Easter Sunday!

Easter 2025 was a delight from start to finish... MWC Life Church, Olive Garden lunch with the fam in Norman, then a Tulsa trip, cute Easter egg hunt and dinner at the Wilson home, and lots of photos with people I love! ❤

This = our family table at Olive Garden!  (We had reservations at BJs, but they were very slow to seat us, so we headed across the street and had pretty great service at the OG!)  We had a good talk about next week's race, poster ideas, Jace's fish (always), and potential future vacation ideas!

And now, some 2025 Easter Sunday pics of several families I love... starting with the Schoolcraft fam!

The Shoemakers

Harvey Lane and Heidi Claire - so much cuteness!

Moss Fam!

The Shankles (my podcast franz - lol)

The Foster fam!

The Wilson/Weatherford crew!

The Maguires!

Me, Rach, and Kyndal Faith!

Jaceman has been serving in the 4-year-olds room lately and doing a great job - it makes me happy to see that!!

The kids just before the Easter egg hunt! =)

Everyone listening to "Uncle Chet" laying out the rules! lol

After the Easter egg hunt! ❤

Pile-on-Tate game, Parker watching closely while the dads were hiding the eggs - lol, snacks and dessert options, egg hunt, Parker being a dramatic storyteller, and Katherine Claire playing us a lovely song. lol

Gracious, I adore her!  Happy Birthday Eve Eve to her today! lol

Had not put together that it was 4/20 until Chettles sent this! lol

And now a more Jesus-centered meme, but still throwing in some rap. =)

In all sincerity, I am deeply grateful for the work of Christ, the only hope strong enough to anchor our hearts for anything this life throws at us!!  And I will write a separate post with some deeper thoughts on that later today.

❤ ❤ ❤

Easter Eve!

Happy Saturday, friends and family!  I just booked the Colorado flights for Mom and I for my graduation - get excited!  I know this isn't the best Spring weather for Easter weekend, but I'm loving the sound of the rain as I sit here blogging in my PJ shorts and hoodie.  If I'm choosing 3 emotions on the emotion wheel for today, I feel grateful, relaxed, and hopeful... very Easter appropriate. =)

I also feel reflective.  Today is the 30-year anniversary of the OKC bombing, something I remember vividly from my 5th grade year.  Mom took me to lunch that day and told me about it, then Miss White made the announcement to our class before school ended.  And a week or two after that, I wrote a poem that became a bigger deal than I'd anticipated.  Watching all of that on the news was jarring, and it had a big impact on my 12-year-old self to know that Mom's former office was right across the street from the Murrah Building.  The race next weekend will be the 25th "Run to Remember," and along the course, they have posters with individual photos honoring each of the 168 people who were killed that day...

The term Silent Saturday is not nearly as familiar to me as Good Friday or Easter Sunday, but I LOVED the message here...

My deep thoughts for today were about how Good Friday speaks a message of deep love, Silent Saturday calls for strong faith, and Easter Sunday speaks vibrant hope! (1 Cor. 13:13)

❤❤❤❤❤❤❤

Okay, so Marilyn (our court reporter friend pictured bottom left) got us a table for the soft-launch opening of the 7th Neighborhood JAM location (which is in Moore)!  Apparently, her daughter's husband came up with the idea for it, and it's been a great success in OKC and in Tulsa, so that's awesome!  It was good to catch up with her a bit - she's retiring in December and looking forward to becoming a grandma soon!  Our server talked us into a cinnamon roll appetizer (yum - he didn't have to work too hard on that) and my French toast was awesome, and all our food was free since it was a practice run for them, so that's always a delight!

Last night, I joined the Wilsons and Weatherfords for dinner (Bill and Melissa picked up Rib Crib for us) and a musical at the PAC... Chet and Tate are on the mend after a rough week of sickness.  Melissa thought I was mildly crazy for coming on a potentially stormy night, but I so love hanging out with their fam, and the long drives are never a deterrent to me!

This = Parker in her fun colorful shoes (she came to greet me with the best excited scream when she realized I was there!), Bill and Tate playing on the mini-air hockey table (so cute!), a fun Easter wreath, and a random pre-dinner candid I snapped when my heart was full thinking how very fortunate I am to be friends with them! lol

The Myers had to cancel last minute, so I got to join Chet and Karli for a third time on their PAC season tickets... fun!!  The play was fun and very well done, and it was lovely chatting with the Wilsons and Paul and Stephanie!

In the end, 90% of my drive back home was dry and smooth... there was heavy rain for about 15 minutes when I reached the Kickapoo Turnpike, followed by a bout of feeling dangerously tired when the rain calmed down and I was 15-20 minutes from home around 1am.  (That really doesn't happen often for me, but it was intense, and I'm thankful for God's protection!)

