Deck the halls!  

With a mere 19 days ’til Christmas, I finally settled down to watch last season’s romantic-comedy-just-in-time-for-the-holidays, Four Christmases.  Vince Vaughn’s character, Brad, finally takes his girlfriend home and, in the midst of yuletide merriment, she discovers that Brad legally changed his name – from Orlando.  Brothers Denver and Dallas were introduced, and Brad explained that they were all named in a very Brooklyn Beckham-esque way.  You’re forgiven, Brad.  Posh, are you listening?

Speaking of the holidays, on my recent travels I heard tots answering to Lyle, Hugo, Mara and Cecily – or I suppose Sicily, but let’s hope it was the former.

As for movies, I’m dying to see Robert Downey Jr. and Jude Law in the upcoming Sherlock Holmes movie.  While other girls were reading Anne of Green Gables, I was off in Victorian England, solving crimes with Holmes and Watson.  There are already hints of franchise potential, not unlike Pirates of the Caribbean, which got me thinking – if Sparrow could pop as a boy’s name in the wake of Captain Jack, will this film have a similar impact?  Sherlock and Holmes are out, and John is evergreen.  But how ’bout Watson?  I’ll be watching the boards!

Elsewhere in the blogosphere:

• Sebastiane has been featuring classics with all of their international variations included.  Think Andrew is a bit obvious?  Try Dreves.  Cathy and Cate don’t appeal?  Call your daughter Catherine by the unusual short form Trine – or opt for the variant Cathereau;
• My new favorite name of the week has to be Lillemor - also from Sebastiane’s site.  I’ve been puzzled by the so-fashionable Moa in Sweden.  Turns out Moa is a nickname for Lillemor, one that has eclipsed the original.  Apparently Lillemor is considered stodgy by modern Swedes, but in the US?  I think she’d offer an unexpected way to get to Lily – and fit just right with names like Eleanor, too;
• Over at Names from Adam to Eve, Laura wrote of her love for Hester, nn Hettie.  I’m a fan, too, so it is nice to see Hester get some love;
• Bewildertrix spotted a newborn girl named Montanna Skye.  It was an Aussie birth announcement, so maybe the parents don’t get the joke?  Or did they vacation in Big Sky Country and … cancel that thought;
• For Real Baby Names spotted a tot christened Basil Leif.  I suspect he’ll be one of those guys who refuses to hand over his driver’s license for fear his friends will discover the L isn’t for Leon or Lawrence;
• You’ve heard about New York’s just-released baby names of 2008 list, right?And Sophia and Jayden coming out on top?  Check out the Nameberry post for details and discussion;
• It’s that time again - Nymbler has released November’s Top 10 favorite names.  They’re  the usual suspects: Charlotte, Ava, Ella, Finn, Jack, Amelia, Claire, Henry, Grace and Benjamin.  
• But then there’s the far more interesting Top 5 Brand New Names: 
  • A twist on Brianna and Riley, Briley;
  • The lovely Cosima;
  • Word name Fable, a choice almost single-handedly launched by blogger Girls Gone Child; 
  • The literary Bronte;
  • Starbaby-inspired Nahla.

Speaking of starbabies, it was a busy week.  Thanks to Celebrity Baby Blog for the heads up on the following:

• Maya Rudolph welcomed Lucille, a little sister for Pearl - what a great sibset.  Please leave a comment if you hear about the girls’ middle names;
• Scrubs’ Judy Reyes welcomed Leila Rey.  Leila is the new Hailey – it is impossible to say how many there really are thanks to Layla, Lailah, Leyla, Laila …  But Rey is a clever nod towards mom’s surname;
• Singer Lisa Loeb welcomed daughter Lyla Rose;
• Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils welcomed his fifth child – son Maxime Phillipe.  For those of you who don’t follow hockey, it’s mahr TAN.  He’s from Montreal.  Older siblings are Anthony, William, Jeremy and Anabelle Antoinette; 
• Also in the Wide World of Sports, Chunky soup pitchman/Philadelphia Eagle Donovan McNabb welcomed his fourth child.  Son Devin James joins sisters Alexis and Sariah and brother Donovan;
• Heavenly Joy!  It’s a girl for music producer Rodney Jenkins and his wife, Joy Enriquez.  It’s not only an exclamation, it’s her name.

