who are THE CROODS? {giveaway}

If you havent noticed, our family is filled with movie lovers. Like if we could literally just pay for the movie channels from DirecTV we would be absolutely set! (unfortunately there isnt a subscription like that, you have to buy all the other channels we dont even watch lol) Needless to say, we hope to be able to pass our love for movies onto our kid(s). You dont even understand how many times ive dreamed about taking Matthew to his first movie. The big screen. The oh-so-delicious buttery popcorn. The snow caps. The trailers. All things I remember from my childhood. Unfortunately, Matthew is just not old enough yet to enjoy the movies. But if he were, you better believe we would be going and see THE CROODS! Have you seen the preview yet?
Dont worry Ill wait.......

Its basically a 3D comedy adventure that follows the world's first modern family through the journey of a lifetime. When the cave that has always been their home is destroyed – with the rest of their world not far behind it – The Croods are forced to set off on the first family road (or path) trip. Rocked by generational clashes and seismic shifts, The Croods discover an incredible new world filled with fantastic creatures, and a future beyond any they imagined.


The funny part is with any journey comes discovery – and The Croods’s trek provides many “firsts,” including: a road trip, fire and shoes, as well as the first pet, the first cell phone (OK, it’s a shell, but still) ...plus: the first joke, the first pair of sunglasses, and even the first mid-life crisis.

Im actually thinking maybe I can convince my mom to watch Matthew and I can take my niece with me to go see it. She enjoys the popcorn just as much as I do! ;)

There is a great set of actors who do the voices for all the characters, including Emma Stone (Eep), Nicolas Cafe (Grug), and Ryan Reynolds (Guy) among the cast. It releases in theaters next Friday March 22, 2012.

And just because I thought it was so hilarious, I had to Crood-ify our family!

Oh and I forgot to mention one last thing. Because I love you all so much, one of you lucky followers will get to take home your very own official The Croods poster and Belt (the cute lil guy you see in hubs croodify picture) plush toy. Lots of quick & simple ways to enter. Sorry US residents only. Winner will be announced next Thursday, and you will need to give me your address by the Friday March 22.

a Rafflecopter giveaway
And if you want to learn some more about the movie (or croodify your family, which I highly encourage!) here are some links:

movie site | facebook | twitter | Crood-ify App

I received a poster & plush toy in compensation for this post. All opinions are my own.

my first giveaway: BRAVE

so remember how I told you I had a surprise for you all? Well today is your lucky day! I was lucky enough to get an advanced copy of this year's #1 animated movie - BRAVE and so will one of my lucky readers!

You dont event realize how happy I was when I got the email. I  really wanted to see it when it first came out in the theaters, but never got the chance. Now you may be asking yourself why would a grown woman want to go see an animated movie so badly? Well, lets just say I may have a slight obsession with Disney Pixar movies. Like I love all the Toy Story's, Monsters Inc, A Bug's Life, Finding Nemo, Cars, and Ratatouille.....just to name a few ;)

So you could imagine my excitement when I not only found out that I would finally be able to see it, but I would be receiving the Ultimate Collector's Edition 5-Disc Set, which includes Blu-Ray, Blu-Ray 3D, and DVD!

Now side note, when hubs and I bought a new TV as our anniversary gift to ourselves last year, we went all out. And what I mean by that is yes, we got a 55in 3D LED tv. A little over the top, yes. Did we actually want the 3D part, no. But it came with the awesome deal we got on Black Friday. And to tell you the truth, we havent even watched one movie or show in 3D. So you could imagine my excitement when I put two & two together and realized I was going to be watching BRAVE in 3D!

Now, I couldnt contain myself, and I had to share my happiness with someone. So who did I pick? My lovely 6 year old niece of course! She had actually already seen the movie in theaters and loved it, but was just as excited as me to be able to watch it in 3D. So the date was set, popcorn was popped, halloween candy was accessible, and 3D glasses were in place.

If you havent yet seen Brave, its about the heroic journey of very opinionated young princess and adventurer Merida (voice of Kelly Macdonald).

via Disney

Determined to follow her own path in life, Merida confronts tradition and challenges destiny to change her own fate. Her actions, which includes turning to an eccentric witch for help, inadvertently unleashes chaos when she is granted an ill-fated wish.

She then has to use all her skills and resources, including her mischievous triplet brothers, to undo the evil curse.

via Disney

In the end this forces her to discover the true meaning of bravery.

The movie is a great addition to, and turn on, Disney's collection of princesses. It's a great movie to share with your little girl, to let her know princesses are more than just a pretty dress and crown. While also great to share with your younger boys, as they will get a kick out of the trouble-making lil brothers and bravery of Merida throughout.

Now, as I promised before, one of my lucky readers is going to be able to take home this awesome Brave - Ultimate Collector's Edition 5-Disc Set! Great if you're planning a family movie night sometime soon, or even just to get a jump start on some early Christmas shopping! I know a lil girl *ahem my niece* who would just love to find this wrapped up under the tree! All you have to do is follow the steps below and enter through the rafflecopter. The winner will be choosen on Friday morning and announced in Fridays Letters.
(note I will need the address of the winner by no later than the morning of Monday November 12, 2012, if I do not receive by then, I will need to choose another winner)

a Rafflecopter giveaway

I received a copy of this film to review. All opinions are my own.

The Hangover...part 2

No, I don't a hangover if thats what you all were thinking. Im talking about the movie. Now get your heads out of the gutter.....

A coworker of mine owns his own movie review website and gets to see alot of movie premiers as press. He's offered me a couple of times to go, but I've never taken him up on it. This time though it worked out for me and my hubby to go.

So Monday night hubs got off work a half hour early so we could drive to aventura (yeah only bad part about it, I hate miami) by 7:00pm. We made it there pretty fast, no traffic, but the parking lot was absolute hell. I was told once we got inside to skip the line and go directly to the front. I know I always hate line slippers, so I was kinda hesitant to do this. However, once I saw the line, I was happy to know we didn't have to wait. We watched the movie, and I promise I won't spoil it for you, but it was hilarious!!! Like LOLing alot!

When we were walking out of the theater I had this sense of someone looming behind me. I didnt turn around because the theater was packed and I knew everyone was just trying to get out. But then all of a sudden this extremely tall man quickly passed me. I kind of double took it and said to the hubs "Man that guy is tall....is that.." and hubs goes "Oh my god, thats Chris Bosh." Turns out we had been sitting only a few seats away from Bosh during the entire movie (since we were in press seating). And its crazy, I know NBA players are tall, but until you stand next to one in real life, its hard to picture how tall 6'11" really is.

Oh and does anyone else think Bosh resembles an ostrich? my friends and I currently refer to him as Bostrich, just saying.....