It is not June yet and my roses are in full bloom.

With all of the crazy weather we have been experiencing, flowers have been blooming much earlier. My roses are about two weeks early.

These roses is simply one branch from my rose bush.  As I drive around town, I have seen some great rose bushes. Some are the normal bush type of roses. Others are climbers, which is what my bush is classified.

Perhaps you have a rambler which is  tall bush-type of rose. Of you are growing tea roses. I like climbers that extend long branches with old fashioned wide blooms that smell sweet.

Genetic breeding changes a variety. A tighter bloom loses their smell, various colors might lose a different attribute. I have yet to hear about a thorn-less rose.

Have you seen any beautiful roses?

The Avengers is one movie that had a huge build-up.

It has been years in the making starting with the first Iron Man movie in 2008. In Iron Man 2 we met the Black Widow, a spy whose beauty matches her skill.  Last year we were treated to the first Thor movie which had audiences falling in love with an arrogant man forced to learn honor through difficulty.

And I cannot forget Captain America. The hero from years past charmed us with his earnestness as he fought Nazis and secret organizations.

And now the Marvel characters have come together in The Avengers. 

Loki is a Norse demi-God who wants to rule Earth and the rest of the universe. He has teamed with other evil creatures that are looking to control Earth.

While Loki is capable of controlling some people to do his bidding, there is a group of people willing to do whatever it takes to keep earth safe. That team is called the Avengers: Iron Man, Captain America, Thor, Black Widow, Hawkeye and the Hulk. They have been brought together by Nick Fury, head of S.H.I.E.L.D.

But Loki is tricky. He likes chaos, he likes creating disturbances. He is capable of doing that to anyone. With a touch of his scepter on the heart, he can make just about anyone follow him.

We saw the movie at the Harvest Moon drive-in and loved it. I was happily surprised to see six different back stories weaved in to something that made sense. Plus, it was clear that people had history together in their comments and body language. Not every one liked each other, but with the proper motivation, they were able to work together.

The movie was long but thanks to a tight screenplay that gave a real voice to each superhero and interesting, compelling action sequences, the movie never feels as long as it should. Just as Jon Favreau did with Iron Man, director Joss Whedon has put in a certain amount of lightness with all the seriousness of a comic book movie.

Now the question you might be asking is “do I have to watch all of the other movies to see this one?” My answer would be yes IF you do not have a thorough knowledge of the Marval Comic characters.

I was not familiar with Iron Man before the movies nor was I all that knowing about Captain America. Because of a youth spent watching Bill Bixby and Lou Ferrigno, I understood The Hulk and enjoyed Mark Ruffalo’s performance. That allowed me to not watch the Ed Norton Hulk movie.

On the other hand, we went with friends who were not familiar with the whole story and they enjoyed it. Part of it was the experience of being at a drive-in but the movie was exciting. If you go to the Harvest Moon, you have to get the Funnel Cake Sundae. Decadent but easier to take if you share with others.

The other part was the stunning special effects that created leviathans and creepy ice guys to cause trouble. They were seamless and wonderful even if I knew there was a computer doing the heavy lifting.

Strangely enough, I found the movie to be mostly kid appropriate. It has a PG-13 rating, mostly for the action shots. If your child is not used to such movies, then it will not be appropriate. However, our 7-year-old watched and loved it. Granted, he has also seen many of the movies leading up to this one and knew what to expect.

I have a friend with a five-year-old and she reported he did just fine with the movie.

A good story with great dialogue and thrilling action along with characters that are more than cardboard cutouts make for a great movie. It is everything I would want for a summer blockbuster movie and much more.

Karyn Bowman lives in Kankakee County with her outdoor writer husband and four children. Become friends with Karyn on Facebook or send an e-mail to momgoestothemovies@sbcglobal.net.

Summer is coming.

The heat is here, graduation is near and school is almost over.

Every year we go through a summer in which the kids say “I’m Bored.” Before you know it they are picking at each other which is driving you crazy.

We have had that problem for years. I tried another mom’s suggesttion of having a ‘Hogwarts’ camp at home or finding a Vacation Bible School (VBS) every week that the kids are home. The year that every one planned their VBS on the same week was not so good.

Being an avid blogger, I read a lot of blogs. Some moms are ingenious. But my favorites are the ones who come up with an “I’m Bored Jar.”

