Great Game for Family Night - Tell Tale Fairy Tales

Blue Orange Games Reinvents Story Time with Tell Tale Fairy Tales

The 411 by Maria & Goddess (7)

We received Tell Tale Fairy Tales 2 weeks ago and have not missed playing it yet. Goddess loves this game so much and spends most of the time laughing so hard that she ends up having to sprint to the bathroom.  She has a great sense of humor my daughter.

I digress, back to the game. With Tale Fairy Tales, you can make up the way you want to play or choose from the games described on the instructions like “ Round ‘N Round” where players cooperate to develop a communal tale and in “Storyboard” where you invent your story individually. Goddess and I prefer the collaboration. We divvy the cards up into two sets and make up the story as we go along. We take turns going first. Depending on the card, building the story around it. It may be a picture of a prince climbing a wall,  so we will start with; One day a handsome prince saw a tall tower in the middle of nowhere, after careful observation over a few days and seeing no one, he decided to climb up.  The next card may be a dragon with a heart above her head so the next person puts it down and may say something like, at the top of the tower he found a dragon who feel immediately in love with him and it goes from there. You never know how the story will come out because the cards and the player holding it will always be different. Our stories have been funny, sad, lovable, action packed, and sinister depending on the way the cards came up and how we were feeling at the time.

It is so much fun and I can't wait for our next play date to see how it will be with other players involved since it has only been the two of us so far.

This is not the Tell Tale Fairy Tales game but the original which is just Tell Tales but you get the idea. 

Family Movie Night - The ToothFairy 2 - REVIEW

The 411 by Maria:

Well, it's a cute movie for kids who find a big, hairy guy wearing a pink tutu funny. We were fans of the Toothfairy starring Dwayne Johnson in fact the kids still watch it. While there was no original cast members for the toothfairy age kids this movie is fun.

Larry does an OK job being embarrassed. My favorite scene was when he turned into a toothfairy in front of two of his male friends while watching the game. Too funny!

While I expected more laughs from my kids, they were not bored. 

Family Movie Night: Mirror Mirror Great For All Ages!

The 411 by Maria:

Yesterday I was feeling a little sick from my intestinal nightmare the night before so out of character for me, I took to the couch and watched a few movies with the kids. One of them was Mirror Mirror.
I was hopeful that this would be good but wasn't holding out hope. I am usually let down by movies lately. Tainted I guess. It is mostly a time thing and if it turns out not to be good, I get upset by the time I wasted.

We start the movie hearing Julia Roberts tell us that this movie is about her, "the most beautiful Queen". She tells us that this is her story. Julia is perfect as the Queen. She is evil but not in a scary way for children.

Watching the cartoon version of this Grimms Fairy Tale by Disney still makes kids nervous. My daughter leaves the room when the witch is on screen and I remember closing my eyes too. This is much more enjoyable and no nightmares is always a plus. The world is scary enough when you are a kid.

This movie was enjoyable because:

I wasn't embarrassed to watch it with my kids. Completely child friendly.
The all star cast including some surprises like Mare Winningham (I was wondering where she has been) the King played by Sean Bean from my newest favorite show Game of Thrones and well, Julia. I love her!

It is funny, fast paced, and filled with adventure.

While I have read some reviews I believe this movie doesn't try to take itself too seriously. It is a modern take with a twist on a fairy tale. How can you take that seriously. It is merely a movie created for enjoyment and hopefully you have a laugh.

Great colors and great effects!

I asked the kids what they liked about it:

Handsome loved the 7 dwarfs and found them hysterically funny. " Those little guys were tough and funny. I liked the crabby guy. He could kick butt!"  (Can't say I blame him. I loved them too! So happy to see Marty on screen).

Goddess "loved all of it" When I pressed her, she said, "it was good because the Queen was mean and in the end Snow White won the battle for the castle. Good always wins over evil! Awww..that's my girl!

