Proverbs 17:17

Today I was in the middle of telling a random story from my LU years (that's Liberty University, aka "The World's Most Exciting Christian University," according to our late Dr. Falwell...although, how exciting can it be now that we are no longer there?) when I got all misty-eyed and nostalgic for my college buds. I've maintained for the past 12 years that the greatest decision I ever made in this life I've been given--other than accepting Jesus--is trusting God & moving over 500 miles from Warner Robins, Georgia, to Lynchburg, Virginia. Because once He brought me there, He blessed me far beyond my imagination...with the greatest friends in the world, and eventually, with my husband...which then led to my daughters. All roads lead to and from Liberty...
(Me, Beckie, and Kelley--visiting our Alama Mater, Oct. '03)


I am so grateful for the friends I have...some of them, like Tori, Sarah, Lauren, Vicki, and Jennifer, are gals I've known most of my life...they are part of my roots and my heritage. Then there are the ladies here who make Pennington Gap truly my home...Shannon, Cindy, Joy, Kim, Susan, Lacey...I couldn't imagine life without y'all in my neighborhood!

And then there's my LU girls...more specifically, Kaley, Beckie, Sarah and Kelley. We are scattered across the globe...southest Virginia, upstate New York, Indiana, Maine, and Honduras. Thought miles separate, we remain close because of this wonderful invention called the internet, and more importantly, our bond in prayer. These are the girls I turn to in times of crisis...whenever I need intecessory prayer...whenever I have to whine about my latest situation (and they always know who that's about!)...in the moments when I'm completely broken and battered. They always seem to know just what to say--these are smart women, I tell ya. Their wisdom amazes me. And these are also the girls who keep me focused...encouraging in all things, permitting me to be real and not a plastic version of what I think I ought to be...and basically putting up with a lot of my crap, to put it delicately. I am amazed that God has blessed me with friends such as these...and I really don't deserve them. But I'll keep them just the same!
(October 2003--Our Reunion/Road Trip!)

So here's to you girls, whom I love dearly...Kaley Ehret, Beckie Farrant, Sarah Pomerleau, and Kelley Arevalo. This is your 5 seconds of Lulaville fame (for this post, at least!)...but you all deserve so much more than my simple shout-out. I was just thinking about you today and remembering all our fabulous times. Kaley..."Word!" Beckie...the chaperone for my 1st date with Scott...Sarah...my "comfortable" friend...and Kelley...well, for writing smiley faces on your booty with red ink and mooning us at Pizza Hut...and for a million more things. You girls freakin' ROCK. And, hey...Beck...this one's not about LOST! I love y'all!
(Here we are, 12 years later & miles from Liberty University, with 5 husbands and, at the time, 7 children between us. Nicholas is not pictured--but he was there and we love him, so I gotta include his name, at least! Since this picture was taken in April of '07, we've added 2 more children to the mix, with another due in August. Is that awesome or what?)

Drool.

Found this after my previous post & homage to my man, Sawyer. Go ahead--watch and drool. I did.

6:25 p.m.

It's been almost exactly 6 years since I gave birth to my eldest daughter, Miss Mary Elizabeth "Libbey" Litton. Shakespeare once wrote, "Silence is the perfectest herald of joy." Yep...that about sums it up for me today. Libbey, we love you--happy birthday!

Obligatory.

Oh boy, Oh boy, Oh boy, Oh boy, Oh boy, Oh boy, Oh boy, OH BOY!!!! It's been 253 days since we were last on the Island of Lost. Yeah, who's counting? Tonight my show returns, for at least 8 weeks. And yes, Beckie, I'll be posting lots more about it during those weeks...because it's MY show.

