Likes and dislikes of Battle of the Five Armies **SPOILERS**

   Greetings readers and followers of this blog!
   Christmastime, alas! is now over. For some, the tree might be down and the decorations and dishes put away for another year. But not for my family. We prefer to keep such thing up and out until the start of a new year. Which, fortunately, has not yet arrived. I hope you had a wonderful Christmas! But that is not the purpose of this post.

   For my birthday, I decided to go see the third and final Hobbit movie, Battle of the Five Armies. This being our last venture into Middle-Earth (Tears!), I had hoped that it would be something awe-inspiring and amazing and worth the wait. I was not disappointed. There were many, many things I liked, no, loved about this movie. Many little things that didn't make it onto this list, even. But there were also a few things that I didn't like about it. A few deviations from the book that went a little too far. That is the purpose of this post. The list of dislikes, by the way, is much shorter than the list of likes though. That would be because it is a great movie that you need to watch, if you haven't already. Speaking of which, this post is fraught with spoilers upon spoilers for BotFA, so I would advise you to not continue reading if you haven't yet seen it. But enough of my rambling! Let us begin...

Likes

   1. Bard shooting Smaug down with a real bow

   When Peter Jackson first mentioned the windlance, I was a little nervous. I have always loved Bard shooting down Smaug with an actual longbow in the book. I really hoped that Peter Jackson wouldn't change that. And he didn't! The entire scene was breath taking! Even though Bard's son wasn't involved in the shooting down of Smaug in the book, I loved how Peter Jackson put him in. I loved Bard's family! I loved Bard! I loved this scene! 

   2. Lady Galadriel fighting back Sauron

   I loved this. I loved getting to see a little bit more about the Necromancer, AKA Sauron, and how he returned to Mordor, and everything. Lady Galadriel using her powers against him was just... So cool. Lady Galadriel coming to Dul Guldor to help Gandalf... So cool. Lady Galadriel saving Gandalf... So cool. Elrond and Saruman and Lady Galadriel fighting back the Nine... So cool. Oh, and Saruman saying that he would deal with Sauron? Yeah, that was cool. And also a big fat lie. 

   4. Thorin overcoming the dragon sickness

   Everything about this! Everything! From Richard Armitage's acting, to the special effects, to the sound effects. It was brilliant! I loved how Thorin could "see" Smaug swimming in the bottom of the golden floor, and how he could feel himself being sucked into it, the greed, the lust for more, the very sickness itself. And his casting aside of the crown and his title of King and going back to good old Thorin Oakenshield.

   4. Thorin killing Azog, his death, and last words to Bilbo

   I absolutely wanted Azog and Thorin to receive mortal wounds from each other, and that is what I got. I was very happy with this. And the way Thorin died, after taking a last look at his home, and breathing his last with his friend Bilbo. It was beautiful! His last words to Bilbo were mostly taken directly from the book, which is always a good thing, and I mean they were just..... Amazing!!! And Bilbo's reaction to them! And the way he started crying after that. Everything about this scene I loved! And I would also like to mention the acorn was an amazing idea that I loved whole-heartedly. "Plant your tree..." Ugh! This scene just really got to me. I was a mess in the theater. 

   

   5. Bilbo's departure and return to the Shire

   Bilbo saying goodbye to everyone was wonderfully done. And seeing him all decked out in Dwarven gear and hauling around a chest that was presumably full of gold! And his return to the Shire and seeing everyone hauling off his stuff! I loved this part in the books, and I loved it in the movies. They even made mention of Lobelia and her spoons! And then when asked who Thorin was, Bilbo saying he was his friend.... Yes! Loved this scene so much... 

   6. The ending

   I had seen something on the internet about someone wanting the movie to end with Gandalf knocking on the door and Bilbo shouting at him to go away and that he didn't want anyone around and then Gandalf asking him "Well what about very old friends?" It would take us in one great big beautiful circle. After reading it, I realized that that was exactly what I wanted. And Peter Jackson gave it to me. THANK YOU PETER JACKSON!!!! THANK YOU!!!



7. The Last Goodbye
   Tears. Great big tears tolled down my cheeks and muffled sobs shook my shoulders as I listened to this song in the theater. So beautiful. And the absolute perfect ending. I can't describe it. Just listen to it!  