What I loved was that this princess is more modern and not a scared little girl. She is strong and doesn't wait for a prince to ride up and save her on his mighty stead! She's a go getter. A much better role model for my daughter than the ones I grew up wishing I could be like.

Finding Emma by Steena Holmes - A Story About Never Letting Go!

The 411 by Maria:

Knowing that this wasn't a true story made it easier to read. Well, let me take that statement back for a second. This is not a non-fiction book about a story based on the author's experience however it is something that many parents go through.

In Finding Emma, Megan is a busy mom with three daughters. While rushing around one morning she asks one of the girls to lock the house door on their way inside. Unfortunately, it doesn't get locked and her almost 3 year old Emma disappears. This all happens in the first chapter. We pick up the story 2 years in where Megan is racked with guilt, her marriage is falling apart and her daughters wish they were the ones taken so that mom would love them as much as they love Emma.

Megan sees Emma everywhere, so much so that she has literally tries to grab little ones away from their scared moms.

I loved this book. It wasn't as frightening as you would imagine a book about child abduction to be. As a mom of two this is one of my biggest fears and completely understand Megan's NEED to continue looking for Emma even without any leads.

My favorite character is Megan's husband Peter. His subtle way of dealing with his own pain from losing his daughter was how I would expect most men to deal with this. It also makes it easier for me to understand why parents of abducted children can speak on the news. I always thought, "how are they talking, I wouldn't be able to utter a sound."

This is something that unfortunately happens every day and I appreciate Steena Holmes for writing a story that was not overly dramatic for shock value but seems to deal realistically with the various ways people deal with the paths that life tosses our way. 

It is a reminder that there are two sides to every story and how we deal with each other really matters. Acceptance and understanding of other others differences is important to all relationships.

You will love this story about a family falling apart at the seams but cocooned in love.

Blue Monday - The Magic of Belle Isle

If you remember, last year I was on a mission to grab photos of Morgan Freeman, Rob Reiner who were filming Summer at Dog Dave's near my town.  Well, that was last summer. This weekend, I was invited to attend a screening of The Magic of Belle Isle which is the new name of Summer at Dog Dave's (I like this name better).

Isn't it cool that they left the movie sign?

The screening was held in Greenwood Lake NY and was at the lake where the movie was filmed.

The town of Greenwood Lake was abuzz with happy, proud people who were excited to see their town shown on the screen. Fortunately for me, I have friends in high places and was able to snag a band so I could cover the screening for the website I run. It was incredible to see all these people, so full of pride!

If you have a chance see the Magic of Belle Isle starring Morgan Freeman and directed by Rob Reiner.

Summer Life Begins & Balancing Life and Work Takes Time

Well...the life of a blogger is crazy. There are little windows of time that I can get things done and now that the kids are home...well..you know how that goes.

As a people pleaser type, I find it difficult to find time for myself because I am busy working. While I don't work outside the house, well I do but not in a standard office. My jobs are in the social media realm which include my blog, my website, Twitter, Facebook and creating advertisement for online ads. My day consists of editing photos for online posting, writing for Maria's Space or the community site I run after a nearby town lost its newspaper, being a good wife, a good friend, a good daughter, granddaughter, sister, taking care of the house, taking care of my social media clients, following up on giveaways and reviews which means, email, email, email, reading books for review and everything else that comes along with life while maintaining my first priority as a MOM! It is the job I find most important. It is the job that gives me the most joy and stress. It is also the job, I wish I was better at. We all do our best and there are times we are the best parent possible and times that we could use a little help but you never have time to ask for it.

While most of my jobs are not something I NEED to do but choose to do, it is something I find myself wondering if I should be stressed by it. At anytime I could give it all up and just be busy with life but keeping my sites going gives me joy and currently one is allowing me to earn a tiny income. Tiny means under $150.00 a month but it is something and I couldn't have done it if not for Maria's Space.

Back to life and the kids:

School ended last Wednesday and I gave the kids the rest of the week off. This week, summer officially begins and that means, fun, good times but also learning.  They both start swimming class today at a nearby high schools pool. They can't wait! They will also have to start writing in their journals today and the workbook session will begin on July 1st!

