My Creative Blog [Search results for Movie Night] 

So, those of us in Bucks County know that we're going to be getting a visit from Hurricane Irene this weekend. Did you know that earlier in the week, we actually could feel a bit of the VA earthquake as well? Crazy times here in PA. Anyhow… today's fab find was going to be lots of fun ideas for going out and having a last hurrah before summer comes to a close (PA schools mainly head back to school this coming Monday)… but, since lil' old Irene decided to cross our path, I kind of changed my plans, because I don't want to be responsible for hundreds of people heading to the beach or something! So, here's the revised version!
Back to School Family Movie Night Let's start off the right way… how about a giveaway? Free 1 Night Redbox Rental Use the code: DVDONME

Did you know you can go online and reserve your Redbox ahead of time? I'm a big fan of this because the hubs and I can pick the movie together, rather than it being a total surprise for one of us (which only works out about 50% of the time!). There's one catch… you can't use a promo code online, so I just go online to see what's available, then send Eric to the kiosk with the code in hand. So, get online and pick a fun movie that the whole family will enjoy!
A Movie Night needs snacks right?
Well, how cool would you be if you let the kiddos help you make lots of fun varieties of popcorn? Remember the old school tins of popcorn that you used to get as a kid around Christmas? My brother always loved having a variety flavors and I always thought the popcorn tasted like cardboard! I promise these recipes will be much yummier! (Click on the picture below for the recipes)

Source: chickabug.com via The Real Housewives on Pinterest
You can keep this Movie Night simple or go all out with tickets, candy, props etc…

Source: partiesandholidays.blogspot.com via The Real Housewives on Pinterest
Either way, I'm sure your kids will love it and if Irene is crossing your path, hopefully everyone will be safe and have some fun memories of their Back to School Movie Night celebration!

P.S. Don't forget to VOTE for the CBS Blog of the Year Today!

I know for many summer is well underway, but my kids just got out of school last week and I still have a week left. So, I might be a little behind the eight ball on this, but we finally sat down this weekend and created our summer bucket list. This year I wanted to do something fun and visible, so that it would be a daily reminder of all the fun things we have planned!

I decided to put together a pennant banner that I could print out quickly and easily. After designing the template, the whole thing took me about 10 minutes to put together! Score!
I used this template, which you can download for free HERE.

Then, in Picasa I added the words using this font (which you can get HERE)

To put the banner together, I just hot glued the pennants onto grosgrain ribbon and then added some buttons at the ends for a little added detail.

I just used regular computer paper, but I would recommend using a heavier card stock so that the light doesn't shine through. These pictures were nearly impossible to take with all the back light.

Here's what's on our Bucket List for Summer of 2012: Family Bike Trip Newport Beach with our Cousins Phillies Game Camping Outdoor Movie Night Sleepover with Friends Tubing Down the Delaware Dorney Park See Fireworks Bonfire Family Bike Trip

I'm pretty happy with our cute summer bucket list and I'm super excited for all the fun things we have planned!

What's on your family's summer bucket list?

This recipe for kettle corn is hands down the best ever. I'll be honest, I'm not a big salty & sweet person, I'm pretty much just sweet 24-7 (a bad sweet tooth is a curse!). However, when my friends Missy and Jay introduced me to their infamous kettle corn, I couldn't be rude and not at least try it… well, let me tell you it was insanely good. I'm pretty sure I downed a whole batch on my own the first time! I completely give the recipe credit to Jay, he's the kettle corn master, I'm just the one sharing it with the world!

Here's what you'll need to make your own batch (it's addicting, you've been warned)

So, if you're good at math, you can see that it's equal parts oil and sugar and then double part kernels. You can make a larger batch if you'd like, but this is the size I make.

Now, here's the very secret ingredient…

Do you own a Whirly Pop? Have you ever heard of it before? A few years ago this was honestly the only item on my Christmas list. My fabulous brother and sister in law bought it for me and I was crazy excited.

The Whirley Pop sits on the stove and you put in your kernels, oil, sugar etc. and just turn the crank over medium heat. It takes about 2-3 minutes and you will have the best tasting popcorn ever.

They got my Whirley Pop here and it's not crazy expensive at all. (If you don't own a Whirley Pop, you can still try this recipe in a pot, you'll just need to keep the pot moving, so it doesn't burn.)
Okay, back to the World's Best Kettle Corn Recipe… Put all of your ingredients in your Whirley Pop, put it over medium heat, and start cranking. As it begins popping (2-3 minutes) it will be a little harder to crank, so you might need to call in some muscles like I did. (Kaden loves to help make kettle corn!)