   

Dislikes

   1. Kili dying for Tauriel
   Now, okay. Even though she's not in the books, I really like Tauriel. A lot actually! I didn't even mind the bit of romance between her and Kili. But the fact that Peter Jackson had Kili die for Tauriel, a random (albiet cool) elf maiden, and not his uncle Thorin, his FAMILY, didn't make me very happy. I had actually seen something about this on the internet as well before the movie was released. Someone was just speculating, and saying about how horrible it would be if this happened. I hadn't even thought of or considered it would happen. But happen it did. I was so upset about it that it even stopped my flood of tears for a moment. But, I suppose what's done is done, and nothing is perfect, right? 

   2. Fili's death
   Fili's death was okay, but I feel like Peter Jackson could have done a better job. I really wanted to see Fili and Kili fall defending a wounded Thorin against Azog. And then when wounded Thorin saw the dead bodies of his sister's sons, he would pull himself up from the ground and kill Azog with his dying breath. But I'm not the writer, am I?


    And that's it. I told you the list of dislikes was far shorter! All in all, it is an amazing movie, and I loved it more than words can say. I cannot WAIT for it to come out on DVD so I can buy it and watch it over and over again and have a huge Hobbit/LotR marathon! Again, that is. That's actually what I did for my birthday and the next few days after it, and it was THE BEST THING EVER!
   So, I hope you enjoyed this movie as much as I did! Do you have any likes I missed? And dislikes? I love comments, so please leave them! In the words of Smaug himself, "Come now, don't be shhhyyyy..." :)
   Have a hobbit-y, er, happy New Year everyone!

                          MR

Note: Again, none of these images are mine! :)

Christmas Poems

   Poetry! I love it! Love it so much that I actually write some in my spare time. I also happen to love Christmas! It is the most wonderful time of the year, after all. :) So, why not put the two together and make some Christmas poetry? I don't see any reason against it!

"Light of the World" by Mark Missman

   This first poem is called "The Reason Why". I actually got the inspiration for it in Christmas season of 2012, but after chewing on it and trying to write it down once, it just wasn't working out how I had planned. So I gave up until Christmas of 2013. Which after about 2 more tries, I got it right. Or at least, that's how I felt at the time. Now I'm not so sure... Nonetheless, here it is!

   The Reason Why 

   By Maggie Rice

   A still and peaceful silent night,

   Fingerprinted stars above,

   A light shone down on Bethlehem,

   And God gave to us His love.

The world lay sleeping, unaware,

Of the holy, precious gift,

The Thread God sent to mend anew

The tattered, blackened rift.

The prayers of millions of souls

Were answered on that night,

When God sent to the Darkness,

The searching, saving Light.

Hymns of praise were sung abroad,

And reverent men fell down,

At the feet of baby Jesus,

Whose glory shone around.

Two-thousand years have come and gone,

And still men worship there,

Giving their all to the Holy One,

And casting aside their care. 

Never forget the little manger,

Where Jesus Christ was born.

Never forget the Reason why,

We celebrate on Christmas morn. 

   And the second one,"Sleeping On". This is one that I wrote this year, and no one but myself has laid eyes on it as of yet. You, reader, whoever you might be, are the first person outside of, well, me, to read it. Not that it's some deeply moving powerful thing that I was saving for the perfect time to reveal. I just haven't gotten around to showing it to anyone yet. 

Sleeping On

By Maggie Rice

For millenia we've waited,

Looking forward to the King,

The promise of the virgin birth,

The salvation it would bring.

A scarlet thread through history,

A blood-lined Roman's Road,

Into the womb of Mary,

This seed of love was sown.

Our expected King was but a child,

A tiny babe in manger lay,

Great conqueror, our salvation,

Quietly sleeping in the hay.

The snow white Lamb, the Sacrifice,

Slept with sheep and ox that night,

The Lord of all, Redeemer,

Was warmed by a lantern's feeble light.

How lowly, oh how humble!

Was the Messiah's birth!

The waiting world lay sleeping on,

Unaware he'd come to earth. 

   There you have it! Two Christmas poems for your reading pleasure! Or, just your reading. Pleasure is optional. 