We also have plans for some summer school, Handsome is taking a social skills class starting July 10th and Goddess is expect to have a summer reading course which was offered by the school. Hopefully I hear more about it soon.

Last week I took photos at a Senior Center and met a member of the International Lions Club. The Lions had donated a pool table to the center and I wanted to take photos for the paper. The Lion member who attended was a past president of the club and invited me to the Lions Inductee Dinner where I took more photos to post on their local newspaper. When I was leaving the former President came over to thank me for coming and wanted to know what my "wish list" was. Apparently he is my fairy Godfather because I mentioned to him that I would love some of the merchants who I cover online to advertise on the website that I spend 12 hours a day working on. This weekend, I received 3 new ad requests.  One is paying for the whole year. Very excited to work on the last ad and send it over for approval so I can invoice out! Not a fortune but really does add to the month intake of the website and justifies all of the time I spend working on it and attending everything I am invited to by the town. It also justifies the negativity that comes with being an Editor. I have had some personal attacks because of the website's comment capabilities. People who can write anonymously can be unkind. While I know you can't make everyone happy, and I can shake it off. It makes it harder to attend some of the social gatherings I am invited to. You never know who was the person being nasty to you. They could be smiling right in your face and you wouldn't know it although they know who you are. Oh well...

As for Teach, he started a job about 3 months ago. Completely different from what he has done in the past. My blue collar guy is now white collar and drives a company car, wears dress shoes instead of work boots and slacks and dress shirt instead of a polyester uniform.  He is also in the best shape ever. After starting work and realizing we had no money to buy him clothes he needed to drop a few pounds so he could fit comfortably in the few dress clothes he had. He dropped 30 in 3 months and looks incredible. Not easy either, he works out at least 2 hours 5 days a week and only eats chicken, turkey, salad, protein shakes, Belvita cookies, and Wheaties! The man is dedicated.

Will have to snap a picture of him soon because once football season starts the eating resumes but right now...he looks amazing.

Going to get the kids ready for swim class. Have a great day everyone!

Color Carnival - June 24, 2012

This is my "Handsome" plant. I got it on my very first Mother's Day as I was being wheeled out of the OR from my emergency Cesarean. I could barely hold my head up yet two nurses handled it to me on my gurney and said, "Happy Mother's Day". If anything happens to this plant I would be devastated.

Kidz Bop for The Kid In All Of Us

I have been writing about Kidz Bop for a few weeks now.  I cannot tell you how many of my friends have told me that their kids LOVE Kidz Bop since posting this picture of my Kidz Bop loot on my Facebook page.

My kids love music and I know this is not the exception. Everyone loves music but not all music is meant for everyone. There is way too much inappropriate music on the radio so we have never listened to the radio in the car but prefer that the kids listen to music we download to our MP3 Players which we use in the car.

They are going to grow  up quick enough and they don't need to know about half the things that are mentioned in the top 40 songs on the radio these days. But...I don't believe in sheltering them so much that they don't know the songs their friends listen to on the radio which is why I love Kidz Bop.

It is all top 40 songs with kids singing it and the words are changed to be appropriate for children to sing.

A Must See: Stunning Performances by All Star Cast!

The 411 by Maria:
This is an absolute must see movie. A+ cast! Stellar performances by Anna Paquin and J Smith Cameron. Paquin plays Lisa a 17 year old girl high school student and lives in Manhattan with her mother (Cameron) and brother. Smart script and dialogue about how life chews us up and spits us out.

When Lisa sets out to find a cowboy hat, she inadvertently causes the death of a woman crossing the street.

Guilt and frustration alters her already "too smart for her own good" youthful view of the world.  The movie takes its time and centers around complex day to day issues; death, hatred, real world events like 9/11, racial differences, teen pregnancy, drugs and divorce. Sounds like a devastating film? It isn't it is a centered, deep, thought provoking movie of the realities of the world our children are growing up in and how it affects them.

