Catching Fire & Mockingjay- Suzanne Collins

I just finished these books today. I borrowed them from a lady at church saying that I would return them within two weeks, and I was right. These books just get me hooked and I can't stop reading. The whole Hunger Games series is just awesome in general. I would say the first book is my favorite. Catching Fire was actually really good too. I was told it was the worst of the three, but I don't agree. I think the books get worse as they go. Well, I wouldn't say "worse" exactly because they are all really good, the books just aren't as good as the previous one. Catching Fire makes me hate the Capitol so much more, and I feel sorry for Katniss because of what she is forced to do. Mockingjay started off really slow for me. I previously said I don't like war-ish type stuff, like with politics and military and such. Well, Mockingjay started out like that so it was hard for me to keep interest. I also don't like how the book ended. I felt that Collins sped up the ending; she tried to fit so much into the last three pages, and that kind of irritated me. She only wrote it to make a conclusion, and I know it's not a love story, but she could have elaborated so much more. Oh well. I still loved them.

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M:I Ghost Protocol- Starring Tom Cruise

Ok, so I got confused in this movie. What's new? I had to ask my husband a few questions during and after the movie, but at least I got the jist of it while I was watching it. I loved it though.*SPOILER ALERT* My favorite part of the movie is when Benji has to finish changing the numbers on the doors while Ethan has to jump through the window and almost falls 100 stories, and then Benji comes in and says something like, that was tough. Yeah, it's probably a lot of peoples favorite part because it's funny, but I really liked it. *END OF SPOILER ALERT* I also like that the movie is really intense. You know that feeling you get when you are driving over a little hill really fast in a car? That's the feeling I got during some of these scenes, which is weird because that usually doesn't happen to me. Maybe it was because I was watching it in the IMAX.  I think that may have been my second IMAX movie I've ever seen (the first being The Dark Knight). It was a really good movie, and I would definitely want to see this again. Also, I'm not much of a Tom Cruise fan, and I don't find him that attractive, but he has a really big butt in this movie.

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Portillo's

 We ate at Portillo's Hot Dogs the other day. It's supposed to be some kind of Chicago-style restaurant. I wasn't hungry for something big, so I just got a chicken caesar salad which was good, but that doesn't really count for trying a new place. I guess I should have gotten something else. But, I did take a bite of my husband's "Combo" hot dog, and that wasn't too bad. I also tried the chocolate cake shake, and that really did taste like you were drinking a cake. It was kind of weird. For the food I tried, I would go back. I really do want to try one of the burgers and chicken sandwiches from there. I guess I'll write again later for whenever I try those.

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Five Cheese Ziti

I rarely go to Olive Garden. I think the last time I went was with Claire's parents, the day before her marathon, and that was over a year ago. And usually when I go to an Italian restaurant, I get the classic Chicken Parmesan because I know it's something I will like. I'm always scared to try new things because I don't want to spend money on food and not enjoy it. On our Friday night date, it came down to the Chicken Parmigiana, or the Five Cheese Ziti al Forno. The Ziti was the less expensive of the two, and when the waitress preferred the Ziti over the Parmigiana, I knew it was a good choice. It was delicious! I probably could have eaten the whole plate, but I didn't want to look like a pig. But I now have a new favorite plate at Olive Garden for when I go back in another year or two.

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TAPS

Went to Taps yesterday to celebrate my husband's first finished semester of law school. We chose Taps because it looks like a really nice place. It's also one of those places where you are afraid to go inside because you might end up ordering two $50 plates because that's the cheapest thing on the menu. Luckily, that wasn't the case, although it was a bit pricey. However, I did not know that it was a "fish house." If I would have known that, I wouldn't have been so surprised that all of the appetizers and the main courses were fish. That being said, I did not like the place. I'm not really a seafood lover. So I ended up getting some kind of egg rolls that made me sick. Or maybe I just ate more than I really needed to eat, but either way, I felt like throwing up before I even left the restaurant. And the restrooms stunk. BUT, the ambiance of the place was really classy and cozy; it even had a fire burning in the waiting area which was nice. And of course, I enjoyed the company of my friends and family at dinner. If you're a lover of fish, I would recommend this place, but as for me, I don't think I'll ever go back.

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Eagle Eye (PG-13)- Starring Shia LaBeouf

Ok, so I've seen this movie twice, and the first time I watched it I hated it. I do remember that I liked how much action there was and how it kept my interest, but that I hated it because it was a stupid machine. I hate movies with machines and computers that act like people. And I usually hate movies with war, or politics, or military people, because when military people are in a movie, I know it'll be hard for me to understand. Maybe because I lose interest during the part where the military people start talking (and they always talk so fast), and that's probably the part I'm supposed to pay the most attention to since they are describing the problem. But now that I got to watch it again with my husband, and we could pause it so I could ask him questions, it wasn't that bad of a movie. My husband laughed at me because I had already seen it before and I didn't even know what was going on. I guess I would recommend this movie because it is fun to watch, just pay attention.

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Egg Nog

We had dinner at my in-laws tonight, and my brother-in-law brought out some egg nog (not the alcoholic kind). Believe it or not, I don't think I've had egg nog before (maybe because I always thought it was an alcoholic drink), so of course I tried it. My husband thought he would have to finish the rest of my glass because I wasn't going to like it. He usually finishes most things I don't like, but I actually thought it was pretty good. I probably couldn't drink a lot of it at once, but the little glass I had was perfect.

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