Audrey Movies & Television

Take It Easy, 2021

I learned a lesson last year. I mean, I knew I should be doing this… but I didn’t put it into practice. Instead, I dreamed about the day that I could put it into practice. And then the world shut down and I was forced to do it.

“It” being slow the eff down, prioritize what makes me happy and calm, and invest in the things I want to do- not the things I should do.

I want to be a minimalist at heart, but instead I’m an extravagantist in practice. The 2020 COVID crisis did not make me a minimalist… but it did make me focus on how I spend my time, how I fill my space, and how I react to my every day situations.

Honestly, this post is getting deeper and more psychological than I meant it to…

Long story short, I enjoy reading and watching and listening to things… but I’m terrible at prioritizing entertainment. I’d sooner change the laundry over, wash a few dishes, vacuum, turn on the TV… only to leave the room and scrub the kitchen floors.

And while a clean space does bring me joy, so does Netflix and chillin’.

So I’m going to *trick* my own brain this year. I’m going to make a TV/movie/podcast to do list. Because nothing motivates ya girl to get stuff done like a checklist.

But honestly- no pressure. I’m doing it for fun. If I don’t get to everything it’s likely because I’m busy feeding a one year old or scrubbing a very dirty bathroom.

Yin and yan. Balance is essential. Yada yada. You get it.

SO without further ado- because there’s been a lot of ado in this post already- here’s my…

2021 Entertainment List

Bridgerton

The Queen’s Gambit

The Crown

Muppets Now

30 Rock

High Seas (season 3)

(finish) Schitt’s Creek

(last season of) The Good Place

(finish) Once Upon A Time

Noble Blood podcast

You Must Remember This podcast

Enola Holmes

Holidate

Jingle Jangle

Klaus

Happiest Season

(finish) Hamilton

The Trial of the Chicago 7

Molly’s Game

Easy A

Booksmart

The Greatest Showman

Crazy Stupid Love

I think that’s all I’ve got for now. Where should I start? (After I finished Bridgerton, of course.) I don’t do true crime podcasts but I looooove historic ones!

What’re you watching this year?

Audrey Movies & Television

10 out of 10: Would Recommend

I went back to work (on a part time basis) yesterday. My maternity leave was on the short side- only 8 weeks- but that’s how it goes when your husband owns the business and you’ve both got more than just money invested. Anyway, while I was off work and changing diapers/holding a napping baby/giving a bottle I logged quite a few hours on Netflix & Hulu.

I don’t waste my time watching things I hate so I recommend all of these.

High Seas (Netflix)
I am IN LOVE with this series. It’s a Spanish period drama (the English is dubbed over but it has yet to bother me) and it is so so so good. I’ve binged both seasons and can’t wait for season 3 to be released. It’s about two sisters, set on a cruise ship just after WWII. Lots of mystery, romance, etc.

Once Upon A Time (Netflix)
I loved this series when it was on the air but I fell off the wagon around season 5. I decided to restart the series. The first few seasons are amazing but from what I remember things get meh around season 4… Maybe I’ll feel differently this time around but I’m only halfway through season 2 right now.

The West Wing (Netflix)
K and I decided to rewatch this series. We watch it together so we only watch in the evenings. I will always and forever recommend this series to everyone. It is the greatest. We’re currently on season 5 (but I’ve watched the whole series).

The Crown (Netflix)
I’m not obsessed like the rest of the world, but I enjoy watching an episode or two when I can actually focus. I’m still in season one.

Letterkenny (Hulu)
Unfortunately, I discovered this gem on the last day of leave. Fortunately, I have two days off a week to chill with M and be at home… so I can binge more episodes soon. It’s crude and weird and hilarious.

Holiday in the Wild (Netflix)
A super cheesy Christmas movie but it was cute. Plus it had elephants, Rob Lowe, and an adorable story.

Funny enough, I had a handful of shows I wanted to watch while on maternity leave but I didn’t start any of them. I was going to watch The Marvelous Mrs. Maisel, Dolly Parton’s Heart Strings, & Schitt’s Creek (BUT I DIDN’T REALIZE IT WAS ON NETFLIX). Oh well. I’ll get to them eventually.

