delightful | a dream is a wish | part 2

As promised, here are the remaining interviews from my sisters and their reactions...

Maddi: age 18

abbe: did you see cinderella?

maddi:  twice, and I’ll go again!

abbe:  if you could describe this movie using only one word?

maddi:  hmm, dazzling.

abbe:  what was your opinion of prince charming?

maddi:  he was the BEST!

abbe:  and cinderella, how do you feel about lily james as cinderella?

maddi:  perfect, she truly was cinderella.

abbe:  on the the important details, did you snack on anything at the theater? 

maddi:  cinnamon bears and gummy worms.

abbe:  that sounds delicious, any other thoughts?

maddi:  it was the best movie I've seen overall, ever!

abbe:  thank you for your time.

Elle: age 14 

abbe:  Elle, did you go see Cinderella?

elle:  Abbe, Abithy, can I call you Abithy?

abbe:  for the duration of this interview, that would be fine.

elle:  can i sit down?

abbe:  if that makes you feel more comfortable, describe this movie in one word please.

elle:  not magical, because everyone said that... I'll go with dreamy.

abbe:  what was your opinion of prince charming?

elle:  haha!  so, funny story: I always used to like to rough-rider type of guy, but now I love the nice guy.

abbe:  but Prince Charming, how do you feel about this character?

elle:  Dreamy.  can I have more than one word?

abbe:  sure...

elle:  his eyes were the most amazing color

abbe:  is radioactive a color? but his character or personality? what about that?

elle:  I love him.

abbe:  and cinderella, how do you feel about lily james as cinderella?

elle:  she played her realistically and was perfect

abbe:  what were you snacking on? 

elle:  a perfectly calibrated cherry coke and popcorn.

abbe:  anything else?

elle:  he was perfect, she was perfect, walt would have been proud.  I cried twice.

abbe:  thank you.

Lydia: age 10

abbe:  can I ask you a few questions?

lydia:  yeah… (looks at me skeptically)

abbe:  great!  did you go see cinderella?

lydia:  yes, I did.

abbe:  if you could describe this movie using only one word?

lydia:  amazing.

abbe:  what was your opinion of prince charming?

lydia:  he was perfect.

abbe:  and cinderella, how do you feel about lily james as cinderella?

lydia:  she did a really good job.

abbe:   were you eating any snacks?

lydia:  popcorn and soda.

abbe:  no further details?

lydia:  not really.

abbe:  any other comments?

lydia:  prince charming's eyes were amazing and her wedding dress was beautiful.

abbe: thank you

And just for reference, here is a picture of Prince Charming and his eyes that apparently all the girls were so taken with.  They claim that he has blue eyes, to me they look radioactive, which is a term I picked up in photography class when we were learning how NOT to photoshop (perhaps I'm being a little harsh, but his flawlessness is unnerving, no?)

And here are a few Cinderella themed links that I love:

Proof that Richard Madden is a real live prince

The old and the new

Cinderella Earbuds!

Here is the shirt that I wore for opening night (its a fabulous little tee shirt!)

Have you been sucked into all of the wonderful Cinderella merchandise that is popping up everywhere?  If you have, let me know what I'm missing out on!

delightful | a dream is a wish | part 1

 Sigh...

Wasn't Cinderella the loveliest?

I can't begin to tell you how very much I loved this new film.  After a year of anticipation for this beautiful story (and Disney is a pro at giving you just enough of a preview to drive you crazy! goodness, all of the buzz just about put me over the edge!) I was thrilled to see that one of our local theaters had an early release on Thursday evening.  Some days you just feel like you're winning at the game of life.  

Brooke and another friend were both out of town and unable to join the rest of us sisters.  The theater was showing this   We were in the restored part of the theater with the domed ceilings, it's the very same theater that my grandparents grew up going to.  Anyway, that was just a little extra delightful thing that made my evening even better and didn't go unnoticed by me.  So precious!

Being that I live in a house full of approximately, a lot of girls, we've talked about this movie nonstop.  The costumes, prince charming, "have courage and be kind", prince charming, and HIS EYES!, the subtle ties to the original animated Disney film and OH EVERYTHING!  Knowing how much I love Cinderella, I had friends text me all weekend with their reactions ("I'm in heaven!").  

It was just so much fun!

