A vial of time..Harry Potter Style

I really don't think it's too much to ask for. I mean it's not like I'm complaining about how I never got my Hogwarts acceptance letter. (I stopped whining at least three days months ago) And obviously if I didn't get into Hogwarts I never got my apparation license (Total rubbish! I tried to do it illegally once, but I splinched my left butt cheek. Oops.) Not to mention...all the time turners are locked up in McGonagal's office. That witch! (No really, she is a witch....)

So what's a girl to do when she has obviously signed herself up for WAY too many commitments but refuses to give any away?

Not only am I now maintaining this blog, my other blog, trying to catch up on old House reruns, working part time from home, trying to keep up with my kids and my house, AND starting a whole new website that I am incredibly dedicated to...I'm also trying to write my awesome book!  Oh and did I mention I'm trying to read 23 books this summer. It's mid July and I've gotten through...um...3 full and 2 halfs.

See my predicament? SEE IT!!!

Do you think if I sent a letter to Dumbledore he'd talk to Snape and together they could whip up a wicked potion that makes the day last at least 3 hours longer?

Can I borrow someone's owl? The last one I sent off with a message never came back, but I'm pretty sure Harry got my message about how I think he needs to hook up with Ginny Weasly...so we're all good.

Harry Potter Fantastic Favorites!

So I gave Shannon over at Rambling of a Wannabe Scribe (one of my new favorite blogs!!!) my Favorite Gnome Approved Blog Awards. She completely rocks! And she decided to put together a little "Favorites" Q and A for winning the blog. It was a three part blog series and her last one was my absolute Favorite! The Harry Potter Favorites!!! Did I mention that Shannon is awesome? Ok so I couldn't help it. I totally need to answer these questions. They are absolutely some of the most important questions ever!

So because it's Sunday and I have tons of other things I should be doing but am now in Harry Potter mode ... here we go ...

Favorite Book: The Half Blood Prince. I was completely drawn into all the horcruxes and could not put this book down for even a moment.

Favorite Chapter: Chapter 26 of The Half Blood Prince - The Cave ...Harry and Dumbledore go into the cave where Tom Riddle tortured two young children to find the hidden locket. I could picture every moment in this chapter. The movie did not do it justice. (But it didn't suck either) although it was a close second to Chapter 1 in The Goblet of Fire. I loved that scene!

Favorite Scene: The Deathly Hallows where Ron and Hermione finally kiss. It was like "It's about damn time!" and it was entertaining all at the same time.

Favorite Muggle: There really aren't a whole lot to choose from. I really do love that Hermione's parents are muggles though. That entertains me :)

Favorite Teacher: I'd have to go with Slughorn. He was by far the most entertaining teacher.

Favorite Class: Potions. Though Snape was kinda a dink, imagine the possibilities with creating the perfect potions. Imagine going to a writers conference and slipping an agent a little Amortentia ... they'd fall in love with you and want to sign in an instant!!!

Favorite Gryffindor: Ginny! I adore Ginny. She's my favorite everything.

Favorite Hufflepuff: Cedric Diggory. Isn't he everyone's favorite Hufflepuff? I mean look at his cute little red cheeks! (Looking at this picture and thinking is cute makes me feel just as naughty as I do when I say Taylor Lautner is hot!)

Favorite Ravenclaw: I'm with Shannon...all I can think of is Cho Chang. (Well except for her friends. And I totally didn't like her friend Marietta. That little snitch!)

Favorite Slytherin: Slughorn!

Favorite Defense Against the Dark Arts Teacher: Lupin. After all he was pretty much the only one who taught the kids anything! Plus without him how would Harry have ever learned how to do a Patronis???

Favorite Quidditch Match: The one where Ron kicks some major arse. Especially in the movie because he just looks like an idiot and it makes me laugh.

Favorite Wand Ingredient: Dragon Heart String. I'd totally want a piece of Dragon in my wand! Does that make me a pyro?

Favorite Wizard Band: Wasn't The Weird Sisters the only one? That's the only one I remember (And yes completely by memory! I've read Harry Potter THAT many times!)

Favorite Library Book: I admit I hit up Google...I tried so hard to keep Google out of it...but I couldn't. All I found was "Quidditch through the Ages"... that'll do!

Favorite Textbook: Hogwarts, A History

Favorite Hogesmead Store: The Three Broomsticks. I want to meet Aberforth's goat.