A few of the Slips

What these women did is take an empty peanut butter jar, clean it out, then they fill it up with slips of papers with a suggested activity written on each slip. This one gal came up with 150 slips.  

I know, 150 slips with ideas for activities!

I thought about stealing her list, just print it out and cut out each one. But then I decided to make my own instead. That way I could personalize it to my kids’ interests and chores around the house.

So I started writing and writing and writing. I lost count of how many I made up. But here are a few that I did.

Find a recipe using raspberries.

Call Grandma

Clean Your Closet

Read a Book

Give the dog a bath

When I set it out, the kids and the husband looked crossed-eyed at the jar. They were not interested and told me so in no-uncertain-terms.

That is until one day when it was raining and the kids were bored. Some one said those words and the next thing that happened was the jar was opened. They started shifting through the slips until they found one they liked.

Later that day we were treated to a play about pirates. Granted, it was really an excuse to jump on the couch for most of the five-minute run time. But the point was they had fun while being creative. And the kids love pirates.

Win-win for all of us.

What kind of ideas would you put on your slips for the boredom buster jar?

We are doing a countdown in our house right now for a special event.

You would think it would be a birthday or the day someone gets a driver’s permit or even the end of the school year.

But, no, that is not it.

We are planning a countdown to the opening day of The Avengers which opens on May 4th.

Poster Image from IMDb.com

When the commercials for the movie come on, wherever we may be, the kids are glued as they pick out each character. For me, the exciting part is listening to Robert Downey Jr. as Tony Stark narrate the pros and cons of his team to the Loki character.

Perhaps this is the icing on the cake for me, to see a man who was almost totally lost to his addictions come back stronger and better than before. Robert Downey Jr. has managed to have the comeback career of a lifetime with his strong portrayals of Tony Stark and Sherlock Holmes.

Every time I open a magazine I see an interview with Chris Hemsworth (Thor). Pictures of Scarlet Johansen and Gwyneth Paltrow are popping up all over. I recently saw an interview with Mark Ruffalo who plays Bruce Banner.

Already, our kids have planned the day. It is their firm belief that we must go to the drive-in at Gibson City to see the movie. It is my firm belief that we must get there one hour before the gates open to beat the crowd. If I am driving all that way, I am getting in to see the movie.

At home the kids have battles as if they are certain characters. My seven-year-old favors the Hulk, who is a bit of a loose cannon. But he can do the growl of a voice of the Hulk. The others like the ability to shoot energy out of their hands or throw magnificent weapons.

The build up for this movie has been going on for years when the first Iron Man movie came out in 2008 when Samuel L. Jackson showed up in that movie. Intense characters lead to intense movies. But what has been noticeable about each of these movies is the quality.

I thought Captain America was going to be awful. Instead, I found that Chris Evans was able to leave behind his “Johnny Storm” bravado to put on the earnest face of a young man who only wanted to serve his country. As for Thor, the love story was just as captivating  as the story of a hero in need of humility.

Now we wait for the movie that brings these characters together while adding others we have not seen yet. We are making our plans for viewing that includes blankets, snacks and enough money for glow-in-the-dark alien pops and a funnel cake sundae. As each day passes, another ‘X’ finds goes on the calendar.

What special day is getting the countdown treatment at your house?

Karyn Bowman lives in Kankakee County with her outdoor writer husband and four children. Become friends with Karyn on Facebook or send an e-mail to momgoestothemovies@sbcglobal.net.

This time of year we hear a lot of tips about how to save the planet.

Earth is on April 22 and there are a ton of events across the country to clean up parks and natural areas. People will be planting flowers and trees in an effort to make our world better and greener.

Our family is celebrating by visiting a friend’s farm in the western part of the county. We are going to meet some newborn lambs and piglets. Our host has warned us that it will probably be muddy. Dirt and muck on a farm – who woulda thunk it.

I am planning to take a loaf of home-made bread to my friend and she tells me there might be fresh eggs in my future.

What I am looking forward to is teaching my kids just how interconnected we are to the earth. In this age of clear plastic wrapped meat and fruits from around the world, it is hard to remember there was once a time when strawberries came only in June and tomatoes arrived in July and August.

They see that a little bit with our backyard garden with our early crop lettuce and late season spinach. On a farm, it is hard to miss the connection between humans and nature. We cultivate the grains, fruits and vegetables. We raise specific animals for food and wool.

