Blue Crush & Failure to Launch

I recently bought the movies Blue Crush and Failure to Launch.

I watched Blue Crush a few days ago, and I'm watching Failure to Launch now. I forgot how funny/awesome these movies are!!!

Let's start with Blue Crush. 5 reasons why I love that movie so much:

1) It has surfing. The crash of waves. The awesome special effects that actually make it look like the actors are surfing. They all add up to equal amazing-ness! I mean, it makes me feel more fit just by watching it ;)

2) It has snarky girls in it. They're sassy, and they crack me up. Although, there are times in the movie when I want to smack the youngest one, Penny, upside the head, because she's being such a brat...

3) It has HILARIOUS football players in it! There's a scene where they're getting surfing lessons from the girls, and it makes me laugh every time. :)

4) It actually has a plot. I hate movies that try to be hip/funny, yet they don't actually have a plot. Lame. Also, the girls all work in a hotel, so it kinda has a Maid in Manhattan element to it which I LOVE.

5) And last but not least, it has - THE GUY FROM LEGALLY BLONDE!!! And he's GREAT in this movie. He makes me sigh in happiness =D


So there you go. I know it might be completely shallow and superficial, but I love the movie Blue Crush.

Now onto Failure to Launch. Granted, there are scenes with bad language and sexual innuendo/nudity, but what PG-13 movie doesn't have that? Also, if you know where the scenes are, you can FFWD! Novel idea, right? Ok, now for the 10 reasons I love the movie Failure to Launch (Yes, 10 reasons. Don't hate me because I'm beautiful):

1) The paintball scene - it's my FAVORITE scene in the whole movie. Don't ask me why; it just cracks me up when I'm watching it. The guys are such guys in it (Bradley Cooper is a genius, and that nerd guy they hang out with is so cute and adorable). Sarah Jessica Parker and Zooey Deschanel are brilliant in this scene as well.

2) I love the fact that every time they are in nature, Matthew McConaughey (sp?) somehow gets attacked by some form of wildlife - a squirrel, a dolphin, a lizard - every time, the other two guys are so chill about it. Haha!

3) The parents - you know the ones I mean. Kathy Bates and...that guy from Coach? They are comedic gold in this movie! In one of the scenes, his mom tells him to clean the bathroom and do a load of laundry. When she walks out, the guys are like, "Dude, something's wrong with your mom..." So. Funny. Oh, and the dad tries to set up a "naked room" in the house. Inspired/creepy.

4) The mini-love story between Zooey Deschanel and Matthew's nerdy friend. They bond over shooting a mocking bird with a BB gun. Their relationship is adorable in a geeky/awkward way.

5) The scene where their friends stick them in a room together, tie Matthew McConaughey up, and record them fighting/making up on video for his parents and an entire coffee shop to see. Cracks me up every time.

6) Zooey Deschanel in and of herself. She's so sarcastic. I love it.

7) The nerdy friend in and of himself. I just want to pinch his cheeks, he's so cute!

8) The activities that the three guys do together. Paintball. Mountain biking. Rock climbing. And last but not least, yoga. The most random, and my favorite, activity of all :)

9) Um...I forget the last two, but....

10) I love this movie! (And I didn't want to end on 8. That's just tacky.)

Well, that's it. Hope you enjoyed my superficial/shallow movie critiques of the day! Later!

Spring Cleaning

Today was an amazing day and also a heart-breaking day.

Pastor Osborne delivered two incredible sermons today, but the message he brought tonight (technically, last night) was profound. He used spring cleaning as a metaphor. In 1 Corinthians 5, Paul alluded to the "spring cleaning" Israel had to do by finding all their leaven and removing it from their homes. For those who don't know what leaven is (and I really didn't until tonight), leaven is leftover dough that ferments and can spoil the rest of the dough if used.

So anyway, Pastor Osborne compared that to us and how we need to confess our sins and renew our hearts DAILY. He said that "it is harder to get your life clean than to keep it clean." That is so true. I have experienced it over and over again in my life.

When I don't stay in the word and confess specific sins DAILY to God, I become a hoarder of sin and laziness in my heart. Eventually, there's not even room to walk through the pathways of my heart, because they're so cluttered with meaningless distractions and "small" sins that I've become desensitized to because I haven't confessed them. When I finally become convicted to actually "catch up" and "get back to where I used to be," it's a HUGE struggle to overcome.

D        A        I          L        Y.

