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Top Nine TV Shows -Movie Review Monday

Posted by html404 on April 16, 2012
in Movie Review Monday

Winter time always makes me feel like a couch potato. We watch waaaaay more TV and movies during the colder months of the year than any other and since it is has become such a big part of my life I thought I would share my top nine TV shows and share a Movie Review Monday post instead of a Monday Motivation post this week. These are in no particular order.

Disclaimer: And just because I am writing about these movies/shows or like them does not mean I necessarily agree with the lifestyles or language portrayed by some of the characters. If you own Clear Play, use it. If not it’s a program that helps clean up scenes and language so invest in it. Just like real life we come across many people and choices, to each his own. It’s only by God’s grace and sovereignty that I know how He wants me to live. It’s not my job to preach it at others.

1. White Collar – We really like this show, even my husband does. It is funny, entertaining and keeps you guessing. There is some language in certain episodes, violence and otherwise adult scenes so I do not necessarily recommend it for children unless you view it in advance and make an informative decision based on what you watched.

2. Downton Abbey – My older girls and I are hooked. This is a British show based on a upper class English family in the early 1900’s. The first episode is actually set in 1912, the time of the Titanic. It is amazing how much you can love and hate characters! PBS even allows you to rate the characters you loathe and love for each episode! Again, depending upon the episode there is adult content that is not suitable for younger viewers.

3. Shark Tank – My husband and I love watching entrepreneurs pitch their business to 5 multi-millionairs/billionaires in order to strike a deal with one of the “sharks”. Not only entertaining, but educational as well.

4. Undercover Boss – This show makes me cry nearly ever episode I have watched! I enjoy seeing the bosses trying to do the jobs of the rest of their staff and the employees reaction when they find out they worked with their undercover boss. I love seeing what the undercover bosses decide to do for their employees and companies after their undercover stint is completed.

5. Cake Boss – Cake Boss is highly entertaining. It makes us laugh. It makes us hungry! 😉

6. Wipe Out – We watch Wipe Out when we need to laugh. It is an absurd obstacle course that people sign up to participate in to win $50,000. Is just hilarious and a show to watch if you ever what to/need to laugh!

7. Robin Hood – Another British TV show that we found on Netflix. It is no longer being aired but we fell in love with the characters of this show. Robin Hood is charming, Maid Marion beautiful and his band of fellows highly entertaining. While the Sheriff of Nottingham, on the other hand, is down right despicable! The violent fighting is probably the only concern to mention about this show, but it never really bothered our children for some reason. They knew it wasn’t real and just rooted for Robin Hood and his men. We watched this back in the fall when the children were sick and they still ask to re-watch episodes! Very thankful Netflix still has it on streaming! It was hard to see this series end.

8. Worst Cooks in America – We have only watched a season of this but it was highly entertaining and educational in the realms of cooking and baking. Talk about competition and pressure!

9. X-Factor USA/UK/Austraila – Our favorite is the USA/UK version. As I have mentioned before, my husband is a music buff and I get hooked on the personal stories and people.

What did you watch this past winter?

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Christmas Movies – Movie Review Monday

Posted by html404 on November 28, 2011
in Family Stuff, Holidays, Movie Review Monday, Movie Reviews

This really isn’t a review per se, more like a generic post about Christmas movies.

We started watching some Christmas movies over the Thanksgiving weekend. Some old and some new. Miracle on 34th Street starring Maureen O’Hara was one of the ones we watched on Thanksgiving. It was one of my Dad’s favorites when my sisters and I were growing up. I still remember him calling to us as he always did when he wanted us to watch something with him (like 6pm Disney World on Sunday nights). Even though we do not celebrate Santa Claus, I love this movie’s story line and the warm memories it brings back.

One of the Christmas movies my husband grew up watching was A Christmas Story with “Ralphie”. This is a movie that my husband and children like, but I could live without. I detest the language in it and think it’s crude, but they all sat there laughing through it. My oldest could not understand how I could not watch it. I was in the room but ended up working on some project rather than paying attention to the movie.

We also watched The Nativity Story about the birth of Jesus on Sunday. It is one of our favorites now too.

Of course the classics like It’s a Wonderful Life, Frosty the Snowman and Rudolph the Red Nose Reindeer and Charlie Brown’s Christmas are usually on our must-see list.

We also watched a couple of “ABC Family Night” Christmas movies. Well, my daughters and I watched them and I am glad it was my older children because they contained a lot of adult content that I would not consider family-friendly. Even my oldest said that she thought Walmart was doing a better job with family movie night…yay Walmart and P&G!

So do you have your Christmas movie favorites? Feel free to warn us against the duds too so we can avoid them!

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Confessions on XFactor Night

Posted by html404 on November 23, 2011
in Family Stuff, Parenting

Ok, I admit we are XFactor junkies at our house. My husband is a huge music buff (it was at a Christian music concert that he found a relationship with God!) and I…well…get pulled in by the contestants’ stories. When my husband was laid off a few years ago we discovered Britain’s Got Talent through Susan Boyle’s sensational audition that went viral, that in turn lead to us finding out about the UK’s XFactor. I am actually almost ashamed to admit this but we watch the UK, Australian and now the US version of the show. My husband and I usually watch it first, as with tonight’s US show and then watch it with our children. That way any scantily clad dancers, inappropriate lyrics etc. can be screened out of their view. Most of the time the show is pretty much ok, but it’s the music/entertainment industry’s standards that mess things up – at least for our family.

The girls categories on both the US and UK versions are strong this year. It was the boys category that was strong on the Aussie version.