   Anyhoo, I hoped you enjoyed them, and that they helped to remind you what Christmas is really about. I know it's hard to remember sometimes with all of the beautiful Christmas things to distract us. But try to remember why we celebrate this wonderful holiday. Take a minute to think about what Christmas really means, in general, and personally in your life. Is it just another holiday, or is it the birthday of Jesus Christ, the Son of God? What does it mean to you?

   And can you believe that it's almost here? Just three more days! Wowzers! Where does time go? But, I sincerely hope that you get to spend some time with your loved ones, and that the season was beautiful, and that your Christmas is too! Have a very merry Christmas everyone! 

MR

P.S. For those of you who have seen the latest Hobbit movie, I am going to be posting a little something about the things I liked and didn't like about it sometime after Christmas and before January. Though, 'little' is probably not the most accurate word to use. A big something is closer to the mark...  

 

Favorite Christmas Traditions

   Merry Christmas once again!
   Well, I'm here to talk about my five favorite Christmas traditions, as promised! Let's get started, shall we?


1. Christmas Eve Service

Every year, my church has the most amazing Christmas Eve service. There's beautiful Christmas music, the Christmas story is read, and at the end we all light candles and sing a Christmas hymn together.  The very atmosphere just gives you chills. It's solemn and reverent, but joyful and happy at the same time. Honestly, you'd have to be there to really understand what it's like, but there is a reason it is my favorite Christmas tradition.






2. Twelve Days of Christmas

This is something my mom found a few years ago, and we've done it ever since. So basically, you choose a family you know, whether it be someone going through hard times, someone in need, or just for fun, and you give them these little gifts. We usually start on the thirteenth and give them their last gift on Christmas Eve. Every day is a different gift, with a fun little poem to go with it. At the end, you're supposed to reveal who you are, but we like to keep it a secret. So shh!! Don't tell anyone! ;)

3. Reading the Christmas Story

I really enjoy personally reading the Christmas story. I usually start about a week before and go through the main points up until Christmas day. But this year, I found a really cool schedule that spreads it out from the first 'til the twenty-fifth! Some of the daily readings are only two or three verses, but others are longer.
   <--- Here's the schedule if you wanna check it out. :)
   And here's my shorter schedule, just for fun!

1. Luke 1:26-38
2. Luke 1:39-56
3. Luke 1:57-80
4. Luke 2:1-7
5. Luke 2:8-20
6. Luke 2:21-40
7. Matthew 1:18-25
8. Matthew 2 
















4. Opening a Present on Christmas Eve

Who doesn't enjoy opening a present early? I certainly do! Our parents usually have us open a game or something to help keep us entertained during the long hours of waiting on Christmas Eve. It does help! Especially last year, since one of the games we happened to get was Dutch Blitz. As a side note, if you've never played this game before, you need to. It is the funnest game ever. But anyway, yeah, we like to open a present early! :)



5. Prime Rib

So, this is our traditional Christmas Eve meal. Much better than your average turkey, or goose, or what have you. Our whole family looks forward to this treat every year! Yum!

Ooooo!!! Just LOOK at it! My mouth is watering already.... 

   So concludes my favorite Christmas traditions! I do hope you enjoyed them, though I've probably made you hungry for some prime rib. :) Do you share any traditions with me? Have some of your own you would like to add? Feel free to comment! I love hearing from the brave few who look at this blog.

   I'm not sure what I should do next week, which also happens to be the last week of this little Christmas series. Can you believe that we only have nine days until Christmas? Where does the time go??? But, I'm thinking I might post one of my Christmas poems. Anyone have any other ideas?  

   Well, I must bid you all adieu! Have a great day, and Merry Christmas! 

                         MR

Note: Non of these images are mine! They belong to various talented photographers on the internet. :) 

Favorite Christmas Movies

   Merry Christmas readers!!
   I'm back, just like I said I would be! Wow! Hopefully I can make a habit of this. :)
   Another thing that really helps to get me in the Christmas spirit is watching Christmas movies. There are all kinds of them! Ones about Jesus, ones about Santa, humorous movies, heart touching movies, and ones with a little bit of everything! But, all of the ones on my list are all more on the heart-touching side. Or, at least heart-warming. :) Though I love plenty of funny Christmas movies, my top five favorites happen to not include any of them. Guess I'm more of a 'Drama' genre kind of girl. Hmm...
   Anyway, here's the list!


