When in Sweden....

"Parkinson Rules" are still in effect.  In other words, if it's rainy and cold and you find some of the best movies of EVER on your hotel television, bid a confident farewell to any tourism activities and WATCH AS YOU PLEASE!  (Once stocked up on snacks and beverages, that is).

The Princess Diaries - never gets old!

High School Musical 3 - incredible performances that ALSO never get old!

Okay - so it wasn't ALL critically acclaimed films.  We also took in some Swedish hockey and American Ninja Warrior.  Alas, you get the picture:  THE HOLIDAYS RULE!  

MARY AND MARTHA

Phil purchased this movie a few days ago because the cover looked a little girlie and he thought it would be something I might enjoy (a girlie looking cover is the ultimate clue).  Of course, because the DVD's we get in our 'hood aren't 100%........official........the cover pictures vary from the real deal, as do the descriptions.  Some descriptions are in other languages or are absent completely and so we usually do our best "judge a movie by its unofficial cover" in order to select new ones to view.  This strategy is usually an effective one.  We were bang on with Barbie and the 12 Dancing Princesses.  Sometimes, however, this strategy fails us and I end up a sobbing mess about 20 minutes into the show - when a sweet, cute, family movie takes a dramatic turn for the absolute worst and children end up dying.  Like in this movie.  Yes, we were WAY WRONG about this movie. 

It all started out nice enough with a woman and her son going on a 6 month adventure to Africa.  The boy was videotaping giraffes with a big grin, playing soccer in the savannah, and being all silly with his mother.  I was loving it - holding hands with my hubby, having a tea, and smiling at how nice it was for Phil to think of me when the Movie Man stopped by.

But then...

BAM. 

The boy gets malaria and dies. 

HORRIBLE.  (all CAPS).

I looked at Phil like "FOR REAL?!"  I remember saying, "why can't they just keep learning and having fun together and for that to be the whole movie?"  You see - I'm the type that likes to keep as much of my reality in a bubble as I can AND 100% of my entertainment in a bubble.  It's simply NO FUN to cry it out.  But this is the thing about watching movies from the Magical Movie Man, rather than watching movies that are the talk of the town (or at least in the newspaper!) back home.  I'm sure people that viewed this movie in Canada had some sort of a "heads up" on the devastation because they had either seen previews for the movie (which we don't see here) or they had read a legitimate summary of the storyline prior to watching it.  YOU LUCKY PEOPLE YOU.  It's not so convenient everywhere ;)

Anyways, I toughed it out through the death of ANOTHER son and managed to watch Mary and Martha in its entirety.  I had three main thoughts when the video finished:

1)  I hate mosquitoes. 
2)  Nory isn't going to Africa anytime soon. (Happy about that, Grandparents?!)
3)  How can I make a donation to help prevent malaria? 

From you, I am looking for support on thought #1, no comment on thought #2, and some SERIOUS answers for thought #3.  If you know of any organization that delivers bug nets to areas in need, I would appreciate the information!  There was a speech in the movie that really stuck with me....

Did you know that if you take every single person killed in a terrorist act around the world in the last 20 years -- and add to that every life that's been lost in the Middle East since the Six Day War in '67 -- and add to that every single American life we lost in Vietnam and Korea -- and every single other military conflict America's been involved in since then, Iraq, Afghanistan... If you take all those lives -- that we'd all have given so much to save -- you've still got to multiply them by two to get to the number of kids who die of malaria every single year.

Scary, right? 

It's time to sacrifice some lattes, PEOPLE!  'Tis the season of giving and GIVE we WILL DO.

IS THIS FOR REAL?!

I thought watching Baby Einstein was supposed to make you SMARTER. Apparently that's not true for everyone. While Nory was admiring the simple figures that ruled the screen for way-too-long, I couldn't help but feel more and more like a senseless FOOL for not creating this program myself.  Had I have know it was THIS EASY and THIS UNCOMPLICATED to stimulate a baby and make millions, I would have done so years ago.  Alas, I missed the boat.  

Congratulations, Lady Who Created Baby Einstein Videos.  I salute YOU and the MILLIONS you've made.

Thoughts after tonight's viewing....

1)  Movies with bad guys are way easier to watch than movies with natural disasters.  I mean....where do you place the blame in a situation like this?  Having somewhere to direct your anger is much nicer.


2)  We aren't going to Thailand for Christmas.  EVER.  Or at least until the story fades our memories.


3)  DONATE TO THE RED CROSS!!!!!!!!!!!!! 