Friendly Reminder:

Not sure how this hadn't occurred to me until today, but I'm going for the diamond boots as my graduation footwear... YAY - yes, please!  (I'll likely be wearing black slacks instead of a dress.) Between the diamond boots and my crystalled-out cap, I'm not sure CCU will believe I'm "respecting the solemnity of the occasion," but I'm excited, and all of that feels right for me!  Pics on the right = my living room chair-side table with some happy yellow roses I grabbed today, then the strawberries and dip I made for tomorrow!

Spring/Easter pics are always the cutest!  Yay Shoemakers and Moss fam! =)

And speaking of Easter, I attended the CHA Easter program Thursday night...

Mini Miss K looking lovely in her new dress!

She was accidentally twinning with her art teacher's daughter, but I love that she embraced the fun of that and asked for a pic with her!  On the right is Jaceman with his friends TJ and Jace!

The 5th grade girls!

Pics with J&K!

The 6th grade boys!  (This one was J's final elementary school program!!)

❤❤

Ending with a couple memes, just for fun! =)

How cute is this dog!?  And the writing is super accurate and made me laugh!

Okay, the rain is still going strong... I'm grateful to be in my cozy house, off to watch Ted Lasso and do a short bike ride now, then eat my delish cinnamon roll leftovers, because balance! lol  

Reminder:  God is working behind the scenes - He is with you and for you - and His words are more reliable than our feelings.  Thanks for stopping by, and Happy Easter tomorrow!!

❤ ❤ ❤

Five-Star Movies!

Happy Monday!  Here's the follow-up post with my Top 25 "Five-Star Movies," inspired by the Big Boo Podcast. =)

1.  TITANIC - "was called the ship of dreams, and it was - it really was."  Zero percent of people who know me are shocked by this one being on my list. lol  The love story draws your heart into it, but James Cameron's attention to detail is unparalleled -- the historical accuracy with the entire set and the wardrobes and so many nonfiction characters they meet and/or describe along the way, the meticulous planning it required, the casual dialogue that provided details about the water temperature and the class differences and the timing of the sinking and the limited life boats and more, the clever way they explained and illustrated the way the ship breaks in half well before they show it actually sinking, the moving back and forth from the decaying ship at the bottom of the ocean to the beautiful, brand new ship on its maiden voyage -- just saying, he fully deserved that Best Director Oscar, and the movie deserved Best Picture and the 9 other Oscars it won that year!  *Leo and Kate were robbed, but they've done okay for themselves since, so I'm willing to let it go. lol

2.  THE GREATEST SHOWMAN - an inspiring, goosebumps-inducing, truly transcendent theater experience for me on the very day it opened in 2017.  The music, the lyrics, the casting, the dialogue, the plot, the pacing, the dancing, the whole vibe - start to finish theatrical perfection - I kept waiting for something to ruin it, and it never came. ❤

3.  YOU'VE GOT MAIL - a comforting classic that's become my go-to for happy, familiar background noise.  F-O-X.  Daisies are the friendliest flower.  Happy Thanksgeebing back.  Whatever else anything is, it ought to begin by being personal!  152 insights into my soul.  She had to be... she HAD TO BE!! lol

4.  FATHER OF THE BRIDE - Rach asked me the other day what I think of when I see the Touchstone logo.  I answered, "I don't know why, but Father of the Bride," and she said, "OMG, YESSS!!"  So yeah, we watched this one enough that the company logo is embedded in our minds as belonging to this specific movie. lol  It's funny and surprisingly poignant - I know and love every song in it, and I know and love every character.  Sometimes movies can take you back the way songs do, and this one always takes me back to 1992 when our family was living at the Warwick West Apartments whilst 9121 was being built.

5.  THE SOCIAL NETWORK - Love Andrew Garfield and Jessie Eisenberg (pictured above) and Justin Timberlake (all perfectly cast for these roles), and love every quickly-spoken word of this Aaron Sorkin film.  I enjoy the whole story of Facebook's founding, and the relational dynamics at play there are pretty fascinating to me.  This is unlikely to make a lot of sense to anyone else, (and I'm not talking about this specific plot or characters or anything negative), but Aaron Sorkin's writing often makes me think of Malori, assuming we would share a strong appreciation for the brilliant dialogue, the rapid pacing, and the sharp humor... so there's a subtle layer of nostalgia/soul-tie connection for me there too.

