No Surprises

I love movies.  I love how they make you feel like you are in a different century, or traveled to a far off place.  I love how I can be feeling blah, and then after a movie feel somehow lighter.  On the flip side... I hate starting a movie, only to turn it off five minutes into it because of "scene" (you know the ones). 

Have you ever watched a movie with your kids, and had to jump off the couch and bolt for the remote when something you weren't prepared for popped up on the screen?  I know that I've covered my kids' eyes in parts of movies that I have felt were too scary, or too mature for them.  PG means little to me anymore.  Movies with that rating are often laced with innuendos or adult content that is simply inappropriate for children.  I don't feel the least bit embarrassed that I am a prude when it comes to watching movies.  I was teased about it in High School and got over it.  I hope that just maybe my kids will thank me someday that I have done my best to screen our media choices.

So...that being said, how do I limit the number of surprises we have?  When it comes to movies I use the site www.kidsinmind.com.  I can look up most new films and get a pretty specific rundown of what is in the movie.  I am not talking plot summaries here, I am talking about a list of profanity, nudity, violence, etc.  Then I can make a pretty good decision about how I am going to feel about the movie, without paying a single cent! 

I have done a little previewing, but mostly I rely on word of mouth from friends or family that I feel have similar values.  I am always on the look out for a good, wholesome family film.  Make sure to click on our 'movie recommendation' link to view what we have already posted on the blog!