That's a word I struggle with, because I'm so undisciplined and lazy. I create plans all the time to get in the Word and spend time with God, but it falls apart after a few days. Every time. And I'm left feeling hopeless and defeated. Every time.

Let me take a break from talking about that really quick and go somewhere else. For the past month and a half, I've been on a "healthy eating plan," "lifestyle change," or "healthy food regimen"...whatever you want to call it. I've been telling myself for the longest time that I need to lose weight, but I finally had to buckle down, decide what foods I could and could not eat, and commit to it. It takes a DAILY (there's that word again!) decision to deny myself bread, pastas, and other high-carb or high-sugar foods and instead choose to eat the foods that are good to my body and not just good to my taste buds. Sometimes I want to cheat. There are days where I eat a cookie...or a piece of bread...or...fill in the blank. But then I envision the end goal once again. I am determined to be at a certain place by December, so I will stick to what I'm doing in order to attain that goal.

Okay, so let's go back to the whole DAILY discipline devotions thing. Same concept, right? I just need to "begin with the end in mind" as it were. Where do I want to be? And how do I get there? Answer: I want to be at His feet, following in His steps, IN HIS WILL. I get there by DAILY deciding to spend time in His Word and talking to Him...confessing my sins.


I never want to get to a place where I can't recognize sin in my life. I never want to be living in sin and moral filth and consider myself to be in a "close and loving relationship with God." I found out something about a missionary in my church tonight that broke my heart. He is being blinded to sin by Satan and his own selfish heart, and he still considers himself to be serving God.

Please Lord...

                                                                                                                                ...change his heart.

And help me find and remove the leaven from mine.

1 Corinthians 5:6-8

The Amendment =)

Ho-kay. So. Here's the thing.

APPARENTLY in my last few posts, I left some VERY important people (and by people, I mean a person) out.

So let me amend that.
Matthew McCard, my brother-in-law...you.are.awesome.

Thank you for being my movie buddy. Thank you for helping me cheat on my diet sometimes (SHHH! Don't tell Jessica!). And thank you for being the brother I never had. I really am so thankful for you in my life. I'm so glad God was able to bring you and I close as family just as God was able to bring Jessica and I close as friends. What a great God we serve!

...And thanks for being a firefighter. That's really cool in my book ;)

Embarrassing camo photo - check.

Matt is also a great family-type man!

And he really loves his wife!

And his mom!

I just stumbled on this photo whilst trying to find photos that Matt and I are actually in together - aka NOT A LOT.


In conclusion, Matt McCard is a great guy. Just ask my sister :)

THE END!

PS: Matt, we need more pictures together.

THE FOR-REAL END!!

Pictures!

My last post was getting kinda long, so this post will just be pictures! Yay!

^Me and Lo at Alli and Trav's wedding in January =)

^Me and Alli!!!! "How beautiful the radiant bride...!"

^Me and Malia at my old roommate's, Mary's, wedding - also in January!

^Me and Mary =)))))

^A fun excursion Amy, Dakota, Hannah, and I took while in Clearwater. This is our band cover photo.

^This photo (as well as the next four) feature my trio, which includes me, Amy, and Dakota. In addition to taking great pictures together, we make great music together. You should check us out =)

^Me, Jessica, Sara, and my Mom - all at Faith Baptist Church. I love it when my church family and my biological family can merge like this!!!

^Me and Bella after her dance recital!

^All the family that was able to come to Bella's baptism! Included are Matt, Jessica, Matt's mom, Matt's stepdad, Aunt Judy, Sara, Paul, Mom, Bella, Liam, and me!

^This was the proudest I've been of Bella so far in her life. One day we will both be together in Heaven!! =)

^Beach day after Hannah's wedding. SO FUN!

^Me and Bella at her Kindergarten graduation program =)

As this next progression shows, crazy things happen when Amy and I get together...

First, the cake comes out...

Then, it somehow gets shoved in faces... ;)

And, you know, we like to keep our silly face-making fresh...

And so clean =)

As you can see, Dakota and I like to make faces as well.

...

...

...

But, let me assure you, we still know how to smile =)

But where would I be without my friend Hannah?....

"What made us friends in the long ago, when we first met? Well, I think I know..."

"...the best in me and the best in you hailed each other because they knew..."

"...that always and always since life began, our being friends was part of God's plan."

So once again I ask, where would I be? Thank God I will never have to find out =)

......................So thus my picture-sharing comes to an end. Thank you for visiting! Come back again soon now, ya hear?!