That’s all for this week.  Thanks for reading!

Matt and Nicole (my cousins), and their children Amelia and Jasper.

“That is NOT his sweater. That is NOT his sweater.” According to Matt, Nicole has attempted to get Matt to wear a sweater very similar to the one pictures here, with undesirable results.

Peace.

I am just blown away at how big the girls are getting.  P-Daddy is fantastic and sends me regular updates on how the ladies are doing, with pictures. I thought I’d share a few with you! Aren’t my surro-girlies beautiful!!?

Yesterday, I sent in a grant for $20,000 to CERTs (clean energy resource teams), which is a component of the Minnesota Pollution Control Agency. Danny and I had been working really hard on it…I think we’re glad it’s finally finished. Although it may not seem possible, doing the application helped us refine the project even more, so we got even more out of the whole thing. We’ll find out if we won in January.

-Amelia

25 years ago, a young protégé stepped on to the stage of the Metropolitan opera and made history.   The opera was Verdi’s “Simon Boccanegra,” and the role of Amelia a perfect fit for the young soprano.  Since then, she has graced the stages of the world with her golden voice and devoted herself entirely to an authentic Italian style.  She remains the reigning queen of Italian Opera in this century.  A couple of weeks ago she celebrated her 25th anniversary with the Opera Orchestra of New York in a recital at the Fredrick P. Rose Recital Hall at the home of Jazz at Lincoln Center.  Yesterday marked the eve of her Met debut 25 years ago.  On behalf of all your fans, supporters, and friends,…

Congratulations Aprile!

As Amelia in Verdi’s “Simon Boccanegra”

i saw this over at Joystiq and just HAD to re-post it. if youre going to make a Streetfighter live action movie, THIS is what it should be like.

LOL! the part where bison just explodes made me laugh really hard.

NZ top 20 = 10

USA top 20 = 10

Aus top 20 = 11

UK top 20 = 7

These are; Olivia, Ella, Isabella, Emma, Jessica, Hannah, Ava, Amelia, Maia, Mia, Sophia, Alyssa, Sarah, Sienna, Georgia.

Alternatives are they ever going to come back?

Alma, Augusta, Alfreda, Bertha, Bathsheba, Brenda, Candida, Edwina, Elvira, Frederica, Frieda, Glenda, Griselda, Gloria, Hilda, Leonora, Lucretia, Maida, Mona, Norma, Olga, Philomena, Prunella, Rhoda, Roberta, Sylvia, Thelma, Wilhelmina.

Peanutbutter as in the day had lots of yummy little crunchie bits, but still felt creamy and lazy and spreadable… I know, my metaphor needs a little work.
Had to do monthly shopping today – crazy, I know, it being end of the month – the shops will be crowded. But Amelia and I beat the rush, we pulled into the parking lot as soon as Spar opened at 8.

The hospital phoned just as I was loading the car – my week to be on call. Super luck that they only wanted some results from yesterday, and not actual specimen analysis WIN! The Friday gremlins must have hidden the original results

It’s time for the local private school’s annual fundraiser; Amelia and I spent the rest of our morning browsing the stalls. Found a stunning gift for my mom for Christmas too. The was a jumping castle. Moment there was a gap where the bigger kids left for a breather, Amelia and Roelien took over. Roelien has been waking a lot longer so she was loads more confident and actually jumped – cutest thing. Amelia would sit between the seams where the mattress balloons and hop on her bum. They squeeled and fell and rolled and giggled… Until the big kids came back – I yelled at at least 2 of them for reckless jumping around a peuter and rescued my teary girl.

Tried a new food for Amelia’s lunch: pilchards in tomato sauce and loads of veggies- was a winner.

While Amelia was napping, I got to working of my contribution to the December Aspiration set for WNF; managed to make a few toddler and adult female sets.

