storms...at all. He gets very nervous and paces around most of the time. When he was younger, I would take him to the fire station with me, and he'd be distracted by everyone there. However, he no longer wants to get in the car, so now he has to stay home. When I got home that night, I found him in my room, with his head buried under my bed. Poor thing! I usually always find him in my room if something bad has happened...apparently it's my job to save him!

I have so many more stories about Butch. He's the funniest dog/human I've ever met! One of my favorite stories is from when he was little. He and my dad were in charge of handing out Halloween candy one year. Dad had cooked some bacon and made "bacon sandwiches" (his version of BLT's). The doorbell rang, and dad put his open pepsi on the endtable, and the uneaten half of his sandwich on top of the can. When he went back to pick it up, all he had was the pepsi! Butch swiped the bacon sandwich without spilling the open can of pop it was sitting on, then looked at my dad with a "What? It wasn't me!" look!

My poor old puppy is just that...old. When we got him, we were told he was a black lab. And he looks like one, one that was bred with a Great Dane! He's huge! He has really long legs, a Dane head and hips, but looks like a lab. He's 12, and I'm not sure how much time we have left with him. He's really failed in the past few years. He remains, however, my entertainment.

Really?

So I found out today that a girl I went to high school with was murdered. MURDERED! She had relocated to the Carolinas a few years ago. She had two little boys and was pregnant with another. She was at work, cleaning at a med/surgical center, and was murdered by a coworker. These things just don't happen in a small town. I shared earlier this year about a friend who passed away. That was hard enough, but for a pregnant woman to be murdered? That crazy stuff just don't happen 'round these parts.

Living in a small town, of course you know everyone. This woman couldn't have had an enemy. She was open and accepting. She was always laid-back and always smiling. I just can't imagine that someone would do this to her. And that poor baby. And her little boys. My heart aches for those little boys. They'll never again get to give their mommy a hug and kiss. Poor babies!

If you have some extra time, please include her family in your prayers. They can really use it. Thanks.

Chaos

So the last month or so has been just that...chaos. Work has been crazy. The kids have been growly. My schedule has changed several times at the drop of a hat. Chaos...nothing but chaos.

I took some time off this past weekend to go to WI to celebrate E.'s 4th birthday. I can't believe she's four! She's growing up so fast! We made "fruit babobs" for her preschool birthday snack and a princess cake for her birthday. She's quite the little helper. I was really proud of her. Her cousin, C., had her birthday party on E.'s actual birthday, and I expected some drama. But E. was just fine. She played party games and it didn't bother her that C. was getting all the presents. Her brother, D., is six and had a hard time understanding why he didn't get presents too. That is because D. is the first grandchild on both sides and rarely hears "no" from either set of grandparents. Talk about a rude awakening!

It was a great weekend. We went to visit Holy Hill, which, as always, was amazing. It is just so beautiful and serene. AMAZING! If ever in the Milwaukee area, I highly recommend that you visit. You won't be disappointed!

Though I could have done without the endless miles of road construction, it was a great trip spent with great friends. Here's hoping the rest of the summer pans out as well!