Free or Reduced Movies This Summer

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Here are the free or reduced price movies for this summer!
  • Regal Summer Movie Express:   Beginning in June, select Regal Theaters will be offering $1.00 family-friendly movies on Tuesdays and Wednesdays beginning at 10 am. Click here to find a participating theater near you.
  • National Amusements Bookworm Wednesdays: Kids can get free admission to a select children’s film every Wednesday in July and August when they present a book report at a participating Showcase Cinemas, Multiplex Cinemas or Cinema de Lux box office. The website has not been updated yet for the 2014 summer movies. Check back soon for more details.
  • Cinemark Summer Movie Clubhouse: Participating Cinemark theaters are offering $1 family-friendly movies on select weekday mornings throughout the summer. You can opt to  purchase an advance pass for all ten movies for just $5 making them only $0.50 each! Find a list of participating locations, dates and times here.
  • Cobb Theatres are offering FREE Family Movies on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday in June and July.  Choose between two movies playing each day.  Doors open at 9:30am and movies begin at 10 am.  Click here and visit your local Cobb theatre to find the schedule.
  • Megaplex Theaters  Kids Summer Movies: Watch 10 Weeks of movies for only $10. You can buy a $10 pass online or individual movie tickets may be available at the Box Office or Guest Service Desk at participating Megaplex locations for $1.50 each. Check the Participating Theaters near you to find the complete list of movies that will be showing.

20+ Awesome Father's Day Gift Ideas

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Father's Day is June 15th this year. Here are 20+ great Father's Day gift ideas:

20 Summer Lifehacks

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Ready for summer? Me too. If you're looking for ways to prepare for the warm weather, we have you covered. This handy list will get you through anything from keeping bugs away to baking dashboard cookies. If you have any fun life hacks to add to this list, please leave them in the comments! 

1. Keep Water Cold

Whether you're exercising or just lounging, cold water is only sips away. Fill up plastic water bottles half-way, then freeze them. When we need our drink, we pop it out of the freezer and fill the rest with fresh water.

2. Make Coffee Ice Cubes

Make Ice Coffee Cubes for enjoying every last drop of your favorite cool drink. Simply brew, freeze, and plop into your regular chilled cup.

3. Soothe Burns

Freeze aloe in cubes to get "instant" relief for sunburned skin.

4. Freeze Grapes

For a healthy, satisfying snack, just wash seedless grapes and stick them in the freezer. Once chilled, they're irresistible and help keep you cool (and hydrated) on hot days.

5. Rig an Air Conditioner

If you're suffering without AC and that fan plus ice bowl trick isn't cutting it — you could try crafting this elaborate DIY air conditioner using a box fan, some copper tubing, and a cooler. The author claims it costs only $10!

6. Fashion a Skirt

Need a quick coverup? Just twist together this gorgeous draped skirt using a wide scarf (jersey knit might work best). You can head to the beach or to a casual dinner in frugal style!

7. Lighten Your Strands

Summer's a great time to add a glow to your hair. Forget the chemicals by using this lemon and water natural highlighting solution. Just spritz hair and dry in the sun, and you'll see results after two or three sessions.

8. Cool Your Brews

Spending the day in the pool? Take an old pool noodle and open plastic bin and create a makeshift cooler that will keep drinks accessible (and cold) for hours. Cost: $1.99.

9. Avoid Messy Drips

Use cupcake liners to protect yourself from all those drippy popsicles.

10. Create Cheap Beach Games

Make simple checkers or tic-tac-toe boards and use found shells or rocks to play.

11. Banish Sand

Love the sand, but hate the aftermath? Pack a travel-sized container of baby powder to slide the sand right off your feet.

12. Stop Those Ants

It happens every summer: Ants get into our house! If you have some of that baby powder left, you can use it to your advantage. Just sprinkle some near the entry point, and ants will lose their trail in no time.

13. Lounge for Little

I've seen a lot of DIY hammock hacks, but I like the sturdy materials used in this tutorial, as well as the ingenious use of carabiners.

14. Fix a Bad Tan Job

If you got too enthusiastic with the bottled glow, you can fix blotches and streaks with a thrifty paste made from lemon juice and baking powder.

15. Toss Dinner in the Fire

Foil pack cooking is camp food made easy. Make sure you use heavy duty foil and grease it up, but then dinner will cook itself in the coals while you relax!

16. Tend to Bumps and Bruises

Summer is also a time for injuries. Make your own inexpensive ice packs by combining rubbing alcohol and water in a zip top bag, and then freezing.

17. Whisk Omelets in the Wild

Bringing eggs on your outdoor adventure might sound tricky, if not dangerous. But if you'd like to enjoy a protein-laden breakfast without the worry, try this homemade dehydrated egg mix with spices.