Henk braai’d some pork and them we tested out Amelia’s new swim float. She LOVED it. Was much more mobile in the water without clinging to me like a spider monkey, lol.

Amelia was so tired, bedtime wasn’t a hassle – oh, and we can see her 5th tooth! This explains the extra grumpy rugrat.

And that was my peanutbutter day. Have a great rest-of-the-weekend!!

Check the R5 Release Dates page for the latest release dates. (Dates go up to December 2010)

Update: Avatar – January 14^th 2010

November 2009
Bring It On: Fight to the Finish – November 3^rd
Zombieland – November 5^th
The Prince & Me 3: A Royal Honeymoon – November 5^th
Hardwired – November 5^th
Tinker Bell and the Lost Treasure – November 5^th
Banlieue 13 Ultimatum – November 12^th
Julie & Julia – November 12^th
The Private Lives of Pippa Lee – November 12^th
OSS 117: Rio ne répond plus – November 19^th
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs – November 19^th
Little Hercules in 3-D – November 19^th
Driven to Kill – November 19^th
Hachiko: A Dog’s Story – November 19^th
The Butterfly Effect 3: Revelations – November 19^th
Saw VI – November 26^th
Playmobil: The Secret of Pirate Island – November 26^th

December
My Sister’s Keeper – December 1^st
Astro Boy – December 3^rd
Jennifer’s Body – December 3^rd (2nd Date)
Law Abiding Citizen – December 3^rd
American Pie: Book of Love – December 8^th
Inglourious Basterds – December 8^th
2012 – December 10^th
The Box – December 10^th
Love Happens – December 11^th
Funny People – December 15^th
Zombieland – December 17^th (2nd Date)
This Is It – December 17^th
The Stepfather  - December 17^th
Planet 51 – December 17^th
The Private Lives of Pippa Lee – December 24^th

January 2010
The Soloist – January 12^th 2010
Avatar – January 14^th 2010
Shrink – January 21^st 2010
The Final Destination – January 26^th 2010
Smokin’ Aces 2: Assassins’ Ball – January 26^th 2010
City Island – January 26^th 2010
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel – January 28^th 2010
This Is It – January 2010 (2nd Date)

February 2010
The Informant!  - February 2^nd 2010
500 Days of Summer – February 4^th 2010
Whiteout – February 9^th 2010
The Time Traveler’s Wife – February 9^th 2010
Couples Retreat – February 9^th 2010
The Invention of Lying – February 16^th 2010
Amelia – February 18^th 2010
Into the Blue 2: The Reef – February 18^th 2010
Wrong Turn 3: Left for Dead – February 18^th 2010
Cirque du Freak: The Vampire’s Assistant – February 23^rd 2010
The Blind Side – February 23^rd 2010
Tooth Fairy – February 25^th 2010

March 2010
Free Willy: Escape from Pirate’s Cove – March 2^nd 2010
Fantastic Mr. Fox – March 4^th 2010
The Marine 2 – March 4^th 2010
Ninja Assassin – March 9^th 2010
Percy Jackson & the Olympians: The Lightning Thief – March 11^th 2010
Where the Wild Things Are – March 23^rd 2010
Surviving Evil – March 25^th 2010
The Cabin in the Woods  - March 25^th 2010
Sherlock Holmes – March 30^th 2010
The Wolfman – March 2010
A Christmas Carol – March 2010

April 2010
Paranormal Activity – April 6^th 2010
It’s Complicated – April 20^th 2010
Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel – April 25^th 2010 (2nd Date)

May 2010
Preacher’s Kid – May 4^th 2010
Valentine’s Day – May 18^th 2010

For the rest of the dates go to http://tinyurl.com/r5dates

Updated: 28^th November 2009

Note: not all dates are 100% accurate and are likely to vary, please keep checking back for updated release dates.

Amelia mi Amour ♥… at Dj Mishto’s birthday celebration last week. We had a questionably good time at NuBlu on Wednesday and lined the bar at Burdel Dali Presents on Thursday. Always a pleasure.

Photos by nightlifebaby.