This is Sawyer...he's my favorite Lostie. Not because he's hot--because obviously, he's an Adonis, but because his character is so brilliantly written & performed that I think Josh Holloway (his portrayer) should've been nominated for an Emmy 3 years ago. I'm just saying. (But a big shout-out to Terry O'Quinn who very much deserved his Best Supporting Actor win for "Locke.") And he's from Georgia...'nuff said.
So get your Lost on tonight, people. The review begings at 8 pm central time...the new ep airs at 9:00. No one is allowed to so much as breathe in my general direction tonight. Nuh-uh. It's on!

TRL

Because it's her birthday tomorrow, and because she asked me. Here it is..."Total Request Libbey"...her favorite song. And if we're getting all confessional, I profess my love for both this song and Miss Cyrus. There's a retro-80's-ish quality to this tune...plus, lots of spandex, bright colors, and Cyndi Lauper-wannabe wardrobe choices. It's all around fun! Happy early birthday, Mary Elizabeth!

Ladies Night.

This is Eliza Myers Sanders, or as we lovingly call her, "Lizee." She is 15 months old and pretty much our sweetie. Today Lizee's mommy & daddy told her that she is getting a baby sister in the honorary month of Uncle June. As you can see, she is very excited with the news! Litton granddaughter #4 will round out our gaggle of gorgeous girls, and we are very excited to meet the little Miss sometime in the next 4 1/2 months or so. Who needs boys, anyway?

Yeah, it's a bit of an obsession.

Four more days, my friends...and we have at least 8 hours of brilliant Lost TV. It would be so swell if this writer's strike would end...I'd like a full 16 episodes, please! For those who care, I even pimped out my profile over on My Space. www.myspace.com/lalitton
It's all Lost all the time, y'all!

Randomness.

The past few days have been busy. "Busy" is actually the theme of our family, however we've really stepped it up this past week. I like being busy...it's better than being bored. However, tonight we are home alone...one child is in Richmond with her grandparents, visiting her uncle, aunt, cousin, and cousin-in-waiting, while the other child is with her "3rd set" of grandparents...the Cress family, of course. So we have nothing to do but hang, watch TV, surf the 'net, and blog. And here I am...a welcome reprieve from the busyness of this past week.

If you read one of my posts from a couple of weeks ago (go back & read it you haven't!), then you'll remember my story of the "rule of 3." We proved it once again on Friday. By mid-afternoon we had a house full of folk, all doing something or other to benefit the lives of the Littons. First to arrive was Christina Smith, our fabulous interior designer. She came to measure Caroline's new "big girl" bed & to take one of my Memaw's chairs that we're having reupholstered for our baby to use. Give us another 6-8 weeks and we'll have a brand-new room to show off! Shortly after Christina's arrival, a man from DirecTV showed up to install...wait for it...here it comes...our HD DVR!!!!! WAHOO!!!! It's what I asked for at Christmas...DVR so I can record the entire season of "Lost." Oh wow, I can hardly contain myself.

I'm breaking it in tonight for the very first time, recording "Torchwood," which is on BBC America...one of my "boyfriends" is guest-starring tonight, so I'm using him as my inaugural DVR-ing attempt.

This is James Marsters. He's right up there with Jason Statham (see below). Swoon!

Just after Mr. DirecTV left, Mr. ADT Security System made his entrance and attempted up upgrade our security system...on ADT's dime no less. He was unable to perform the upgrade...mostly because we live in the middle of the sticks, but also because I think he was just a bit incompetent.

In the middle of all these comings and goings, my sweet friend, Kelli Elliot, stopped by for a visit. We got to chat while showed me how she spent her Christmas day (in Paris...I so hate her!). I also got to see loads of pictures from her recent Caribbean cruise. Thanks, Kelli, for making me supremely jealous. I love you! And everyone, fly United--maybe you'll have Kelli for a flight attendant. She's the best! And we will vacation together sometime SOON!

