Movie Review: the Devil wears Prada

I saw a movie today. Ozayr watched the girls for me, armed with extra panties for Maymuna and a bottle of expressed milk for Hafsa. I showered and dressed decently, seeing as I was going to be amid the general public, without a baby to explain my generally dishelved, spit-up stained self. My friend Shelly picked me up and we left quite happily - there were no tears around the house as I left (unless you count mine... tears of JOY, this being the 2nd time I've left both kids behind to go somewhere since Hafsa was born). We went to an early show (at the AMC here they have MORNING showings on weekends). We geared up with pop and popcorn and headed into the theatre just in time for the last preview before the movie started. Perfect timing in my book. On to the movie:

You have probably heard the premise of this movie by now. Basically Andy (Anne Hathaway) is a journalist looking for work in New York city. Out of desperation, she starts work at "Runway" magazine though she has very little interest in fashion. She is working for the paycheck, and is trying to hold out for a year, after which she is routinely told, she will be able to work anywhere and get any job she wants. Andy is working for a complete tyrant, the "devil" of this movie, Miranda Priestly (Meryl Streep). This movie is based on the book, which is based loosely on reality - the editor of Vogue, Anna Wintour, was supposedly quite the boss from heck in her time at that magazine, and her former assistant penned this book, or the idea for it anyway.

I like character movies and this is a good one for that. Meryl Streep as Miranda is icy, icy cold. Many scathing remarks and cool dismissals later, we are still loving her by the end of the movie. Her character is never compromised, she doesn't become Anne Hathaway's Julie Andrews den-mother at the end or anything like that. Even when you pity her, she does something that makes you realize you were a fool to do so - this woman can take care of herself, no need to worry.

Miranda's first assistant Emily (played by Emily Blunt) stole the first half of the movie for me. I loved her dynamic way on screen and funny lines ("I'm one stomach flu away from my ideal weight!"), and it's refreshing to watch someone play between Meryl's coldness and Andy's softness.

I like Anne Hathaway, and something in me wants her to do well, for who knows what reason... and she's done okay in this, but I think just about any young, cute actress would've... In fact, I'm not sure how well she really, well, acted... The dialogue and wardrobe indicated several plot points in regards to Andy: that she was going through a transformation, or possibly selling out, or that her relationship was falling apart. But I never got that sense from the way Andy acted in the movie at all. To me the character was the same all the way through. Her changes were only evident to me by the cues surrounding her character. When she said "my personal life is holding on by a thread" it was news to me.

That's another beef I have surrounding her character: it's the makeover thing. Hmmm, I love it and I hate it. It's pretty common to see, in "chick" movies, Sandra Bullock in Miss Congeniality comes directly to mind. Basically the audience is asked to suspend their disbelief and play along with the premise that the major blockbuster actress you are watching is (a) unattractive, (b) fat, or in this case, (c) not well-dressed. We are asked to believe all 3 of these things in TDWP and it annoyed me just a little bit. Anne Hathaway is a little leaf fluttering on screen and we are told she's a size 6 (oh! the horror!) when all the other women in the office are size 4's. Didn't buy that one for a second. Next we are supposed to believe that she is poorly dressed - let's face it, on a movie with a budget this big, I'm sure she's still wearing clothes I can't afford. Maybe she's wearing last year's Ralph Lauren... As for unattractive, the only difference I observed was that Andy got a good blow-dry and just wore MORE make-up. Meh.

I enjoy a good makeover transformation scene as much as the next girlie-girl. Who didn't enjoy Sandra Bullock marching out of that warehouse looking all polished and lovely in Congeniality; and the transformation scenes in TDWP are equally fun. Andy turns into Andrea (pronounced aun-DRAY-ah) and it's fun to watch all those clothes whiz by. As what sadly happens with many movie stars, her clothes quickly leave the domain of simple good taste and enter the realm of the ridiculous, but in a way that was fun to watch too.

