Movie Review: 80 For Brady

Alison and I had a spur of the moment wild hair and snuck in a movie Sunday! We opted for something light and fun, 80 For Brady!

Plot: A group of friends made it their life-long mission to go to the Super Bowl and meet NFL superstar Tom Brady.

Review: This was cute! It had some pretty ridiculous moments that were way over-the-top, but it didn't detract from the movie. I laughed out loud a lot and thought all the actors did a great job with their characters. The movie also had a lot of heart and really the core of this movie was friendship, which I loved! I also teared up a few times {again...FRIENDSHIP}. Will this win any awards? No. Was it worth my time and money? Definitely!

Currently: Warmer Days

Current Book

Excited for the sequel to The Book Woman of Troublesome Creek!

Current Song

The girls and I are LOVING Ava Max's new album - Diamonds and Dancefloors

Current TV Show

Brent and I are watching Only Murders in the Building.

And I started Secrets of Playboy myself!

Current Audiobook/Podcast

Just downloaded this EGOT's award winning book!

Current Drink

I can tell you what I'm not drinking - ALCOHOL!

I gave it up for Lent {which started today}.

I have a few books I plan to read around not drinking.

I've done Dry January before, but this'll be the longest I've gone without drinking without being pregnant, eek!
I'll keep everyone posted on how this goes, ha.

Current Food

I just had a yummy lunch at Maggiano's! BUT I was very smart with my choices and didn't overeat, so I left feeling very proud of myself!

Current Shame-Inducing Pleasure

This is pretty embarrassing - 

I've been downloading the audiobook versions of some of my favorite rom coms.

I love reading and re-reading books that make me happy,

but I am especially enjoying the audiobook versions of some of my faves!

Abby Jimenez has the same male narrator on some of her books, and he's so great!

Current Outfit

I'm wearing real clothes AND makeup!

From the Maggiano's lunch. {grin}

Current Celebrity Crush

Does an audiobook narrator count? 

If so, then Zachary Webber. Ha!

Current Mood

We are in a warm spell, and I'm so excited about spring being around the corner.

Current Anticipation

Lots of fun stuff coming up in the spring that I'm already excited about!

- Spring Break

- A 2-day music festival Brent and I are going to in April

Current Wishlist

I'm on the hunt for new jeans. I'm just tired of what I have.

I buy a lot from Old Navy, so I think I need to branch out to some nicer brands.

Current Movie

This looks so cute!

Current Picture

I have about 20 of these on my phone from Paige!

Brace Face

Exciting news in the Gurley household - Trent got his braces off! I love that Trent has them off before he's 14! I didn't even get my braces put on until I was 15, so yucky to have braces in high school.

1 month pre-braces ~ crooked, bad spacing, big overbite!

January 2021 - before the pain set in!

A close-up view of his super messed-up bottom teeth ha

Halfway through - getting better but still a lot to do.

And finally the big day was here! Last picture with braces!

And his new handsome smile!

Just in time to start a new school next year!!

Life Lately

There are just lots of little things happening around these parts lately. I figure as the kids continue to get older there will be less crazy milestones, but I love this little normal, regular, every day life of ours.

We had our last Christmas back in January with my mom's extended family. Took basically no pictures, but the fun part was it was in our town so my sister and her family spent the night with us. It was great hanging out just the 10 of us.

 Miles and Trent being big old teenagers!  Paige and Mayer have such a sweet bond

Just love this picture of Paige and Tanner

Deloitte had its holiday party in January. I really appreciated that given how busy December gets! It was at the Austin FC arena and was a fun night. We want to take the kids to a game there this season!

Trent has started walking dogs in our neighborhood! He is having a blast. He has 2 dogs he walks twice a week, and it's about to be 3. He'd like to walk for 1 more family, but he's in a good little rhythm right now. I love that he's getting fresh air, sunshine, and exercise out of the deal. And he's SO good with these pups.

We got to babysit for our favorite little neighbor! This was technically Drew's first babysitting job, I was there just to make sure everyone stayed alive, ha. She had a blast and can't wait to be a little older and do this for real!