So well done, I will be thinking about it for days.

Anna Paquin and J. Smith Cameron along with the rest are incredible. Brilliantly acted! The scene of the bus accident is a harsh reality and Paquin will never be just Sookie to me again!

FYI: Not a child friendly film. Nudity, harsh language and a bloody accident add to the movie and are not there for dramatic visuals.

Perfect Family Movie: Journey 2 The Mysteries Island

 

The 411 by Maria:

If you are looking for Oscar worthy performances, you won't find it here but what you will find is a great, family movie with laughs and action.

My kids are big fans of Josh Hutcherson since his Zathura days so we get happy when we see him.

The kids and I watched the movie and after it was over they wanted to watch it again. That is always a good sign. There are some cool special effects like a tiny elephant and the flight of the massively hairy bees which will have kids very interested.

Yes, there is a little love story as Sean (Josh) is very interested in Kailani (Vanessa Hudgens) character but I think the lusty teen thing was mostly lost on them. It is very much played down.

Dwayne Johnson is his likable self as Hank and Luis Guzman is perfect as the weird bi-sexual dad of Hudgens. Honestly I have no idea if he is bi-sexual but there were some weird moments where I felt he was too interested in Hank but that is just me.

I loved Michael Cain as Sean's grandfather, part Indiana Jones, part Jurassic Park creator.

Fun for the whole family. The kids loved the special effects and Dwayne Johnson can pop his pecs anytime for me.

Cute despite being a silly adventure. Exactly the kind of movie kids want to see.

Disclaimer: I received a screener copy from Warner Brothers for the sole purpose of this review.

Playing Tuff Puppy @ The Park With Friends

Still playing catch up on my pictures and journaling. These are from April. Goddess, Handsome and I headed to the park and ran into some friends.

Before we left, Goddess put on all black clothes and made a badge out of paper that she taped to her shirt that said, Tuff for Tuff Puppy one of her favorite cartoons.

So cute!

I love when they pretend play. She used to think she wanted to be a super hero, now she wants to be a spy.

Here is Handsome chasing her at the park. He probably thought she was trying to beat him somewhere. Little did he know she was trying to catch the bad guy and he was the furthest thing from her mind.

My Handsome! I love this picture. One of my favorites before the haircut

She is a serious runner as you can see.

Those Burger King Crowns are fun but she only wore it for 5 minutes and I spent the rest of the time carrying it for her.

I love taking the kids to the park. It is one of my favorite things to do with them in the summer. They tend to gravitate toward each other when we are out.

Instead of fighting like they do at home, they follow each other around 

My second favorite picture of the day.

Get Inspired To Dust And Keep Germs Away With Pledge Giveaway

As summer is finally right around the corner, kids will be outside playing all day – being kids essentially! But among the dirt and grime they bring back inside, some germs may hitch a ride!

Oddly enough I had a friend who was raving about this product a week prior to me receiving this prize pack in the mail. She swears by it and says it is her favorite product since finding it. 

We all know the name Pledge. It is a product that I have been using for years in my own house and a product that my parents used.  In fact I once wrote that I am still dusting my moms dresser with Pledge the same way I did when I was a little girl.  While the can is different, I love this blue can the trust I have is still the same and now even better.

These are the very same reason my girlfriend says she loves it! No longer is there a need for many different cleaners just to clean up the house. Makes cleaning so much quicker and it is easier to spot clean which means the house doesn't become a chore for one day of the week.

Summer 2012 Is Definitely Bug Season!

While I can't say whether the spray helped us with bed bugs (we thankfully don't have them), I feel better knowing that I can safely spray our bedding wherever we sleep without worrying about the kids sleeping with chemicals.

Before you head out on vacation, grab a bottle of EUCOCLEAN. It is better to be safe than sorry and the Eucalyptus smell of the spray may even help you relax better when you are far away from your own bed.