Date Nights - February

After spending roughly over a month apart, we were super excited for some fun adventures. I opted for a more low key night with dinner and a movie. Chris planned a weekend getaway to Pineapple Hill Inn bed and breakfast in New Hope, Pennsylvania where he found a really fun wine pairing for us to try.

A Girl Scout Cookie Wine Pairing is a genius idea. We had so much fun trying all the treats and wine at Sand Castle Winery. We even found a lemonade cookie that we didn't know existed. The whole event was really fun. Along with the wine tasting, we were able to select a box of cookies to take home with us. I snagged the Samoas while Chris got some Thin Mints. What a fun night!

I'd just finished my Oscar movie watching and had seen advertisements for A United Kingdom on repeat. I thought it would be an interesting one for us to watch together so we headed down to Houston Street to see it at The Angelika. The story was based on true events, but since it dealt with England's history we weren't as familiar with the story going into the movie. We enjoyed it.

Do you have any fun bed and breakfast recommendations?

What is your favorite "based on true events" movie?

Andrea :)

My 2017 Oscar Predictions

It is one of my favorite days of the year! For two reasons this year since it is also Chris' birthday today. Happy Birthday to my lovely husband (who so graciously agreed to watch the Oscars with me tonight even though award shows aren't exactly his cup of tea). I definitely have a great man on my hands! I'll share more about his celebration soon. Today, I want to quickly fill you in on my predictions for each of the coveted Oscar nominations.

I watched nearly every nominated movie in all of the categories this year so I am extra excited to see who takes home each Oscar. There weren't any of the nine Best Picture nominees that I didn't enjoy on some level. Of course, some I liked better than others, but each had an interesting story to tell. I recommend watching them all when you have a chance.  I'll rank the Best Picture nominees (and the shorts categories) in order of how I preferred the films. For all other categories, I'll indicate my favorite with asterisks as well as who I predict will actually win the OSCAR.

Best Picture

1 - Hidden Figures

2 - Hacksaw Ridge

3 - Fences

4 - Moonlight

5 - La La Land

6 - Manchester by the Sea

7 - Hell or High Water

8 - Lion

9 - Arrival

OSCAR goes to La La Land.

Actor in Leading Role

Casey Affleck, Manchester by the Sea

Andrew Garfield, Hacksaw Ridge

*Ryan Gosling, La La Land*

Viggo Mortensen, Captain Fantastic

Denzel Washington, Fences

OSCAR goes to Denzel Washington, Fences.

Actor in Supporting Role

Mahershala Ali, Moonlight

Jeff Bridges, Hell or High Water

Lucas Hedges, Manchester by the Sea

Dev Patel, Lion

*Michael Shannon, Nocturnal Animals*

OSCAR goes to Mahershala Ali, Moonlight.

Actress in Leading Role

Isabelle Huppert, Elle

Ruth Negga, Loving

*Natalie Portman, Jackie*

Emma Stone, La La Land

Meryl Streep, Florence Foster Jenkins

OSCAR goes to Emma Stone, La La Land.

Actress in Supporting Role

*Viola Davis, Fences*

Naomie Harris, Moonlight

Nicole Kidman, Lion

Octavia Spencer, Hidden Figures

Michelle Williams, Manchester by the Sea

OSCAR goes to Viola Davis, Fences.

Animated Short Film

1 - Pearl

2 - Piper

3 - Blind Vaysha

4 - Pear Cider and Cigarettes

5 - Borrowed Time

OSCAR goes to Piper.

Directing

Denis Villeneuve, Arrival

Mel Gibson, Hacksaw Ridge

Damien Chazelle, La La Land

Kenneth Lonergan, Manchester by the Sea

*Barry Jenkins, Moonlight*

OSCAR goes to Damien Chazelle, La La Land.

Documentary (Feature)

Fire at Sea (did not see)

I Am Not Your Negro

Life, Animated (did not see)

*O.J.: Made in America*

13th

OSCAR goes to 13th.

Documentary (Short Subject)

1 - Joe's Violin

2 - Watani: My Homeland

3 - The White Helmets

4 - Extremis

5 - 4.1 Miles

OSCAR goes to The White Helmets.

Live Action Short Film

1 - Sing

2 - La Femme et le TGV

3 - Timecode

4 - Silent Nights

5 - Ennemis Interieurs

OSCAR goes to Timecode.

Writing (Adapted Screenplay)

Arrival

Fences

*Hidden Figures*

Lion 

Moonlight

OSCAR goes to Hidden Figures.

Writing (Original Screenplay)

Hell or High Water

*La La Land*

The Lobster (did not see)

Manchester by the Sea

20th Century Women (did not see)

OSCAR goes to La La Land.

Did you see any of the nominated films? Which did you enjoy?

Andrea :)

DIY Valentine's Day Project

This year, I decided to get creative with my Valentine's Day gift for Chris. I was still at my parent's house back in Kentucky so I had a bit of extra time on my hands. I decided to make him a 52 Reasons Why I Love You card deck.

I got the supplies - a deck of cards, hole punch, glue stick, and ribbon. Then, I typed out my 52 reason and cut out those squares. The project was pretty simple, but did take a bit of time to patch together. My dad had a day long bridge tournament so I loaded up all my supplies and used that time to create the finished card deck. I was surprised how easy it was to make. It was fun to think of the reasons and also to decide how to order them on the cards.

I presented the deck to Chris along with a copy of Loving and some Reese's Cup treats in a soccer tin. We saw Loving in the theater together the previous fall and really liked the movie. I know Chris liked the gift, but I think he was happiest to just have me back home.

Hope you all have a wonderful Valentine's Day!!

