The Boys in the Boat by Daniel James Brown -- Official Book Trailer

This book is a fast, fascinating and engaging book.  I could not put it down!  If you liked Unbroken or Seabiscuit, you will love this book.  Not only is the story of the nine boys in the boat fantastic, but the history of the times is fascinating.  This book is positive and uplifting.  A story of overcoming difficult and unfair circumstances.  

This book is a must read!

Out and About

 Over the weekend, we went to Cinepolis, a luxury theater to watch 3 Days to Kill.  The movie was great, a lot of action and a cute story of a father getting to know his daughter.

We saw the movie at a theater chain called Cinepolis.  Its a luxury theater.  No children under the age of 21 in the movies where they are serving alcohol. The seats are nice and big and they recline.  They have little trays to hold your food and you just press a button and a server comes to take your order.  They serve wine and beer along with cheeseburgers, soft pretzels etc.  The best part is you can reserve your seat online, so you don't have to get there 20 minutes early to make sure you have a good seat.  The cost of the ticket is $18.75, (regular movie ticket is $10.50) food and beverage are extra.  

Me enjoying the movie.  Worth every extra dollar. 

 Hollow City

This book was a page turner, I really enjoyed it.  The author finds those old weird photos and weaves a story around them. 

Sunday night I saw the musical production of The Wizard of Oz.  It was great.  I would recommend it for those of you who love the Wizard of Oz or if you want to take your grandchildren to a musical.  Not appropriate for children under 5, as there are some scary bits.  

Chicago The Musical

 Boy, The Broncos really disappointed everyone yesterday, so I just have to move on to something that certainly didn't.

Saturaday night I went to see CHICAGO at Segerstrom Center for the Arts. I LOVED IT!  It is now in my top 5. I was worried that since I'd seen the movie, it would tarnish my perception of the musical, but it didn't.  It was fantastic.  For the first time ever, I found myself singing along (don't worry, not loud enough for anyone to hear!).  I loved the way it was presented, the costumes, the songs and the actors were amazing.  The musical focused less on the Velma character and more on the Roxy character, which was a surprise to me, but it was fantastic.  

For an added bonus, John O'Hurley played Billy Flynn and he killed it.  The last production I saw him in was Spamalot and he killed it then too!

If you get a chance to see this production do it, you won't regret it. 

Go Broncos!

Valentine's Day 2014

Valentine's Day 2014 by janiegore featuring a red purse

Are you going out with your special someone on Valentine's Day? I've put together some of my favorite items that I would definitely choose for my night on the town.  I've included some of my favorite designers:  Melinda Maria Jewelry, Michele "Serein" watch, and my latest obsession: Red Valentino Couture Bow D'Orsay Pumps.  

January Odds and Ends

 After we had opened up all our presents and cleaned up the mess, Daisy decided that she would lay under the tree.  This just cracked me up!

 My kids gave me customized Nikes for Christmas.  If you go to the Nike Website you can customize your own pair.  You can put up to 6 characters on each of the tongues to inspire you or whatever.  They put my nickname.

 Katie sent me this picture of Darla and I just die.  So cute!  She's playing hide n go seek.  "You can't see me".  Dying!

I wouldn't call myself an artist by any stretch of the imagination, this was more a craft.  I made this little canvas piece for Katie's apt.  Painted the canvas pearl white (Martha Stewart Acrylic Paints) and sponged metallic gold dots onto it.  Martha even has a little round sponge on a stick that I used to make the dots. Everything found at Michaels. Easy Peasy!

And this is just one happy dog!  I love when she smiles. 

Girls First Visit to San Francisco

 Katie and Delaney's birthdays are a month apart.  One is a week after Christmas and the other's is a month.  What do you get these girls who just got gifts for Christmas?  The answer: a trip to San Francisco!  They've passed through a couple of times when they were little, but have never visited for longer than a couple of hours.  One of Katie's best friends from high school, Iustina, lives in SF so a visit was in order.

 They had beautiful, clear, warm weather (68-72 degrees) the whole weekend.  I heard declarations of love for the city.

 The city is so interesting, so beautiful, so fun, so much to do and see.  It didn't hurt that they were enjoying Iustina's friendship and had the knowledge of a local to show them around.

 Sadly, Lombard Street was not in bloom in January, but they still enjoyed it. 

 They loved the parks.  Everyone was so friendly, just hanging out, and enjoying the day.

 They even saw a parade in China Town. 

Beautiful architecture everywhere you look. 

Sadly, the weekend was over so soon.  They can't wait to go back! 

Thank you, Iustina, for your kind hospitality.