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Below is preview for movies and TV shows you can download from Amazon. I did set it up to only show “family” shows. You can preview movies and TV shows avialble for download. I think the movies/tv shows cost 1-4.00. You can then watch your your PC, TiVo
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Posted by Lisa - Unschooling Mom as Fun Stuff, General Entertainment at 1:21 PM EST
I am super-mom in my house this month- We decided to get a Wii console for kids for Christmas. They have been IMPOSSIBLE to find and as Christmas was getting closer I thought better to snatch up when we found one then to wait… We debated between the PlayStation 3 and the Nintendo Wii and looking at games and price of games- the Wii was much better option for us. The Wii has a lot more games for kids and families while they PlayStation 3 had a very high cool factor- just wasn’t suitable for our family.
So- We bought the Wii. I do find a difference between girl Wii games and boy Wii games- they really do like different things- thou the boys will play “girl games” . I am not labelling or being gender bias ion this- I can see they like different things.
These are the games we have been renting and buying and playing with homeschool kids. I asked the girls to list the ones they would recommend and ones they wouldn’t bother with again.
Cooking Mama: Cook Off for Wii This one is more fun than it sounds. You “prepare” food and cook/bake it. Points are given on how fast and how much an technique. This is good because two players can play at once and not overly competitive. My younger son (4) can also play. We have also had teenage boys here that have really liked so this has a wide appeal.
Mario & Sonic at the Olympic Games is a BLAST! We have had so much fun with it. You are basically at the Olympics and swim, run, throw javelin, fence, etc as your favorite Mario character or Mii. We play this mostly as a family and laugh alot. It is hilarious to so my 4 year old get all sweaty when he does a swimming relay. My daughter (10) and I love to play this with each other… and my Husband happy to watch all the insanity. Highly recommend.
Guitar Hero III: Legends of Rock Bundle If you find this for Wii- buy it- it is impossible to get anywhere.
Super Mario Galaxy for Wii HUGE hit here. Another player can “jump” in and help. Another Wii game that appeals across all age levels and girls and boys alike.
High School Musical: Sing It
Legend of Zelda: Twilight Princess Hands down one of the best games on Wii. If you don’t have it highly recommend.
Mario Party 8 for Wii A good one- if you are going to buy a game this is good investment has has a long term play value. Good for whole family- 4 players can play at once and games move quickly. My daughter and I play this one a lot together ;-).. perfect for sleep overs.
Wii Remotes: If in your budget and you have kids- you will be happy to have more remotes. Some games up to 4 people can play at a time and you can play as whole family or with more kids.
Trauma Center: New Blood for Wii This is perfect for 2 kids- it is a “co-operative” game and they don’t compete.
High School Musical: Sing It Bundle with Microphone For the high school Musical lover. ( most girls under 13 fit this category.) This has a good Karaoke twist to it.
The Sims 2: Castaway for Wii i don;t understand the appeal to be honest- I just know that my daughter and her friends are INSANE for this game. It is never available to rent either :-). The premise is that your Sims are stranded on an unexplored island paradise, you must help them to build a new life. Sim Family Robinson?
The Sims 2 Pets Very big. Girls will play for hours with this. Boys don’t seem to enjoy the Sims 2 stuff as much. I think girls like the making and creating of characters angle of the game.
Wii Play with Wii Remote I recommend this because you get the Wii game pack AND remote for about the same cost of a remote. You can play fishing, Pool(which for some reason the kids love), Ping Pong, etc
Dance Dance Revolution Hottest Party Bundle You be favorite Aunt for sure if you get this! Comes with “dance pad” etc . Like the dance revolution you see in arcades. Kids get QUITE the workout. Boys also like alot. Moms … not so much .. I prefer not to get sweaty when I play video games 
Wii Wario Ware: Smooth Moves Very Very fun!
Wii Nunchuk Controller The Wii game console come with one and the only time we have really “needed” another was in boxing. They are cheap- 15.00 so make a good stocking stuffer but don’t worry about getting more.
Wii Chargeable remote packs For some bizarre reason- Wii remotes use batteries! It has not been a big deal in our house- but I HATE throwing out batteries. You can by a rechargeable battery and charger pack ( they come in sets of 2) for not that much money- about 16.00 for two. I really don’t know why Nintendo did this.