18. Ward Off Gnats

A recent study uncovered that Bounce dryer sheets repel gnats. If you're surrounded, stick a sheet in your shirt pocket or place one nearby for protection.

19. Spray the Rest Away

If mosquitoes are more your concern, you may want to avoid store-bought repellents that likely contain the chemical DEET. Instead, try some of these Natural Bug Sprays That Work.

20. Bake Something Sweet

Though "oven" temperatures will vary depending on the day, these dashboard chocolate chip cookies sure look enticing. So, if you're planning a day at the park, use your car as a solar oven — takes around 2-1/2 hours to complete.

10 Classic Childhood Playground Games

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Photo credit: http://www.funkiplanet.com/

Remember these fun games from childhood? The kiddos will love these!

  1. Hopscotch – All you need for this classic game is a bit of sidewalk chalk, a decently-sized pebble and some coordination. Teaching kids the hopping pattern is almost as much fun as the game itself! If the prospect of skinned knees and the parent-sanctioned throwing of rocks is off-putting, consider an indoor hopscotch mat and a beanbag instead.
  2. Dodgeball – Splitting kids into two equally-sized groups and handing out a few balls can provide for hours of good-natured fun. This is one game that improves with the addition of more players, so there’s no one left out when you’re dealing with a large group. The rubber dodgeballs that were standard 20 years ago are still available in sporting goods stores and from online retailers, but opting for a few foam balls with softer surfaces might be a more safety-conscious move.
  3. Horse – If all you have on hand is a basketball and access to a hoop, you’re not restricted to a few games of one-on-one. Horse is a faithful standby that’s ideally suited for two players. Because there’s no guarding, Horse may also be a safer alternative to traditional basketball for younger children.
  4. Mother May I? – Remember all of the giggles resulting from a successful tag? Share the fun of Mother May I? with your own children, but be sure to explain that it’s not okay to answer every request with a “No, you may not” to avoid losing the game. Use Mother May I? as an example of inevitable loss, and a chance to impart good sportsmanship skills along with proper grammar usage.
  5. Simon Says – Whether you’re on the playground, in the car or in the living room, Simon Says is an infinitely portable game that requires no more equipment than a few players and great listening skills.
  6. Foursquare – Before there was a social networking application called Foursquare, it was a beloved playground game. Relive the days before social media seemed to take over everyone’s life by teaching your child the original meaning of Foursquare!
  7. Tag – Kids sometimes have a larger supply of energy than the patience available to their parents and caregivers, which is why any game that helps them burn off some of that excess energy is a blessing. There’s something timeless and almost perfect about tag, as it’s difficult for kids to claim that another is cheating, so disputes are few and far between. Just be sure that all kids understand the importance of tagging one another gently, as rough tags can happen in the heat of competition.
  8. Red Light, Green Light – Getting caught moving after the traffic light commands everyone to “freeze!” is more funny than frustrating, and the awkward poses borne of freezing in mid-movement are an endless source of humor. Show your kids how to play Red Light, Green Light by participating in a few rounds, then sit back to watch the show!
  9. Freeze Tag – When you have a large group on your hands, a regular game of tag can leave the title of “It” shuffling very quickly. This classic spin leaves everyone frozen after they’re tagged, making for funny sights and longer games as “It” chases down every member of the opposing team.
  10. Red Rover – Kids come hurtling across the playground from one line to another, barreling into the opposing team and either breaking through their defenses or landing squarely on the ground as they’re trounced. Make sure that Red Rover games happen on a patch of lush grass that’s free of debris, and that everyone understands the difference between blocking and throwing someone.

One major difference in the way kids play today and the way that they entertained themselves a few decades ago can be attributed to the advent of the “helicopter parent” culture. Some games, like dodgeball and Red Rover, have fallen from favor with some parents out of fears regarding their safety. The fact that you’re not afraid of a few bumps and bruises doesn’t mean that the parents of your kids’ playmates feel similarly. Before introducing a potentially dangerous game, be sure that your kids know the proper safety precautions and are prepared to have a game or two broken up by an anxious adult.

Article re-printed with permission from http://www.findananny.net/

DIY Sea Glass

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Here's how to make these really pretty sea glass style jars!

Materials needed:

Old vases from Goodwill, Walmart sells canning jars that work well too.

Elmer’s Glue

Food Coloring

Sponge Paint Brushes.

You mix the glue with the food coloring to make your desired color. Add a little coloring to the glue, and then keep adding until you have the color you want. I put on the glue paint on around the lower part of the vase and the upper rim. Then, you do smooth strokes all the way up and down the vase. After it's dry, be sure to do one more coat for a polished finish.