Andrea :)

Photo a Day - February

I spent half of February in Kentucky and half of it in New York with a fun long weekend bed and breakfast getaway worked in there. The shortest month of the year certainly flew by in a hurry!

My parents introduced me to free pie Wednesday at O'Charley's - yum! We checked out Midnight Cowboy before Dad was officially diagnosed with his torn retina. We managed some sweet treats and a service at my hometown church before Dad went under the laser.

Dairy Freeze is one of the highlights of McLean County and they rarely disappoint! I caught a beautiful sunset on the Green River and spent nearly a full day with Dad at a Bridge tournament in Owensboro one day. Friends of ours had a pet pig that I just thought was the best thing ever. Upon arriving back in NY, Chris surprised me with an edible arrangement treat for Valentine's Day.

Chris and I went to see A United Kingdom for one of our date nights. I went on a blind date with a book at our local library - so fun! And we spent a long weekend in New Hope, Pennsylvania at a the lovely Pineapple Hill Inn.

I caught the Oscar nominated short films at IFC over the course of the week and took in some of the fabulous scenery around the city. We celebrated Chris' birthday at the NYC Beer Week Expo. I surprised him with Krispy Kreme donuts on the morning of his big day. I also finished Between the World and Me - quite appropriate for Black History Month.

Andrea :)

Date Nights - January

Chris and I only spent the first week of January together since I was back in Kentucky helping my parents with dad's recovery, but we managed to pack a lot of fun into those few days. We saw Who's Bad perform at Brooklyn Bowl and spent some time touring the Tenement Museum on the Lower East Side.

Who's Bad covered Michael Jackson through the decades. They were really good. We enjoyed the show full of great singing and dancing on the stage. They even did a some Prince about halfway through the performance. It was a fun night for both of us. I mean, really, who doesn't love a good Michael Jackson tribute?

The Tenement Museum was somewhere I had wanted to visit for quite some time. That time period is always hard to wrap my mind around, but I love hearing the stories or watching plays/movies set in that era. We signed up for the Hard Times tour and thought it was really insightful. We learned about a couple of different families that lived in the building during two different time periods. Definitely a neat place that I highly recommend checking out if you are in New York City.

Have you ever visited a really neat historical museum?

What is your favorite Michael Jackson song?

Andrea :)

Photo a Day - January

Taking photos is one of my favorite hobbies. I love framing a shot or setting up a creative photo. I've heard about photo a day projects and always wanted to do it. I was SUPER proud that I was able to keep it up for the entire year. Some days were a struggle, but for the most part I really enjoyed this little project. Not to mention, this is a great way to catch you up month-by-month since I wasn't blogging in real time. Enjoy!

I spent the first five days in NYC before heading back to spend a couple weeks with my dad in the rehab unit of the hospital in Owensboro. Chris and I managed to ride the brand new 2nd Avenue subway line on its opening day and work in two separate date nights. I basically moved into the hospital where I took turns entertaining Dad and my niece and nephew.

Jordan and Jen had gone down to Disney to run some races so me and Mom (along with a couple of my cousins) watched their kids for a few days. Dad got reacquainted with the piano at rehab and McKinley showed up for a couple game nights before Dad was finally released on MLK, Jr. Day!

Dad continued with therapy and daily trips to Owensboro for IV infusions, but we managed to have lots of fun in between. Dad celebrated Christmas on a bit of  a delay. I spent some time with Dad and his lovely bridge companions.

Jordan brought the kids back for another few days. Mom and I took them to see Sing. Brinley was adamant about completing her preschool "paperwork". We spent the rest of the month getting Dad's infusions, eating out in Owensboro, and seeing some Oscar movies.

Andrea :)

Completed List of ABC Reads Books

I realized as I looked back on each of my ABC Reads recaps, I failed to compile a complete list of all the great books I completed as a part of this link-up. Here's a full list of all my completed ABC Reads...

A - An Abundance of Katherines by John Green
B - Big Magic: Creative Living Beyond Fear by Elizabeth Gilbert
C - Call the Midwife: A Memoir of Birth, Joy, and Hard Times by Jennifer Worth
D - The Dark Ferret Society by Emily Humphreys
E - Everything I Never Told You by Cynthia Ng
F - Find the Good: Unexpected Life Lessons from a Small-Town Obituary Writer by Heather Lende
G - Go Set A Watchman by Harper Lee
H - The Hours by Michael Cunningham
I - Is Everyone Hanging Out Without Me? by Mindy Kaling
J - The Joy Luck Club by Amy Tan
K - The Keeper: A Life of Saving Goals and Achieving Them by Tim Howard
L - Life and Other Near-Death Experiences by Camille Pagan
M - The Magic Strings of Frankie Presto by Mitch Albom
N - The Nightingale by Kristin Hannah
O - Orphan Train by Christina Baker Kline
P - The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg
Q - Quiet Strength: The Principles, Practices, and Priorities of a Winning Life by Tony Dungy
R - The Rising: Murder, Heartbreak, and the Power of Human Resilience in an American Town by Ryan D'Agostino
S - Switch: How to Change Things When Change is Hard by Chip Heath
T - 13 Little Blue Envelopes by Maureen Johnson
U - The Unraveling of Mercy Louis by Keija Parssinen
V - The Vow: The Kim and Krickitt Carpenter Story by Kim Carpenter
W - We Were Liars by E. Lockhart
X - The X by Lorena Bathey
Y - The Year We Disappeared: A Father-Daughter Memoir by Cylin & John Busby
Z - Z: A Novel of Zelda Fitzgerald by Therese Anne Fowler

Andrea :)