Your guide to activities and fun things to do with your preschoolers, toddlers and kids in portland, OR

Movie + Homemade Munchies = Stay at home fun

May 25, 2009

Since my husband and I are living the "no-spend" lifestyle right now, a date night for us these days consists of turning on the Xbox and streaming Netflix movies (we made the executive decision that $8.99/month for entertainment was a reasonable cost and well-needed escape/sanity-booster) along with some yummy snacks. It hasn't been that hard to adjust to no movies/dinners out, and actually, watching movies at home, with the lack of teenagers frantically texting on their phones/calling out a continuous summary of the movie's events has been refreshing, not to mention, we can pause the movie to run in the kitchen and make more popcorn!

Here are some of our favorite cool snacks for hot summer nights:

-fruit salad with tangy frozen yogurt from Trader Joe's
-homemade strawberry shortcake made with berries grown in your backyard
-pomegranate vodka coolers
-peach smoothies
-homemade ice cream with grilled fruit (sounds weird, is delicious)
-chips and salsa (char tomatoes, onions, peppers under broiler for extra zip!)
and my new favorite recipe from recipezaar:

Our favorite movies as of late are a mixture of documentaries and odd-ball television series. I'm looking forward to the next season of Project Runway (finally!) and the Top Chef All-Stars competition, but until then, I'll be scoping out more movies about unusual people and their lives. Here are some recent favorites:

-Confessions of a Superhero (wanna-be super heroes and their not so super lives)
-Monster Camp  (role playing games gone way, way wrong)
-American movie (documentary "film-maker" and his journey towards a finished movie)
-Devil and Daniel Johnston (touching movie about a tortured genius)
-Arrested Development (I want to marry Michael Cera)
-Mad Men (ooh-la-la office life + Jon Hamm =fabulous)
-Breaking Bad (the dad from Malcolm in the Middle + Meth Lab=fun times)
-This American Life, Season One (Ira Glass always finds the most interesting people and tells the stories of their lives)


What movies or television series do you like to watch with your significant other?












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The Big Picture: What Does, and Doesn't, Matter Now

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Three boys, seven years, and who-knows-how-many messes since I first became a parent, and I am in a constant state of learning. If only I could chat with my 2001 self, my, would I have a few things to tell her about what to focus on; and what to ignore. I made a list of what does, and doesn't, matter now. First, what I'd leave behind: What my parents, in-laws, and their generation think (this  Read more...

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by Sarah Gilbert

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I was born in Portland, a characteristic uncommon among mothers of young children in 2008. In late September 2001, I moved back to Portland after spending 10 years, and all of my adult life, in various cities on the East Coast. I got my BA from Washington & Lee University, a conservative liberal arts school where Robert E. Lee -- and his horse, Traveller -- were both buried. After a few  Read more...