Blockbuster Total Access???

If you remember a year or so ago, I posted a blog about the Netlix for Wii. It was a positive review too. I absolutely loved it. I had only signed up for Netflix about a month before posting that and was pleasantly surprised when they sent me a disc to put in my Wii that would allow me to access movies and TV shows whenever I wanted. Now of course when I had joined Netflix, I was only planning on receiving the DVDs in the mail, the instant streaming through my Wii was just a lovely, free added bonus. However, this past summer when they announced that they were going to charge 40% more for access to both mail and streaming I was highly annoyed, as were thousands of other subscribers. I worked through my annoyance though and just canceled the streaming service and stayed subscribed to the mail service. Recently though, Netflix decided to make more major changes. They decided to SPLIT the DVD and streaming services completely. Now in order to add movies to your streaming queue you would log onto the Netflix site like you always did, but to get them in the mail you were going to have to go to an entirely different site. They decided to name the mail order company "Quixster". This is what finally sent me to jump on the bus of people canceling their accounts with Netflix. So I have erased my queue and as soon as I watch "The Social Network" I will be sending it back and ending my membership with them. I'm kinda sad about this too. I loved being able to just pay one fee and get as many movies in a month that I wanted and open my mailbox to see my lovely red envelope. Too many changes in too short of a time though Mr. CEO of Netflix!

So, now to the title of my post. Recently I saw a commercial for Blockbuster Total Access which apparently is very similar to the way Netflix used to be. The commercial advertised that you can rent as many movies AND GAMES a month for under $10. Of course they have different subscription packages so obviously not all of them are under $10. However, this sounds like a great alternative for me. Actually it sounds even better because I will be able to rent games for my Wii and test them out before spending $30-50 on them just to find out they aren't as fun as I thought. I will be most definitely signing up soon and will let you all know how good or bad this service actually is!

Does anyone currently have Blockbuster Total Access now? If so, are you happy with it?

Taking Time to Watch This Season's Sons of Anarchy

Guest post written by Cathy Ruman

I got so caught up in work and all kinds of family when the last season of Sons of Anarchy was on TV. It really was just way too much for me and I was really sad that I wasn't able to keep up with one of my favorite shows like I wish I could have. Well, I decided to make it a priority to watch this season as something indulgent for me. Besides, you can't really enjoy life unless you take care of yourself a little too. So that's exactly what I've been doing so far while watching this season.

 

I used my Internet Service Provider to figure out what time it was coming on and help move around my schedule a little bit on my Google calendars to ensure that I could watch the show without worrying about other things in my life. It's no good watching TV if you're worried about other things while your'e watching it.

 

This Sons of Anarchy season certainly isn't disappointing so far! But then again, I didn't really expect it to. I can always expect some really great things from the show and it sure does deliver like I like it to!

September 11- 10th Anniversary

So here we are 10 years after the horrible attacks that changed America forever. I posted last year about where I was that day, which you can find HERE. Therefore I won't do that again. We all know where we were that day and will never forget it. So instead I will post a few YouTube videos remembering these horrible events. I will also be spending the evening watching some of the specials that are on. Yes they are depressing, but this is a day of remembering the heroes of that day and all of the innocent lives that were lost.

This is the flag that will be flying in NYC today. Obviously the towers are represented in the center outlined by the Pentagon with stars that represent the lives lost in Flight 93.

Love him and love this song!!

Home Improvement Reunion 2011!!!

So if you are a frequent reader of my blog, you know of the obsession I had with the TV show "Home Improvement" as a child, pre-teen, and teen. Of course back then this obsession had to do with nothing else except for JTT!! I of course like the show for its humor and because it reminds me of my childhood and the simpler times. So you can imagine my excitement when I saw on the EW.com site this pic of the Home Improvement cast reunited:

So first let me just make a few observations about the above photo:

• Patricia Richardson aka Jill, does not look ANY different whatsoever!
• I have no clue what happened to Zachary Ty Bryan aka Brad. He was so cute when the show ended!
• Debbie Dunn aka Heidi looks worse only because it looks like she has had a little too much plastic surgery
• Tim Allen looks good, albeit a little older. He obviously has been in showbiz since Home Improvement ended though so I wasn't surprised by his looks since I have seen him many times since then.
• Richard Karn looks pretty good, albeit older also. Nice to see him wearing the flannel still :)
• Taran Noah Smith aka Mark looks different from when the show first started (obviously since he was only 6!), but not too much different from when it ended.
• It is sooo nice to see Jonathan Taylor Thomas aka Randy in the pic!!! If anyone else is a fan of the show you are probably aware that he left during the final season and didn't return for the finale. Rumor was that Tim Allen was pretty upset by this (which is understandable). It says in the article (which you can find on www.EW.com, that the photo shoot was the first time Tim and Patricia had seen him since 1998!! Soo happy to hear that!! He is still the best looking of the boys too!! Doesn't look 30 at all!

EW.com also has another great article about Home Improvement, which you can find HERE. Since today is JTT's 30th (yes you read that right) birthday they also made an article just for him, that you can find HERE. Let me just say that the EW writers are becoming some of my favorite people since they clearly are just as obsessed with the 90's as I am :) This cast reunion will be featured with many others from various TV shows in a special Reunions issue of Entertainment Weekly which will be available Oct. 7. I just subscribed to this mag tonight (actually restarted my subscription) and received a free retro t-shirt (I chose the Bayside Tigers one). The best part is, it only cost me $20 for 52 issues and the t-shirt :)

Hope you enjoyed reading! Were you a fan of "Home Improvement" back in the 90's? What do you think about the cast reunion photo? Who are you most surprised to see??