So are their any other XFactor fans out there? Any thoughts? We think Simon Cowell makes the show and the chemistry between him and the other US judges is pretty fun to watch. After all the show is for our entertainment, right?

Now off to my cheap date night with my husband! (I did not get this posted because as I nursed my son to sleep he lulled me to sleep! I know all you nursing moms understand! 😉 )

The results of last night’s show are on tonight on Fox.

I have started three posts this week and have not got back to them, so I am trying to get them posted now.

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Cars 2 Racing To Theaters!

Posted by html404 on May 19, 2011
in Movies

Star racecar Lightning McQueen (voice of Owen Wilson) and the incomparable tow truck Mater (voice of Larry the Cable Guy) take their friendship to exciting new places in “Cars 2” when they head overseas to compete in the first-ever World Grand Prix to determine the world’s fastest car. But the road to the championship is filled with plenty of potholes, detours and hilarious surprises when Mater gets caught up in an intriguing adventure of his own: international espionage. Mater finds himself torn between assisting Lightning McQueen in the high-profile race and towing the line in a top-secret mission orchestrated by master British super spy Finn McMissile (voice of Michael Caine) and the stunning rookie field spy Holley Shiftwell (voice of Emily Mortimer). Mater’s action-packed journey leads him on an explosive chase through the streets of Japan and Europe, trailed by his friends and watched by the whole world. The fast-paced fun includes a colorful new all-car cast, complete with menacing villains and international racing competitors.

CARS 2 races into theatres everywhere in Disney Digital 3D and IMAX 3D on June 24th! Watch the trailer here.

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Let’s Do Lunch

Posted by html404 on April 12, 2011
in Eco Friendly Products, Food and Treats

This was a cool video done by Kelly Lester, of EasyLunchBoxes.com and celebrity guest, Sam Harris, thought it was worth sharing since we really like the EasyLunchboxes!

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Faith and Family Movie Review: Rust

Posted by html404 on December 7, 2010
in DVDs & CDs, Movie Review Monday, Movies

Faith and Family Reviews received the following product in exchange for writing a review. While we consider it a privilege to receive free products to review, our reviews are our honest opinion and thoughts of the product.

I have a couple more movies to review so I can get my links sent to our contact. So I have one more for this week and hopefully two more for next week.

Rust is a movie with content of a more serious nature, but faith, family, friends – relationships – were a huge focus. In this movie actor Corbin Bernsen plays a former minister who is troubled in his soul. He returns to the town where he grew up only to rediscover his purpose as a minister. I loved the loyalty that Corbin Bernsen’s character, Jimmy, displayed. He was a true friend despite circumstances forcing others to turn away from a close childhood friend.

Due to the content being more serious, our oldest did not enjoy it as much. She thought it was scary because of a tragic event that occurred. She told us this after the fact. This was actually one movie we did not preview before the children. The other children seemed to like it (maybe not quite as much as others) and I think we addressed concerns as they arose during the movie. However, for that reason I would advise parents of younger children to preview it first to see if they think their children will be able to handle the content.

Because we were not expecting one surprising element of Rust, I think we enjoyed it more than we would have otherwise, as it has a rather unique story line. It’s always thought provoking to watch a movie that deals with real life issues. The relationship aspect of the movie makes us take a look at our own relationships and question how we can improve them and I think that is a good thing, as long as we seek the Lord’s leading too.

Watch one of Rust’s trailers (there are more at www.rustmovie.com):

“Disclosure of Material Connection: I received one or more of the products or services mentioned above for free in the hope that I would mention it on my blog. Regardless, I only recommend products or services I use personally and believe will be good for my readers. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

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Sweet Exchange

Posted by html404 on October 7, 2010
in DVDs & CDs

If you are familiar with the group Point of Grace, then you will remember Heather Payne who sang with the group before she left to focus more on her family. In spending more time with her family she and her husband were interested in teaching their children more of the traditional hymns that have all but disappeared from some mainstream churches. That led Heather to consider recording her own single album with all the old hymns but with a modern flair.

Sweet Exchange is Heather’s her new album as a soloist artist, which she recorded in a friend’s home studio on days her children were at school. What a mom, eh?! Her album is beautiful and will appeal to the younger generation who is not use to singing or listening to the old hymns. The words are the same but Heather has attempted to update them to appeal to a wider audience. So even if you don’t attend church this album just might surprise you and appeal to your ear.

Personally, I love the old hymns, but I grew up singing them in church so they are what I know. They are so rich with meaning and truth of who Jesus Christ is and what He has done for each and everyone of us.

Heather’s Sweet Exchange album is available here.

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The Moms Blog Letters to God DVD Giveaway

Posted by html404 on September 3, 2010
in DVDs & CDs, Giveaways

Letters To God

We posted a review of Letters to God on Monday and I came across The Moms Blog which is giving away 5 copies of the Letters to God DVD. Visit http://themomblogs.com/momblog/?p=152 to enter to win your copy.

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Set Apart DVD

Posted by html404 on May 7, 2010
in DVDs & CDs, Movies

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We requested the movie Set Apart from our library via interlibrary loan. We had read a description of it in the CBD catalog and were intrigued.

Set Apart is about a ministry reaching out to inner city kids who are being tempted all around by negative influences. Four of those kids get an opportunity to escape to the country side to see what life on a ranch is like.

Friendship, trust, action, excitement, comedy make up this poignant drama. It may be a little scary in parts for little ones, so parents be advised you may wish to view it first so you can properly prepare them.

We really enjoyed it as a family, so wanted to be sure to mention it as another family-friendly movie.

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