Bottom line, it was a good fun movie.. Thin on plot (I can't quite remember one right at this minute) but really fun to watch. Great clothes, dialogue and characters that were fun. I wondered what Anna Wintour thought of it several times throughout, but then she was probably flattered they bothered to make a movie about her. I hear that she attended the premiere... in Prada of course ;)

Official site: www.devilwearspradamovie.com/
Movie Reviews: www.rottentomatoes.com

Potty Training Update

Day 3 and 4.

So far, so good. Beekoo isn't doing too badly either apparently. The bathroom downstairs (loosely referred to as 'mine') is now populated with Dora bandaids, Beekoo and her potty (which actually belongs to baby Doopee, but has been appropriated by Beekoo for this particular purpose), piles of my daughter's clothes and various kiddy books. It looks like a New York Bachelor Pad for Toddlers. Although Elmo hasn't moved in yet.



Muna keeps rolling the toilet paper off, stuffing it into the toilet and laughing hysterically as it 'disappears.' We might need to invest in the Kandoo Dispenser.



Since I'm posting tonight I don't have the critical statistics that Jen usually mentions because I'm at my office trying to do some intellectual potty training on this course I'm trying to prepare for the upcoming fall semester, but I keep having accidents of my own with no strangely coiffed doll to slap around when I can't concentrate. Onward!

Potty Training Day Two

Number of panties down the laundry chute: 3

Number of complete outfit changes: 1

Most Valuable Player: Baby Bjorn portable potty (for outside play :)

Highlight: She remembered to ask to use the potty at the mall

Best part of potty training according to Maymay: Hello Kitty panties

"Accidents" today according to Maymay: "uh one... or two... or five"

Maymuna's parents' exhaustion level on a scale from 1 to 10: 17

Progress of Beekoo's potty training according to Maymay: "not good"

Potty Training Day One

Here are our potty training stats, as of lunch time:

Underwear preference of 2 year olds in this house: Dora & Boots

Number of panties down the laundry chute: 5

Number of dark-chocolate chips given so far as reward: 3

Most Valuable Player: Clorox Disinfectant Wipes

Choicest Phrase: "Mama, I diiiiiiiiid it!!"

Fave Bathroom Companion: Beekoo the doll who sits on her own potty

Number of carpets rolled up and put away: 2

Number of diapers changed here today: 4 (Hafsa's... it never ends...)

A post about postal service...

I had a very interesting conversation with a friend today. A conversation that made me wonder, am I crazy? We were talking about Netflix, which if you haven't heard about it, is basically movie-rental via mail. Very cool right? So we're discussing it because Ozayr and I are thinking about signing up for it. My friend says to me, it's so convenient, when you're done you just put it in the pre-addressed envelope and put it in your mailbox and then the postman will just take it away - done! The conversation continued somewhat like this:

Jen: so the postman will... what?
Shelly: well, when he picks up your mail, he'll take the movie too and...
Jen: *weird look*
Shelly: *weird look*
Jen: so your mail is picked up at your house?
Shelly: uh, yeah...
Jen: so my outgoing mail is picked up HERE... *confused look*
Shelly: yeah... doesn't this happen in... Canada??? *confused look*
Jen: No way!!
Shelly: so where do you post your mail?
Jen: you walk to the postbox!!
Shelly: weird!
Jen: weird!

The postal worker is at your house anyway, why not pick up your stamped letters or whatever and take them back for you? It does make perfect sense, which is why I began to doubt myself -- does this happen in Canada? and I never knew about it?

Well, I did what a girl always does when in doubt - I called my mom. She's never heard of mail being picked up at the house and she's been mailing all her bills forever and still does (no internet banking happening over there). Then I asked Ozayr, does the mailman pick up your mail in your mailbox and send it off for you? "Nooooo," he said, "that would be weird..."

