So tomorrow will be my first Thanksgiving celebration within memory! The Bishop's wife in my ward is American and every year has a big Thanksgiving dinner. She invites all the Americans in the ward, there being quite a few with Weta and the capital in the city. It's a transitory ward with people coming in and out, but there is steadily a US contingent. So far, after 4 years I had never been invited. I'd received apologies, but never an invitation. I never minded. After all, I don't miss Thanksgiving. But this year, friendship outweighed obligation as she told me "Did you know you're invited to Thanksgiving? There are too many people to invite but I don't care anymore. You're coming this year."

Yay!

I was told to bring my Thanksgiving specialty. Or if that didn't clarify, a vege dish. So I'll be bringing Butterscotch Blondies (original recipe here), with the pecans I figured they're Thanksgiving-ish, and vege sticks with dip.

Make sure to check my dinner blog tomorrow night for a run down of the festivities!

Last weekend I and my family and my sister Erika and her family stayed out at my parents place for a couple days. Pictionary: Erika and I vs. Tim and Nat*. I think Erika and I won, but we were both on the final square, "All Play", so it was pretty close. I'm sorry but I can't help but yet again post some standout drawings for me:

Exhale, by Nat. They won the round with this one.

Also I think Robert Pattinson's redeeming feature is his voice. He sounds great.

I also found this delightful image while browsing for the posters in my previous post:

Which team are you on?

I loved that a bit came up on screen before the movie with this question. I love that people cheered for their team. I loved that I was in the big theatre rather than the smaller one, because there were two sessions at the cinema I was at. I loved that people dressed up even if I didn't get to. There were girls that came in their pajamas, and girls that wore matching singlets that were all ripped up with claw marks and said "Don't make me angry". They must have been team Jacob. I loved that there was clapping and cheering and audible sighs during the movie. And tons of squealing and giggling.

After reading the books I was definitely Team Edward. He's perfect you know? (Spoiler alert) Reading book 2 I just wanted to get through with it so Edward could come back already, because I knew that he would.

But then I watched the movie.

At first I was a bit taken aback by all the La Push boys running around with no shirts. That's not normal. But I got used to it. And then Jacob cut his hair.

And now I think I'm Team Jacob. A part of me is saying "No! Edward is better! He's always been better! Remember the books!" But a part of me is saying "Yes! Jacob! He's way better looking! It's nice when they cuddle!" I think a major thing that it comes down to is pasty white/hairy chest/barely muscly vs. lovely brown/smooth chest/incredibly cut. (Spoiler alert) That and, I think, you get to see their love grow a bit more. You understand where they're both coming from. Maybe because it's an almost normal situation (before the whole werewolf thing) so it's more relatable.

The trouble is, I only read the books once, and it wasn't long before Twilight became a movie. And so I can't remember my own characters from reading. They've been replaced by the movie characters. If only I could remember the Edward that I imagined, then it would be easier to stay team Edward forever. I do remember he had way better skin. Somehow the white as marble thing looked good when I imagined it.

All in all I thought the movie was good. I loved the way certain things were depicted like time passing, action sequences, and showing how fast a vampire runs by including a flying crow in the shot. And the atmosphere was good. I kept running in to people I know from church, including a mother of four in her thirties (forties?) who came by herself because she just couldn't help herself.

I think I'm on the fence Team wise. Jacob in the movies is way better than how I imagined him in the books (I think?). But I was never happy with the idea of him and Bella together because I was so invested in the Bella/Edward romance. I was never 100% happy with Pattinson as Edward. But I am attached to the description of their love in the books. It won't take much to win me back over to Team Edward. Bring on Eclipse.

One of the ladies at church has been trying to convince me ever since Twilight came out that I should dress up. I asked this time around does she mean dress up as in dress nice? Or dress up as in try to look like Bella Swan? She clarified, with help from my sister Erika, that they think I should go to the $2 shop and buy body glitter, then starting from 9:30pm layer it on every half hour so that I'm totally vampire in the sunlight by midnight. I tell you I was keen. But my date (my friend from high school, Victoria) wasn't so keen. What a shame.

I'll tell you what I thought of it tomorrow.

I love: