Pirates: Band of Misfits!

We took the monkeys to see Pirates: Band of Misfits in 3D. I guess it was cute in it's own way and a little humorous, but I have to say I wasn't all that impressed. To be fair, I spent about half of the movie trying to get Bro Bro monkey to sit quietly through it, so I could easily have misjudged it. Also, as I've mentioned before, I don't think my kids are ready for 3D movies. Trying to get them to wear their glasses through the movie just makes the experience even more difficult.

Dadda monkey and I were discussing a new movie rating scale to use for reviews (although sleeping, while preferable to the alternative, is not nearly as realistic as clamorous monkeys):

2 monkeys sleeping = not very good, don't waste your money on the theater tickets

1 monkey sleeping  = pretty good, might be worth a look

0 monkeys sleeping = excellent movie, don't miss it

I'd have to rate this a '1 monkey sleeping'. Monkey girl, who is 4, managed to sit through it, but wasn't really captivated. Bro Bro, 2.5, started making his way through the tunnel (crawling under the seats) to amuse himself.

Rubbermaid Hidden Recycler

We're still getting settled into the new house. I think each room has at least one more box left to be unpacked. Overall, we've slowed down and are enjoying the extra space. One of our favorite parts of the house is the kitchen. It's completely open to the living room (divided only by the kitchen table area) and has nice granite counters with an under-mount sink. I've always wanted a corner sink with windows open to the backyard and now I get to enjoy that. 

However, one of the changes we've made is not having a large trash can in the kitchen. Instead, we opted to leave a smaller one in the cabinet under the sink. There are two problems we noticed with this: 1. We have to empty it a LOT more often and things spill over it when it gets full. 2. This doesn't leave us much, if any, room for a recycling container. Above you'll notice what our counter typically looked like... piled up with soda cans awaiting their turn to be taken out to the recycling bin.

Then, I learned about the Rubbermaid Hidden Recycler and Rubbermaid was kind enough to send one for me to review. It couldn't have arrived at a better time. Dadda monkey immediately used the cabinet door hooks to install it on the cabinet under the sink. To my delight, it fits even with the trash can being under there. The Hidden Recycler also comes with screws to mount it to your cabinet door. We'll probably do that eventually, but I think we've put enough holes in our new home for now. 

It holds a lot more than I expected, it's even wide enough for milk jugs, and it's really easy to pull up the bag to empty it into our recycling bin on trash day. Surprisingly, we typically can wait the whole week to empty our recycling now. We haven't washed it yet, but I'm really glad it's machine washable. This is one of those products that I never thought I needed until I got it.

The Hidden Recycler boasts these features:

• Easy attachment to a cabinet door with hooks included with the product or screws

• A convenient handle allows the bag to easily be transported to wherever your recycling is stored for pickup or transport

• A 5 gallon bag that holds up to 36 12-ounce cans and can fit a milk jug

• The bag has a leak-proof liner and is machine washable to make it easy to clean after any unexpected

          spills

• The bag is soft-sided allowing for flexibility inside any cabinet

• The bag and all packaging is made from recyclable material, and the product is recyclable

Rubbermaid has generously offered one of my readers their own Hidden Recycler!

How To Enter:

(The first step is required for your first entry. Any steps after that reward you with an extra entry.) Leave a separate comment for each entry.

This giveaway, and subsequent shipping, is only offered within the United States and Canada.

1. Let me know how you think the Hidden Recycler would benefit you?

2. Become a follower of my blog, Mommy 2 Monkeys, and leave a comment on this post that you've done so.

3. 'Like' the Mommy 2 Monkeys Facebook page and leave a comment on this post that you've done so.

4. Follow me on Twitter and leave  a comment on this post that you've done so.

5. 'Like' Rubbermaid's Facebook page and leave a comment on this post that you've done so.

6. Follow Rubbermaid on Twitter and leave a comment on this post that you've done so.

This giveaway will remain open until April 30,2012 at midnight central time. The winner will be chosen using Random.org. I will post the winner on my blog and also email the winner (please make sure your email is visible on your profile or post it in your comment). The winner will have 24 hours to respond to my email or I will choose another winner via Random.org. Good luck!

Disclaimer:

Mommy 2 Monkeys was provided with a sample for the purpose of this review and the opportunity to hold a giveaway for my readers. No other compensation was received and the views expressed here are my own. 

