Movie Tuesday 6/1

Sorry I missed Movie Monday yesterday!  We had a very busy weekend, and it certainly didn't feel like a Monday.  In fact, I did attempt my usual Monday morning What Are You Reading? post for Great Books for Kids and Teens, and it took me three times as long as usual, with various members of my family constantly interrupting!  I gave up on blogs at that point and decided to save the movie summary for today when the house would be quiet again.

We had a very productive weekend and fit in a little fun, too.  We finally tackled some of our jungle-like yard (parts of it look remarkably like the set of Lost).  Believe it or not, I managed quite a bit of weeding both Sunday and Monday...and was still OK today!  This is a huge improvement.  And Ken put down some mulch over the weeded areas, so hopefully, it won't get so jungle-looking quite so soon this time.

The boys had two friends sleep over Friday night (long weekend means more recovery time), then another friend joined them on Saturday morning, and they all stayed until about 4 pm.  Jamie said it was the best time he's ever had (he's known for these kinds of superlatives!).  Craig rebounded well.  Jamie was wiped out on Sunday, but OK by Monday.  Ken and I actually went out to dinner ALONE on Saturday night!  It's kind of rare that we have the time and energy for a date, so that was very nice.  And we ended the weekend with a cook-out with some close friends.  All in all, a very good weekend with very little payback.  I am truly amazed at how good I'm feeling and how much I'm able to do now, but this winter's 8-month long relapse took all the cockiness out of me - one day at a time.

And, we did have time for some good movies this weekend:

• We started watching Catch me If You Can with the boys this weekend (we haven't finished it yet).  Ken and I saw this great Steven Spielberg movie based on a true story in the theater when it first came out.  Leonardo DiCaprio stars as a young man who passes himself off as an airline pilot, a doctor, and a lawyer (he's not yet twenty during this time!), and Tom Hanks stars as the FBI agent tracking him down for his forgeries and frauds. It's clever, funny, and well-acted, and the kids are enjoying it so far.
• Ken and I watched Perfect Stranger, a psychological thriller starring Halle Berry and Bruce Willis.  Halle Berry plays a reporter who suspects a high-powered ad executive (Willis) of murdering her childhood friend after they had an affair.  The movie didn't get great reviews, and I sort of agreed that it was just so-so...until it totally surprised both Ken and I with some twists and turns.  Our opinions both rose after that!  You have to understand that Ken usually predicts even the most unexpected plot twists in movies about half-way through - he's kind of a bummer to watch suspense movies with! - and he never saw these twists coming either.  So if you like suspense and thrillers, you'll probably enjoy this one.
• We also watched Tumbleweeds, thanks to a recommendation from one of my readers here (thanks, Toni!).  We both enjoyed this movie about a mother with a history of choosing inappropriate men, then taking off when things turn sour.  The movie opens with she and her daughter fleeing husband #4 and driving to California (our only problem with the whole movie was the desert scenes as they drove from WV to Missouri - huh?).  They have a great relationship together, and the mom really loves her daughter, but the daughter is sick of always moving and of the parade of men through their lives.  It's a great movie - heartwarming and humorous - that's all about life and love and learning how to stand on your own two feet.  Great recommendation!

We've also been trying to catch up on some TV online.  We discovered that one of our favorite shows, Saving Grace, had started its new and last season without us!  It's a great show - a police drama with a supernatural twist and amazing acting by Holly Hunter - and it's set in Oklahoma City where my husband is from, so it's fun to catch all the local references, like the OU/OSU rivalry and burgers from Johnnie's.  If you've never seen it, it's a great show to catch up on on DVD this summer (that's how we got hooked a couple of years ago).

And today during lunch, I watched the season finale online of Parenthood.  I laughed through half of the episode and sobbed through the rest!  It's such a great show - a true depiction of the joys and heartbreaks of being a parent and being a part of an extended family.  Another good one to watch online during the summer (nbc.com will have the full first season online until September).

Have you seen any good movies lately?