The Hills are Alive!

I love The Sound of Music! It is one of the best movies ever created. I love it so much I often quote it and not just the normal quotes that everyone knows, but the really obscure ones like, "Hello, where are you?" "In a world that is disappearing." "Is there any way to bring you back to the world I'm in?" or "It'll be my first party, Father!" I was able to see the Sing-Along sound of music twice: once in London and once at the Hollywood Bowl. Both were great experiences.
When the opportunity came to go with a big group from church this year, I was excited to plan it. Sadly, I waited too long to purchase the tickets. They were so very sold out that I couldn't buy two tickets together at any price, let alone 29 seats all together.
So what does a Dempsey do when the original plans for a fun evening are impossible? They make their own. My parents were gracious enough to host a party at their house and I created goody-bags and trivia.
We sat outside in their drive way and projected the movie on a big screen. Everyone got their brown paper packages tied up with string (thanks for the idea, Julie) containing props for some songs (Eidelweiss and curtain fabric among others). Some people wore costumes and we ate Germanic food. The kids in the group made signs for each of the seven notes in the Do-Re-Mi song (my two favorites were the arrow pointing to Madison as "me" and the antlers for do). We sang with each song, booed the Baroness, sighed at the romantic moments, and still got bored during climb every mountain.
It was such a fun night, possibly better than the Bowl - at least it was cheaper and the traffic was nicer. There is just something so great about that movie. It has everything: singing, romance, characters with strenght and dignity, singing, beautiful scenery, some songs, an interesting story line, and a great score. I love that I have friends and family who are as strange as I am and are willing to embrace dorkiness to its fullest. Well, the sun has gone to bed and so must I, so goodbye!