]]> http://stampfeltheaters.wordpress.com/2009/11/25/showtimes-for-the-malverne-cinema-art-center-1127-1232009/ Wed, 25 Nov 2009 20:11:34 +0000 stampfeltheaters http://stampfeltheaters.wordpress.com/2009/11/25/showtimes-for-the-malverne-cinema-art-center-1127-1232009/

Taquillazo por todo lo alto de ‘Luna Nueva’

‘Luna Nueva’, la segunda entrega de la popular saga ‘Crepúsculo’ se ha alzado con el liderazgo de la cartelera patria con una histórica recaudación de 7,688 millones de euros. De esta forma en tan sólo un fin de semana la cinta protagonizada por Robert Pattinson y Kristen Stewart, se convierte en el estreno del año que más logra recaudar en su primer fin de semana, superando incluso la recolección total de éxitos como ‘2012′ o ‘Celda 211′, que en dos y tres semanas en las salas de cine respectivamente no han logrado reembolsar tanto dinero como el filme de Chris Weitz. En segundo lugar se sitúa ‘2012′, la apocalíptica cinta de Roland Emmerich, que sigue asombrando al espectador con una recaudación tres veces inferior a la del éxito vampírico, pero no por ello menos aceptable, con 2,820 millones de euros. Le sigue ‘Celda 211′, que continúa resistiendo el tirón de otras superproducciones, con unos ingresos de 1,022 millones de euros en su último fin de semana. La versión 3D y corriente de ‘Cuento de Navidad’ sigue manteniéndose en el ‘top 5′, con cifras que ascienden a los 787 y 561 mil euros en cada uno de los casos.

Asimismo, el estreno de la emotiva ‘Amelia’, con Richard Gere y Hillary Swank, no logra convencer al público y obtiene una discreta sexta posición con 518.000 euros. Amenabar y su ‘Ágora’ siguen en su camino para abandonar el ‘top 10′, con una recaudación de 417 mil euros en su séptima semana en las salas de nuestro país. Mientras, ‘Siempre a tu Lado. ‘Hachiko’ ocupa el octavo lugar con cifras que ascienden a los 265 mil euros. ‘Millennium 2: La chica que soñaba con una cerilla y un bidón de gasolina’ no renuncia al noveno lugar que le dieron los espectadores la anterior semana, con 192 mil euros. Y, por último, ‘Julie y Julia’ sigue sin acabar de despegar y amenaza con despedirse del ‘top’ con una recaudación de 168 mil euros.

Cari amici, cari compagni,

venerdì 4 dicembre 2009, alle ore 21:00, presso la Sala Conti-Palladini della Biblioteca Comunale di Amelia, si terrà un incontro con l’A.N.P.I. (Associazione Nazionale Partigiani Italiani) finalizzato alla presentazione del libro di Angelo Bitti “La guerra ai civili in Umbria (1943-1944) – Per un Atlante delle stragi nazifasciste”.

Il volume è finalizzato a delineare un quadro completo delle violenze perpetrate dai tedeschi e dai loro alleati fascisti nei confronti della popolazione umbra nel biennio 1943-1944.

Considerato che la maggior parte dei criminali nazi-fascisti sono rimasti impuniti, il ricordo appare l’unico modo per far si che il prezzo pagato da tanti uomini e donne che persero la vita in quei tragici mesi non rimanga un sacrificio inutile.

Vi invito tutti a partecipare:

Per non dimenticare;

Perché la forza del ricordo e della memoria possa evitare che certe tragedie possano ripetersi;

Per non abbassare la guardia di fronte a facili revisionismi e improponibili equiparazioni tra chi lottò per liberare la Nazione e chi si commise stragi per renderla serva.

Spero che veniate numerosi!

On Friday, I sent out our letter of interest to the Ben and Jerry’s foundation about their funding our project. We should hear back in eight weeks or so about whether or not we’ve made it through the first round.

-Amelia

This morning, rather, yesterday night at about 11pm, Amelia uttered her first jibberish words.

Dadadada… Bababababa…

So cute!!!