The girls have also continued with their horseback riding! We even did a trail ride that I went on too! I haven't been on a horse in over 30 years, and it was really a great experience.

And of course, LOTS of Girl Scout cookie selling!

So that's a little peak at what's been happening in the Gurley household lately!

Monthly Musings: Beating the Winter Blues

I don't live in a place that has a true winter. Texas definitely has mild winters, so while it might not be super cold, it has created an intolerance for cold weather, ha! I am not a fan of winter - it's cold, it's gray, it gets dark early - all things that make me grumpy!

1. Something you do for yourself to beat the winter blues?

This probably comes as no surprise to anyone - and honestly brings me joy year-round - but chai lattes make me happy! {grin}

Years ago Starbucks did a Valentine's Day cup, so fun!

2. Something you do for your family to bring joy over the winter?

I am really struggling with this question! I think because I can't stand to be cold, I tend to want to be mostly indoors in the winter, but I know that isn't good for us. Now that we have some solid winter clothes {after our trip to Ruidoso}, we have no excuses for enjoying the outdoors. Now enjoying might be a strong word...but at least finding things to do outdoors, ha.

3. Favorite cozy items or go-to's?

My Ugg slippers are on my feet almost nonstop all winter! Brent got them for me for my 40th birthday - in pink no doubt - and they are just the best.

4. Winter exercise habits or practices?

Nothing different for me since I do 95% of my working out indoors, ha. I do like to go on walks with my neighborhood ladies, and that is very dependent on the weather in the winter - I won't go if I think it's too cold!

5. Do you practice journaling or meditation?

NOPE. I guess my blog could maybe count? But traditional journaling, no.

6. Do you light candles or use essential oils to relax?

Yes, I love essential oils! I run diffusers in both girls' rooms with relaxing oils, and I have several I like to use on myself. I also will take a bath on occasion with Epsom salt and essential oils.

7. Any bedtime rituals you would like to share that promotes quality sleep?

Natural Calm is my FAVORITE for promoting good sleep. I don't know if it was Covid quarantine or turning 40, but my sleep went south in 2020. I struggled to fall asleep and struggled to stay asleep. Calm helps with both of these problems! I drink a tablespoon-ish every day {it won't make you sleepy during the day so you can take it whenever} and my sleep is SO much better.

8. What are your morning habits that help prepare for a good day?

I don't know that I have any? On school days I get up as late as absolutely possible to get the kids ready for school and I rush around all stressed out for the 75 minutes until they are at school, and I'm back at home working. 

9. Favorite way to spend a day off in the winter?

Reading a book curled up on the couch under a blanket with a chai.

10. Favorite winter themed movie?

This is all I could come up with, ha.

2023 Goals

Well, just about 10% of 2023 has already passed by, and I'm still noodling on goals for 2023, ha. I don't have a huge list - which is probably a good thing! - but I'm going to go ahead and put it out in the world!

I've broken my goals out into some categories - first, I have a word of the year. Then I have specific goals - physical goals, family goals, book goals {of course}.

WORD OF THE YEAR

Intentional

I want to be doing more things with intention this year. And I think my individual goals reflect this. I can get lazy or complacent and let life just go on without much thought. I want to be doing more with my time that means something - personally, with my family and friends, with the kids.

**********GOALS**********

PHYSICAL GOALS

1) Flexibility - I have definitely noticed an increase in my flexibility in the last few years as I've increased my participation in Pilates and Yoga. But I'm still not super consistent and would like to work on stretching and flexibility.

2) Weight Loss - Is it a yearly goal setting post for Allena if she doesn't talk about wanting to lose Paige's baby weight? {grin} Here we are again! BUT I had some good success in the last few months of 2022 and am slowly moving in the right direction.

FAMILY/HOUSE GOALS

1) Time with kids/Brent - I would like to spend more meaningful {dare I say intentional?} time together. As a family - group outings, game nights, as a wife - watching shows together, dates, as a mother - one-on-one dates, conversations.