I even went so far as to check the Canada Post website and that's when I remembered why this never would have happened to us when we lived in the suburbs anyway: because we didn't get door-to-door post delivery. We were unlucky enough to live in one of the areas with the postboxes on the corner, so you had to drive by or walk over and get the mail from there. That's why I would never remember to check the mail when we first moved to Minneapolis. Ozayr would come home and ask if there was any mail and I would have totally forgotten that there it was sitting in a little box right outside my door.

Anyhoo, this is a long post about just MAIL, but trust me, if you've ever received a letter from me, I walked that thing to the post box a good 10 or 15 minutes away or drove it to the post office. In fact there are letters upstairs right now just waiting for me to post them!! Well, NO MORE! Tomorrow I will leave my first letter IN MY MAILBOX and see if it gets picked up... :)

Break from the heat

It's raining today. Not just showers but dark, dark clouds and thunder in the distance. I love rainy days and this one is made all the better for having soft lamps on in the house during the daytime and a hot cup of tea by my side. In the good old days, as Ozayr and I refer to the time BEFORE KIDS, we would have grabbed a couple of books and settled down on the couch with a blanket for a few good hours before going out and renting a good movie. Then we would have watched that. Then maybe we would have napped for a while.... Anyhoo, no point dwelling on the past, eh? Besides... what I have now is equally entertaining: an imaginative almost-three year old with a chatty tendencies and her father's sense of humour; and a determined four month old with a delightful squeal and an insane drive to get moving. Very fun to watch. I don't think it will be long before she crawls - and you have no idea how much this thrills me after everything she's been through the last four months, not to mention everything that's passed through my "what's-the-worst-case-scenario" imagination since the day she was born. It's the kind of day today that makes you a bit reflective... and very grateful for what you have...

Here's hoping you all get a break from the heat and take some time out to enjoy the raindrops...

Maymuna's little ditties

Jack be imbel!
Jack be quick!
Jack jump over the campbell stick!

A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J-K-ememnoPEE-Q-R-S-T-U-V-W-X-Y and Z! Now I know my A-B-C-D-E-F-G-H-I-J-K... (repeat indefinitely...)

Row row row your boat
gently down the stweem
Merrily merrily merrily merrily
life is but a dweem...

Pat-a-cake, pat-a-cake
Bake me a FIVE!! (hysterical laughter)

Incy Wincy spider climbed up the water spout!
Down came the rain and washed the spider OUT!
Out came the sun and dried up all the rain,
so the Incy Wincy spider climbed up the water spout!
Down came the rain and washed the spider OUT!
(repeat indefinitely)

Old Macdoctor had a BANDAID.
E-I-E-I-OOOO!
And a boo-boo here,
and a boo-boo there!
(hysterical laughter)

Speaking of bandaids, there is much celebrating here because Maymuna's "boo-boo" is gone -- this was a minor scrape about 10 days ago upon which we placed a "Dora the Explorah" bandaid. And another. And another. Eventually we had to buy more Dora bandaids. Maymuna has tan lines in the shape of a Dora bandaid on her right knee... :)

We're back, baby!

So we're back from our brief stay at Gillette's Hospital.... and we're happy to be home. Here are ten things I learnt at the hospital:

1. Order food from the pediatric menu. The hospital food was terrible, as expected, but ordering from the children's menu was a sneaky trick someone shared with me. Cheeseburgers, bagels, fruit cups and chocolate milk... all better choices, plus hey, how bad can a grilled cheese sandwich be?

2. The nurses have extreme power. Want drugs? Want food sent up to your room in the middle of the day or night? The nurses (at Gillette anyway) were super helpful and seemed to be able to arrange anything for you if they so desired. BE ON THEIR GOOD SIDE.

3. Just take the free stuff. We left the hospital with a cartload full of supplies - tylenol, gauze, bandages, q-tips, lotion, soap, shampoo. And even though I know that we could easily pick up that stuff at home, well, it has been a much easier first few days because we haven't had to.