6.  AVENGERS: ENDGAME - They ended this series so freaking well.  The "Marvel sparkle circles," as Deadpool calls them, are legit - that final assembly scene makes me tear up.  There's so much humor and so many great call-backs to the thousand previous movies that give this one its rich context.  There's Captain America with the hammer.  Tony making the sacrifice play.  Wanda getting her revenge moment.  Thor still being worthy.  The women banding together in a way that made a woman in my theater yell, "All riiiight, ladieeees!!"  It's all fantastic!!  Avengers, Assemble!

7.  MAN OF THE HOUSE - There are two very different movies with this same title; I'm talking about the JTT and Chevy Chase one from 1995.  I freaking love this movie - it came out when I was in 5th grade and had a crush on Jonathan Taylor Thomas, so that's probably part of the nostalgia element for me.  Hearing the "Everybody Dance Now" song always makes me picture the montage from this movie as the Indian Guides practice archery and learn the rain dance together, when JTT finally gets into it all in spite of his valiant efforts to be too cool for that group. =)

8.  THE HOLIDAY - The only Christmas movie on this list, my favorite Christmas movie by a mile!  (Elf would come in second for me.)  Love Jack Black's character, love Arthur, love Jude Law and his British daughters, love Kate Winslet finding her gumption and slamming the door on Jasper, love the Christmas vibes, and love the idea of Amanda's job ("movie trailer maker" - so fun! lol)

9.  SPEED - Sandra and Keanu... it was between this and White House Down and Die Hard for the top action movie in this list... love them all, but I know this one best!!  "Wildcats, huh?"  "Oh darn."  "I've got gum on my seat... gum!!"

10.  COOL RUNNINGS - How can you not love this movie!?  The slow clap scene at the end is possibly my favorite sports-movie scene ever.  "The fastest of the fastest of Jamaican sprinters!  Respect to the man, Irv Blitzer!" ;-)

11.  EVER AFTER - It was a hard choice for me between this and the 2015 Cinderella with Lily James (adore her and LOVED her dress and the way the prince treated her in that movie).  In the end, what gives Ever After the slight edge for me is that one of the stepsisters was kind to her (which makes her backstory feel so much more bearable and gives you another character to root for), Drew's character is feisty and rescues herself from the sleezy jerk who tried to own and "break" her, and then she "only asks" that her cruel stepmother and stepsister be shown the same kindness they had shown to her.  Yes to all of that - forgiveness doesn't mean being a doormat.

12.  NATIONAL TREASURE - Such a great movie from start to finish!  Action and history and romance and suspense and humor and exciting music - it's one of my top favorites and inspired our Trinity Church tour in NYC!  "Heere at the Wall, Wall Street and Broadway."

13.  LEGALLY BLONDE - Okay, I was kinda judging myself for including this one, but truthfully, it's a light and fun movie that I've watched repeatedly, and in addition to inspiring some cute shoes and hairstyles, it also shaped how I saw myself in really positive ways!  It came out during my Junior year of high school, and it went a long way in normalizing being girly and fashionable and a little silly and loving pink and glitter and diamonds and bright colors and cute hair and awesome shoes and fun parties *while ALSO being* intelligent and ambitious and caring and sincere and assertive and doing things your own way.  In its own cheesy way, it showed a girl who went from rejection-based insecurity and literally moving to chase after an uninterested boy to a confident, educated woman chasing after big goals and dreams.  And that girl is Elle Woods, and that girl is me. lol (And let's just agree to ignore the movie sequel - they kinda ruined it.)

14.  THE SOUND OF MUSIC - This movie brings back so many childhood memories for me!  And my adult heart has connected with it in new ways.  It's a beautiful story with great songs and strong characters.  Stuck in my head right now: "I go to the hills when my heart is lonely.  I know I will hear what I've heard before.  My heart will be blessed with the sound of music, and I'll sing once more."

15.  SISTER ACT 2 - I was so inspired when I saw this one in theaters in 3rd grade, sure that joining a Christian choir would be the most fun thing I could ever do!  My church and school choir experiences were fun, but never lived up to my high expectations. lol I know this movie and the original Sister Act super well, and Rach and I had this soundtrack CD memorized!  "Singing does not put food on the table. Singing does not pay the bills.  Singing is no guarantee for a future...There are a lot of people out there singing their shoulda coulda wouldas!"  I always loved the irony of that petty speech recipient being Lauryn Hill.

16.  GLADIATOR - It was between this and The Patriot - both exceptional, epic movies with more violence than I generally prefer - surprisingly, I knew more standout quotes from this one.  The movie name itself makes me think of Elizabeth Taylor announcing it at the Oscars. lol. "Are you not entertained!?"  "The time for honoring yourself will soon be at an end."  "My name is Maximus Decimus Meridius..."