The sugar and oil will caramelize (or something like that) and will give the popcorn a sticky coating.

As soon as it's done popping, lay your popcorn out on a tray in a flat layer and add salt. There's no exact science to the amount, I just salt and taste and taste some more! Ha!

That's all there is to it. Does it sound too simple to be the"World's Best"?? Well, give it a try and let me know what you think!

We're planning an outdoor movie night in a few weeks and I'll definitely be serving this kettle corn!
Are you a salty-sweet fan? Have you tried to make your own kettle corn before?

My daughter turned four on Sunday. Please hold on while I choke back tears and try my hardest to turn back time.

How does that happen so fast? Ugh. Anyway, she is like every other four year old girl on the face of the planet very into the Disney movie, Tangled. Because we were so busy trying to get our kitchen cabinets finished for her party, I pretty much forgot about decorating and games until 11 PM the night before her party. Even so, I was able to pull together a cute birthday display and wanted to share where I got all the FREE, adorable ideas and printables in case you know a little girl having a birthday soon.: )

We already had that giant table-turned-chalkboard that Monica made on our first Nate Show challenge, so I used it as a backdrop for our display. I found a huge amount of free printables that I used to make the pennant banner, and the sails for my little jello boats, plus a few other things not shown from Paging Supermom. Honestly their Tangled collection is so stinkin' adorable, and it's FREE to boot! Make sure you take a look at the super cute invitations they have too! Campbell loved it.

I have to say though, that the best part of the display was the cake, and I can't take any credit for it at all. There is a sweet story behind this cake (and the cupcakes that aren't shown): A beautiful 13-year old girl created this cake as a means to raise money for the adoption of her little sister from Haiti. (You can read about their journey to adopting Seraphina who has a life-threatening disease called Sickle Cell Anemia, here.) Her name is Sydney, and she's started a fundraiser called Penelope's Cakes, and accepts donations for the cakes she creates. She does a fabulous job ( my family loved the chocolate cake!), and Campbell was so excited when she saw it for the first time! If you have a need for a cake for special occasion (or just because you're hungry for cake), please think of Penelope's Cakes. My hope is that they'll get so many requests for cakes that Seraphina will come home to her family before the end of the year so she can get the healthcare she so needs.

Honestly, there is NO way I could have done anything like this! That little lady is so talented!
Is it possible to force best-friendship on children? If so, we're doing a really good job with Monica's 3rd, Kira, and Campbell. Love those two.

To end the party, we thought it would be fun to release flying lanterns into the sky just like they do in Tangled. We found these lanterns for 98 cents each and they were so awesome. Per several online suggestions, we decided to tie a long string to the lantern (about 50 feet long) so that they didn't fly away and start a forest fire. (Our fire department is literally right behind our neighborhood and we fear their wrath!)

Kids and adults alike were in awe. Too cool.

All in all, it was a fun day and a great celebration of my sweet girl.
What are your kids crushing on these days?

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For my rookie post, I thought I’d stick with something I know and love… community. Community to me is all about relationships, REAL relationships… Remember how in college (yes, think way back) there was a group of friends that you always did fun stuff with on the weekends? Movies, Concerts, Cow Tipping (okay we tried it once just to say we had.)? Well, why do we so often assume that once we’re married and have kiddos, that we have to give up on regularly getting together with friends and we don’t make time for fun, non-kid activities? Don’t get me wrong, I love all the kid-friendly stuff we do with other families, but come on, how awesome does a night out with people you love, doing something out of the norm, and filled with adult conversation sound? To me it sounds heavenly and that’s why we started Group Dates a few years ago. Had Jess and I known we’d be blogging about it, we might have coined a trendier name, but for now - Group Date it is…

Group Date:

What? A once a month (ok maybe we’re slightly inconsistent, but once a month's the goal) couples date with friends.

Where? Anywhere! One couple is assigned to plan the date- the more fun and creative the better. Get us out of the suburban Applebee’s and a Movie routine!

The Real Housewives of Bucks County are going to help you start your own Group Dates (umm, so open to a cooler name for these.) Each month we’ll give you an idea for a new outing that you can invite your posse to. Here are just a few ideas to get you thinking…

Rock it Out…

I recently took my daughter to a birthday party here, and while watching the kids climb like crazy and have a blast, we decided this would be a perfect group date! Our competetive group of men will love creating challenges and showing off, and the girls, well… we're just thankful we're already married before we allow our husbands to see us strapped into the completely unflattering waist harnesses. We think this is a great group date because it's active, it's throwback-to-your-childhood type fun, and it's super affordable.