Favorite Diagon Alley Shop: Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and get me a Pigmy Puff!!! I've always wanted a Pigmy Puff...sigh....

Favorite Weasley Twin: Fred ... it's the name... sorry. (Friends from high school need not comment. Thanks!)

Favorite Fight: The one between Ron and the Locket. That Locket was a bizach to him! All making him believe Harry and Hermione were a thing when clearly Harry is in love with Ginny. I was more than happy once Ron stabbed it with the sword!

Favorite Couple: Harry and Ginny all the way. Ginny is my favorite character overall so I was super excited when she finally got the boy she wanted. And I love that she told everyone he had tatoos!

Favorite Scene in a Graveyard: The moment where Harry's parents and everyone comes back to help him and Lord Voldemort flips out cuz he disappears. Eat that He-Who-Must-Not-Be-Named!!! FAIL!

Favorite Villain: Bellatrix. She's like uber B! Just her hair alone makes her quite the awesome villain. Though she is kinda whiny. That is a pretty big turn off. So I would probably say Voldemort if he wasn't already the obvious choice :)

Favorite Trelawney Prophecy: The prophecy from the Hall of Prophecies. I felt it was so well worded! Plus I really liked the orb.

Favorite Ron Line: Bloody Hell!

Favorite Dumbledoreism: "It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities." I know that is really kinda cheesy, but I think it is so true in life. But my favorite snarky comment is "--yet, sadly, accidental rudeness occurs alarmingly often. Best to say nothing at all, my dear man."

Favorite Beast: Is a Pigmy Puff considered a beast? If not I'm going to go with Thestral. Those are wicked cool, though I wouldn't be able to see one myself.

Favorite Movie: The Order of the Pheonix at the IMAX. The 3-D scenes in the Ministry of Magic are unforgettable. I loved that scene!

Favorite Scene in the Hospital Wing: The one where Ron asks for Hermione in his sleep right in front of Lavender. (I'm mean!)

Favorite Method of Getting to Hogwarts: Well you can only take the Hogwarts Express of course. I mean there are magical enchantments preventing you from apperating and all that other cool stuff! Duh! I mean I suppose you could fly, but I'm super afraid of heights.

Favorite Patel Twin: Parvoiti. I love the line, "Arm, leg, I'm yours!"

That was slightly harder than I expected. But super fun! Enjoy your Sunday!

Take Me to the Theater!

Now that books, music, and TV shows are out of the way, I suppose the obvious thing to do is mention all my favorite movies. I can't go leaving them out, especially considering that I Love movies!

I'm not going to list the obvious Harry Potter and Twilight movies. I'm pretty sure you are all well aware of my slight obsessions fondness of these movies.

So lets start with my favorite.

Love Actually

I'm not sure what it is about this movie, but I adore it. I insist upon watching it every Christmas season. It's a must.

Not too many others make the "Favorites" list ... and after that I like them all!

13 Going on 30
How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
PS I Love You
Enchanted
The Story of Us
Anastasia

So what are your favorite movies?

PS: Jessica Nelson asked a question yesterday about the similarities between being a singer and being a writer. Check out my answer over at my website!

I've been sucked in ... again ...

So I've been sucked in again. If you've been reading my blog for awhile you may have noticed that I kinda like the Harry Potter and Twilight series.

It's no big deal ... it's not like I am obsessed with them or anything. Reading a book series 4 or 5 times is perfectly natural. People do it all the time.

And who wouldn't want to carry around an action figure of their favorite book character?


However -yet again - I have found a new series that I have been unable to put down. The characters are fantastic and the story is wonderful. Now I realize that this story is meant for a slightly younger audience (middle grade) I am absolutely in love with it.

Let me introduce to you Percy Jackson and the Olympians.


The story is about a young boy who discovers he is half god half mortal. He battles all sorts of mythical creatures (Greek Mythology types) and has to prove himself as a hero.

So I'm going to have to cut this post short so I can go finish reading.

Home Schooling and Me

In my last comment of the day yesterday Jessica Nelson over at Booking It asked me if I home schooled.

My Answer... Oh goodness I'd never do that to my children!!!

Now I could be wrong (I'm NEVER wrong...) but I have a feeling my readers MIGHT be entertained to know why I am not fit to be a home schooling mom. Don't get me wrong, I think I am pretty decent mom 92% of the time, but I am in no way fit to school my own children.