17.  MY COUSIN, VINNY - So. many. good. quotes.  Fantastic and entertaining courtroom movie - love Marisa Tomei and can pretty much quote her entire testimony as the Defense's surprise expert witness!  "No, the Defense is WRONG!"  "Imagine you're a deer..." "Maybe it was a bad time to bring it up!"  "The two youts..." "Mrs. Riley, and ONLY Mrs. Riley..." "IIII-*clap*-DENTICAL!"

18.  A FEW GOOD MEN - My favorite legal drama movie of all time - another sharp, rapid-fire script written by Aaron Sorkin.  Stellar writing and stellar cast.  And again, I can quote Jessup's testimony and the follow-up courtroom drama.  SO GOOD!!

19.  TOP GUN: MAVERICK - What an unexpected gem this summer hit movie was!  I didn't care much about the original Top Gun, but I loved this sequel.  Tommy Tom Cruise at his best, and you can't go wrong with Glen Powell and Miles Teller!

20.  THE PARENT TRAP - The newer version with Lindsay Lohan - I still remember watching the previews where it said "Introducing Lindsay Lohan" and being excited for an actress who shared my name (with an alternate spelling, but still).  As a child, I always loved the idea of being a twin, and as an adult, I've loved the idea of having twins.  I like everyone in this cast, and it's a light and fun, summery, feel-good movie for me!

21.  HARRY POTTER AND THE ORDER OF THE PHOENIX - One of very few times where the movie does it better than the book is the epic fight scene between Dumbledore and Voldemort where Voldemort changes tactics midway and fully possesses Harry in the midst of his sharp grief and rage over Sirius, then Harry has to dwell on love and goodness to break free and create separation - the spiritual connections there are more than I can put into words - it's so well done.  (Harry and co. forming the DA, the Weasleys messing with Umbridge, Dumbledore showing up at Harry's trial, Luna telling Harry he's not alone, Harry saving Arthur's life, the Order forming, Sirius and Harry's relationship growing, him finally learning about the prophecy, etc. - there's so much to love here.)

22.  JUMANJI: WELCOME TO THE JUNGLE - Not positive why I like this one so much, but I do - bought it on Prime, and I've watched it many times!  The original was a traumatic experience in my childhood, but this one was much lighter and more fun, while still being action packed and requiring heroic courage from each of the characters!  The Rock and Kevin Hart's friendship is always a delight, Karen Gillian's dance fight scenes are epic, Jack Black is hilarious, and Nick Jonas was a fun addition to the team!!  I also love the idea of suddenly having a brand new body with a lower threat of death and new strengths programmed right in for you, but still having to press through your internal insecurities and relational issues to lean into those new strengths and learn to rely on the team surrounding you! #metaphorforChristianity

23.  MEAN GIRLS - Not a poignant or particularly meaningful movie, but it makes the list because I know it well and it quickly takes me back to a very specific season of my life (2005-2007, quoting this back and forth ad nauseum with JMM and Sarah Bliss).  "Booo, you whore!" "OMG, Karen, you can't just ask people why they're white."  "You're a regulation hottie - own it!"  "She doesn't even go here!"  "The limit does not exist!"  "That is so fetch."  "I want my pink shirt back - I WANT MY PINK SHIRT BACK!"

24.  TROOP BEVERLY HILLS - This takes me back to Blockbuster rental days and summer fun with Rachael!  We watched this gem several times - I remember the cartoon illustrations during the song at the beginning - I love it all!  "I am the log.  I am the ravine."  "It's missing a bead."  "Patches?  We don't need no stinking patches!"  

25.  THE INTERN - The growing friendship/mentorship between Jules (Anne Hathaway) and her new senior intern, Ben (Robert DeNiro) is poignant - a unique and likable cast of  characters!  This movie is endearing and inspiring, another unexpected gem!!

❤ ❤ ❤

Five-Star Movies (Quotes)

 

Happy Sunday!  This post, once again, has been inspired by Melanie and Sophie.  They discussed their personal lists of five-star movies, the ones they love from start to finish and have watched repeatedly.  It was a good episode that made me think about my own list.  And just because it seems more fun, I'm posting a random quote from each movie in my Top 25... and I'll share the actual movies list on Monday. =)

1.  "Is there anyone alive out there!?  Can anyone hear me!??" 

2.  "And when they see you, they won't laugh.  They'll salute!"

3.  "I sell cheap books.  I do!  So sue me."

4.  "I'll tell you why we don't calm down - because you're not excited!  It takes two people for a we to calm down, doesn't it!?"

