This is a picture of our nephew Jackson (now 2 weeks old!) and our niece Mia (2 years old). Mia looks unimpressed (and potentially dangerous). I think Jackson agrees with the dangerous bit. :)
Friday, June 23, 2006
Jackson Eyes Mia
This is a picture of our nephew Jackson (now 2 weeks old!) and our niece Mia (2 years old). Mia looks unimpressed (and potentially dangerous). I think Jackson agrees with the dangerous bit. :)
Tuesday, June 20, 2006
Movie News
Jocelyn and I have seen quite a few movies in the past month or so. I have decided, therefore, to give all of you a quick synopsis and review of these movies, not because you care, but because I like to hear myself talk (or read myself write... or something like that):
Theater Movies
Mission Impossible 3: Ethan Hunt is on the trail of a wanted man, who earns a living by making deals with terrorists. When Ethan's wife is placed in jeopardy as a result, Ethan takes drastic measures to ensure her safety. She too must decide whether she loves and trusts Ethan enough to do something unthinkable at a crucial moment. (A-)
X-Men 3: The best of the series, this movie explores the motives that drive both humans and X-men to fight against each other. Some very dramatic rifts appear between humans and X-men, even some so deep as to tear apart the bonds that once held Xavier's School for the Gifted together. A surprise twist at the end of the movie (and then another one after the credits) will make you want to pay careful attention until the lights go up in the theater. (A)
The Da Vinci Code: I agreed with critics about this movie (which is a hint that I was probably influenced by them). I don't think the movie was really all that great. I think the director and script writer should have been more creative. I would have liked to see less talking/plot exposition and more cinematography focusing on the art and architecture. (C+)
She's the Man: Actually, this was quite funny. It's based on Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, about a girl who has to pretend to be a man. I thought it would be crude, but it wasn't. Just funny. (B+)
Over the Hedge: A cute movie about animals, this feature presents the expected themes about love, family, and friendship, while including a few hilarious characters like the kind we have come to expect from animated features. Kudos to Bruce Willis as the selfish raccoon. He pulls off his character quite well. (B)
The Shaggy Dog: Tim Allen pulls some funny surprises in this movie. I actually enjoyed seeing Danny Glover and Robert Downey, Jr. more, though. Those guys are cool. I don't know, though. Robert Downey, Jr. seemed to be sort of making fun of the movie as he did it, like he wasn't taking it too seriously, which I actually kind of liked. When you see it, look for that and tell me if I'm right. A good movie for the fam. (B)
VHS/DVD
Cinderella Man: During the depression, times are hard for the main character (I forget his name). He's hurt his hand too many times to box well, and soon finds himself relying on charity just to feed his family and keep them warm. He won't abandon his values no matter what, though. He's a "rock," as my brother Stephen referred to him, a man with real integrity. After years of suffering, a lucky break finds him back in the ring as he battles perhaps even to the death. (A)
Little Shop of Horrors: Good musical, though the first half is better than the last half. In the play, the ending is actually a lot more depressing (the plant kills everyone and takes over the world), but the movie is still very dark and morbid. I'd see it again just for the song "Skid Row." Jocelyn said that song gives her goosebumps every time. (B+)
I guess that's all for now. In other news, our ward took 1st place in the Intramurals tournament for BYU Kickball. Jocelyn and I got t-shirts.
--Robert
Theater Movies
Mission Impossible 3: Ethan Hunt is on the trail of a wanted man, who earns a living by making deals with terrorists. When Ethan's wife is placed in jeopardy as a result, Ethan takes drastic measures to ensure her safety. She too must decide whether she loves and trusts Ethan enough to do something unthinkable at a crucial moment. (A-)
X-Men 3: The best of the series, this movie explores the motives that drive both humans and X-men to fight against each other. Some very dramatic rifts appear between humans and X-men, even some so deep as to tear apart the bonds that once held Xavier's School for the Gifted together. A surprise twist at the end of the movie (and then another one after the credits) will make you want to pay careful attention until the lights go up in the theater. (A)
The Da Vinci Code: I agreed with critics about this movie (which is a hint that I was probably influenced by them). I don't think the movie was really all that great. I think the director and script writer should have been more creative. I would have liked to see less talking/plot exposition and more cinematography focusing on the art and architecture. (C+)
She's the Man: Actually, this was quite funny. It's based on Shakespeare's Twelfth Night, about a girl who has to pretend to be a man. I thought it would be crude, but it wasn't. Just funny. (B+)
Over the Hedge: A cute movie about animals, this feature presents the expected themes about love, family, and friendship, while including a few hilarious characters like the kind we have come to expect from animated features. Kudos to Bruce Willis as the selfish raccoon. He pulls off his character quite well. (B)
The Shaggy Dog: Tim Allen pulls some funny surprises in this movie. I actually enjoyed seeing Danny Glover and Robert Downey, Jr. more, though. Those guys are cool. I don't know, though. Robert Downey, Jr. seemed to be sort of making fun of the movie as he did it, like he wasn't taking it too seriously, which I actually kind of liked. When you see it, look for that and tell me if I'm right. A good movie for the fam. (B)
VHS/DVD
Cinderella Man: During the depression, times are hard for the main character (I forget his name). He's hurt his hand too many times to box well, and soon finds himself relying on charity just to feed his family and keep them warm. He won't abandon his values no matter what, though. He's a "rock," as my brother Stephen referred to him, a man with real integrity. After years of suffering, a lucky break finds him back in the ring as he battles perhaps even to the death. (A)
Little Shop of Horrors: Good musical, though the first half is better than the last half. In the play, the ending is actually a lot more depressing (the plant kills everyone and takes over the world), but the movie is still very dark and morbid. I'd see it again just for the song "Skid Row." Jocelyn said that song gives her goosebumps every time. (B+)
I guess that's all for now. In other news, our ward took 1st place in the Intramurals tournament for BYU Kickball. Jocelyn and I got t-shirts.
