This year we have jumped on-board the Movie Night train and have started this tradition in our household with our four-year-old and two-year-old. It's something that the kids really look forward to and something that my husband and I also anticipate throughout the week, since usually we are watching a movie that is either a new children's release or something that we both remember from our own childhoods and can now introduce to our children. We've watched Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory, Benji, Up, The Wizard of Oz, Cloudy With a Chance of Meatballs, among others. Tonight we decided on The Land Before Time since both boys really seem to have a penchant for dinosaurs lately. I actually remember watching this movie with my brother one night when my parents had company in 1988 (or thereabouts, considering movies used to take much longer to be released on VHS when we "dinosars," or parents, were little).
We definitely don't do Movie Night every week in our house, but usually get one to two times per month on our schedule, usually a Friday or Sunday evening. We have actual tickets for Martin Family Movie Night that magically "appear" on the refrigerator one morning and this is indication that it will be Movie Night that evening. This certainly invokes good behavior since everyone wants to be able to come to Movie Night and God forbid if your brother can attend and you cannot!
At dinnertime, everyone who has been well behaved is issued a ticket and must turn it in to Daddy after we have had baths and put the baby to bed. You wouldn't believe how excited two little boys get when they are handed their official Movie Night ticket. Yes, I'm talking about dancing, squealing, grinning from ear to ear, the whole package. You'd have thought they just won the lottery!! Of course, by the actual Movie Night start time, I have usually been asked about 500 times if it is Movie Night time yet since the anticipation for two young children is so great, almost overwelming.
My friend Julia told me about a great blog that has wonderful Movie Night ideas so I have been following that and trying my hand at having a fun, themed treat for us to enjoy in our house on Movie Night. So far, I have only done this for three movies but I do plan to do it going forward.
Here is a link to this wonderful blog, My Creative Life, by Heather Ann Melzer.
Here is a link to this wonderful blog, My Creative Life, by Heather Ann Melzer.
Below are two ideas I have come up with on my own for our family's Movie Nights and one cute idea, courtesy of Family Fun magazine, that I did for a Movie Night with friends during the day. Of course, we also have the obligatory popcorn at every Movie Night since it is a favorite treat around here. So, usually we have popcorn, the special treat and as another treat the kids can either have chocolate milk or Shirley Temples.
Hope you enjoy my ideas and they inspire you to get out your red carpet, grab some popcorn, sit back and enjoy the silver screen with your loved ones!
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The Land Before Time. Menu: Popcorn, Shirley Temples and Jello Jiggler dinosaurs and dinosaur eggs in a shredded paper nest.
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The Wizard of Oz. Menu: Popcorn, chocolate milk, Yellow Brick Road cupcakes with fondant Emerald City and ruby red slippers.
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Toy Story 2. Menu: Popcorn, Apple juice, alien cupcakes.
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