Have you watched any of these? If not, have I convinced you to start?

 

Audrey Movies & Television

Christmas Movies to Stream

I hope everyone had a beautiful Thanksgiving. No denying it now- we’re officially officially into the Christmas season 🎄

Last year I put together a list of classic Christmas movies and I did my best to watch as many as I could. I’m married to someone with a heart slightly larger than the Grinch (pre-Cindy Lou Who), so we don’t binge holiday films every single night. (You can bet your ass I still play holiday music all the time, though.) We almost always watch The Polar Express and The Santa Clause, though. And I like to watch Miracle on 34th Street and White Christmas and all the 1970s stop motion films.

Anyway, this year I’m talking over the apps and watching some cheesy Netflix (& Hulu & Amazon Prime) Christmas movies. I kind of feel like those platforms are giving Hallmark a run for its money! Here are the movies I want to see:

The Royal Ones
A Christmas Prince
A Christmas Prince: The Royal Wedding
The Princess Switch

The Convenient Love Ones
Holiday Engagement
Christmas With A View
A Christmas in NY (hulu)

The Small Town Feels Ones
Christmas Inheritance
Coffee Shop
A Merry Friggin’ Christmas (Amazon Prime)

The Magical Ones
The Holiday Calendar
The Christmas Chronicles
How Sarah Got Her Wings

The Classics
The Grinch
White Christmas
Love Actually
Mickey’s Once Upon A Christmas
Miracle on 34th Street (hulu)
It’s a Wonderful Life (Amazon Prime)

I should note that I’ve already watched A Christmas Prince and The Princess Switch. (Yay, sick days.) Both were cheesy but cute. Which is the norm, I think. Lol. All of these are Netflix films unless otherwise noted.

What holiday movies are you streaming this year?

Audrey Movies & Television

Fall Entertainment

I understand that it’s August 1st but that means we’re closing in on FALL 🖤
(August… Autumn…. See where I’m going here?)

Anyway, times have been stressful for K and I (*our house buyers backed out and it’s just been a rough few days… It’s ok, we’re getting by and life is still good*) so we’ve been watching silly game shows on major networks at night. During the commercials we get to see all the shows that are coming this fall…

Shows that are coming back that I’m PUMPED about:

  • Wet Hot American Summer: Ten Years Later | Netflix / available Aug. 4
  • The Mindy Project (6th & FINAL season) | Hulu / Tuesdays starting Sept. 12
  • Superstore (3rd season) | NBC / Thursdays @ 8pm starting Sept. 28
  • The Good Place (2nd season) | NBC / Thursdays @ 8:30pm starting Sept. 28

[Honestly, I usually watch these shows on Hulu instead of catching them at their scheduled times.
You can also catch up with these on Hulu before they start up.]

[Yes, I watch a lot of comedies. The world is a serious place and sometimes you just need a break.]

New shows that I want to check out (if I remember):

  • The Orville | Fox / Thursdays @ 9pm starting Sept. 10 (Sunday)
    Seth MacFarlane creates hits and misses… so we’ll see which this is.
  • Marvel’s Inhumans | ABC / Fridays @ 9pm starting Sept. 29
    I’m not 100% sure about this one…
  • Ghosted | Fox / Sundays @ 8:30pm starting Oct. 1
  • The Gifted | Fox / Mondays @ 9pm starting Oct. 2
    Guys… this is an X-men related show and centers around mutants. Sign me up!
  • A. P. Bio | NBC / midseason
  • Champions | NBC / midseason
    This is being produced by our girl Mindy so I’m hoping it’s the next TMP!
  • LA to Vegas | Fox / midseason
    Honestly, I’ve heard nothing about this show but Will Ferrell & Adam McKay are producing it so I’ll definitely give it a shot.
  • Splitting Up Together | ABC / midseason
    Jenna Fisher is in it and Ellen DeGeneres produced it. I’ll try it 😉

There’s no way I’ll watch all of these. I don’t watch a lot of TV because I can’t keep up, but I typically have 3 or 4 shows that I stream on Hulu religiously. (K and I watch The Mindy Project every Tuesday- that’s the one exception. And we watch The Voice when it’s on- although sometimes I read while he watches it.)