It is a lot of work that pays off in little blessings everyday, from fresh flowers to herbs in pots to food on the table. Having a garden forces you to go outside and get fresh air. Tending to an animal teaches kids to be responsible for something.

So after this weekend, I know we will take these lessons to make Earth Day an everyday part of our life. There are little things all of us can do.

• Use canvas bags for shopping.
• Plant  a flower garden if you have the space.
• Add a tree to your yard. If you can’t plant one, sponsor one at your local park.
• Turn off the water when you brush your teeth, turning it on only when you rinse.
• Recycle paper and plastic.

If you are thinking “I can’t do all of these things,” you know you can start with one thing. Make one change per month, then add one thing the next month. I am not asking you to give up meat to save the planet but you can pick up your garbage at the park. Take the kids to the playground and pick up the trash others have left. Here is another suggestion I am hearing – buy reusable cups instead of water bottles. Oh, and use old towels for rags instead of paper towels.

At our house, we recycle paper and plastic. Plastic shopping bags that come home are used as doggie walk bags. Water bottles are use more than once after being washed in hot water.  We keep a rag-bag to decrease our paper towel use. Finally, my husband uses an old-fashioned rotary lawn mower to cut the grass.

There are a lot of things that you could do to keep Earth Day alive all year round. The question is what is the first step you going to take?

Karyn Bowman lives in Kankakee County with her outdoor writer husband and four children. Become friends with Karyn on Facebook or send an e-mail to momgoestothemovies@sbcglobal.net.

Cook-a-Doodle Doo           Great White Sharks             The Red Pyramid

The Alex Rider series                   The Ramona Series

These are just a few of the books that have come home from our school library. And I like that my kids love going to the library.

Image from Amazon.com

They bring home books that interest them. My daughter is working on a number of book series while my youngest wants to know everything he can find on the planets and sharks. (I am not sure how that matches. He is either going to be a rocket scientist or a marine biologist.)

That is the beauty of a library. You can find books on any number of subjects. The fiction section is filled with books that speak to kids, either by taking them on an adventure or working through real issues the kids might go through themselves.

This week libraries are being highlighted because April 8 -14 is National Library Week.  April is National School Library Month. At a time when people say that books will be dinosaurs, that reading from paper is going away, seemingly a library would lose its importance in the community.

Image from Barnes And Noble.com

But that is not true. The Kankakee Library has been given credit for the city’s resurgence by holding events at the library, by maintaining reading groups and events for kids. You can get classes to learn how to use your computer or learn how to Zumba.

If you are finding this blog entry after the week is over, there are still ways to support your library.

School libraries accept volunteer help. I spend an hour each week at our school library. Sometimes I put books back on the shelves but most of the time I am getting books ready to be put on the shelves. Perhaps you can help with the book fair or have books in good condition that can be donated to the library. Talk to your school librarian to see how you can help.

What about your local library? Visit it. Check out books and bring them back. See if the library has a “friends of the Library” group and join it. You don’t have to attend meetings but you can be supportive of their events. If they have events in your interest area, attend it. If time allows I am hoping to listen to the presentation on the Barn Quilts movement that is happening at the Kankakee Library on April 14^th with Suzi Parron.

Image from Borders.com

This week might be a great time to drop off a gift basket to your favorite librarians to let them know how much you appreciate them. Maybe you could make a donation to help buy new books for the library. Or maybe you could get your own library card if you do not already have one in your wallet.

That might be the best way to honor libraries during this special week honoring the libraries in our communities.

Karyn Bowman lives in Kankakee County with her outdoor writer husband and four children. She is currently enamored with the ‘Jane Austen Vampire’ series by Michael Thomas Ford. Become friends with Karyn on Facebook or send an e-mail to momgoestothemovies@sbcglobal.net.

There is one fun summer-time activity that our family partakes in every year – no matter what.

That is going to the drive-in movie theater.

Whenever I mention this, the next question is always about where any can be found these days. That is the problem in a nutshell. There used to be a drive-in theater in every town. These days residents in Kankakee County have to drive about an hour to the closest theater. I can think of at least four drive-in theaters and two are in the state of Indiana.

My favorite one in Illinois is the Harvest Moon Twin Drive-In Movie Theatre in Gibson City. It is an easy drive down I-57 to west on State Road 9. There are other ways to go but the husband and I love driving through Ten Mile Grove.