Why? Funny you should ask! I've decided to give you ...

The Top 10 Reasons Why Poppins is Not Fit to Teach

1. To my great disappointment, apparently BeJeweled Blitz is not a government approved subject. (Although it COULD be an elective?!?!)

2. I'm not sure that an education based on literature, English, grammar and spelling alone would get them very far in life. Granted I can add and multiply, once you get past the basic stuff....eh...it gets kinda shaky!

3. I don't do Science. I don't find anything cool about bugs, dead frogs, homemade bombs, electrons, chemistry, planets, earth, etc. in even the smallest amount.

4. I had to ask my husband what war Gone With The Wind took place during and, "That was before World War II right?" Thus my expertise in history...slightly lacking

5. I need a break from my children. I can't take 365 days a year of "Stop touching me!", "I didn't do it!" and "You're gonna break my Lego House!" I. Just. Can't. Do. It!!!

6. Did you know that kids are noisy? Or is that just my kids? I'm really more of a "quiet" person.

7. I could be wrong...but I think it takes effort to school the children. That doesn't really fit in to my plans to spend the fall and winter being super lazy.

8. I wouldn't want to put teachers out of a job. After all, they go to school for all that stuff. Pay massive student loans. And see I am so awesome that if I home schooled my kids...everyone would want to home school their kids and then tons of my friends would be unemployed! (Though that would free up a little more time for them to return back to Blogger...I'm not that cruel!)

9. Is Harry Potter a subject? Cuz I'd be SUPER good at teaching it! What about the History of Gnomes?

10. So um...my kids don't listen to me....like ever. I tell my child NOT to touch that and after about the 5th time....well yeah, he's still touching it. How can I teach a child who ignores me?!?!

So those are just a few reasons why I would not be fit to teach my children. The list does go on and on, but I don't want to bore you :)

NOW please don't think I am anti-home schooling. I have a sister, neighbor and sister in law who have done it quite effectively. BUT I am not the right kind of mom to do it. It takes a very special woman to do it...and although I'm special in MANY ways (mostly in the ways of awesomeness!) that is just not one of them.

So to simple answer your question Jessica, No, I do not home school my kids!

Is it Irony or Defiance?

Here I sit ... at my lovely computer desk ... cuddling my 4 year old who is refusing to descend from my lap ... all while staring at this big red book in front of me and trying to decide what my husband's motivation behind reading this book is.

See I have been trying to get my husband to read the Harry Potter series and/or Twilight with no avail. He's seen the movies but that is about as far as he will go. (Ugh...elbow in the rib! Seriously child! Must readjust...) He absolutely refuses to read my "rubbish", although he will admit he likes the movies. And why wouldn't he, they are great movies (Ok so Twilight has some pretty horrible acting and was possibly a little too low budget, but it's a great movie dern it!)

I'll tell him, "Well if you like the movies you should read the books because they are SOOOO much better!"

He ignores me.

So as I sit here and stare at the Harry Potter wanna be book Eldest (the sequel to Eragon) I can't help but wonder WHY he has decided this book is worthy of his reading and the others are not. I mean seriously. Eragon! That movie wasn't even that good!

He says he thought it was....blah...what does he know.

So you tell me, is this situation merely ironic? Or is he just passive aggressively being insanely defiant?

(Well of course I could just ask him...but what fun would that be. Plus he'd just up and say "Neither" cuz he's just blah like that. I think WE can come up with a much better answer here! And considering WE came up with it, it will most definitely be the truth!)

Hey you with your big sword! Having a wand is WAY cooler!

Tour de Chateau Poppins

Welcome to Poppins Palace. Come on in, let me give you a tour! I hope the motes didn't give you too much trouble...we've been working on them all week!

(Don't worry about taking your shoes off at the door, my carpet magically cleans itself every four hours.)

As you walk into the foyer you will see a big winding stair case to your right, a long hallway straight ahead and a den off to your left. Let's start with the den shall we? Great!

In the Poppins den you will see a vast array of bookshelves filled to the brim. You will see one bookshelf dedicated to Harry Potter and the Twilight  *Update* Hunger Games Series. This bookshelf is off limits. Do not touch or remove these books from the shelf or there will be penalties! However...do feel free to peruse the remaining bookshelves, especially the one directly to your left that holds all my published works. I'm so excited that Penguin Books *Update* Harper Teen decided to sign me! (Big Dreams)

As you can see, although it was sunny and warm before you entered my palace, the windows clearly state that it is raining. The weather did not change that quickly. Instead the windows in the den rain on a 24/7 basis to instill a calm and soothing atmosphere perfect for relaxation and reading. This room even smells spring fresh. Breath in a wiff....ahhhhhh....smell the fresh cut wet grass!

