Finally some good news for those of you who are tired of all of the Twilight mania. Or is it? A new movie spoof called “Vampires Suck” is set to be released in August. The film is being made similar to other spoof movies such as Date Night and Meet the Spartans. “Vampires Suck” will primarily focus on both the “Twilight” and “New Moon” movies while throwing in other pop culture references such as Lady Gaga, Alice in Wonderland, and Jersey Shore.

The irony of the movie is that you have to have seen the Twilight movies for “Vampires Suck” to actually be that funny. As a fan of both the Twilight movies and spoof movies, I’m actually looking forward to this. What do you think? As a Twilight fan are you offended by it? As a non-Twilight fan do you have any interest in seeing it? Check out the trailer below.

Just this week I heard about a service called BookSwim. Book Swim is often called the “Netflix for books.” You essentially sign up for a membership (there are various membership levels), visit their site to pick out books you want to read, and wait for them to be sent to you. When you are done reading them, you send them back and they send you the next ones in your list. You do not have to pay any additional shipping fees.

What sets BookSwim apart from a library is that they actually have new releases and best sellers in stock. I did a spot check of the last 10 books that I read (most purchased as soon as they came out), and every one of them were listed. I also checked some of the books that my daughter (who is 9) read and many of them were there as well.

Right now we are lucky enough to be giving away a couple of BookSwim memberships at Sunshine Rewards. Check out my videoblog to find out how you can enter and also how you can get discounts on BookSwim.

My family saw Toy Story 3 last weekend and loved it! It definitely hit all of the right notes from comedy to suspense to good old-fashioned values. One of the best parts for me was the use of recognizable toys but giving them personalities. Ken was a new character this time and was fabulous in many ways. One of the jokes revolved around the fact that Ken is just a “girl’s toy.” Of course, Ken sees himself in a completely different way. He even renames the Barbie Dreamhouse as “Ken’s Dreamhouse.”

Here’s a cute video that Disney/Pixar did in addition to the movie. It’s an “interview” of Ken that doesn’t go exactly as he would have liked.

AMF Bowling is offering a special right now called the 5/10 Split. You get $5 off coupons for up to 10 people. When you fill out the email form, you can immediately print the coupon.

They do have a search function on their site where you can look for the closest AMF Bowling to you. Unfortunately, we don’t have one in our area. Hopefully some of you will be able to take advantage of this offer!

If you have kids under the age of 10, chances are pretty good that there is talk in your house about the new Toy Story 3 coming out this month. Personally, I loved the Toy Story movies, so I am excited about this one, too. The premise is that Andy is going off to college and the toys are being donated to a day care. Disney has been getting creative with their advertising, even making fake commercials for some of the new characters in the movie. But this new video that features the Toy Story toys using Google is really cute. It’s one of Google’s “Search Stories,” essentially a commercial that tells a story through the use of various Google searches.

Watch the video a few times to catch some of the more nuanced things like the fact that Andy needs extra long twin sheets for his college bed (I remember those days!). The voices are familiar and the video definitely appeals more to adults than kids. I love the end where they toys not-so-subtly encourage Andy by typing “bring your toys to college” into Google! What did you catch in the video that others may not? Does it make you more likely to want to see Toy Story 3?

Borders has announced their summer reading program, Double-Dog Dare. Jeff Kinney, author of the hugely popular Diary of a Wimpy Kid books, helped announce the program.

The reading program is open to kids under the age of 12. They must read 10 books (completely of their choice) and then list them on the form available on the Borders website. Once they read the books and complete the form, they can exchange it for a free book. (Last year it was for a coupon for 50% off any book). Free book titles include the following but may change:

Ramona the Brave by Beverly Cleary ISBN 0380709597
Miss Daisy is Crazy! by Dan Gutman ISBN 0060507004
Flat Stanley by Jeff Brown ISBN 0060097914
Dear Mr. Henshaw by Beverly Cleary ISBN 0380709589
The Ruins of Gorlan by John Flanagan ISBN 0142417440
Hoot by Carl Hiaasen ISBN 0440419395
The Witch of Blackbird Pond by Elizabeth
George Speare ISBN 0440495962
Johnny Tremain by Esther Forbes ISBN 0440442508
The River by Gary Paulsen ISBN 0440407532
Kristy’s Great Idea by Ann
M. Martin ISBN 0545174759

The form must be completed, signed by a parent, and returned to a Borders or Waldenbooks location by 8/26/2010. There is no purchase necessary to take advantage of the program. I love when companies do summer reading programs because it gives the kids a goal throughout the summer. The rule for my kids is that they cannot duplicate books for different programs. If they want to earn multiple prizes, they have to read that many more books. So far it hasn’t been a problem because they love to read! How about your kids? Do you participate in summer reading programs? What has your experience been?