What makes this drive-in better than most starts with the large green areas in front of the screens (there are two movie screens) that allows a number of families to play football, frisbee, soccer or catch before the movie.

Another great aspect is that the drive is filled with smaller pebbles and rocks. This may not seem like a big deal until you are at a drive-in with bigger rocks that hurt your feet and are big ouchies for little kids.

Finally, we have always been happy with the offerings at the concession stand. But the “Glow-In-The-Dark” Alien lollypop remains the hands-down favorite. We have had great pulled pork and hamburger sandwiches.

However, this year the Harvest Moon is facing a bigger challenge than decreasing audiences or greedy studios taking much of the box office profits. And this problem cannot be solved with the energy-creating windmill.

The studios are demanding changes in how movies are shown in the theaters by replacing film with digital equipment by 2013. This will mean less problems with disturbances in a movie and less supervision needed while the film is playing. They are also demanding brighter lightbulbs and the ability to adjust the screen size. No drive-in can do the last one.

However, it will cost theater owners approximately $150,000 to make these changes. And it is estimated that in ten years the technology will change again requiring costly improvements.

While Harvest Moon does not want to close, they are asking for help. If you love this drive-in, come as much as you are able. Buy food and drinks from the concession stand. Check out their special merchandise, especially purses made from actual film stock. Join their facebook page and let others know. You can even make a donation to help the theater buy the new equipment.

Perhaps it does not seem possible that such an icon of recent American history could disappear into oblivion. But it happens. Look at the car companies that have disappeared. How many station wagons do we see around? Does anyone listen to Walkman’s?

As much as business and/or product trends come and go, this is one trend that I hope will never disappear.

When was the last time you went to a Drive-In Movie Theater?

Karyn Bowman lives in Kankakee County with her outdoor writer husband and four children. Become friends with Karyn on Facebook or send an e-mail to momgoestothemovies@sbcglobal.net.

It does not seem all that long ago that Steve Jobs passed away.

If there was anyone who ‘couldva,’ ’shouldva’ beaten cancer it was Jobs who was fabulously wealthy and incredibly creative.

But at the age of 56 he died, leaving behind a wife, four children and a business that always seemed to foresee the future.

When the biography on Jobs by Walter Isaacson came out, my non-techy husband surprised me by requesting a copy. At the time the words of wisdom Jobs gave to graduating seniors had been played or shared on the internet many times over.

Who among us dreamers could resist the call to “remain hungry, remain foolish?”

The husband bought the 600+ page tome about the man who would change our world by creating elegantly designed computers, hardware and software. But I am the one who read it first.

Let me assure those people who are not technologically inclined, you will still be able to read this book. The algorithms used to create these programs are not described to the nth degree. But Jobs, with all of his faults and good point, are put on display.

I am not sure I would have liked working for this man or living with him. He could go on a tear and call all of your designs “sh**.” Some of that behavior  is repeated by bad bosses all across America. The man had eating issues, changing his diet frequently all the while believing he only needed to shower weekly. Making a decision about what pieces of furniture could go in his home was torturous.

On the other hand, he demanded results from his teams and got it. He would dream up the easiest, simpliest way to use a device and demand that the engineers and designers work together to make it happen. Jobs had a high level of charisma and could make you fall in love with him. This happened with girlfriends and co-workers. He knew how to reward people for the great work that they did for him.

One phrase that turns up several times is the ‘distortion reality field” which was Jobs way of making himself and others believe something that was absolutely untrue. When it came to products, most worked out. But when it came to personal relations or health issues, this could be a bad thing.

While I was reading the book, I was fascinated by Jobs. I am amazed at all of the innovations regards computers are directed because of him – from rounded edges on the boxes  inside a program window to not having an ‘off’ switch on Apple products. The sections about Pixar had me spellbound because without Jobs, we might not have Toy Story or Finding Nemo. My husband was forced to listen to each new factoid I learned about the man.

And yet, I noticed glaring omissions from the book such as family time lines to the birth of children and death of children. His mother’s death from cancer is only mentioned in regards to a book written by his biological sister, Mona Simpson. Family had meaning for him and yet it didn’t. There is one part where he says it is amazing how well his kids have turned out despite how much he and his wife have ignored them. She looked at him, unbelievingly at what he had just said, because Jobs did not get the amount of time she spent with the kids.

Distortion field or sad truth? I am never sure with Jobs. Walter Isaacson has put together a compelling and disturbing picture of a man who could make people love him and foresee products we never knew we wanted. I could not believe how much I had read or how much farther I had to go until it was done.