Moving along....Yes, I know...I find it hard to leave this room as well.

We will walk directly upstairs now to see the next relaxation room. The stairs were built centuries ago, but don't be nervous, they are very sturdy! I've tripped on them a few times myself through the years. These are unbreakable these stairs are!!!

You are now entering a large studio like room with one small room branching off to the right. As you can see the canopy bed holds at the very minimum 284 pillows (each is ALWAYS cold on both sides...) and has 3 down comforters covering it. For maximum sleeping potential the room becomes a steady 55 degrees every evening and white noise automatically sounds from the speakers above. The room darkens the minute you make contact with the pillows and the sunny windows again turn to rain. Its ingenious I tell you!

To the right you will see the bathroom. Feel free to stop in and take a moment to look around and if you need to use the facilities go ahead. Notice the LARGE whirlpool in the center of the room, complete with waterproof Kindle and surrounding candles. The speaker system has a large library of all music and at least 2494 different play lists to fit each mood. This bathroom is especially spectacular because like the carpets...it cleans itself.

If you would follow me down...hey you...don't you even thinking about stopping on my bed!!! Come now...follow the rest of us. You can grimace all you want, but this is MY palace!

Down the long hallway you will find 3 doors. One leads to a small boring but self cleaning bathroom. It would be ridiculous to walk upstairs every time you needed to go! Plus then you'd be tempted to take another bath and seriously....who needs like 4 baths a day! Talk about the wrinkled fingers!

So to your right is my kitchen. This room is not self cleaning, however it comes with 3 chefs and one maid that cleans up after them. Notice the 32 cupboards which house all my dishes, wine glasses, margarita glasses, martini glasses, etc. as well as the 10 by 10 walk in pantry where I can actually store all my food! Please don't pester the chefs, they are making my lunch!

(Did I mention that not only are they absolutely gorgeous, but they all speak with Brittish Accents as well?)

You'll see the dining area attached to your left here. This dark cherry red wood table is from 17th century and is scratch and stain resistant. Feel free to sit down if you are getting thirsty or hungry. I'm sure my 2nd chef can whip us up some quick cheesecake.

Well now that our bellies are full (who requested the cheese fries again....oh...*blushing* that was me wasn't it) Let us continue to the living room across the hall. OH I know it looks like a movie theater...but look, my computer desk is over there in the corner next to the big comfy couch, so I prefer to call this my living room. I've got connections so I have every movie imaginable, even the ones that just came out in the theater. Here put on these 3D glasses. Let's watch Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince!

Thank you for visiting my happy place. I hope you enjoyed your tour. Please come back for dinner sometime. I taught my chef how to make my Alfredo sauce and I have a vintage 1940's bottle of Merlot in the cellar I've been dying to share! Maybe I can even show you the gardens or the tennis courts out side next time. There just isn't enough time in the day to do the outside AND inside of my happy place :) (Did I mention the pool boys have British accents to go with those rock hard abs too?)

Big Perks come in Little Packages

Yesterday I touched on all the reasons I dislike looking like I'm 15. (AKA being really small) I accidentally made a few people feel kinda bad for me. Totally not necessary...because.....

Today I will head the opposite way and point out all my Favorite things about being half the size of a normal human.....right after I point out one more of my least favorite things that I totally dislike the most...I can never reach anything!!!! I always need a stool. Ok now that I have that off my chest.

My Top 10 Favorite things about being Tiny and looking Young

1. I get to shop in the kids section. Do you know what that means? Any clothing or shoes purchased in the mini me sections are only a fraction of the price that big people clothing is. SCORE!

2.I never have to duck. (Side thought....Hercules..."Hey Phil, I got two words for you! DUCK!" ...hahahaha...sorry) When a doorway is small or a bar is in the way normal sized people always have to duck. Me? I just keep on walking!

3. I have never had to deal with dating a boy that was shorter than me. This has come in handy. There would be the sweetest boys and they would always be passed over because they were too short. This was never a problem for me.

4. I'm compact. I don't have to worry about sitting in the back seat because I can't fit or squishing between a chair and the wall because there isn't enough space. I can fit pretty much anywhere.