2) Cleaning every day - I want to get the kids more involved in taking responsibility for the house. There are a few things they are responsible for {unloading the dishwasher, unpacking groceries, helping with laundry}, but there is still so much I do. To the point I am angry at the end of the day. And that is just ridiculous when our kids are 13, 10, and 6! Also, I want to take little breaks during the day and do 5 minutes of chores. 

3) Organizing - Brent is on an organizing kick, and I want to follow suit. Just little things like cleaning out the junk drawer, organizing the coat closet, etc. Tackle a small project each week or a big project over a month.

4) Family Vacation - We had so much fun in 2022 with trips {Ruidoso, Napa, Hilton Head, and Hawaii}, and while we can't repeat that quantity of trips exactly, I do want to make a family trip happen annually.

BOOK GOALS

1) 100 books - I am sticking with my tried and true 100 books/year goal. I really thought about going up this year, but given I want to spend more time with my family, this seemed counterintuitive!

2) Physical books cleanup - I am going to go through the physical books I have and make a list of at least 10 that I've had for years. By the end of the year, I need to have read them or I'm getting rid of them.

3) Goodreads TBR - I want to read my 10 oldest Goodreads books - or delete them if I haven't read them within a year. The are:

    1-Little Women

    2-White Awake

    3-Stamped from the Beginning

    4-We Just Clicked

    5-A Gentleman in Moscow [I have a physical copy]

    6-A Hundred Summers

    7-The Red Tent [I have a physical copy]

    8-Life of Pi

    9-The Poisonwood Bible

    10-Roots

Movie Review: Puss in Boots - The Last Wish

Knock me over with a feather, but Trent was the one who asked to go Puss in Boots-The Last Wish! And I was happy to take the kids - a movie they all wanted to see? Yes!!!

Plot: When Puss in Boots discovers that his passion for adventure has taken its toll and he has burned through eight of his nine lives, he launches an epic journey to restore them by finding the mythical Last Wish.

Review: Everyone but Paige loved the movie! It was really cute and funny and had an entertaining plot. BUT...it was a bit on the scary side, which is why Paige wasn't enjoying the movie. About 20 minutes into the movie, she ended up in my lap and stayed there the whole time with her face buried in my chest. Other than her, we thought it was GREAT!

January 2023 Book Review

It's already time for the first book review of 2023! I still need to post my 2023 Goals post, but one of my book goals remains the same - to read 100 books. 

Well, I started the year off with a bang - 15 books! - but my stats are slightly padded. {grin} A book I finished on January 1 {I had one chapter left ha}, 3 audiobooks, 1 novella and 2 pretty short books, but it still added up to 15!

In terms of content, my month was pretty normal - a mix of nonfiction and fiction, 3 books by authors of color, some light fluff, some heavier topics, pretty well-rounded.

The Rise of the Black Quarterback by Jason Reid - I got this book from the cutest bookstore on our trip to Hilton Head AND I got it for free! The owner of the bookstore gets Advance Reader Copies and can't read them all and gives them away to customers wrapped up so you don't know what you're getting. I was excited to read this because I enjoy continuously learning about systemic racism and being a native Texan football is a big deal. Well, this book did NOT disappoint! I learned a lot and it was very entertaining. If you like either topic, you will find this a worthwhile read. I also find it interesting that the upcoming Superbowl is the first time ever we've had 2 Black QB-led teams facing off - this story makes you understand why that's never happened before!

Rivals and Inheritance {novella} by Katharine McGee - I've enjoyed the 'American Royals' series and was excited to read book 3. I thought it was good and continued the story nicely. It did start off a little slow but as always, by the time it ended I was bummed, and I'm looking forward to book 4. It's fun to live in the world with America having the Washington family as our Royal Family! I also read a novella prequel and it was totally unnecessary but fun!

Remarkably Bright Creatures by Shelby Van Pelt [audiobook] - This was our in-person book club pick for the month AND our pick for Blog Friend Book Club. I loved this book, and it seems like everyone I know who has read it has felt the same way. It feels a little similar to some other books I've read with a grumpy older character with a heart of gold, but it was also unique. There are several storylines you are following that I was really curious how they would connect and thought the resolution was great, and I ended the book with a huge smile on my face.