Doylestown Rock Gym We also usually like to plan an activity and then follow it up with dinner so there's time to talk and see what's going on in eachother's lives. There are so many great restaurants in Doylestown, but for this date you'd want to choose something that's on the caual side. Our guys love Smokin' Lil's and its casual atmosphere would be perfect for some hungry mountain climbers!

Just a Taste…

For those with slightly more sophisticated tastes, a group wine tasting makes a great Group Date. There are so many vineyards in Bucks County that we'll do a future feature on all the places to visit, but we took our posse to Sand Castle Winery in December and had a fun time tasting, learning, and most likely making our host crazy with our lack of wine knowledge! We know a wine tasting isn't for everyone, but if it fits in with your group of friends, it can be a fun way to learn something new.

A wine tasting tour would better fill a whole evening- pick a few vineyards and visit them all. Choose the families with the coolest swagger wagons and pile in together. Remember, REAL community… it doesn't matter if there are old sippy cups, or crushed golfish in the seats. Real Housewives of BC's December Group Date

Don’t let yourself be convinced that you don’t have time, or this is just a kid phase of your life and you’ll spend time with friends later in life. Make a commitment to increasing community and fostering the relationships with the people God has put in your life. Get out there and plan a Group date!

What are some dates your friends would enjoy?

For my rookie post, I thought I’d stick with something I know and love… community. Community to me is all about relationships, REAL relationships… Remember how in college (yes, think way back) there was a group of friends that you always did fun stuff with on the weekends? Movies, Concerts, Cow Tipping (okay we tried it once just to say we had.)? Well, why do we so often assume that once we’re married and have kiddos, that we have to give up on regularly getting together with friends and we don’t make time for fun, non-kid activities? Don’t get me wrong, I love all the kid-friendly stuff we do with other families, but come on, how awesome does a night out with people you love, doing something out of the norm, and filled with adult conversation sound? To me it sounds heavenly and that’s why we started Group Dates a few years ago. Had Jess and I known we’d be blogging about it, we might have coined a trendier name, but for now - Group Date it is…

Group Date:

What? A once a month (ok maybe we’re slightly inconsistent, but once a month's the goal) couples date with friends.

Where? Anywhere! One couple is assigned to plan the date- the more fun and creative the better. Get us out of the suburban Applebee’s and a Movie routine!

The Real Housewives of Bucks County are going to help you start your own Group Dates (umm, so open to a cooler name for these.) Each month we’ll give you an idea for a new outing that you can invite your posse to. Here are just a few ideas to get you thinking…

Rock it Out…

I recently took my daughter to a birthday party here, and while watching the kids climb like crazy and have a blast, we decided this would be a perfect group date! Our competetive group of men will love creating challenges and showing off, and the girls, well… we're just thankful we're already married before we allow our husbands to see us strapped into the completely unflattering waist harnesses. We think this is a great group date because it's active, it's throwback-to-your-childhood type fun, and it's super affordable.

Doylestown Rock Gym We also usually like to plan an activity and then follow it up with dinner so there's time to talk and see what's going on in eachother's lives. There are so many great restaurants in Doylestown, but for this date you'd want to choose something that's on the caual side. Our guys love Smokin' Lil's and its casual atmosphere would be perfect for some hungry mountain climbers!

Just a Taste…

For those with slightly more sophisticated tastes, a group wine tasting makes a great Group Date. There are so many vineyards in Bucks County that we'll do a future feature on all the places to visit, but we took our posse to Sand Castle Winery in December and had a fun time tasting, learning, and most likely making our host crazy with our lack of wine knowledge! We know a wine tasting isn't for everyone, but if it fits in with your group of friends, it can be a fun way to learn something new.

A wine tasting tour would better fill a whole evening- pick a few vineyards and visit them all. Choose the families with the coolest swagger wagons and pile in together. Remember, REAL community… it doesn't matter if there are old sippy cups, or crushed golfish in the seats. Real Housewives of BC's December Group Date

Don’t let yourself be convinced that you don’t have time, or this is just a kid phase of your life and you’ll spend time with friends later in life. Make a commitment to increasing community and fostering the relationships with the people God has put in your life. Get out there and plan a Group date!

What are some dates your friends would enjoy?