Movies
A Timeless Treasure: Musical Movies to Enjoy at Home
May 18, 2009
Raise your hand if you grew up singing, Do Re Mi and Let's Go Fly a Kite? Before every home owned a VCR (we had a beta play at first), the bi-annual network TV showings of Sound of Music were always a treat for me as a kid. My parents owned the LP of Sound of Music as well. Man, when that needle hit the record, I would dance around the house, reenacting the scene of Liesl in the gazebo, jumping between the sofas in the living room. Musicals were such a big part of my childhood and I am so, so happy that my children share my love. In honor of Mary Poppins coming to the Ahmanson Theatre in November 2009 (it is early but tickets are already on sale for this limited engagement), here is a list of our family's favorite musicals that are available on DVD.
1) Sound of Music--Of course, this is number one. In fact, we watched some scenes today. My kids can watch the whole movie in one sitting with no problem, and they love each song (and can practically sing each one from memory). It also gives us an opportunity to discuss treating families who have lost a parent and the idea that all step-moms are not bad (curse those Disney princess movies!).
2) Mary Poppins--Another Julie Andrews classic! The special effects on this movie are a treat, even by today's standards. Most of the songs are great and it also gives us an opportunity to talk about the fact that sometimes, we parents make mistakes too.
3) Annie--Okay, the girls love the songs from this musical. However, they seem to have issues with Miss Hannigan and the scheme she concocts. We have watched both the recent Disney remake with Victor Garbo and the 1982 movie, and both of them, we can only watch the singing scenes. We still watch it on occasion but not as much as the first two. But this musical still went over much better than My Fair Lady (they lost interest pretty quickly even though they love watching Audrey Hepburn in Sabrina, go figure).
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Weekend Warriors
August 29, 2008
It seems like just a few weeks ago when I was heralding in the first day of summer, the longest day of the year and the end of the school year. And now suddenly you want to tell me that summer is nearly over? That this is Labor Day weekend? No! Okay, okay, so denial is not the most effective tactic against the onslaught of autumn. Perhaps I should just try and take advantage of what's left of Read more...
Green Parenting - Simple Steps to Raising Environmentally Aware Children
July 31, 2008
Today we welcome guest poster Jennifer Taggart, who runs the website TheSmartMama and provides eco consulting services to reduce toxic chemicals in the home, including testing toys and household goods for lead, cadmium, chromium and other elements using an XRF analyzer. She is an environmental attorney focusing on consumer product labeling, former environmental engineer, mom of 2 and Read more...
Weekend Warriors - Disco anyone?
July 18, 2008
This is a weekend where you're not going to want to stay at home. With everything from disco for babies to circus performances to those uber-celebrities of the preschool set (I'm talking about Diego and Dora, don't you know) coming to town, you're preschooler is bound to have fun. On Saturday morning at 11, head down to Topanga Canyon's Will Geer Theatricum Botanicum for Creative Playground 's Read more...
Weekend Warriors
July 11, 2008
It's been a long week, hasn't it? I'm really feeling the whole TJIF sentiment today. Even better, this weekend my family will be heading down to my parents' home in the South Bay (free babysitting! Woohoo!). In that vein, we'll start the edition of Weekend Warriors in Redondo Beach, right smack in the heart of the South Bay. On Saturday, why not drive down Redondo Beach? You can spend the day Read more...
Weekend Warriors
June 27, 2008
Help your children learn about going green at Venice Eco-Fest this Saturday from 10am-7pm at Windward Avenue and Ocean Front Walk. They will have a special Kid's Explor-o-rama featuring animals, stories and music. It's also a great opportunity to safely dump everything from old computers to defunct cell phones. For those who can't manage to wait for Fourth of July of fireworks, Santa Monica Read more...
Weekend Warriors: Summer Solstice Edition
June 20, 2008
Today is officially the longest day of the year. Even better, LAUSD closed its magnificent doors on our children yesterday and today is the official first day of summer. That means that this weekend is going to be a very, very long weekend, which is a good thing right!?! But what are you going to do with all that extra time? This Saturday from 1-3pm, kick off the summer by celebrating the Read more...
Where the Moms are - Pacific Theatres' Monday Morning Mommy Movies
June 06, 2008
Before my eldest was born, I never even considered how easy it was for me to go to the movies. It didn't take long, however, for me to realize that my movie going days were over, at least for the foreseeable future. The first movie I watched several months after Caius was born ( The Devil Wears Prada ! Mmmmclothes) was also the last one I watched that year. It's been me and Netflix ever since. Read more...
More of Our Favorite Activities and Things to Do in west la
Creatures & Critters:
Our Urban Jungle
Do, Re, Mi! Places to Hear, Sing & Play a Tune
Artistic Endeavors:
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A Sense of History:
Our City's Stories
Splash, Spray, Play! Local Spots to Get Wet
The Most Fun in Life Is Free!
The Best of... Our Top Can't-Live-Without Spots
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