Page Turner 411

Hey, Page Turner again. It's day 16 in my Countdown to Valentine's Day. So, I've covered some cute DIY Valentine's, some Disney gifts, and some cool trivia on Valentine's Day. But what to plan for Valentine's Day? You could always do the classics... Movies--movies are always a good choice. Spend some time with loved ones while watching Star Wars, or any other movie of your choice. But probably Star Wars! If you want to splurge, get popcorn, candy, and a drink. Dinner--everybody, family, friends, and sweethearts, love a special dinner for Valentine's Day. A fancy restaurant, the favorite takeout pizza, or thoughtfully prepared burgers, it doesn't matter. Just celebrate with friends or family. Or the wacky... Make a treasure hunt all over town, binge watch Valentine Hallmark movies, tape paper hearts all over someone's door. Or something Disney! It's pretty hard to accomplish but if you can arrange for a ball in a castle (with glass slippe

Hey, Page Turner here! It is officially day  17 in my countdown to Valentine's Day, and the symptoms have begun to set in...What to get? What does that special someone in your life want for Valentine's Day? Well, being a Disney movie buff may finally pay off! (That and reading the blog at www.blogs.disney.com). Here's my own list of awesome Disney/Pixar presents that would be great for Valentine's Day: Belle's Library--You've got to admit that having an entire library to yourself is pretty cool. Especially a four story library with millions of books, multiple staircases, and Baroque style furniture. But, if you can't afford that, give your sweetheart, friend, or family member a good book to read. If you don't know what to give someone, give them a nice copy of a classic book; it's a good idea for any occasion. And, as Cogsworth says, "If it's not Baroque, don't fix it."  The Magical Glowing Flower Or A Lantern--Okay, so who does

Hey, it's Page Turner again, back for day18 in my countdown to Valentine's Day! Okay, so for the first time ever, I am going to have a short story on this blog. Yeah! Here it is! (P.S. I'm learning about cardiopulmonary resuscitation, CPR, right now, and it's Valentines Day...so hold on. It's going to be a bumpy ride!)     Kelli walked out of the movie theater and into the crowded carpeted lobby, a crinkled bag of M&M's in one hand and her plastic 3D glasses in the other. Her best friend, (and boyfriend), John walked beside her, a mostly empty bucket of cold yellow popcorn in his hand. "That was amazing!" Kelli said, tossing the 3D glasses into the nearby bin. "The cinematography alone was incredible. It  was so sweet of you to take me to see the Sound of Music special in the theater--I haven't seen it in years! This has been the best Valentine's Day, John." John, usually talkative with Kelli, just gave a faltering smile. His fa

Hey, Page Turner here! Back for the Valentine's Day Countdown, day 19! Okay, so imagine this scenario. You're doing something totally harmless, maybe eating a bowl of cereal or reading a book. Suddenly, your phone's text message alert chimes. Excitement rushes through your body and your heart beats faster. You reach for your phone beside you, but it isn't there. This is a code red emergency! You dash across the room (spilling your cereal), stub your toe on a chair, and finally reach the beloved device, cradling your foot. You hastily type your password in (a complete waste of time) and click on the text symbol with trembling hands. The image pops up after a ten second excruciating wait, and your see the text bubble image. "hey," it says, and you recognize it as a text from your best friend, "how r u doing?" You sit down in a chair, relief and excitement on your face. You're touched by the fact you're friend wanted to talk, and that they car

Hey, Page Turner here! Okay, so Valentine's Day comes with a few keywords: love, (obviously) pink, heart, flowers, and chocolate. As you all know, movies are my jam, so here's the 19th day for my Countdown to Valentine's Day! Okay, so in movies Disney is the epitome of love stories, sappy or not. Even more specifically, the Princess Movies. (Cue eww from the guys. It's like kryptonite for males...) So in each movie the hero does something awesome for the heroine he loves. (Cue aww from the girls.) So here at pageturner411, I've compiled a list of heroic good deeds the good heroes have done!     Snow White-- Okay, so the scene opens and this dapper Dan serenades a poor peasant girl, a.k.a., Snow White. Score one for Snow White's Prince! Serenading and making her feel special, good for you. Next, he spends a great deal of time looking for her, and eventually wakes her up from a death-like sleep. 23/100 chocolate flowers for Snow White's Prince.    Cinderella

