Oscar nominated Monsieur Lazhar is available to own on August 14, 2012. Courtesy of eOne Media

Canada has produced some of Hollywood’s finest actors over the last half century. Canadian director Philippe Falardeau’s Oscar nominated film, Monsieur Lazhar, shows that we can produce high quality films as well.

Flowers of War is available to own on August 14, 2012. Courtesy of eOne Media

It is odd when a movie can be panned by critics, but enjoyed by most audiences. Yimou Zhang’s Flowers of War did exactly this and I’m glad audiences didn’t listen to most critics.

After our appointment, we went straight to the Berlin Zoo.  This zoo is amazing – every animal you can think - pigs,  birds, giraffes, panda’s, monkeys, flamingos, elephants, etc.  The boys had a ball.  They had the best park fully equip with trampolines for their jumping pleasure and climbing equip galore.  It was well worth the Euro!  Cannon fell right asleep afterwards and we head home for a nappy-nap.

During naps, I (Stef) ran out to grab a few groceries.  Oddly enough, this presented another unique challenge given two constraints: 1. no vehicle and I can only hold so many bottles of olive oil and shampoo while trekking 3 blocks and 2. no idea what I was purchasing given my lack of German.  Sore biceps, but I made it home.   Wah Wah…

In the late afternoon, after lunch (panini’s for mom & dad and yes, Mc D’s for the boys), we ventured out again.  This time we explored the bus system and took a bus further down on Ku’Damm Ave.  Unfortunately, we boarded the bus without enough EUROS on hand and discovered mid journey, that Chase had pocketed a 2 Eur coin.  Jeff, the honest man he is, profusely apologized and paid the driver.  We were dropped off near the Witterburgplatz  (spelling?).  We found a Best-Buy equivalent called Saturn and purchased some English DVD’s, wireless router and a European hairdryer (THANK YOU JESUS)… ha!  We proceeded down the street and found an outdoor festival with a German band playing… Are you ready for this…COUNTRY music!  Hilarious!  Kid Rock “Sweet Home Alabama” and “Chattahoochee” and Cyrus “Don’t Break my Achy Breaky Heart”.  It was a riot.  We dined on sausage, beer, and fresh squeezed orange juice.  The boys saw their first mechanical bull (not at the Saddle Rack, like mom) and loved watching the contestants try to ride the bull. Of course, we got a kick out of this.

It was a fabulous day here in Berlin.  We had our first experience with the culture and liveliness of this town.  Each day gets a bit easier. 

Tomorrow is another full day – Jeff meets with his “American boot campers” – he has 9 people signed up to meet him in a local park at noon or 6pm – go Jeff, go!  We have a tour of the school at 10am and are planning to sneak a peek at the office.  I head into the office for my first day on Wednesday, Aug 15th. 

Here’s some silly photos for you.  Miss you all!

Hugs and kisses…

‘PR’ Evenstar Blue Vandal “Vandal”

Vandal is a 2 1/2 year old male Bluetick Coonhound. He is intact, has a very high prey drive, and a loud mouth. Vandal is any hunters dream! Vandal has been a great breeding stud for Evenstar Hounds, but it is obvious he will enjoy his life the most if he is a hunting dog. We are asking 1000.00 for vandal, this will include his UKC and AKC papers. Vandal can be shipped via Delta Airlines, picked up from Evenstar Hounds in Alabama, or ground shipped by a company we have used in the past. You will need to pay any shipping charges. If you have any questions about Vandal please contact me.

Evenstar Hounds wanted to give all of our puppy buyer a special thank you! It is so good to know that all of our puppies are going to loving homes. Please keep sending us pictures and stories as the puppies grow! We love hearing from each and every one of you.

Thank you.

But, I was disappointed, not by the taste, but the size, the recipe called for half the Galette recipe and it just wasn’t much, but I still held on to some faith.  I rolled out the dough, and thats when I lost it.

I rolled it thin just as it called for, and it wasn’t that large in size at all.  Dang picture in the book fooled me!!!

I used peaches as they are in season and I was able to get Palisades peaches, and anyone from Colorado knows, THEY ARE THE BEST…my So-Cal born husband even agrees.

When the recipe tells you its best eaten the same day, they mean it, so gobble that pup up!

Go check out Lisa of Tomato Thymes in the Kitchen and Andrea of The Kitchen Lioness for the recipe as they were the host of this tasty treat (small, yet tasty)!

-Raelynn

If you do not have a PayPal account they are great! Learn more on PayPal.com.

Pay Your Puppy Deposit Via PayPal

Deposits made via PayPal are 206.00 rather than 200.00 due to PayPal fees.

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Pay Your Puppy Balance

Questions about your balance? Contact Kimberly Martin (256) 330-9551.