For giggles, I conducted interviews with all of my sisters in order to give you a well-rounded review of this film.  Enjoy part 1!

abbe:  can I interview you?

brooke:  about what?

abbe:  cinderella

brooke:  I would love to talk about this most perfect movie

abbe:  great!  first, when, where & with whom did you watch this

brooke:  march 13, simpsonville SC IMAX, five boys that I was babysitting

abbe:  sounds like a fun loving group, if you could only use one word to describe this movie, what would it be?

brooke: perfection

abbe:  what is your opinion of prince charming?

brooke:  he was a prince and he was charming, adorable, precious.  yeah, put precious down

abbe:  and cinderella, how do you feel about lily james as cinderella

brooke:  I wasn't too sure at first, but she was lovely

abbe:  what did you snack on?

brooke:  popcorn and the occasional recess pieces from WyWy

abbe:  any other comments?

brooke:  I just thought it was the most beautiful love story

abbe:  please state your name and age

gracie:  my name is gracie and I'm 8

abbe:  thank you, did you go see cinderella?

gracie:  yes

abbe:  if you could only use one word to describe this movie, what would it be

gracie:  love

abbe:  what is your opinion of prince charming?

gracie:  he was pretty darn cute

abbe:  and cinderella, how do you feel about lily james as cinderella

gracie:  pretty

abbe:  any other comments? 

gracie:  I cried my little head off and I wanted a free poster but I didn't get one

abbe:  did you see Cinderella?

mim:  twice

abbe:  that is some dedication, one word?

mim:  golden

abbe:  what is your opinion of prince charming?

mim:  he was excellent but not my style

abbe:  and cinderella, how do you feel about lily james as cinderella

mim:  lilly james was perfect

abbe: snacks?

mim: popcorn, sour worms and cherry coke

abbe:  any other comments? 

mim:  nope

abbe:  thanks

This ballroom scene had all of us over the moon!  I could not have been happier with the final result, the entire movie was fantastical and the details were unbelievable.  I was surprised that I made it through the entire movie without any tears, but I've yet to see it on the IMAX.  I'll let you know how that one hits me.

Have you seen Cinderella yet?  What did you think?  Did it live up to your expectations? Share!

thoughts | marble cake a.k.a. universal unhappiness

a lovely photo from the internets of a marble cake that actually looks delicious.

photo and recipe here.

I'm waiting on a detail at the car wash.  Styrofoam cup of fake hazelnut coffee in hand and feeling the guilt of an neglected blog weighing on my shoulders.

Or maybe that's just the after-effects of last night's WOD of overhead squats.

I'm not feeling particularly inspired at the moment (fake hazelnut kills creativity. You can quote me on that...), but, per usual, I have thoughts to share.

Have you ever pondered the disaster that is "Marble Cake"?

Marble cake, you know, that two-toned cake that started out as vanilla until somebody had the horrible idea to swirl chocolate batter into it before baking (or is it chocolate with vanilla?).  The proverbial "Switzerland" of pastries.  As a lover of all things wedding, a sometimes coordinator, and regular attendee.  I take cake, wedding, birthday or otherwise, very seriously and I am mystified as to why this flavor even exists.  And it certainly shouldn't be used as a wedding cake flavor.  

Think about it; for a vanilla person, the cake is tainted by chocolate.  For a chocolate lover, the cake is ruined by a stripe of white batter.  

It's a lose/lose situation y'all.

Marble cake makes approximately zeros of people happy.

Growing up in tight-knit baptist churches, I've had my fair share of the marble bakery cakes.  Baptisms, luncheons, baby dedications, bridal showers, baby showers, etc, were always a reason for cake.  And the church ladies in charge seemed to hold as tightly to the gospel of "marble makes everyone happy" as to any other bible doctrine.  Y'all.  It is a lie from the pit.  I'm here to shine some light.  Don't do it. Go with a straight up vanilla or a plain old chocolate.  Trust me on this one.

Because I love a good cake, I've noticed over the past few years (having attended and planned more than a few weddings) that cake is not as popular as it used to be.  I get it, cake is expensive, and stuffy and traditional.  The cool kids serve ice cream, doughnuts, pies, cupcakes, and more donuts.  And quite a few people have told me that they don't like cake.  I'm sorry, do you even have a heart?

I miss cake.  And most of all, buttercream.

The marble topic came up again with my sisters in the car on Friday.  It was a spirited conversation, to say the least.  We're passionate about our carbs.  And a host of other things of equal unimportance.  Feel free to ask us how we feel about, well, anything.  We'll tell you.  

The Powers girls are an opinionated bunch. 

So, here's what I think: vanilla cake, dense texture, with real vanilla and gobs of sturdy white buttercream.  Heaven.

What do you say?  Team Chocolate or Team Vanilla?  How do you feel about the Great Marble Cake Debate?

quotable | new ventures

The wonderful thing about new business ventures it that you start with nothing.  Anything is possible!  The horrible thing about new business ventures is that you literally start with nothing.  Coming up with a name will make or break you as a team.  Our team still hasn't stuck gold with the name game, but we may just turn out a few few internet sensations with the comic content that has sprung from our little board room.