(Kelli & Libbey, July '06)

Looking back I realize that while we've had a lot of stuff going on at our house, we've also accomplished a bunch. (Decorating Caroline's room, being the last people on earth to finally get DVR, visits from friends we don't see often enough. Oh, and a phone call from an old friend--thanks, Kelly! Just to name a few...) Yes, I reckon it is better to be busy than bored. Then again, I have 2 children under the age of 6...the word "boredom" really doesn't fit in our vocabularly! I'm blessed with a life full of randomness. It's a good thing!

Pray for Ramey!

Lord, I lift up to You my sister, Ramey Reeves. I pray Your healing power over her life, and I claim it in Your Name!

Please pray for my friend, Ramey, and for John, her husband, and their son, Judah. She was recently diagnosed with a brain tumor in her right hemisphere. If you're feeling the need for a blessing, head on over to www.myspace.com/rameyreeves to hear her incredible gift of praise & song. And pray...pray, pray, pray for her miracle!

In its absence, my heart has grown fonder. Much.

Impossible to cram 3 years of brilliant storytelling into 8:15 minutes (and if you are a Lost lover, you know the significance of that number!), but this is a pretty swell attempt. Sardonically humorous, too. Give it a chance, then get thee to the TV next Thursday, the 31st, at 8 pm for a Season 3 recap. The first episode of Season 4 begins at 9:00. To say I'm excited is putting it mildly.

Devastated.

So...I was dealt a crushing blow today. That sounds quite melodramatic, but it's really how I feel about the whole issue. There's a book I reread at least once every year and have for the past 20 years or so. It's a "young adult" book that I bought from the Scholastic book club while in elementary school. It's my all-time favorite in the world...ever...and it's absolutely wonderful, even when read as a 33 year old. (Yikes! I'm 33!)
Here's the love:
It's always been my dream that one day this fabulous story would be told on the silver screen...and that by miracle of miracles, I'd not only cast the film, but also author the adapted screenplay (Ellen Raskin, its author, died many years ago), and produce the soundtrack. Lofty aspirations, huh? Like I'm fond of saying, I dream big. I mean, if you're gonna dream, do it big. Duh!

Today I decided to check on Wikipedia (one of my fave sites!) to see if there was a listing for The Westing Game, and was completely blindsided to learn the book had already been turned into a made-for-TV-movie. I searched it out on Amazon and my disappointment turned to despair. Not only was my book already a moving picture, but apparently it's been very poorly done. The standard rape of the original story had been committed...characters changed (age and race seem to be most prevalent), locations removed, and a simple, basic hack of the storyline. And the cast? Ugh...so not the one of my dreams. Horror of horrors! I'm quite certain Ms. Raskin is shifting in her grave.

Here I've been making this movie in my head for a couple of decades now, only to discover that someone stole my idea. (Because you know I was the only one to ever think of it--most people have never even heard of this book! I'm maintaining this one 'til the end!) And yeah, so my dream cast has had to evolve over the years...Beverly D'Angelo is not quite as young as she used to be, and Pat Morita died years ago. But Chevy Chase, Shirley MacLaine, Tim Curry and Kathy Bates, among others, are still available. And well overdue for a box office hit, I might add.

Now this dream has been diminished--and I don't say "died"--because I could still work some magic on a screenplay one day (hey Raskin family members--give me a call, please!). And I was tempted to buy the DVD from Amazon but my adoration of this little novel would be forever tainted by viewing a less than stellar adaptation, so I refrained...and saved money. Bonuses all around!

Y'all are probably wondering why on earth I'm telling you all of this. Well, (a) it's my blog and I'll whine if I want to, and (b) I'm hoping all this rambling will lead you to go out and purchase your very own copy of The Westing Game. (Amazon has it for $6.99--it's worth way more than that. Way. More.) You must read this book--then report back to me on how we can turn it into an Academy Award winner. Then we can be on Oprah, in People, and basically all-around famous...and I'll finally get to meet Tim Curry. Sigh...

What the world has come to.

This is both humorous and sad. For me, though, it won't be a bit humorous if she's elected next year. And that's all I'm gonna say about that!