206.00

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OTHER

So i thought seeing as now is part of the 6 hours a week when my beloved baby sitter Sissa takes my munchkins from me and I have finally gotten a chance to breath and think after running around like a mad hatter trying to get all my jobs done i would try and articulate one of my great anxieties. How on earth I, of all people, could possible be on this journey to becoming a …..missionary.

Missionary, the big M, a word that so often carries such negative connotations. So what does it mean to be a missionary and do i fit the bill! To be perfectly honest I don’t have any exact answer or checklist upon which you can rate your particular attributes and skills. But what I do know is what the bible tells me: which is if you claim to believe that the man called Jesus lived, died and rose again so that all the things we stuff up in our life could be wiped away and we can look forward to being united with God, then you are called, no required, to be a missionary. Does that mean we should all don our explorer hats, Dr Livingston, and trudge off into the wilds of the amazon to ‘convert the heathens’ and show them how to live better lives. My answer at this is a resounding NO.

For me being a missionary is about sharing your life and through that faith with others. For I am no better or worse than anyone else, I can guarantee that, in fact most of the people who know me can vouch for that. I am loud, raucous, often controversial, in your face, bossy and opinionated (oh also mixed with hard working, caring, hilarious and a few other good things). I can not show you how to be a ‘good’ person but I can share my life with you, it’s ups and downs, twists and turns, and in doing this I can also share my faith with you. I can show you how God loves you by baking you a cake, or looking after your child or holding your hand while you cry. From this i can build real relationships through which i can then talk about my faith (even if sometimes it is behind the veil of the Internet). It is this that i believe makes a missionary and you don’t have to go somewhere exotic to do it, you can do it right where you are!

Sounds simple huh, but let me tell you I sit here struggling to think how I of all people could do this. I struggle to tell people I go to church sometimes let alone let the words Jesus or God slip into my every day conversation. But guess what, there were others who struggled too. Peter, the rock on which Jesus built his church here on earth on, denied Christ three times. Through my studies I am discovering Peter to be a man, and missionary, after my own heart – brusk, down to earth,real, he was a matter of fact fisherman who faults and all God still used to be one of the greatest missionaries of all time. No I have no delusions of grandeur but it gives me heart that just by putting one foot in front of the other, and trusting, that I too can do this.

Phew this has all been a little deep hasn’t it. Well as I sit here exhausted after my little epistle contemplating the fact that my me time has once again come to an end, I hope I haven’t said anything to scare you all off! Well till next time, when I promise I will attack something a little lighter, cheerio.

On August 24th we are expecting a litter of Blutick Coonhound puppies! We are already taking deposits, and are very excited to see how this litter is going to turn out. If you have any questions, or would like to send in a deposit please contact me.

If you are looking for a puppy that is ready to go home with you now please check out our Bluetick Coonhound puppy page!

Meet The Parents

‘PR’ Evenstar Sand Mountain Symphony “Kelsey”

 Evenstar’s Battle Cry  “Soldier”

Screen Off and Lock

This app provides three ways to switch off and lock the screen without touching the power button. (1) you can place the shortcut on your homescreen or include it in the dock of the launcher to quickly and easily lock the screen. This can replace the many lock screen widgets that are currently available on Google Play; (2) you can place a shortcut in the notification bar so you can lock the screen even when you’re not on the homescreen. This is really convenient since you don’t have to return to the homescreen first before you can lock your phone. So, for example, after checking your messages, you can simply swipe down the notification bar and tap on the lock icon and your phone will lock itself immediately. When you unlock your phone, you’re immediately back to your messaging app; (3) if your phone has a search key, long pressing it will also turn the screen off and lock the device. This is great especially if you want your phone to have a dedicated lock button.

There are also options for screen off animation as well as vibration feedback. You can also enable lock and unlock sounds with the option of using your own sound effects.

Tap Tap App (Screen On-Off)

This app also allows you to place a widget on your homescreen and put a shortcut on your notification bar to turn off the screen and lock your phone. But this app offers more. You can use the proximity sensor to not only lock but also unlock your phone. Now there’s really no need to press the power button. You can set the app to lock or unlock your phone with 2, 3, or 4 taps on your proximity sensor.

I have found that flicking or waving on the proximity sensor works better than tapping on it as it is more responsive when you do that.

Flick Screen Off

This app offers a unique way to switch off the screen. Flick from the outside towards the inside of the screen to lock the phone. You don’t have to be on the homescreen to be able to do this. Anywhere you are, even while using other apps on your phone, you can just flick and the screen will turn off immediately.

You can set an animation effect to provide feedback when you flick to lock the screen. You can choose from six areas on the edge of the screen for the flick operation (called sense areas) as well as set the velocity sensitivity and sensitivity level of these sense areas.

The power button is not the only way to lock your phone. Try these apps for an easier and much more convenient experience.