1. It's a Wonderful Life

   Okay, so this is seriously the greatest Christmas movie of all time EVER!  If you haven't seen this, stop reading this and GO AND WATCH IT! It always touches my heart and gets me ready for Christmas. I look forward to watching it all year long! 

2. The Polar Express

  Another one that if you haven't seen you need to go watch right now!! Something about this movie just gets to me every time I watch it. It is so beautiful! 

3. The Nativity Story

   An amazing story of Jesus' birth and the events leading up to it! 

4. It's a Meaningful Life

The two main reasons I love this movie would be because 1.It's a spin-off of 'It's a Wonderful Life' and 2.It's VeggieTales. Enough said. 

5. Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas

   This movie is just so sweet! It never ceases to bring a smile to my face and, since I am an emotional sop, tears to my eyes. :) 

Well, those are my favorite Christmas movies! Do you share any favorites with me? What's one of your favorites? Feel free to tell me! Tune in next Monday to hear my top five favorite Christmas traditions! 

Merry Christmas again everyone!

MR

Christmas Music!

   Hark, dear readers! I hear the sound of sleigh bells jingling down the hill! The air is ripe with the smell of cocoa and cinnamon and cookies! I see the colors of red, green, gold, and silver everywhere I look! That can only mean one thing... Christmas is FINALLY here!!!

   Ah yes, the most wonderful time of the year is upon us at long last! Decorations are going up, trees are selling and the joyous sound of Christmas music fills the air. Which brings us to the subject of this post. Christmas music, one of my most favorite parts of the season. The old Christmas hymns have such deep, powerful lyrics that vividly describe Christ's birth and the events surrounding it. A lot of the newer Christmas song help to reawaken our Christmas spirit and remind us of the true meaning of Christmas. Just listening to them sends a thrill of joy through me! So, I thought I'd take the time to share with you five of my favorite Christmas songs, to help light up your Christmas spirit! 

   

1. Oh Holy Night!

This is my number one favorite Christmas song! It is sung by Josh Groban, and written by Adolphe-Charles Adam and Placide Cappeau. 

2. O Come, O Come Emmanuel

Such a beautiful song that captures the longing of Israel for their Saviour! I have always loved this one! It was written by John Mason Neale and Henry Sloane Coffin. This particular version is sung by Bebo Norman. 

3. Just a Girl

This song always brings tears to my eye!. It is the touching story of how the innkeeper denied Mary and Joseph a place to stay, and his realization of what he had done. The song is written and sang by Brandon Heath.

4. Believe

   I have always loved The Polar Express, and this song is one of the reasons why! It is beautiful, and never ceases to get me in the Christmas spirit! It is sung and written by Josh Groban. 

5. Where Are You Christmas?

   Another song I love! It is sung by Faith Hill and written by Mariah Carey, James Horner, and Will Jennings. 

6. Peppermint Winter

 

  BOOM!! Surprise sixth song! :D I had to share this because it is Owl City, and it is awesome! Enjoy! This was written and sung by Owl City (<3).

   I hope you enjoyed this little marathon of Christmas musics, and that they helped to get you into the Christmas spirit! Check in next week to see a list of my five favorite Christmas movies! 

Merry Christmas, dear reader! 

MR

Disclaimer: I own neither these songs or these videos. And I just googled the singers and songwriters, so please feel free to correct me if my information is wrong. :)  