--Robert
Tuesday, June 13, 2006
It's Raining Babies
As mentioned in my last post, I have a new nephew as of Friday—Jackson John Bunch. I was of course excited so I bragged to various friends and coworkers and I was always asked the same question: How many nieces and nephews do you have? Sadly, I didn't have an answer.
It's not that I don't know my nieces and nephews, I do! I can name every one and I love every one. But... alas... there are SO many of them that it is not easy to give an immediate figure without some prior calculation. I decided to do that calculation. Prepare to be awed:
Stayner = 11 total (7 nephews; 4 nieces)
Matt/Kay – Zachary
Megan/John – Bailey, Cameron, Morgan, Jackson
Katie/Josh – Harrison, Weston, Samuel
Annette/Andy – Holden, Owen
Rachel/Ryan – Mia
(The above picture is all of the kids except Jackson, who's pictured below. From left to right: Owen, Samuel, Weston, Zachary, Holden, Morgan, Bailey, Mia, Cameron, and Harrison.)
It's not that I don't know my nieces and nephews, I do! I can name every one and I love every one. But... alas... there are SO many of them that it is not easy to give an immediate figure without some prior calculation. I decided to do that calculation. Prepare to be awed:
Stayner = 11 total (7 nephews; 4 nieces)Matt/Kay – Zachary
Megan/John – Bailey, Cameron, Morgan, Jackson
Katie/Josh – Harrison, Weston, Samuel
Annette/Andy – Holden, Owen
Rachel/Ryan – Mia
(The above picture is all of the kids except Jackson, who's pictured below. From left to right: Owen, Samuel, Weston, Zachary, Holden, Morgan, Bailey, Mia, Cameron, and Harrison.)
(Jackson John Bunch is pictured above.)
Gibbons = 21 total (8 nephews; 13 nieces)
Chris/Tara – Trey
Debbie/Earl – Tayla, Carder, Mariah, Micah, Ben, Hyrum, Tacie, Samantha (pictured below)
Mike/Carolina – Joseph, Lola, Gabriella, Bianca, Camilla
Tami/Jerald – Tamara, Cassie, Caleb
Josh/Kim – Nova, Tallen
Adam/Micah – Kyler, Chloe
That's 15 nephews, 17 nieces—for a total of 32 kids!!!
Isn't that crazy? And to think... there are still more babies on the way (in the womb and in the future; four of Robert's siblings aren't married yet).
Well, luckily I always liked kids, because I am truly surrounded. (-JoJo)
Saturday, June 10, 2006
40:04
For those of you who actually read and pay attention to this blog, you may recall that a couple of months ago I wrote an entry titled "The Big 5k" in which I proclaimed my goal to run a 5k on Saturday, June 10, 2006. Well, with a little necessary tweaking, I have accomplished my goal!Robert and I ran (and walked—though we mostly ran) the BYU 5k today. We were going to do the Orem Summerfest 5k, but the fees were high for the both of us, and I didn't want to do it alone. So luckily Brittany told me about the BYU 5k—a free race (WAHOO) that promoted anti-pornography and anti-abuse.
It was pretty fun. We walked on the two big hills, but ran the rest of the way. And yeah, our time was 40:04 (4o minutes and 4 seconds). Not stellar, but I'm still way proud that we finished. Robert held back. I am so grateful to him for supporting me so fully in my goal, even in not running to his full potential so I felt confident and able to finish the run. If he ran alone, I'm sure he would have gotten a time more like 20 minutes, but I'm grateful he stayed by me. And of all the cheesy and cute things: we in fact held hands while crossing the finish line. :)
In other news, I have a brand new nephew as of last night! That brings the new baby count for the past year to THREE... I have two new "Gibbons" nieces (Camilla and Samantha) and one new "Stayner" nephew, Jackson. Hooray for babies!
Well, that's it for today folks. Here I am signing out. Oh... and to answer your question ("Is Jocelyn a runner yet?"), I'd say I'm a run/walker. Not quite a runner. Not just a walker. Somewhere gloriously in-between.
Love you all! (-JoJo)
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