Chick Flick! Pride and Prejudice - Part 2

I am on a quest to view all of the film versions of Pride and Prejudice. A couple of months ago, I got my start with the mammoth five hour production (by A&E 1996) starring Colin Firth & Jennifer Ehle (see my blog post). Then, I read the book (maybe I should have done that first). Now, my Netflix queue is populated with the remaining versions.

On Thursday, my first ever Netflix DVD arrived in my mailbox, and I was looking forward to watching my movie that evening. Snuggling onto the couch with great anticipation, I started the movie. Two hours later, I had to admit disappointment in the most recent rendition of Pride and Prejudice (by Universal Studios 1995) starring Keira Knightly. While the sets and cast were much larger (and probably more authentic) than the A&E version, the characters of both Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy were rather flat. I did prefer Jane as well as Mr. and Mrs. Bennet in this version, but they weren't able to overcome weak performances in the lead roles.

Here are my other Pride & Prejudice reviews:
The long A&E version with Colin Firth
The 1940's version
The 1980's BBC miniseries

Or, you could always read the book:

Great Gift Idea for Toddlers & Preschoolers (Boy or Girl)

When my oldest was just over a year old, we spent $70 for a Little Tikes Junior Activity Gym for our living room. It is a 3-foot cube shaped plastic gym with a small slide sticking out the side. This has been, hands down, the most played with toy we have ever owned.

Unfortunately, it appears this great item is no longer available new, though you might find one used someplace. The trick would be finding one that has not been kept outside. The amazon.com link to the right is the best approximation that I can find currently available.

I had seen one of these things in my sister-in-law's very small house. Her son loved it, and so did our daughter when we visited. I figured if they could find room for it, we sure could. Little did I know that our kids would still be playing with it daily in my family room ten years later.

The activity gym has helped keep up our kids' activity level even on dreary days when they can't be outside. In the beginning, it was just a fun thing to climb on and slide from. Most of the kids learned to scoot up the slide before they could even crawl. As they have gotten older, the gym has acquired other imaginative uses: it has been a boat, an apartment building, a bus, and a judge's bench among many others. It has been so much a part of our family for so long that it is difficult for me to imagine what childrearing would have been like without one of these in the house.

Full disclosure: Our daughter fell off of the gym when she was 3 years old and broke her arm. But, she could've done the same thing falling off the bed.

Easy Buttermilk Substitute

Add a little lemon juice to regular milk then let it sit and curdle.

About once a month, I bake homemade banana muffins. My favorite banana bread/muffin recipe calls for buttermilk, but it is a pain to try to keep buttermilk on hand for such an occasional use. Since I need 1/3 c. buttermilk, I first put a teaspoon or so of lemon juice into my measuring cup then add enough milk to make 1/3 cup. After it sits for about five minutes, it is all curdled up and works like a charm.

By the way, banana muffins are way better than banana bread because they get cooked all the way through without browning too much on the outside. As for how overripe the bananas should be: the browner (or blacker), the better.

My Kids Like Salmon!

The two older ones have liked to eat salmon for quite awhile, but the younger two (ages 6 and 4) have been less accepting of it. One night, they asked if they could put ketchup on it (we usually use teriyaki sauce). Fine with me. Now they love it. Woo hoo!

Classical Music Appreciation the Cheap and Easy Way

Late last spring, I learned about the Introduction to the Classics series of CD's. There are 18 different CD's available. Each CD is about a single composer (or in some cases, two composers). Spoken biographical information is interspersed with the composer's work from various periods. Following the biographical section are several tracks of music alone.

We've been listening to one CD per week in the van. The kids (as well as mom & dad) have been enjoying them, and we're all learning something as we drive about. I like it that my kids are at least familiar with the great composers and their works.

It took a little investigative work to assemble a complete list of the CD's. When I finally placed my order on Amazon.com, my total was $41.72! It qualified for the 4-for-3 deal as well as free shipping. Here is the list of the Vox Music Masters CD's that I compiled to place my order with Amazon.com:

• The Story of Bach
• The Story of Beethoven
• The Story Of Handel
• The Story Of Haydn
• The Story of Mozart
• Mendelssohn In Words And Music
• Story Of Chopin In Words And Music
• The Story Of Brahms
• The Story of Tchaikovsky
• Story Of Johann Strauss In Words And Music
• The Story of Schubert
• Stories Of Foster And Sousa
• The Stories Of Vivaldi And Corelli
• Story Of Verdi In Words And Music
• Story Of Berlioz In Words And Music
• Stories Of Schumann And Grieg
• Story Of Wagner In Words And Music
• Story Of Dvorák In Words And Music