MOVIE NIGHT!

Last night Phil and I snuggled up to watch this movie.  Some thoughts:

#1:  The title of this post is "Movie NIGHT".  I should inform you that our "night" of "movie-viewing" began at 4:30 p.m.  

#2:  The little girl in the film is the MOST ADORABLE THING EVER.  I want Santa to bottle up all of her sweetness and deliver it to boys and girls around the world on December 25th.  It would make life ten BILLION times greater!

#3:  Yes, I try to talk about Christmas AS MUCH AS POSSIBLE.  And YES, I think you should too!

HERE COMES THE BOOM!

This one looks REALLY GOOD!!!!

A Day Well Wasted!

Today was our final day in London. Instead of venturing into the city like we usually do, we chose to hang out in our area and take it easy. We slept in (does 7 a.m. count?), had tea, ate breakfast, watched some tv, checked out, then took a walk outside to see what trouble we could get into. During our outing we came across a movie theatre and decided that this would be the perfect way to fill up our day! And so....we saw it! THE HUNGER GAMES! I hadn't finished the book yet but it was the only movie we'd heard about and decided to take the plunge! You'll be happy to know that we enjoyed it (even me - despite the 2.5 hour length!) and I didn't fall asleep - not even for ONE SECOND! Phil says the storyline was good, but the execution could have been better. I'm just happy that Katniss SURVIVED!


We're back at the hotel now, having a tea before we head to the tube station. I think it will take us about an hour or so to get to Heathrow....but we have time to kill! Our flight doesn't leave until 10:30! My plan is to pick up my final chai latte from Starbucks and some REAL magazines before boarding :)

Ah - London you were FUN! I loved you before (as a single lady!) and I love you again (as a married one!). Perhaps we'll meet again when I'm a MAMA! BAHHHHHHH!

Inshallah.

Don't watch this movie if.....

1) You're looking for a night of romance.
2) You hate the ending to "City of Angels".
3) You're feeling gloomy/sad/worried/anxious/stressed.

And even still....

Don't watch it.

Ya with me?

2 STARS = A+

IMDb gave it TWO STARS, which means (as proven with many other films in this star category) that it was destined to be one of my new faves! Well, we just finished the Oscar-destined film and I can confirm this is true! SO GOOD. And highly recommended. For girls. Like me!

HAKUNA MATATA!

Phil and I just got back from LION KING 3D! It was my first OFFICIAL 3D movie and I was lucky to have another beginner seated right beside me - EMILY! The Huffho's joined us on this oh-so-special occasion and you can only imagine what a theatre full of singing expats looks like at the local mall. HAHA. You would have loved the experience.

Well - it's Saturday night here in Kuwait and Phil and I are eager to indulge in our newly appointed "pizza night". For the last two Saturday's, we finished all of our work early, made personal pan pizzas, and watched tv shows til bedtime. I LOVE THIS TRADITION and I am pumped to have it continue forever :)

Enjoy your weekend, friends and family. Missing you as always!

And remember......"HAKUNA MATATA"!!!!!!!!!

Sundays are FUN-DAYS :)

Because of all of the following...........

1. A morning walk/shower. Isn't it fun getting caught in the rain?!


2. Chai tea lattes at the Kawartha Coffee Company in Bobcaygeon. This place is one of my favourites and I was so excited to share it with my similarly-tea-crazy cousin, Megan! The decor is so MAGICAL :)


3. An afternoon viewing of "Crazy Stupid Love" with Megan, Graeme, and Phil. Although I'm certain The Smurfs would have been the more excellent option, I still managed to enjoy this one :)

Yes or No?

I know it hasn't received the greatest reviews, but neither have any of my most favourite movies! Has anyone seen it yet?! Is it worth my ten bucks (or should I say....Phil's ten bucks???) <---- haha, just kidding :)

Please only reply if you typically enjoy movies that are granted low-star (or NO-STAR) status.

WATCH IT!

Hilary Swank never fails to impress. Based on a true story, this movie is about a woman who becomes a lawyer in order to free her brother who has been wrongfully convicted of murder. (<--------- Talk about sibling LOVE!). Even "rom-com only" viewers will enjoy this film :)

Star-filled, Rated Star-less.

It's a shame for me to put down Ms. Witherspoon (ah-hem, huge "Legally Blonde" fan HERE), but alas - this movie was T.E.R.R.I.B.L.E. To get through the epic bore, we took two snack breaks and an un-paused NAP! I think we should watch another "chick flick" to redeem the genre....don't you agree?