It is amazing how fast more than 600 pages can go.

Karyn Bowman lives in Kankakee County with her outdoor writer husband and four children. Become friends with Karyn on Facebook or send an e-mail to momgoestothemovies@sbcglobal.net.

This past week I had a look at my garden and realized the raspberry canes were trying to take over my flower garden.

If this action was going on in the place that is my raspberry patch I would not be upset. However, these were located right in my peonies. Raspberry canes have thorns which can be quite hurtful if you are not aware of them. They easily become attached to clothing as well.

Something had to be done.

I have been a member of the local Freecycle group on Yahoo for sometime but I have never offered something. Freecycle is a group that allows people to post items they no longer want that are given away for free. This keeps items from going to the dump that might otherwise be useful.

People also request items that they need and let you know when offers have been taken. Once you sign up for the group, you get regular updates about Offers, Wanted, and Taken items.

It was so easy. I made a new post that looked like this.

OFFER:  Raspberry Canes in St. Anne

Posted by: “Karyn”

Fri Mar 9, 2012 3:39 pm (PST)

I have raspberry canes growing in my flower garden that need to be removed. These are a tasty red and black variety – kids in the neighborhood flock to eat them in July and August. I am willing to dig them out and put them in plastic bags for pick up.

Within hours, I had e-mails from several takers. On Sunday, the first two bundles of plants were taken. The husband and I dug out and bagged the rest on Tuesday night for pick ups the next day. By Friday the last batch was taken home by a family. Four sets of plants were taken altogether.

I told all takers that they would get flowers along with the canes as these had migrated from our raspberry patch to the shade peony bed.  With direct sun and plenty of water after planting, these canes should be producing just fine.

Here is what the Taken post looked like.

Taken: Raspberry Canes

Posted by: “Karyn”

Wed Mar 14, 2012 4:58 pm (PDT)

Thanks to everyone who responded. I am sorry there was not enough to give to everyone. If more come up during this season I will remove them this fall and post again.

I felt bad for the people who responded after the first four since I had no more extra plants to give away. Well, by this fall there might be more. And I am happy to do a little more digging. As a gardener, it makes me happy to give plants to others. That is how I started my various beds from gifts of plants people have given me.

Have you tried Freecycle?

Karyn Bowman lives in Kankakee County with her outdoor writer husband and four children. Become friends with Karyn on Facebook or send an e-mail to momgoestothemovies@sbcglobal.net.

I once read a memoircalled Raising Demons by Shirley Jackson, one of the best horror writers ever, about her family life. They lived in a huge house in Vermont that was  overflowing with books amid four children, pets and possessions. It was a wonderful read.

One constant in the book was Jackson making chocolate pudding for that night’s dessert. Her children dedicated the book to their mother who was addicted to smoking, books, drinking and chocolate. I wish I had known Shirley Jackson.

I bring this up because this past week our ten-year-old daughter made our Sunday night meal and for dessert she planned on chocolate pudding. For a change of pace we made ‘cook-and-serve’ pudding.

One thing you would not think is that there is a big difference I the taste or texture. I mean, we are talking Chocolate pudding.

But we noticed differences. The cook-and-serve pudding seemed a little thicker although just as creamy. Perhaps it was because my daughter stood over the stove moving the spoon around for several minutes. That pudding was almost as thick as sour cream.

And then there was the skin on the pudding.  After cooking the pudding we filled six dessert cups. The skin was thin but tasty. I had forgotten about the skin since we have used instant most of the time.

The other noticeable difference was the taste. Instant pudding has a nice milk chocolate flavor. But the cook-and-serve pudding had a different richer flavor. My daughter stated it had a flavor more like cocoa.

She was right. The flavor was stronger, richer. It was not like eating baking chocolate by accident or dark chocolate. The flavor is simply deeper while retaining milk chocolate-y-ness.

Sure, instant pudding is easy to make. It is a key component of our dirt cup dessert. The flavor is good and mild. There is no skin and it has a wonderful creaminess. But the deeper flavor  and slightly thicker custard texture will bring us back to the cook-and-serve variety of pudding.

Karyn Bowman lives in Kankakee County with her outdoor writer husband and four children. Become friends with Karyn on Facebook or send an e-mail to momgoestothemovies@sbcglobal.net.