Keeping the Boy Occupied

The girl is at camp all week. So the boy is an only child. It's been a mix of frustration and sweet moments. Here's some of the sweet moments...

He likes balloons...

...a lot.

These leftover sparklers look great in this dead plant, don't they?

He's thrilled with his blacklight from ebay. He makes his own glow in the dark puppet shows.

The Henry's go to The Grand Theater

For years I hoped my kids wouldn't find out that movies existed. Around here, it can cost $40 for a family of four to get in to see the obligatory Disney flick. And my husband and I aren't hugely into movies, so we waited until movies came out on DVD, then tried to borrow them. (Told you I am cheap.) I've only ever bought one DVD, and that was off eBay. Anyway, our first movie was Up, so that was probably 2009, and my kids were 7 and 4. After that, we only took them when it was clear they would lose their will to live if they didn't see a certain movie. The first time we went, I bought popcorn and two sodas, and it was almost $20! So all told, it cost $60 for their first movie (but it was a good one). I don't think we ever bought popcorn again--our reasoning was that the kids would have more fun just eating out first, which would cost the same amount.

So fast forward to a few weeks ago. We decided to try out "The Grand," a theater in East Greenville, PA. I had heard it was cheap, but I had my misgivings because when I was a teen; my dad's business was upstairs from it in the same building, and the theater seemed like a dump. (I know, I'm cheap and picky--it's great.) Its name at that time alone made me gag--"The Valley."

But I heard so many good things about this theater, that I wanted to try it out. The website drew me in with promises that the theater had been restored to its 1920's glory. Just imagining the Upper Perkiomen Valley in the 1920's is crazy to me. For many reasons. Anyway, my husband and I love old movies and the 20's and 30's, so I checked the listings and made my plans.

I'm going to describe the theater in a minute, but here's the bottom line: for an evening show, the tickets cost $20, and the biggest popcorn is $4! So our movie plus snacks equals less than half of what we would pay at a regular theater. Woohoo!! Here's some more practical info:

*CASH ONLY--this is a biggy for me, because I don't carry cash so I need to plan ahead. Matinee tickets are $3, and evening tickets are $5. Popcorn is $2-4, soda is $1.50-2, and candy is a little over $2. They don't have Raisinets. Just so you know.

*You might not fit in the seats if you are large. I always look at chairs because I have large people in my family so I think about those things. The people that run it seem to be nice, so if you called ahead, they could give you some measurements.

*It's not a huge screen. If you are looking for a huge screen/theater, this is not the place for you. We don't really care about that, but a movie lover might.

*The movie starts on time. There aren't as many previews and ads, so you should get to the theater early and settle in.

*There is one men's room and one women's. I go at least three times a night, and I never had to wait more than a minute. There is a line when the movie is over. The restrooms are right off the back of the room, so you can continue to watch the movie as you wait. It's perfect if you want your kid to use the restroom by themselves, because they don't have to go out to a lobby. The snack stand is also right in back of the theater, so you don't miss anything if you grab more snacks during the movie.

*Park on Main St. (Rt. 29)

*They get movies about three weeks after they are released. Check out showings here: http://www.thegrandtheater.org/

The decor is beautiful. I love the wallpaper. There is an antique organ, flag, and flower arrangments in the front. My husband likes being in there so much, he says he never wants to go back to the regular theaters. I have to say that now, after the second time, I agree with him. It's not just the money, it's the atmosphere. It feels clean and I enjoy my time there.

I guess it is partly the money, because I feel like we can go more often as a family. I'm also looking forward to taking my kids to a matinee sometime (For the three of us, it will be just $9) When this theater was originally built, movies were so affordable that people could go to multiple shows in one day, or enjoy a movie every week. I won't be doing that, but it's nice to know that when a kid's movie comes out, we can all go enjoy it together and eat our fill of popcorn popped in a machine from the 1940's. Cool.

"Epic Shopping Trip"

At least that's what my impressed children said. It's not easy having a cheap mom. Sharing a soda at Wendy's, using ziplock bags that A) are generic, and B) fold over instead of zipping, being told you will probably never make it to Disney World before puberty... 

But they were impressed with our haul at Old Navy last night. I only go clothes shopping when I have a gift certificate, a coupon, and a sale. A sale on clearance. And last night was one of those nights.

I have a Gap Visa credit card, and I use it for everyday purchases (I sound like a commercial.) Anyway, they offer a percentage back of all your purchases back as gift certificates. I put my gas on it ($10 back) and pay it off each month. So I had a $30 gift certificate.

I had a coupon for 40% off so it was time to do some back to school/camp shopping. The main thing we needed was a one piece swimsuit for my daughter to wear to camp. There are to be no belly buttons at camp. And she's picky, so when we found one not on sale, we threw it in the cart anyway ($19.94 retail). Then my son picked out two back to school shirts, also not on sale ($9.94 each). I, being the mother and always putting myself last (cough, cough), bellied up to the clearance racks and looked for a yellow shrug. I found a greenish yellow shrug and a skirt. 

Next I found two tops. A green one in medium, and a navy polka-dot one in large. Wait!! What size are you!?! That's one of my secrets to clearance shopping. If I find an item that I like, I buy one in another color. And I'm not too picky about the size. The medium one fits normally, and the large one is baggier and comes down further so it will be cute with jeans and a tank under it. For 2.38 a piece, if someone notices I have a couple of the same shirt...so be it.

And then my heart was warmed as my two babies came back with a shirt from the kid's clearance area! What smart little shoppers. It's scratch and sniff. And when we checked out, we were given a free tote--my daughter wanted a new tote for her math stuff.

So our grand total for $136.13 retail after 40% off and my $30 reward certificate was $8.11. EPIC!!

A free canvas tote and a scratch and sniff shirt (yes) for the girl.

A shrug, or as Jon would call it, a sweater

Skirt for me.

A bathing suit the girl needed for camp.

Two tops for me.

Two shirts for the boy.