Speaking of my in-person book club, we also had a little baby shower at our meeting - one of our members, Staci, and her husband, Ryan, are expecting their first baby, so of course we had to spoil Staci and the baby!

Yummy food including an amazing hot cocoa bar

Of course Heather made cookies - they're as good as they are cute!

Can't wait to meet the new baby!

Back to our regularly scheduled book post! {grin}

Things We Lost to the Water by Eric Nguyen - This was our book selection for my work book club - January was a busy month for book club meetings! It follows a mother and her 2 sons as they immigrate from Vietnam to NOLA ending when Hurricane Katrina comes. This was a very complicated family drama that had me feeling very raw, but the ending was extremely impactful and overall I enjoyed it. 

It Starts With Us by Colleen Hoover - I read It Ends With Us a few years ago and was curious about this follow-up. I don't always love Colleen Hoover books - some are great and some feel very overwrought and just too much. This was one I really liked! I loved getting to revisit characters I really enjoyed in the first book and seeing how things turned out.

I'm Glad My Mom Died by Jennette McCurdy [audiobook] - Woof. This book was SO HARD but also SO GOOD. It's my only 5 star review of the month because I couldn't stop listening. It is 100% not a happy book, but it is 100% engrossing. I thought Jennette did an amazing job sharing her story, and I hope writing about her trauma provided some healing for her.

The Valentine's Hate by Sidney Halston - I somehow read 2 stories about Valentine's Day this month, and this was the first one. Enemies-to-lovers at a Valentine's Day themed destination wedding. It was cute, it was fun, it was fine.

Beach Read by Emily Henry [audiobook] - Man, I still don't know what I think about Emily Henry! I don't think I LOVE her like so many others do, but I thought this was pretty cute. Overall, my conclusion is her books are too long, so I think listening to this as an audiobook helped me stay engaged. It follows the story of 2 neighbors who are both authors {who knew each other in college} as they are both going through some difficult personal times. It was good and fun, with a little bit of oomph, but it's not one that will stick with me.

The Do Over by Lynn Painter - This is my 3rd Lynn Painter book, and while it's probably my least favorite, it was still really cute. It's a YA groundhog's day story happening on Valentine's Day - I liked that it touched some on family dynamics and loss to make it a little bit more than just a YA rom com. This author is becoming a 'must read' for me!

Horse by Geraldine Brooks - A co-worker recommended this to me, and I'm so glad she did! This is a historical fiction story that goes from the past to the present and follows the life of the most prolific race horse in American history who lived in the 1850s/1860s. I thought this book packed a lot story in and it was very interesting. I really liked the present day story...and then it took a pretty shocking turn that I wasn't expecting. I liked that the book examined the concepts of slavery and racism - it would have been easy to skip over that, and I'm really glad the author didn't!

Mrs. 'Arris Goes to Paris/Mrs. 'Arris Goes to New York by Paul Gallico - I wanted to read Mrs. 'Arris Goes to Paris after seeing the movie and didn't realize it was a series! I ended up reading the first 2 books because they were both pretty short, and they were ok. I think the fact that they were short stories the movie was able to more with the characters which was a bit disappointing when reading the books. I don't see myself reading any more.

By the Shores of Silver Lake by Laura Ingalls Wilder - Continuing to work our way through this series with Drew. I find them interesting but like seeing how much Drew enjoys them!

Just Haven't Met You Yet by Sophie Cousens - This was probably my favorite rom com of the month. Laura grabs the wrong luggage off the plane and thinks she's met her soulmate based on what is in the suitcase that she grabbed. She's also working on a story about her parents' love story...and finding out maybe it isn't what she thought. I really enjoyed this one and felt it was a little deeper than some others I've read lately. I highly recommend.

I found it interesting that my average rating for the month was 3.5. I didn't have any books that I didn't like, but there were a lot I would say were just 'ok' or 'good'. More often than not I have more than one 5 star review and can struggle to pick my favorite. With that said, I'm off to a great start for 2023! :)