Games that flopped:
Rapala Tournament Fishing We just couldn’t get into it- and graphics were awful.
Maybe its us- but we were sure we “needed” the Wii Sport Pack that turns your remote into a baseball bat, tennis racket, etc and it turned out to be more of pain than anything… I suppose you could get two of them instead of switching remotes back and forth- also if you have any kids of a :skin” on remote you have to take off. We just never use so i would save 20.00 and get a game or another Nunchuk instead.
I will try and update as We Try New Games.
Posted by Lisa - Unschooling Mom as Fun Stuff, Reviews and Recommendations, Video Games at 12:17 PM EST
Okay- sounds NUTS. I know. The site has all kinds of popular movie classics remade into animated shorts- featuring odd looking bunnies.
Angry Alien Productions
Features movies like, ” A Christmas Story ” , “Its A Wonderful Life” , Jaws, King Kong, Pirates of The Caribbean and lots more. You really only “get” the joke if you have seen the original movies.
30-Second Bunnies Theatre is a Flash cartoon series featuring films re-enacted by bunnies in 30 seconds.
Alien (1979)
The Big Chill (1983)
Casablanca (1942)
Christmas Vacation (1989)
A Christmas Story (1983)
Die Hard (1989)
Highlander (1986)
It’s a Wonderful Life (1946)
James Bond Montage
Jaws (1975)
King Kong (1933)
March of the Penguins (2005)
Napoleon Dynamite (2004)
Pirates of the Caribbean 1 and 2 (2003, 2006)
Rocky (1976)
The Rocky Horror Picture Show (1975)
Scream (1996)
The Shining (1980)
Spider-Man 1 and 2 (2002, 2004)
Star Wars (1977)
Superman (1978)
Titanic (1997)
The War of the Worlds (1953)
Some of the material may not be suitable for everyone- so take peek before you let kids run wild. Better yet- watch with them!
Posted by Lisa - Unschooling Mom as Fun Stuff at 1:45 PM EST
WebKinz - The new Beanie Babies?
Not since the Build-A-Bear Winter of 2005 has something hit our household with such massive force. If you have a daughter who can work a mouse you probably know what they are. They are THE gift to give or receive at a birthday party.
Webkinz have taken over my home and computers. My kids are constantly on any available laptop or computer hooking up with webkinz friends, buying virtual clothes and planning their next purchases, My daughter- at last count- had 9 of these furry things. How they work is you can buy the stuff animal called Webkinz or smaller version, lil’kinz. They come with secret code that lets you register your pet online at Webkinz World. There they live a virtual life.
You can noy buy cloths for your Webkinz. E. just spent 12.00 on a tiny set of pajamas. My son’s had sleepers that cost less.
From an unschooling point of view they have a had good value she chats with her friends, she calculates how much she will need for more stuff- and play with virtual money online. You can buy and trade things- also earn money to buy more virtual toys/food cloths for your pets ( by doing “homework!” )
I missed the neopets rage but I think they are similar in the way you can learn from them.
On the other hand- they are driving me crazy!!! It has been non-stop Webkin talk for about three weeks. I had a conversation today about which Webkin looked better in th polka dot pajamas (!) . She got her first Webkin about 6 months ago and the frenzy has been slowly building. I also HATE they way these kids are marketed at. They had Webkinz body spray for 6.99!!!
I really never thought I would long for the Build-A-Bear days….
webkinz site: http://www.webkinz.com/
This is what a Webkinz looks like:
Posted by Lisa - Unschooling Mom as Fun Activities for Kids, Fun Stuff at 11:01 PM EDT
VERY Funny-
http://news.lugnet.com/announce/moc/?n=4058 re-creates Leonardo Da Vinci’s Last Supper… with Lego.
Not much is said about the thought behind this- how long did it take to do this??? What gave him the idea? I am curious what others have done with their Lego- f you have pics please send and i will post :-).
In fact feel- free to send you Lego creations and I will post here. I may be offering a contest for Lego “re-creations” in the next couple of weeks.
Posted by Lisa - Unschooling Mom as Fun Stuff at 3:33 PM EDT
