The three of us went to the theater this afternoon for an early matinee and watched Pirates of the Caribbean: At World’s End. The net is full of reviews so I won’t add another.

The only profanity I can recall is “bloody hell” spoken by Lord Cutler Beckett.

I feel that this movie was dark...especially for a Disney offering. A child is hung, a frozen toe is broken off and there is much death, of course, that naturally accompanies massive explosions, cannonfire, gunfire and swordfights. In addition, two people are impaled with something other than swords and one person is killed when Davy Jones shoves his tentacles into the man’s mouth and down his throat. That was a little nasty but Eliana never flinched.

On a positive note, the action and especially the CGI are amazing. The final battle sequence in the maelstrom is jaw-dropping. Definitely some of the best work I’ve seen from George Lucas’ Industrial Light and Magic.

Oh yes...the door was left open for another sequel.

So do you plan to see it?

Do you ever have days when it feels as though time is slipping away like sand between your fingers? I had a reality check this morning as to just how old I’m getting.

30 years ago today - May 25, 1977 - the movie Star Wars was released in theaters nationwide. At that time, a gallon of gas only cost around 64 cents, the minimum wage was $2.30 an hour and Elvis Presley, who turned 42 that year, had less than three months to live.

I didn’t catch the movie on opening day but this then-14-year-old with an insatiable thirst for anything science fiction did view the cinematic marvel on a big screen.

Yep, I do own a copy of the original and have watched it many times over the years. I have not yet introduced Eliana to Luke and Princess Leia although we have watched Revenge of the Sith together. On a side note and in my most humble and personal opinion, the three latest movies don’t hold a candle to the original trilogy.

Recently, we were traveling in the car and I made a reference to Darth Vader. From the back seat, Eliana asked, “Did you say ‘dark mater’?” Carmi and I laughed so much about her mispronunciation that there’s no way she’ll say it correctly now.

So fess up. Did you see Star Wars in the theater when it was originally released?

We measured Eliana this morning before leaving for preschool and work. She has grown 3/4” since the last measurement back in February and she now stands 43” tall.

Back in November of 2005, I founded and launched a community site for parents called DadBloggers. DadBloggers is a collaborative blog by Dads who are active in the life of their child(ren). We have a diverse team of 29 regular contributors who give the male perspective on parenting and family relationships.

The previous design was online for one year so it was time for an overhaul. I launched v3.0 today! Come over and check us out.

At the end of March, I created a private online community site for families adopting through our agency.

One of the site’s features is a chat room. For the past few Thursday nights at 8:30 pm, several ladies have been using the chat room for an online Bible study and Carmi has been a participant.

Tonight we had a late supper and didn’t sit down to the kitchen table until right at 8:30. Carmi was just about to take her first bite when she realized that it was time for their weekly gossip session chat. I just brought my laptop over to the kitchen table and set it up for her to log in while she ate. She was doing some serious multitasking.

I’ve never watched any of the Survivor series after the first season but that might change in the Fall. During the Survivor Fiji reunion on May 13, Jeff Probst officially announced the 15th season, which will be called Survivor China. He claimed that this will be the first full American television series to be filmed entirely within that country.

This journal offers a peek inside the Henderson home where you'll find two Little Empresses. Eliana stole our hearts on October 29, 2002 and Karys forever became a part of our family on September 17, 2007. Is a Little Emperor in the future?