Orlando Here I Come.....Soon!!!

I love to travel and one place in the great United States that I have yet to be is Florida. Yes, seriously this Michigan gal has never been to the Sunshine State, but I plan on making that one of my near future trips. Oh and you can bet that when I do make it there I will most definitely be visiting Walt Disney World, whether I have children with me or not!

While I was searching for Hotels in Orlando, I came across the beautiful Walt Disney World Swan and Dolphin resort hotel. Seriously it looks so beautiful!!! Check out some of the pictures below and you will see what I mean.

This would be the outside of the hotel. So unique looking and a great view!!

Lobby of the Dolphin Hotel.

Lobby of the Swan Hotel

This is just one of the FIVE heated pools that is located at the resort. Absolutely gorgeous!!

Beautiful bar for the adults to visit.

One of the guestrooms. The beds look nice and comfy to me!!

Kids (and adults) would love to dine with their favorite Disney characters, which is also included in the resort.

Love it!!

Some other great features of the Swan and Dolphin Resort include tennis, basketball, and volleyball courts; a health club, which you can follow up with a trip to the relaxing spa; a game room for the kids; an art gallery and much more! Since it is a Disney resort, you also get complimentary scheduled transportation through the park and extra park hours!

Whenever I do make it to Orlando, you can bet I will be trying to get a room here!!

YouTube Tuesday!!!!

Look everyone, its the return of "YouTube Tuesday"!!!! I just looked back through my blog and saw that I haven't done one of these since May, so I decided it needed a big introduction :). YouTube Tuesday used to be one of my favorite topics on here, so I am glad to be bringing it back. Sorry for the lack of updates throughout the summer :(. Whenever I would get online I would be addicted to all those darn facebook games, but I am starting to get bored of them so back to blogging!!! So to kick off the return of YouTube Tuesday, I am chosing a video by someone who you have seen featured here in the past and will most likely be seeing here in the future. That person is Tyler Ward. Tyler Ward was actually the feature of my last YouTube Tuesday, so that kinda tells you how much I love him huh? This time he is singing "Somewhere With You" by Kenny Chesney, which I am pretty sure I like better than Kenny's version! Check it out and let me know what you all think!!!

Bargain Shopping!!!!

There's nothing I like more than getting great products for amazing prices. That is why I always check the clearance sections of EVERY store I go to in pretty much every section. That would be how I was able to get these great toys for my nephew at 50% off or more, which will be used for some of his Christmas gifts.

Retail Price: $39.99

Paid: $9.99

This toy is actually for ages 3+ and my nephew won't even be two by Christmas, but this was too good of a deal to pass up. I will just save it until next Christmas :)

Retail Price: $22.99

Paid: $10.99

This one is ages 18 months and up so he actually will be receiving this one for Christmas this year :)

Retail Price: $19.99

Paid: $9.99

My nephew absolutely LOVES Sesame Street and he was with me when I bought this. He played with it for a long time and then threw it in the back of the cart. He will actually hand you back the toys that he doesn't want so if he throws it in the cart that's a good sign :).

I was also able to get some AMAZING deals on books at Borders since they are closing. Let me tell you, I am pretty sad that they are going out of business, but that doesn't stop me from snagging up the good deals while I can.

Got both of these books for only $3.59 each!

The Cars book actually has 4 jigsaw puzzles inside, plus the sliding puzzle on front.

The recipes in the cook book look absolutely delicious too!

Each of these books cost me only $2.99 each.

The Baby Animals book is a really nice board book too so my nephew won't be able to tear the pages.

This book was 60% off so it only cost me $2.78

I just love all of the Charlie Brown holiday specials when they come on TV so I just had to buy the books for Caden and his new baby brother. This book has stickers inside it too :)

This book was also 60% off so I only paid $3.18 for it.

 Unlike the Thanksgiving one though, this one is actually a board book so I don't have to worry about him tearing the pages.

These two cost me $2.39 each

They are both lift a flap books too.

These books were all only $1.49 each.

I actually ended up getting two of these for free, but didn't realize it until I got home and looked at the receipt. Seven of these are board book also, the only two that aren't are the two Christmas ones in the top row. Let me just say that I read the "Room for A Little One" book that is pictured in the second row and it is such a cute story. The Sponge Bob Christmas tree one is also a lift the flap book.

This book only cost me $1.19.

Not a board book, but my nephew also loves Mickey Mouse Clubhouse so for $1.19, it doesn't really matter if the pages get torn.

All of these book only cost me 50 cents each!!

All of these are also board book, except for the Handy Manny one. The dinosaur ones are just too cute with the little "googly" eyes!

Total cost for all 27 books- $42.74!!!!!

Not too shabby at all huh?? Since Caden already has a bookshelf full of books at his house, all of these have found themselves a home in Caden's "room" at Aunt Nicole's house :)

I also went back to Borders last weekend and was able to get some more great deals on books for myself. Right now everything is 60-80% off and they close in the next week or two. I will definitely try to make it there again to see what kind of deals I can scrounge up!! I was able to get myself a $20 calender for next year for only $4 and some change though :)