5.  "You have part of my attention - you have the minimum amount."

6.  "I'm totally from the future."

7.  "Gesundheit!"

8.  "Daaad, do Mr. Napkinhead!"

9.  "Pop quiz, hotshot."

10.  "When you cross that finish line, you'll know."

11.  "Of course not, Mother.  I'm only here for the food!"

12.  "Delicious jams and jellies??"

13.  "It is with passion, courage of conviction, and strong sense of self that we take our next steps into the world."

14.  "Strength doesn't lie in numbers.  Strength doesn't lie in wealth.  Strength lies in nights of peaceful slumber..."

15.  "Hey, do you know what the Ice Capades are?  Don't roll your eyes.  They were very cool!"

16.  "He was a soldier of Rome.  Honor him."

17.  "Well, that would certainly explain the hostility."

18.  "I'd choose you any day of the week and twice on Sunday!"

19.  "You told me *not* to think!!"

20.  "I know how to fence, and you don't?  Or I have class, and you don't?"

21.  "We're gonna make them proud, Neville.  That's a promise."

22.  "Cake is my weakness, along with speed and strength."

23.  "And I don't think my father, the inventor of Toaster Strudel, would be very pleased to hear about this!" 

24.  "A box of them would be so nice.  Cheap at even twice the price!"

25.  "There's no need to get sentimental about it, even though we could potentially be buried together!"

❤ ❤ ❤

Happy Spring!

Today is the official first day of Spring, so huzzah for that!! ❤

This week is Spring Break week for most schools, so I'm hoping it's been a fun one for my sister's fam and all my friends who have kids!  The Foster fam came down to the new Okana indoor waterpark and resort for Spring Break (they're loving it and said it's better than Great Wolf Lodge), and the Wilsons made a day trip to OKC yesterday, so it was fun to see my fav Tulsa friends in my hometown.  Here's our group pic after dinner... I adore them all!!!

I covered a murder prelim in Purcell on Tuesday - the court reporter shortage is real, so we're all covering wherever we can.  This afternoon, I'll be at the Couch Center, then tomorrow I'm covering the office and catching up on transcripts.  Anyway, that prelim ended by noon, so I had Tuesday afternoon off and did speed and hills intervals at Planet Fitness, followed by a lovely neighborhood walk!

In a fantastic surprise, I learned that Judge was taking Wednesday through Friday off, so I took off yesterday to join the Wilsons at the Science Museum in OKC... formerly the Omniplex.  I hadn't been there in years, and it has loads of new stuff, as well as a few familiar things!  This = the Wilson fam getting blown away in a simulated tornado! #oklahoma

Parker E on the carousel - she was in a fun mood ready to explore all the things!

Tate and Karli learning about... some sort of spacecraft!?

I chatted with Mom whilst the Wilsons grabbed the last two seats available for the Planetarium show!  Then we explored the sand spinner, the spirograph art pendulum, the toy photography exhibit, the shadow wall, and several other exhibits and kids play areas!

Spirograph pendulum art by Parker and her Dad. ❤  Her first color choices were purple and brown, which made me laugh!

Mirror maze selfie! =)

So much randomness, but most of it is fun for adults and kids!

They had a Segway park where you could try it out on various surfaces... Tate surprised us by going first and having fun with it!

Next up was Chettles, who had done it once before on their last trip to this museum!

And round 3 was me - yay, trying new things!!  It was fun and made me wonder if I could do the hoverboards... but I'm pretty sure the lack of handles would throw me right off balance!

Random cloud ring fun... I feel like all these play-based exhibits have posters trying to teach you things, and I'm guessing about 2% of the museum visitors actually read them and learn a lot. lol

Wilson fam + "Auntie Lindsey" random group pic at the giant table and chairs!! lol

We were at the Science Museum from 11-ish to 5, then met the Fosters for dinner downtown.  We were planning on Old Spaghetti Factory and Chet was psyched about their spumoni dessert... but alas, I forgot to factor in that we were a party of 9 on Spring Break week on a Thunder game night!  We opted out of the 2.5-hour wait for OSF and the hour+ wait at a few other restaurants, and we ended up at Dave's Hot Chicken near Harkins Theater... another new thing for me, and it was pretty good!

I told the Fosters about being accepted into the doctoral program, and Kristin cracked me up saying, "Congrats, that's awesome... and here we all are at Dave's Hot Chicken to celebrate!" lol  I said, "It's just what I always dreamed!"  But for reals, I'm happy to be with this group any day, any place!

Happy first day of Spring, friends!
May this be a season of fresh hope and vibrant growth for all of us!!

❤ ❤ ❤