This last weekend Matt and I went to the Tanglewood Resort north of Dallas, TX for my family reunion.  It was with the Howe Family on my mothers side.  We had a really great time even though we were only there for a day and a half.  It was nice to see everyone and wish we could see each other more often.  They are a fun bunch of people and even better because I am apart of it.  I am very grateful we were all able to come together this weekend and hang out.  Pictures to come…

So, it took Matt and I three times to finally watch Sherlock Holmes.  The first time we saw an hour and was exhausted, then watched the first hour again the next night and was exhausted.  Finally, we watched the entire movie.  I have to say it was a good movie, but unusual.  I found it hard to follow exactly what was going on at first, but then all came together.  I loved the mystery in it and the clues.

The other night I watched The Imaginarium of Doctor Parnassus with Heath Ledger.  This was the last movie that he made before he passed away.  I thought this movie was very different and original in many ways.  I have not ever seen a movie like this one.  At first it was hard to follow because of how bizarre it is.  If you want to see something completely off the charts different this is the movie to see.

So… I watched Where the Wild Things Are and I HATED it! I mean really, the beginning of the movie was awful! The little boy was terrible and acted like he had a personality disorder throughout the entire movie.  I do not think this was a good movie for a child to see and if I had children they sure as hell would not be watching it.  It also had some really bad examples of parenting.  For example, you run away and come back to be welcomed in with some chocolate cake.  NOT!

So Matt bought a TomTom GPS about a year and a half ago.  This weekend while we were in Chattanooga, TN it decided to completely die on us.  This was due to the charger frying the circuit board because it was defective!!!  We called TomTom customer service and all they had to say was sorry, but they only have a one year warranty.  WHAT?!  It was obviously defective and they will not repair it or replace it or offer a discount on a new one!  I would completely understand if I was at fault for it breaking, but it FRIED due to a defective charger and motherboard!!!  I will not buy any TomTom products again and neither should you!  Garmin here I come because I have read great things about your customer service and back your products unlike TomTom!

This weekend we went to Chattanooga, TN and the boys flew twice on Friday at Lookout Mountain Flight Park.   Then, on Saturday it was rained out so we went out that night to the Riverbend Festival and heard Charlie Daniels play and watched the fireworks show.  Finally, on Sunday the boys flew twice again at Henson’s Gap this time in the Sequatchie Valley.

Frances, Matt, Barry at Riverbend inDowntown Chattanooga, TN

Smiley Face Fireworks!

Fireworks!

Matt and Ricker Soaring in the Sequatchie Valley

Legion was an alright movie.  I thought it was a really short story that was drawn out into a long movie with lots of fluff.  I was not impressed although some of the fight scenes were pretty good.  This movie is not exactly one of my favorites and neither is  The Men Who Stare At Goats.  This movie could not keep my attention.  I thought it was cheesy and not very interesting.

I also saw Monsters vs. Aliens and thought it was a cute movie.  I enjoyed watching it and Susan Murphy reminded me a little of myself throughout the movie.  Good movie for kids in that it reminds people to keep an open mind in life and not to be judgmental.

I went out to Lake Norman in Charlotte, NC and met Ben Burril.  It was early morning and the wind was very light with scattered clouds.  It was really hot though!  I was towed up four different times and got a total of about 10-15 minutes of airtime, which is great for me!  I was flying a Gemini glider that is way too big for me, but works.

The first flight I was able to get about half way across the lake and then came down.  That was the longest I have flown boat towing yet!  I was really excited.  I finally figured out how to shift my body weight to control the direction of the glider, but I was over compensating.

The second flight I flew the ENTIRE way across the lake!!! WOW, I was totally stoked! I made it!  I did much better this flight, but was only leading with my feet and was forgetting to move my shoulders too.
My third and fourth flights were about half way across the lake again and I started to get tired so it was time to call it quits.

I had a great day out there and was taught a bunch of new things.  LOTS of progress for me! Yea!!

Me hooking in!

Getting the lines straight to fly!

Me FLYING!!!

This week I watched The Right Stuff and I loved it.  The entire story was very educational and it kept my attention the whole movie.   The flying scenes were sweet!!! If you do not know the history of how we made it to space, this is a great movie to watch.  All the characters were outstanding.

I also saw The A-Team and I think it was one of the best action movies I have seen in awhile.  I originally thought it was going to be cheesy, but it turned out to be really good.  If you watched the show when you were a kid, I recommend watching this movie.

I watched the The Blind Side yesterday and it was fantastic!  I thought it was a terrific story and Sandra Bullock did a great job.  S.J. was definitely my favorite character in the movie because he had so much pizazz.  I highly recommend watching this movie.