April Stooge Day

The monkey family enjoyed our time checking out April Stooge Day at Six Flags Fiesta Texas. In celebration of the upcoming release of  the movie, The Three Stooges, opening April 13, Six Flags held a look alike contest. I was a little disappointed that no one dressed the part, but there were quite a few people who knew their Stooge trivia. The contest involved choosing to answer a trivia question or a physical challenge (imitating a famous Stooge trait). The trivia questions seemed difficult, only a few got them correctly, but then again I wouldn't have been able to answer any of them. However, the fun part was the physical challenges. It was really great seeing little kids and older folks re-enacting famous Stooge moves and sounds. They chose a winner for each Stooge (Larry, Moe, and Curly) and we loved the final trio. The host was terrific at involving the crowd and working with each contestant. We had a lot of fun and are looking forward to the movie release!

Stooge Day at Six Flags

April 1st is "April Stooge Day" at Six Flags. They have an open invitation for people to join them as they celebrate the release of The Three Stooges: The Movie! Dress like a Stooge and Enter to win their Stooge Look-Alike contest at noon and look for 'MOE' giveaways throughout the day! For more information, special offers, and event details, click here. Don't forget to check out The Three Stooges: The Movie, in theaters on April 13th!

HEB Specialties

Okay, I admit, when I first moved to San Antonio, I was extremely disappointed in my grocery store options. We had HEB... or HEB... or HEB. Yes, there's a Super Walmart and Super Target, but HEB is literally the only normal grocery store in town. In the beginning, I'd frequently stop by to pick up some of my old favorites only to be stunned that they didn't carry so many of my regular items. I'll give them credit though for offering an easy way to request items they don't regularly stock, but it took a while to adjust to the change. However, now I've been finding new things I really like at HEB that I'm sure I'll miss when we eventually move out of San Antonio.

A couple of my new staples are the BBQ seasoned chicken you get in the meat department as well as the cranberry gorgonzola turkey burgers (also found in the meat dept., but seasonally, and DELICIOUS), cowboy burgers, and the newly discovered Chocolate Mootopia. The Mootopia is a high protein low fat milk and is absolutely creamy and delicious (at least in the chocolate flavor). I heard about it through word of mouth and now it's a weekly purchase along with the Central Market organic milk nearby. Apparently too many people have been raving about the chocolate Mootopia because it was out of stock at our closest HEB last week. We made a side trip to another HEB a couple of days later and we went to check on their stock. They only had 2 left (of course we grabbed both), but I hope they start increasing production because clearly I'm not the only one in love with this new product. HEB, you've made my life much more comfortable after a brief transition period.

Moving from the Kid's Perspectives

My kids are too young to understand the whole idea of moving. They know what the new house looks like and have enjoyed running through the empty rooms and the backyard, but I don't think they know that our furniture is going to be moved in there. My daughter has been asking if various things will go with us, the light in her room (no), the blanket on her bed (yes), the bathroom (no). However, the most heartbreaking was the question about their playset. Unfortunately, no, the playset will not be coming with us, but in a few months, we might be able to get another one, depending on how things go. We have all enjoyed having the playset since we had it installed a couple years ago. Like a lot of things with our current house, we did upgrades because we were planning on living there a few more years. However, with current low interest rates and builder incentives, we couldn't pass up the chance to have a house that had more of the things on our wishlist. We'll miss the deck and the playset most of all, but hopefully we'll get something similar in the future. I forgot how expensive moving can be, even if it's within the same neighborhood so some things are just going to have to wait. Dadda monkey and I don't even have garage door openers purchased yet.

I'm also keeping my fingers crossed that maybe we can win the kids a new playset (and Mommy a new raised garden). Backyard Discovery, https://www.swingsetsonline.com/backyard-ideas/backyard-blog/playsets/January%202012/Double_the_Prize_Double_the_Fun_Sweepstakes, has a great sweepstakes going on that I can only hope I have a chance to win. Good luck to any of you that are in the moving process and those that might try your hand at the sweepstakes.

Blah, blah, and more blah

Since getting my wisdom teeth removed, which wasn't as bad as I feared, I have been sick on and off for the past month along with the rest of my family. Whatever this bug is, that seems to be spreading among my friends and neighbors, tends to linger for weeks. I finally feel semi-human again so I can concentrate on my big news. We're moving, just down the street, but moving none the less. It's exciting and a pain in the butt at the same time. I hate packing, but I'm trying to look at it as a chance to finally get my clutter problems under control. I hope to do some serious purging along the way, but things are moving quicker than I anticipated and much quicker than I feel I can manage since we've all been ill.