5. People think I'm cute. Despite how much I dislike the word, one little flash of my cute tiny smile and people are Jell-O in my hands. And everyone likes Jell-O!

6.I have little feet! This is something about my size that I adore. Do you know how cute little shoes are? I've gone shopping with friends and they will look at super cute shoes and put them on their big ol feet and they just don't look right. But take that shoe and shrink it down about 5 sizes and it's the Perfect shoe! That's right, call me Cinderella and hand me over my dang glass slipper baby!

7. It's ok to go to the midnight showing of Harry Potter because I look like I'm 15 anyway. I totally fit in and no one thinks twice about it! Same goes for New Moon! (Of course while linking to it I did have to take a moment and watch the trailer again...sigh...)

8. I have to admit, I do enjoy being told I look like a Pixie. Tinkerbell is pretty sweet! Although I would be a bit happier with wings and some Pixie Dust...

9. I never get in anyone's way ... so it's not really inconvenient for me to shove to the front of a crowd and be in the front row without really bothering anyone. After all, everyone can see over me anyway!

10. Although not being able to reach things does suck, it can be most convenient. Example: At a grocery store you see hot yummy man standing next to the tomato paste. Now everyone KNOWS the tomato paste is too high for us short chicks...so SADLY you HAVE to ask the hot yummy man to reach it for you. Perfect flirting tactics. Granted it is not a tactic used these days and hopefully he doesn't really think I'm only 15 because then he's not even going to bother looking at me for fear of looking like a pedophile, but you get the point :)

See it's not all that bad to be little!

Reading, Writing and......Harry Potter?

I don't think those would pass as the core classes at a school ... although they SHOULD!

No, this is what my weekend consisted of, in no particular order....

Aside from the usual grocery shopping (pay day Friday and all), errand running, finally having my daughter come back home and all the other completely boring things we accomplished over the weekend, I couldn't help but treat myself to a few of my favorite things. (Why yes...I did just sing that as I wrote the words. Don't lie, you know you did too!!!)

So I read 1 & 1/4 books. The first one I adored!!! Couldn't put it down. It was a murder mystery - and since I am incredibly impatient and can't stand NOT knowing who done it - I could not put down until the mystery had been solved. (Name of book to come later...how is THAT for a mystery!!!) The second one, the one I am having a hard time getting into, is the first in the "Sookie Stackhouse" series by Charlaine Harris, Dead Until Dark. (It's the series they based the show True Blood upon) I'm only 1/4 of the way into it, so I am sure I just haven't given it enough time, but I am having a rough time getting it to hold my attention. Has anyone else read this book? Did you have the same problem at first? Does it get better?

After an incredibly entertaining dream about parallel realities and the house I grew up in, (which incidentally my father posted the link to it that afternoon because it is now for rent! OMG WHAT did they do to my bedroom!!!) my mind once again began to swarm with ideas about a novel I had previously thought up. After spending two hours in bed writing the entire back story and then another hour or so online coming up with names to every character, then editing the prologue a bit AND writing the first page of the first chapter I am super excited to say I have a new novel in progress!!! Which is really good actually considering a really need a break from the first one.

And of course...on opening weekend...who could leave out Harry Potter! I knew my husband wanted to kinda see it, and I assumed my kids would enjoy it too. (Why I assumed a 4, 6, and 8 year old would enjoy a 2 1/2 hour movie is beyond me!) So I had this ingenious thought to go to the 11:25 showing on Sunday morning. It would be before noon -aka CHEEPER - and I figured who is going to want to go to an 11:25 am showing on a Sunday...that's Church time!! (um yeah....I just confessed to not going to Church didn't I....CRAP!) So at 11:10am we loaded the car up and hurried our butts to the theater. Shouldn't be a problem...right!?!? WRONG. We ended up sitting in the VERY FIRST row. The only one available with 5 seats. So as we craned our necks to watch the 2 1/2 hour movie I also took the time to make sure everyone's popcorn was refilled, drinks were shared properly, and each child stopped squirming in annoying ways as my husband enjoyed the movie. So with one squiggly/bored 4 year old in my lap, I was able to watch about 2/3rds of the entire movie, surprisingly without a neck ache! (Thank Goodness I saw the opening show a few days prior!)

And that was my weekend! How was yours? Exciting I hope!

***Read MORE about my new Story HERE!!!***