Click here to visit the Borders website for more information about their Summer Reading Program.

Up until a couple of years ago, the books I read with my daughters consisted mainly of picture books and Dr. Seuss. Although I love to read, I tended to read short books to my girls and not anything that really interested me. Then came Harry Potter. It completely changed the ways that my daughters and I read books both together and apart. I started reading less business books and more fantasy (I also more than quadrupled the number of books I read in a year!). My daughters started reading chapter books before bed. Before long, we were all getting interested in the same things. Now we find ourselves reading series like Kingdom Keepers and Percy Jackson and the Lightning Thief–each of us trying to finish faster than the other.

We also discovered that our friends enjoyed the same books as us. Over time, we started sharing books with other mothers AND daughters. After a few months of this, we decided that it might be fun to try a mother-daughter book club. Now, I’ve never even been in a regular book club. Starting a mother-daughter book club should be interesting!

Cindy Hudson’s Book by Book: The Complete Guide to Creating Mother-Daughter Book Clubs is where I will be starting. In addition to the basic information (whom to invite, how big the group should be, where and when to have meetings), Cindy discusses issues that I would never have even thought about. For example, how can you tie in community service projects to the book that you are reading? What kind of expert can you bring in about the book? What will you do at meetings besides just talk about the book?

I had not thought about any of this when I envisioned our book club. I just imagined that we would read a book and then grab a pizza and talk about it for a couple of hours. However, that’s just the tip of the iceberg of what you can do. You can really use the book club as an opportunity to learn and grow with your daughter. It can also be a good way to strengthen your bond with the other mothers and daughters in the club.

Another great thing about the book are the book suggestions. Cindy breaks down age groups and gives you ideas about different books that you might want to use and what the themes of those books are. It’s a great starting point for choosing your early books that should then help you find more books later as your group progresses.

As I read this book, I became more and more excited about starting my group. I’ve touched base with a couple of other moms and am now eager to get the process going! You can pick up Book by Book: The Complete Guide to Creating Mother-Daughter Book Clubs at Amazon or other book retailers.

Ever tried having a discussion with your teen daughter about dating, having sex, drinking alcohol or being exposed to drugs? If so, you may have discovered that she puts up a wall against these types of conversations.  She may be too embarrassed or too afraid to reveal what she and her friends are doing, even if she has questions.

You may also be reluctant to bring up topics like these. What do you do if she asks about your own experiences and you don’t want to share them? Yet these are important issues. Talking with their moms can give girls crucial information that may keep them safe and help them make informed decisions when their peers engage in risky behavior.

This is where books can really help. When you read the same titles your daughter is reading, it gives you an entrée to talk about themes that appear in the pages—without the pressure of discussing either of your own personal details.

For instance, when the girls in my daughter’s mother-daughter book club read Speak by Laurie Halse Anderson, we were able to talk about date rape and how alcohol plays a role in it. We brainstormed ways the main character could have acted to keep herself safe while at a party. This was a non-confrontational way to discuss situations the girls may face as they entered high school and started socializing with friends more and parents less.

You also benefit when you listen to concerns you daughter and her friends have. Discussing actions by a character in a book may bring up topics you never even knew they worried about. Talking about these actions is a non-threatening way to gain insight into your daughter’s world and issues she may face.

Another plus is that you may hear of the topic again months later, when your daughter encounters a similar situation in real life. Once you’ve broken the ice, it’s easier for you or your daughter to refer back to an earlier discussion. And that keeps the lines open for honest communication about even more issues in the future.

Cindy Hudson is the author of Book by Book: The Complete Guide to Creating Mother-Daughter Book Clubs (Seal Press, October 2009). She is the founder of two long-running mother-daughter book clubs, and she lives in Portland, Oregon with her husband and two daughters. Visit her online at www.MotherDaughterBookClub.com.

Disney is giving away music for 50 days starting on May 3 and running through June 21, 2010.The songs will be available via download and will include everything from Bambi to Wizards of Waverly Place to High School Musical. Each day will be a different song, so you need to check back every day.

Visit Walt Disney Records’ Facebook page for today’s music: http://www.facebook.com/disneymusic

Day One: “Squirrels in my Pants” from Phineas & Ferb

If you are a Disney Rewards member (it’s free to sign up!), you can now get a Free Disney Enchanted Call. You will need to visit the special promotion page and get the code (ENCHANTEDCALL) to be able to redeem for it. Once you do, you will then get to choose the character and type of greeting that you would like.

The one thing that I was disappointed in was that there was not a call for an upcoming Disney trip. I was hoping to do one of those to get my kids excited about our vacation coming up. There are, however, many other calls to choose from.

Click here to get your free call!