Also, you’ll notice that This Is Us is not on my list. Honestly, I don’t like shows that are so “real life” they hurt my heart. I cry enough from joy/anxiety/sadness. I don’t want my TV shows to incite that every week.

Also, I’ve tried and dismissed Speechless and Great News. They’re funny, but they didn’t keep my interest. American Housewife is ok when I’m in the mood.

Some older shows that I don’t watch (or have only seen an episode or 2), but I think I’d like to start watching are…

Bull, Designated Survivor, Madam Secretary, MOM, The Last Man on Earth, & Jane the Virgin.

So now I want to know if you’ve got any thoughts on new shows or recommendations or feedback on the shows that are already in 2nd or 3rd seasons!

Should I skip any of the ones I listed?

Audrey Movies & Television

Fall Movie Challenge

I’m not very good at these challenges… (Remember my reading one? Refresh yourself HERE. Yeah… I’m still getting through the first book. So embarrassing…) Anyway, practice makes perfect and this challenge is hopefully do-able. There are prizes and such, but I want to participate for fun so I’m not concerned about that! Plus, I have from Sept. 1 to Nov. 30 so I’ll at least cross off one or two movies… ha!

You can find the official rules HERE. Essentially I have to pick 25 movies that had/have theatrical releases and watch them. I can’t watch any that I’ve seen before. My goal is pick a few that I know K will watch with me!

Fall Film Challenge

| one: any set in new york city | One Fine Day
| two: any incorporating hot air balloons in the story | Mysterious Island
| three: any featuring a child as the main character | The Sandlot
| four: any Disney film | Tangled
| five: any set in Egypt OR that has an Egyptian character OR that stars an Egyptian actor/actress | Death on the Nile
| six: a close friend or family member’s favorite film | Crazy Stupid Love (my brother’s favorite)
| seven: any with the word great in the title | The Great Muppet Caper
| eight: any starring Harrison Ford | Anchorman 2: The Legend Continues
| nine: any featuring an idiot as the main character | National Lampoon’s Vacation
| ten: any mentioned in levis strauss’ list: Denim in the Oscars: A Look at Jeans in Cinema | Rear Window
| eleven: a film about a knight | Robin Hood: Prince of Thieves
| twelve: a love story | Chocolat
| thirteen: a movie about something miraculous | Ferris Bueller’s Day Off (because it’s a miracle his parents never found out)
| fourteen: any starring an actor/actress with the same first name as yours | Roman Holiday
| fifteen: a film about the Olympics | The Cutting Edge
| sixteen: a film on Time magazine’s list: The Top Ten Newspaper Movies | All the President’s Men
|seventeen: any with a question in the title | How Do You Know?
| eighteen: any with a score of ninety percent or greater on Rotten Tomatoes | The LEGO Movie
| nineteen: a film about a superhero | Fantastic Four (the new one) or Antman
| twenty: any with subtitles | The Lunchbox
| twenty-one: any incorporating unicorns in the story | Inkheart
| twenty-two: a film about a personal victory | The Grand Budapest Hotel
| twenty-three: a film with black or white in the title | Dear White People
| twenty-four: any set in a country you would most like to visit | The Queen (England!)
| twenty-five: a film set in a zoo | Zookeeper
.  .  .
A few afterthoughts: No, I have never seen Tangled. That’s a little weird for me, especially since I love Disney movies and K has actually seen it. I lucked out sharing a name with Audrey Hepburn! Can you tell I don’t like movies with violence? I think half my picks are kid movies… I don’t know if The Grand Budapest Hotel has personal victories, but Wes Anderson tends to give his characters little victories at the end so I’m going with it 😉 I pray most of these are on Netflix, Hulu, or Amazon Prime… ha!
 .  .  .
Want to join me? Here’s the original page, again. Have you seen any of these movies? What’d you think? What would you have picked??
 -Louise