  Hey, Page Turner here! Back for day 20 in my countdown to Valentine's Day. There is a lot of romance movies out there. One of my personal favorites is Princess Bride. ( spoiler alerts ahead)  I mean, come on. " My name is Inigo Montoya. You killed my father. Prepare to die." It doesn't get much better than that, does it?! Princess Bride is a humorous romance complete with a kidnapped princess, shrieking eels, giants, sword fights, Miracle Max, betrayal, and a dashing hero. The best part is the entire story is read by a grandpa to his sick grandchild, a young kid with a cynical sense of humor and boyish distaste for romance. The movie follows the love story of Buttercup and Wesley, two peasants who are madly in love. Their story is cut short when Wesley dies at the hand of the Dread Pirate Robertson, and Buttercup is given to the prince to marry. As the days count down to her wedding day, Buttercup is kidnapped by a Spaniard swordsman, a kind-hearted giant, and a se

Alrighty, a movie review! It's been a while, but I love doing these...      Okay, so I've recently watched the Avengers, Avengers 2, Winter Soldier, and Iron Man. (Do you see a pattern?) Here's the rundown: Avengers is really good. It's got violence, and some language, but a lot of funny dialogue, heroic deeds, and suspense, plus a good ol' superhero/modern-end-of-world feel to it. Thor's brother, Loki, teams up with an alien-robot race to take over the world, so S.H.I.E.L.D. must contact Iron Man, Black Widow, Captain America, The Hulk, Thor, and eventually Hawk Eye to save the day. The problem? They don't get along well. In fact, mayhem and dissension could appropriately describe this band of strange heroes with tons of emotional baggage. The team must learn to work together, or the world will suffer the consequences. Avengers 2 is once again riddled with violence and some language, but again has the same redeeming qualities. Hydra springs up once more

Hey hey hey! Page Turner here, back for day number 22 in my countdown to Valentine's Day! I love the sweet tradition of gift giving to the special person in your life. Here's some fun things I found!      Okay, so if you go to www.buzzfeed.com and look for 40 DIY valentine gifts, you can find really cute crafts just like this romantic tic tac box. I love the other crafts: get a Coco Cola box filled with coke and decorated  with stiff red paper and hearts. Fill candy up in vintage muslin bags, make coasters out of round wood slices with you and your sweethearts initials on them, or give them a jar of lemon drops that says 'Pucker Up.". Create valentine-inspired marshmallow pops, or Sharpie decorated mugs that say "I love you a latte" and "You're my cup of tea." Also, sweet treats can't be beat. (especially if they contain chocolate. Any chocolate, just chocolate, please.) At www.allrecipes.com, you can find pastry 'love letters', a

Hey, Page Turner here! It is Day 23 in my countdown to Valentine's Day! I love this song because, well, it's so upbeat and cheerful and I love the message. I heard once that love is pointing others to Christ. Think about it: what greater thing could you do than point them to Jesus, the Good Shepherd, the Living Water, and the Bread of Life? Anyway, I love that because it really puts God first and makes sense. We can love others and point them to the Lord, because He loves us. We don't have to worry about being accepted or popular, because we're already His son or daughter. We want others to know Him to. Isn't it awesome we have a whole day dedicated to remembering this? And we get to eat chocolate to! And cut lots and lots of pink paper. I feel kind of sorry for the guys, but deal with it. Pink paper is one of the crucial facets of Valentine's Day, as is chocolate, stuffed animals, crinkly balloons, and candy. (I see a trend here.) So are traditions and memori

Hey, Page Turner here! Valentine's day is so soon! I don't know about you, but Valentine's Day is kind of a big deal on the pageturner411 blog. Flowers, roses, sappy phrases, and even sappier Hallmark movies! I mean, I've heard that Valentine's Day is a scam, created by the greeting card company in cahoots with the candy stores. I've also heard its about St. Valentine--I'm still a little fuzzy on the story. There's a ton of variations. Even with all of the uncertainties surrounding Valentine's Day, it's a great day to share God's love to others. Valentine's Day is ultimately about God. God is love, and He is the one who gave the greatest gift of love: His son who offers redemption and forgiveness. Love to each other is showing our friends Christ. And I think the sweetest part of marriage is when you can follow the Lord together. So find someone, tell them you love them, and eat lots, and lots of chocolate. Here's a couple lovely piec

Hi, Page Turner here! I can't believe it's 2016! Anyway, here's a short and sweet version of my movie reviews for the last few movies in 2015....( beware of spoilers!)          War Room : War Room is about a couple who's entire marriage is falling apart. They don't see each other ever, and when they do, they constantly fight. Their daughter is feeling neglected and although the wife would claim that God is prevalent in their home, He is no where to be found. All of that changes when the wife meets a sweet, yet feisty, old woman with a heart exploding with passion for God. I love this movie because it shows how strongly God uses prayer, the importance of a relationship with Him, and how to seek Him. Four and a half stars!        Minions: Okay, so I know a lot of people like Despicable Me. So do I, but I would suggest you skip its slap-stick counter part. It's not a bad movie, but it's not really that great either. It's got a little bit of a moral to t