4. This ain't your grandma's hospital. You might be surprised to find out that your local hospital is wireless. Yes, indeed you can open your laptop anywhere and be hooked up to the internet now. And checking your email, as silly a thing as it sounds, does wonders to making you feel connected to the outside world. Plus, in the waiting rooms you can find Nintendo and XBox stations, often donated by great organizations like the Children's Wish Foundation.

5. Music Therapy might just work. I was a psych major and even I rolled my eyes when the music therapist arrived in our hospital room with her guitar and granola (just kidding). But halfway through "It's a Jolly Holiday with Hafsa" I was grinning ear to ear. The next thing I know we're all shaking maracas and making animal sound effects for Old Macdonald's Farm. Maymuna loved it.

6. If you or a loved one are going to stay at the hospital, consider a caringbridge website to stay connected with friends and family. I did this in order to help inform our friends and family about Hafsa's condition, but her website really ended up being for me. It was something that kept me busy, and I could check messages from everybody at any time and not have the pressure of returning phone calls or emails. You have no idea how many times I read them during the surgery time alone.

7. Neurosurgeons don't think babies are cute. Okay okay, this one is an exaggeration - but hey, what's with doctors who are so clinical that they can't crack a smile for a baby that obviously putting on a little show of drooly grins and adorable coo's just to get their attention? I won't name the doc on rotation that day, but let's just say I didn't crack much of a smile for him either.

8. People/babies are stronger than you think. I guess the thing that I am taking away from this experience that I treasure the most is that I am stronger than I thought I was. So is Hafsa. And Maymuna. (yes, I am omitting Ozayr here, but c'mon, I always knew he was strong). Children in particular seem to have a resiliency that is astounding.

9. Why not love the room you're in? We were going to have to stay in that room for 3-5 days anyway, so why not make the best of it? Once Maymuna arrived with her collages and paper chains I really felt like we were making the best out of our circumstances and surroundings.

10. I want that bed. The modern hospital bed doesn't just go up and down, the one in Hafsa's room adjusts to the way you are sleeping. There's air inside and as you shift your weight it redistributes the air to make the most comfortable mattress around. You can also select how firm or soft you want it to be.

Of course no one wants to be in the hospital, and I am grateful that my daughter is no longer there. I really have a new appreciation and respect for the really strong women I know who have and are battling sickness and as a result spend alot of time in hospitals -- I'm sure it must wear you out after a while. You are fighters though, never never doubt it.

Some comic relief over the last couple of weeks has been Maymuna and her budding personality and sense of humour... I'll leave you with this pic...

Happy Canada Day!

Today we went to the Canada Day pinic in the Twin Cities. It was held in a great park that we had never been to before. We didn't want to stay very long, because it was such a sweltering hot day - but curiousity got the best of us and we couldn't stay away!

It was a modest group - perhaps about 100 or more - all wearing, it seemed, either Roots clothing, or red and white (though I did notice one kid wearing a red & white "Nevada" shirt... sneaky...) It was a BYO-Everything kind of deal, though they had some hot grills going so you could BBQ your favourite pinic foods.


Everyone wore nametags with their name and their Canadian city of origin, and my first impression of the group was, hey, why is everyone from Winnipeg? Apparently IT companies in the Twin Cities did a lot of recruiting up in the 'Peg in the late 1990's. One man we spoke to has been in the area for almost ten years, though his memories of Winnipeg winters are still chillingly fresh...

That said, I did see at least one French-Canadian family and their "ben-oui" was music to my ears :)


We had a good chuckle over the Fort Frances (CAN) and International Falls (US) border communities that had an across-the-river tug-of-war this year to celebrate 'border community-ness' and to co-celebrate Canada Day and the 4th of July - or simply 'the 4th' as it's known here. Earlier in the day, the Canadians lost the Dragon boat challenge (best out of three), but dragged the Americans into the river/border to decidedly win the tug-of-war. It made the news on NPR. Good work Canadians, eh!