*This review is part of The Blog Tour Spot.*

You know how at the end of every dance movie, there’s a big emotional dance scene where everything just falls into place?

Well, at the end of Tour de Force by Elizabeth White, there’s a . . . oh no, you aren’t going to trick me like that. I’m not going to tell you what happens at the end!

I will tell you that the book has dancing in it. Dancing that I appreciate so much more because of my love of So You Think You Can Dance. Dancing that has a whole new element because of the main characters’, well, character.

I’d read books by Elizabeth White before and thought they were pretty cute. Not too fluffy and pretty fun reads. Tour de Force was about the same, and even featured characters mentioned in previous books or related to characters from previous books.

(Although I’m not about to admit how far into the book I was before I realized that. It had been a couple years since I read one of White’s novels. And I read a lot of books, okay?! How can I remember every single character? . . . Okay, so I was more than halfway through the book when it hit me.)

I did feel that Tour de Force was a bit heavier, somewhat deeper than the other books by White. Not that there’s anything wrong with that. I enjoyed reading about dance, and seriously, having watched so much dance on TV and in movies over the past few years really fueled my imagination and colored my perspective on the story.

The dialogue had a few clunky spots. One that stood out in particular was when a character used the word “eldest.” I’ve just never heard anyone say that in real life. Then again, I think the character who said that was British, so it’s possible that the British say it all the time. I wouldn’t really know. (Unless I heard it from Nigel Lythgoe, who is British and a dancer, which makes this random SYTYCD reference oh-so relevant.)

Some readers may find the resolution of the story a bit far-fetched, but I believe the author is trying to stretch our faith and open our minds a bit. What happens to each of the characters, I think, is quite possible and certainly a bit thought-provoking.

Or maybe it’s just an overly simple solution to a sticky story arc. You can decide for yourself, but for me, I liked Tour de Force. Here’s the summary:

And if you call now, they’ll throw in a set of Ginsu knives, too.

What’s your favorite summertime treat? Or, if you like, dessert in general?

This post is linked to Things I Love Thursday.

Sometimes Annalyn is naughty. Actually . . . these days, she’s naughty fairly often. Her most recent misbehavior of choice is spitting. And screaming is a pretty close second.

We’ve been having what you might call “discipline issues” at our house.

Since Friday, though, I’ve found that – surprise, surprise – immediate and consistent consequences really make an impression.

The thing that I’m having to get over is that handing out immediate and consistent consequences is darned inconvenient!

Don’t worry. I’m getting over it. So over it that I have, in fact, pulled the car over, gotten out and walked around to her side, and dealt with the problem.

It’s not fun, but it seems to be working. This week (so far . . .) she has been sooo super sweet! I had to work late tonight, and when I got home, all she wanted to do was hug me and kiss me and sit on my lap.

Now that’s something I could stand more of!!

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On another note, Monday night was the last chat for our Me, Myself & Lies study. I hope those of you who participated got something out of it. I really enjoyed our chats and hope to visit with you ladies more!

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And on yet another topic, Monday night was also the day that Mark broke his healthy (or, at least, uninjured) streak. He fell at work and badly sprained his ankle. We know for sure it’s not broken because he got the privilege of sitting in the emergency room for six hours. Putting him home at 4:30 a.m. That’s in the morning!

Poor guy. At least they gave him crutches this time.

(Yes, this time. He may or may not make a habit of getting injured . . .)

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How’s your week going?

Clearly, I’ve always known good music. Here I am, playing the bass clarinet, circa 1990. No, it’s not a saxophone. Yes, my pants are tight-rolled.

Mark said it doesn’t count as “knowing the words” if I can only say things like “play on, playa” and “hey-ah, hey-ah, hey-AHHH” in rhythm.

Whatev. You know I’m down with Dre.

What? You didn’t? Huh. Well, as a little party favor for our 30th birthday party slash reunion, Smitty and I decided to make mix tapes. On CDs.

I was all for a mix of top hits from 1978 and 1979. But Smitty overruled me and said songs from 1997 (the year we graduated) would be better.

That was until she discovered ’97 was the year of both MMMBop and the Spice Girls. It was also before I discovered that that catchy ditty, “Mouth,” is actually a dirty song.

However, we persevered. Because for our friends, only the best.

And by “the best,” I mean lots of cream cheese and pop tunes from the late 90s.

Now that I’ve whipped you into a frenzy of curiosity, I’ll reveal the songs that made Saturday’s playlist. Don’t even tell me these don’t take you back. Back all the way to . . . 1997.

• No Diggity (Blackstreet & Dr. Dre)
• You Make Me Wanna… (Usher)
• I’ll Be Missing You (Puffy Daddy & Faith Evans)
• Return of the Mack (Mark Morrison)
• How Bizarre (OMC)
• MMMBop (Hanson)
• Where Do You Go (No Mercy)
• The Impression That I Get (The Mighty Mighty Bosstones)
• B*tch (Meredith Brooks)
• Criminal (Fiona Apple)
• The Freshmen (The Verve Pipe)
• Semi-Charmed Life (Third Eye Blind)
• If You Could Only See (Tonic)
• One Headlight (The Wallflowers)
• All For You (Sister Hazel)
• Building a Mystery (Sarah McLachlan)
• Secret Garden (Bruce Springsteen)

After we put together this tape CD – but before I realized I’d exhausted my iTunes budget – we looked up top songs of 1978. Just for kicks.

