I Cry A Lot

It's true. I'm a bawler. Especially when I watch t.v. or a movie, I always cry at the climactic scene. Even when the moment for tears is so painfully obvious that I have called it ten minutes before hand, and have been mocking it since. It's still tearduct city.

For example, Friday night I cried at the conclusion of Super Sleuth's Christmas, and the only part of Christmas programming lamer than that show, was Tiny Tim and he was really lame.

Yesterday we were watching about the only current t.v. show we watch as an entire family. Extreme Makeover: Home Edition. We really like watching how special families are given a special house. We really liked this week's episode about a family with 3 precious boys, 2 who have autism.

This is usually where most people would say something about the show and preface it with spoiler alert. If you are familiar with this blog, you know I am not most people. I mean I'm hardly even me. Instead I'll give you this . . .

SPOILER PREVENTION

If you have not yet watched the program, you can watch it right now, on hulu, like we did. But don't go anywhere. I have brought Hulu to You (hoo). It will take less than 2 hours and I'll wait for you.

Part I

Part II


Welcome back. How did you like the program?


I liked so much of it, I'm not quite sure where to start. I was really psyched at the beginning of the show to find out that Temple Grandin was going to be on. We really enjoy the biopic of her starring Clair Danes. Watching the real Grandin in action not only highlighted what autistic people can achieve, it also showed what a spot-on portrayal Danes turned in in the film.


I also liked the fact that the mom on the show blogs. Yesterday she wrote a cool post some features of the not talked about on the show.


I also loved all 3 of her children. I thought EMHE did a great job giving us glimpses of all 3 kids not just the ones w/ autism.

As wonderful as the house was, as great as the kids were, as fantastic as it was to see Temple in action the real star of the show in my mind was the organization C.J. works for, The Sparrow Clubs.

Sparrow Clubs work with schools to have them adopt families in their communities with extreme medical needs. The schools then adopt those families and raise money and awareness in the community. Almost all of my multiple crying moments of the show were Sparrow Club moments. It was especially poignant when they revealed that the families oldest child had become adopted by a Sparrow Club .


It wasn't until after the show when I was researching Sparrow Clubs that I did my most serious bawling. It was when I was reading about how the Sparrow Clubs FKA Sparrow Project was born. I double dog dare anyone to read this without crying.

Well, I have to run out to the store and get more tissue. This probably won't be the last time I talk about Sparrow Clubs. It's also not going to be the last Home Makeover recap, as next week they are going to Joplin.


Next Time: The Best of Chuck, The Worst of Chuck

Free Circus Tickets is No Trick

I am part of a group of bloggers that promotes certain family events in Chicago for a national marketing company.

One of those events is the Ringling Brothers Barnum & Bailey Circus.

There is a really good promotion happening October 31st which for some people is Halloween. Even though my family doesn't participate in Haloween, I thought I would pass this cool trick or treat give-a-way on to my readers in the Chicago area. I will also have it on my twitter feed and facebook page.

Here it is . . .

Halloween Trick or Ringling Treat!

Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey® presents Fully Charged is taking Halloween to a whole new level! This year you can Trick or Treat for a FREE Ticket to Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey presents Fully Charged! Simply visit one of the 5 Halloween Ringling Treat Houses during their Ringling Treat hour:

House 1 – Roseland, 11350 S. Calumet Avenue – 3pm – 4pm
House 2 – Oak Lawn, 9643 Melvina Avenue – 4pm – 5pm
House 3 – Barrington, 9149 Jasmine Way – 4pm – 5pm
House 4 – Oak Park, 300 Forest Avenue – 5pm – 6pm
House 5 – Naperville, 4711 Snapjack Circle – 5pm – 6pm

Parents who visit a Ringling Treat House with children between the ages of 2 and 12 will receive one voucher for a FREE Kid’s Ticket for each child present. Voucher is redeemable for a ticket to any Monday – Friday performance of Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey presents Fully Charged at Allstate Arena and United Center. Voucher must be redeemed for Kid’s Ticket at the arena box office. Additional tickets and adjoining seats may be purchased at that time. Trick-or-Ringling Treating is available on Oct. 31 until the end of the hour noted or until 100 FREE Kids’ Vouchers are distributed at each house, whichever occurs first.

Six Word Rewind

This week I showed my face in the blogosphere after a month long absence. What better place to get back in the swing of things than participating in Six Word Saturday @ShowMYfaceDOTcom?

My Six Words:

They (Still) Drive Me Crazy Sometimes
About a month into my blog, I started sharing poems I wrote here. The first time out I was all ready to put out a poem I had written 10 years prior. I decided at the last minute to write an new one instead. Here is what happened . .

Original Air date February 2009

I, like many people, am a closet poet. That is where my poems remain, in a drawer, next to the closet. From time to time I am going to pull one out of that drawer and share it here. This time to show I am not merely a former poet, I will present one I wrote only hours ago.

They Drive me Crazy Sometimes

She drives me crazy sometimes
Who can win an argument with an amnesiac?
But, no one gets me like she does
She makes our house a haven
And, only laughs when my jokes are funny.

She drives me crazy sometimes
Who made her the third parent, anyways?
But, beneath that bossy boiler
Lies an artist's soul
Skipping and humming. Playful and loving.

He drives me crazy sometimes.
Who can have that many questions about Star Wars?!?
But, he is as adventurous as a pirate.
As giving as Robin Hood.
And as resourceful as Macgyver.

She drives me crazy sometimes
Who wants to be a puppy every single day?
But, she makes cuteness an art form
She's a three year old thesaurus
And she loves to ask God to help people.

They drive me crazy sometimes
But, isn't it worth the trip?

Meanwhile back in 2011. The family still drives me crazy on a somewhat frequentamente basis. Puppy has branched off and is now imagining herself as other animals. Today she was part wolf part tiger. In almost 2 years time they still have the same strengths and weaknesses. Being part and parcel of their family is still worth any craziness endured.

In the past 2 years more of my poetry has surfaced. You can check them all out by clicking here.

Speaking of clicking, click here to return to Six Word Saturday.

Next Time: Don't Know Much About History - A Review