The Very Best Thing

Hello all!
  I just wanted to write a quick note to inform you all that I am still alive. Alive and well, as a matter of fact! Mostly getting Christmas projects ready to go for my friends and family members. But also doing some writing! It has been along time since I've done any such thing, I am ashamed to say.
   But I also wanted to post this because I've gotten to thinking about this past year. A lot has happened. A took care of this big, fuzzy white German Shepherd for about nine months and fell in love with her. I started teaching piano lessons. I lost my Grandma. I started taking horse lessons, which is something I've wanted to do my entire life. Literally. To sum it all up, I've had a lot of life impacting things happen to me in the last year. It might not sound like too much, but these things have affected me. They've helped me to mature, to grow to experience life a little more.  And as I look back on it all, I can't help but see that God has a plan for me. And already he's starting to put it into action. Most of the time, I don't realize it. I get so caught up in the monotony of everyday life. But everything that's happening, even the little things, are shaping me into the person God wants me to be. And I don't want to forget that. I want to make the right choices so I can be that person. Don't you?
   So basically, I just wanted to remind you that God really does have a plan for you. And even if it's not having you single-handedly save the world from terrorists, or bring the gospel to the deepest darkest parts of Africa, it's still going to be something great. I find myself wanting to do something more than what I'm doing right now. I always read books about these characters who save the world, or impact it forever. And I want to do that. I want to do something great. But what God is having you do now is great. Even if it is just something seemingly simple. Like teaching the little kids in class. Or helping out in the kitchens. Or sticking a track in a coat pocket at Wal-Mart. The greatest thing that you could possibly ever do, is exactly what God wants you to do, with a trusting, willing heart. That even if it's just something "ordinary", you know it's what God has for you, and you know it's the very best thing that you could do. So, just trust God. He really does have a plan.
    Have a good evening, my dear readers!
               MR

Don't Be a Demas!!!

  Hello all!! I'm back again! This post shouldn't be too long, but I really wanted to share this thing I found!
First of all, hello again! I haven't blogged in a long time, and it's for the same old reasons (laziness and lack of inspiration), so we won't go there. But I've been doing pretty good! I crochet, if you didn't know that, and we have ANOTHER bunch of babies blooming up in our church, and I'm also selling a bunch of these Anna and Elsa dolls, so my life has basically been a long almost non stop time of crochet! That sentence wasn't quite right, but I think it helps to illustrate the point a bit more. :) But anyway, let's get to the point of this post, shall we?

   I'm in the midst of re-reading through my Bible, and at the moment I am on 2 Timothy. I literally JUST FINISHED chapter four of said book, and I found a verse there that really caught me eye. Paul says in the first part of 2 Timothy 4:10,

"For Demas hath forsaken me, having loved this present world, and is departed unto Thessalonica."

  Did you catch that? Demas, a man that was with Paul during this time in his life, forsook what he was doing, and pretty much turned his back on Jesus Christ and God, the Creator of everything, for the temporal, worthless things of this world. I don't know what exactly these things were, but compared to God and what he was doing, they are absolutely nothing, whatever they are! 
   I know that this definitely applies to my life, and I'm pretty sure it applies to everyone's in some way. We reject Jesus and the things he has planned for us everyday to follow after the empty promises the world feeds us. Whether it be our dreams, or the things we enjoy, or some kind of fulfillment we're seeking, we do it all of the time. And guess what? It NEVER WORKS!!! In the end, we usually end up with our lives a tangled mess of mistakes, our hearts shattered to pieces, and left all alone with no one to turn to. Now this doesn't always happen, but when we choose the things of the world, something along these lines does occur.  At the very least, we break our Saviour's heart, and it's a good long while later before our relationship with Him is back to what it was. 
   Now I want you to take a look at the first part of the very next verse, 2 Timothy 4:11:

"Only Luke is with me."

   Demas wasn't the only one to leave Paul. If you look back in verse ten, it says that a man named Crescens and Titus left Paul too. Though it sounds like they left Paul on good terms, Luke was still the only one to remain with Paul during his time of need. We should be faithful like this! To our friends, our relatives, our church family. Don't give up on people, even if they irritate you, or if they seem hopeless, or whatever be the case! Luke stood by Paul through thick and thin, and we should do the same for the people we love. But more importantly, remain steadfast in your faith. Don't leave God for the things of this world! He stays faithful to you, and we should do the same! I don't know if you understand this, but Jesus Christ the Son of God, left Heaven, to come down to our sin filled earth, and gave his precious life for you! Jesus Christ died for YOU,  and we leave him behind for some whim or fancy. Remain faithful! Never lose hope! Jesus is always with you, even when it's tough. Don't be a Demas. Be a Luke! 

   Thank you to whoever reads this, and I pray it encourages you in some way! Goodnight all!

                                  MR