Free Birds

A trailer for a new Thanksgiving movie has just been released! It's a computer animated film called 'Free Birds' and is due for release November 1, 2013. From the Producer of Shrek and Director of Horton Hears a Who, 'Free Birds' stars the voices of Owen Wilson, Amy Poehler, and Woody Harrelson. Two turkeys travel back in time to the first Thanksgiving to take turkeys off the menu.

Backyard Fun!

A couple days ago I posted some classic drive-in ads [LINK]. Well, if you love drive-ins as much as me, why not create your very own outdoor theater? Of course you need to have the property and play funds to do this, but it's definitely a great way to bring the drive-in atmosphere to your own backyard. Another consideration is the climate you live in. Those in warmer regions would be able to watch movies outside year-round, which could make it more of a worthy investment.

Many people seem to be catching onto this trend. In fact, there is a website called Backyard Theater specifically for people who want to show off their set up. It also has tons of tips and links to info on projectors, screens, sound systems and more. Some are quite elaborate and here are a few of my personal favorites:

Go for a dip and play some volleyball to your favorite summer flick!


Nice way to relax on a summer evening or even on a cold winter night!


This has a beachy feel, but also great for Halloween movies in the Fall!


Park your boat and watch a film from the water with your family!


My dad's set up!

As you can see from this last picture, my own father has really got into his backyard theater, so for his birthday my siblings and I pitched in to get him this retro style kettle popcorn maker. It was a nice added touch, and he has been very pleased with it.



Of course there are many to choose from, and one of the best websites for a variety of fun food makers is Nostalgia Electrics. They have everything from various sizes of popcorn makers to hot dog rollers, cotton candy machines, snow cone machines, donut makers and more!





If you're really ambitious, you can even make your very own personalized 20th Century Fox logo (shown below) to play before the film. You can find instructions on the video info or by visiting this [LINK]



Well, there ya have it - lots of ideas and resources for turning your backyard into a theatrical wonderland. Only problem is, how to get your family, friends and neighbors to go home! If you don't feel you can splurge on such luxuries at the moment, you can always enjoy the popcorn!

P.S. Thanks Dad for the inspiration to do this post! Love ya lots! -J

A Cemetery Walk

OK, not exactly a seasonal or holiday event, but a fun and interesting spring doing for us nonetheless!

Our local historical society and theatre troupe got together to put on a "Cemetery Walk" for our community. The cemetery is just a few blocks from our house and DH and I usually go through it on our walks. Besides the wonderful peace and quiet, the cemetery is interesting because it is so old and full of history.

Often we pause and read a grave-stone here and there. We see many from the Civil War and even before. We see elaborate monuments to obviously wealthy people and others that are barely readable anymore.

This cemetery is typical for New England and a lot of people enjoy walking through them in order to get that sense of history. They don't make tombstones like these anymore! DH and I are always especially struck when we see the graves of children -- often they are in the same family and died the same year, most likely from some epidemic. I am always horrified to think of what those parents went through; they are no different than us.

Beyond these curiosities is the history behind the cemeteries. We have not lived in this town for very long, so I know little about the local history. I figured this was a good chance to learn more. My oldest daughter agreed and came along.

The historical society set up a "check-in" booth and only asked for donations. After that, we were split into two groups and guided to pre-determined grave-sites. Of course, these kind of things often attract senior citizens, but there were other children in the crowd and among the actors, including one of DD's good friends who played the violin.





This woman represented the daughter of a man made famous for his microscopes:





A railroad and newspaper man:





This guy helped build our local high school:





These two were a riot -- esp. the guy on the left. It's hard not to forget their story. He played a man who, at 83 years old, walked 28 miles to a 4th of July picnic. Other details of his life were equally impressive:



This woman was married to one of the richest men in our town. They built a local mansion that is now a gorgeous bed-and-breakfast:



This girl had an important father and brother -- but I can't remember why, LOL:



This man was an artist and, the poor fellow, lost 3 of his 4 young children in the same year:



You never know what you might see in an old, New England cemetery . . .

Support Your Local Drive-In!

What better way to spend a Friday evening in the Summer than with a trip to the local drive-in with the one you love? It's definitely one of our favorite places to go on the weekend, as long as something that actually interests us is playing. We've been less than thrilled with the movies being released this Summer, so we didn't go as often as we would have liked. Luckily there was a double feature of scary movies that piqued our interest so we stocked up on snacks, picked up an XL pepperoni pizza from Dominos (for only $5.99!), and headed down to Imperial Beach for some classic entertainment at the South Bay Drive-In. Unfortunately, the movies didn't turn out to be all that thrilling, but the experience itself more than made up for what the movie lacked.


There's something about drive-in's that have always fascinated me. I get so into it that I even like to dress the part as if it were still the 50s or 60s. The rockin' oldies that play on the station before the movie starts helps to complete the scene. Perhaps the fascination lies in the fading glory of a golden age. What was once a thriving business has been reduced to only a handful of relics, despite the cost savings and family friendly atmosphere. I guess it's hard to accept that something so charming could potentially be gone from our culture forever. One of the best ways to preserve the drive-ins that remain is simply by showing up. I'm certain people would miss them dearly if they became extinct, but for whatever reason we so easily take them for granted now.


Perhaps it's due to the fact that we've grown accustomed to stadium seating, 3D features and high definition home entertainment systems. Despite modern technology, I still believe nothing can outdo the memories of watching a double, or even triple, feature under the stars. You can't beat the price either, especially when you figure that you can watch more than one new release for less than the price of one at most theaters. Now if only I had a super boss, classic convertible to compliment the attire!


To find out where the closest drive-in theater is or read more on the history of drive-ins, visit Drive-ins.com.