Because when you get to the ripe old age of 30, that’s what you do on a Friday night for kicks.

It was a good year for music. But what I found later that night was that the real year for good tunes was 1989. As I said to Mark, “Your brother is so lucky! He graduated in the year that has all my favorite songs!”

Because I’m pretty sure my brother-in-law jammed to Paula Abdul, Tiffany and yes, New Kids on the Block.

Not really. But maybe Big Mama can appreciate this list, as she, too, apparently came of age in that wonderful musical year.

In case you aren’t as familiar with the sounds of ’89, here are my top 20 faves (in no particular order, because I’m writing this late at night and I have no brain power left for that sort of thing). And yes, I am cheating and linking this up to OhAmanda’s Top Ten Tuesday.

• Look Away (Chicago)
• My Prerogative (Bobby Brown)
• Straight Up (Paula Abdul)
• Miss You Much (Janet Jackson)
• Girl You Know Its True (Milli Vanilli)
• Right Here Waiting (Richard Marx)
• Lost In Your Eyes (Debbie Gibson)
• The Look (Roxette)
• I’ll Be There For You (Bon Jovi)
• You Got It (The Right Stuff) (New Kids On The Block)
• Eternal Flame (The Bangles)
• Wild Thing (Tone Loc)
• When I See You Smile (Bad English)
• If I Could Turn Back Time (Cher)
• Buffalo Stance (Neneh Cherry)
• Bust A Move (Young M.C.)
• Love Shack (B-52′s)
• Cherish (Madonna)
• Heaven (Warrant)
• She Drives Me Crazy (Fine Young Cannibals)

What’s your favorite year for music?

Apparently, cream cheese is a necessity for every appetizer known to man. Or, at least, known to me.

On Thursday night, Smitty and I took a field trip to the grocery store. I had my list of ingredients and a couple extra recipes for good measure. (Smitty had conveniently accidentally forgotten her wallet at home, so she wasn’t able to buy her ingredients and supplies.)

When I realized just how many bricks of cream cheese I needed, I had to laugh. And flash back to this post of BooMama’s. Look, if BooMama says it’s good stuff, you know it to be true, right?

I decided to forgo the fruit dip, mainly because buying three different kinds of fruit and cutting it up just seemed so . . . expensive . . . and time-consuming. (Only the best for my friends, you know.) But even so, I bought three blocks of cream cheese.

I have no idea how many rectangular foil packs of goodness were sacrificed for Smitty’s cheesecake squares. But let me tell you right now, it was well worth it. After Mark ate his leftover pieces on Sunday, he got himself off the couch, looked at me and said, “Okay, I’m going to drive to Smitty’s house now and get the rest of the leftovers.”

Smitty lives about an hour away. He did not drive there. But oh, he was tempted.

Anyway, this post is supposed to be all about the cooking and the recipes and the yummy treats we gorged snacked on Saturday night. So here you go. To compliment the awesome hamburgers that Mark grilled and the rocking mix tape Smitty and I burned, we had tortilla rolls and MexiDip. (And veggies and brownies and beans and chips and . . . ugh, no wonder I thought I was going to die from a stomachache by the time I fell into bed that night.)

And if you’re wondering where the photos are, you can just keep on wondering. After taking about a trillion pictures Friday night and almost missing my daughter’s first real steps (can I get a WOO-HOO!?!), I decided to put the camera down and just live on Saturday. Imagine that. (But don’t get used to it. I am sure it won’t become a habit or anything.)

Tortilla Rolls

10 burrito-sized flour tortillas
1 block (8 oz.) cream cheese
8 oz. sour cream
1 cup finely shredded cheddar (that’s fancy shredded for those of you who, like me, hate grating)
1 small can green chilies (or 2/3 of a large can, if you live on the edge)

Mix up all ingredients except tortillas (because that would be weird). Spread on tortillas and roll up. Refrigerate the 10 rolls overnight or at least for a few hours. Then slice into pinwheels. Eat the ends, because nobody wants to see those on your platter. Serve with salsa.

This is a recipe that can be a little healthier, although nothing will help you if you eat 47 in one sitting. I may possibly speak from experience. Low-fat tortillas, cream cheese, sour cream and even cheddar lessen the damage. Although, for the record, I went full fat this time. Unh-huh.

MexiDip

2 blocks (8 oz.) cream cheese (yes, I said 2)
1 can Mexicorn
1 small can green chilies
1 can Rotel (diced tomatoes with green chilies)
1 can chopped olives (I don’t love olives, so didn’t use the whole can. Just couldn’t do it.)

Mix it all up and refrigerate overnight. Make sure you drain the corn and Rotel. It will look disgusting, but I guarantee your guests will ask for the recipe. And hog the bowl. Mine did. And, in fact, that was my response when I ate this for the first (second, third and fourth) time at my cousin Sondra’s house. It may look ugly, but it is tasty.

Have you tried any new recipes lately? For a few to add to your cookbook, check out Rachel’s Mouthwatering Monday at A Southern Fairytale. And this post will be linked to Friday Family Recipes, as well as Tasty Tuesday (which is hosting The Finer Things in Life’s Bloggy Progressive Dinner!).

Photo by House of Sims