I’ve been feeling a little down lately. It seems that I can’t claw my way out of this whirlpool of doom and despair. I actually told the women I work with that I have become Eeyore. Thank goodness I’m a donkey who likes homemade wine!

But truly, other than us, our immediate families, or close friends’ suffering from cancer, divorce, money problems, vacation cancellations, heart issues, a special-needs kid, and trouble with the law, things are peachy. Just peachy. *grabs Zoloft*

However, as I told my friend Anissa – who had a stroke, a daughter who fought cancer, and then had more strokes – all of these situations have taught me not to take things for granted.

When I can barely breathe from running I tell myself to keep going; to run because I am able. To run for the members of my family who can not run right now.

When my husband snores, I am thankful he is lying next to me and not in another woman’s bed. Sure, I kick him, but once he rolls over and stops sucking air, I think about how fortunate I am that he honors our vows.

The point is, things could always be worse. *dons helmet* *braces for roof to cave-in*

I force myself to be cheerful by reminding myself of these things, exercising regularly, eating healthily, venting frequently, and hugging my loved ones abundantly. Also, adding -ly to every word I can.

I have also been watching a lot of America’s Funniest Home Videos. Nothing makes me feel better than watching people fall. At least I admit it. Go on. You can admit it too.

I have also turned to my Twitter favorites more times than I can count. Dear Mom, Twitter is where I work all day and is a place where you can update people on your status in 140 characters or less. A character is… oh, never mind. Just know that these people remind me things aren’t as bad as they could be.

I could be living through the I-hate-hand-washing phase.

Apparently, and I'm basing this on my daughter's reaction to taking a bath and washing her hands, pure acid pours out of our faucets.

— Cara (@Carabee) December 6, 2011

Or a colicky baby.

There's a special place in heaven for parents of colicky babies. It looks strangely like a spa... with tequila.

— Jennifer Kindhouse (@JKindhouse) November 3, 2011

Or have a dog in heat.

I just had to wipe a dog's vagina. This is not the life I had imagined.

— Morgan Schechter Shanahan (@the818) September 20, 2011

With a little faith, love, laughter, Twitter and homemade wine, I will get through the muck.

But, just in case, I’m going to keep this helmet on.

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My nine year old son is good at making fast-friends, especially with adult women who tend to think he’s younger than he is. His personality combined with the stature of a five year old give off an aura of charm and vulnerability that men three times his age wish they could evoke.

He’s slick, I tell you. I took him to Urgent Care on Saturday and in under 30 minutes he had been given three different frozen treats by three different nurses and then he got one for the road. He worked the rooms so well they were practically throwing Flavor-Ice at him

So, I have to admit that his behavior was shocking when Ree Drummond, also known as The Pioneer Woman, came to town last week. If you don’t know Ree, she is a NY Times best-selling author, host of her own Food Network show, amazing photographer, home-schooler and blogger. She’s also smart, funny, pretty, generous and kind. I hate her a little bit.

Oh, okay…that’s not true. I hate her a lot. Oh, okay…that’s not true either. I love her! And. So. Does. My. Kid.

Although I assured my son that she is a friend of mine and a regular person through-and-through, when I told him she was in town for a book signing and he was going to get a chance to meet her, he got a little star-struck.

Honestly, I should have known. He loves Ree’s Food Network show so much that he actually talks to her as if she is in the corner of our living room. He smiles at the screen, he giggles, he swoons. On the day of their meeting, he came out of school yelling about going to see her and said that he was going to run from the car and give her a hug. When we arrived at the book store, he hurried to the back room where she was waiting…

And, then he hid behind my leg.

He slowly crept out, but wouldn’t dare look at her. I don’t know if he was smitten or scared, because the only other time I’ve seen him look like this was on a first grade field trip to the zoo when his teacher told him not to make eye contact with the gorillas.

But, Ree knew how to bring out the flirt in him. “Aw shucks, Ree!”

When he finally decided that he was ready for a hug, he prepared for it by creating a decent distance between the two of them, then running and jumping into her arms. That’s my boy. Dramatic much?

I bet if she had Flavor-Ice, she would have been tossing it in his direction.

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Please note: This movie review assumes you have read The Hunger Games (as in, the first book of the trilogy). If you haven’t read the book, you should stop reading lighthearted blog posts and go snuggle up with a blanket and some post-apocalyptic, young-adult fiction. Go on, now!

First, let me start by saying that I’m not a typical reader of young-adult fiction. I have never so much as opened the cover of a Harry Potter book (GASP!) and I stopped reading the Twilight series…well, right after Twilight. *insert long passage of angst-ridden, teen girl staring upon glittery, vampire skin* There, now you’ve read Twilight, too.

But, when my then 12 year old became fascinated while reading The Hunger Games last year, and I watched the excitement, anger, sadness and disbelief on her face, I decided to give it a shot.

And, it was good. Really good. Of course, you know that, because you read the book too. If you didn’t read it, what are you waiting for? Also, there are spoilers ahead, so git!

It is rare when I see movies that I find more intriguing than the books on which they are based. Lord of the Rings and its stunning visuals comes to mind (and I’m not just talking about Viggo Mortensen, *wink*). More often, the movie leaves me disappointed because I have become engrossed in the story and created vivid imagery in my mind; then the movie comes along and wipes that all away.

That was not the case with this film. Everything about The Hunger Games, absolutely everything, was exactly as I had pictured it to be. Well, except for one thing.

Peeta.

Look, Peeta is great and I’m totally Team Peeta, and I’m sure the actor who played him is a perfectly nice guy, but he is just too little for this role. It’s one thing to have a guy play a sensitive character as a star-crossed lover, but when he is sensitive, injured, and physically smaller than the girl he’s in love with? He comes off as a weakling.

Maybe he was cast to make Katniss look more powerful, because she does, but it also makes any semblance of a love story completely unbelievable. There was no chemistry, put on for the arena cameras or otherwise. I don’t know how the Districts could have bought such an awkward love story without the male, at least, being a little more impressive in the height department.

The rest of the casting was spectacular. Jennifer Lawrence as Katniss, Stanley Tucci as Caesar Flickerman (just wait until you see that grin), Lenny Kravitz as Cinna, and Woody Harrelson as mentor, Haymitch Abernathy, were superb choices. And, who would believe that Elizabeth Banks would make such a perfect Effie Trinkett?

Image Credit - Murray Close

The movie did a great job of detailing Capitol excess, the desperation in the Districts, how the gamemakers work their magic, and for a moment, I felt like I was in the field with Katniss as Rue slipped away.

I am not, however, a fan of the shaky camera syndrome employed during parts of the film, including every fight scene. It has its benefits, as you get the impression of a violent encounter without actually viewing any gore (good for my 13 year old daughter, who was sitting next to me), but flat-out, it makes me dizzy.

I also would have liked to see more development of the prep team characters, but that may have stretched the movie to an unreasonable length.

Overall, this movie did not disappoint. For me to stay up until 3:30 AM and still say that? Well, that means it was a pretty good flick. It was well worth the money and the lack of sleep.

But, to be honest with you, I hope that Peeta grows a few inches by the time the second film is made.

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Tomorrow morning, my mother-in-law is having breast cancer surgery. This is one of those times when I ask people to storm heaven with prayers. Thank you in advance.

I know that in-laws are often the butt of jokes, but not mine. They have never treated me with anything but kindness and love. It’s probably because I put up with their son, but that’s another blog post. *hi, honey* *blows kisses*

Unfortunately my in-laws live a couple of hours away which means that we don’t see them as often as we would like. Though, that hasn’t stopped my father-in-law from helping us build a swingset (then rebuilding the swingset after Hurricane Ike tore it down), helping us put up a shed, changing light fixtures so that I wouldn’t shock myself, repairing plumbing, and assisting with the development of a simple machine (kindergarten homework is, like, HARD).

My mother-in-law has made deviled eggs for my parties more times than I can count, shown incredible patience when teaching my daughter card games, kindly let my son run his hands all over her arms, and shown me that it’s possible to spend your life with a stubborn man. *waves* *puts husband’s favorite dinner in crock pot*

And, they both taught us how to make homemade wine. That’s what you call an in-law WIN!

Their living so far away makes it extra special when they visit. But, eventually you have to watch them pull out of the driveway.

And, the boy in that picture really hates that part.

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