Movie Helping Websites

My family loves to watch movies together but sometimes my husband and I are surprised by movies that we haven't viewed previously. We have actually had to turn a movie off and disappointed our boys because we didn't realize it had some "bad" words, scary scenes or just things we don't want our boys to be exposed to at their specific ages.
I found the following movie monitoring websites in a magazine article:

www.kids-in-mind.com

www.parentpreviews.com

www.commonsensemedia.org

These websites give reviews for parents to decide if the content is OK for their child before viewing the movie.

Ethnic grocery stores

Today we went to stock up on our sushi supplies at a neighborhood Oriental market. My boys think it is neat to go into "different" grocery stores. It is fun to explore with all your senses in these kind of stores. When we first walk in the boys say it smells funny but then get used to it and find it interesting to pick up different spices and smell them. We looked at all the strange things in the freezer like squid, octupus, eel and more! We also checked out the HUGE bags of sushi rice and the different chopsticks, skewers and other Japanese cooking utensils.

Weekend time

This weekend I actually got some time without my boys. I stayed the weekend at the beach with my Mother in law and 4 sisters in law. It was a very nice time catching up and getting to know each other better. It was fun actually being an outsider and listening to them talk about all their childhood memories. I sure hope my boys have great memories of their childhood and love getting together with their families when they grow up!!

While I was gone, my husband continued with my "thrifty" entertainment for the boys. On Saturday, he took them to Lowes to make "powerboats" at the Build and grow clinic, then played outside in the blowup kiddie pool in the backyard followed by Kids eat free night at Denny's for dinner. I was so proud of him! He did great with the boys while I had some free time.

Another free weekend event

Free Family Back to school Event at Michaels.
Saturday, August 15, 10 am until 1pm.

Decorate a Pencil Box

www.theknackkids.com

Motivating our children to read.

Here some fun ways to motivate your school aged child to read:

1. Read in different places like outside on a picnic blanket, under the dining table, in a makeshift fort built out of pillows and blankets, by the pool, in a treehouse....
2. Have them read out loud to the family pet, to an elderly relative or neighbor or to a younger sibling
3. Do a book swap with friends to find new books to read.
4. Give them challenges to read so many books and then get a reward when they reach the goal.
5. And of course, visit your local library to find new books!
   

Local Weekend Happenings

Here are some Free local weekend happenings:

• Saturday, August 8th Polk Museum of Art will sponsor a free art activity for children and families @ 10:15 am.
  
• The Mulberry Library will be celebrating its 60th birthday, Saturday, August 8th at 10am. There will be activities for all ages, including a bounce house, cake and fun.
• Meet the amazing "Coraline" Saturday at 2 pm @ the Winter Haven library.
• Lowes Build and Grow workshop is this Saturday at 10 am, Here is the link to register at your local Lowes; www.lowesbuildandgrow.com
  

Another activity for a nominal charge is "Yoga for Kids" at the Lake Wales library. Saturdays in August at 2 pm, $5 per class, pre-register (863)678-4004, ext. 0.

Vacation Bible School and Zoo Memberships

Today my boys started another Vacation Bible School. This is the 2nd one they have done this summer and they love it. I just wanted to remind you all to check the churches in your community for Vacation Bible school programs. I have noticed that even though the summer is almost over that there are still programs going on. These VBS programs tend to be relatively cheap or free, the one they are doing this week was $5 for each child for the whole week. I have noticed that some churches do morning programs and some do evening programs and even include dinner for the children or the whole family.


This weekend we traveled to visit some friends and while we were there we went to their local zoo. I just wanted to suggest zoos as a great family outing, it isn't cheap, but with the purchase of a family pass it makes it reasonable. Also, most zoos honor passes from other zoos around the country so if you are traveling it might be something to do in a new place.
Here is a link to a listing of zoos in the USA to find your closest zoo;
http://www.officialusa.com/stateguides/zoos/ .