Of Happy Feet and books

Now there's a new movie out, Barnyard! I've just watched Happy Feet with the kids and they aren't too happy about it. Neither was I, as a matter of fact. Too many songs I guess that became part of the dialogue. It was like watching a long karaoke session. Yawn! I felt for Mumble though and imagined what it was like for the poor penguins we saw in Underwater World, Langkawi. After 3 days, Mumble lost his voice, and after 3 months, he lost his mind. That got me wondering if we were looking at demented penguins there!

Then again, I was watching these new VCDs I bought for the kids called Letters from Felix, about a toy rabbit called Felix who travelled the world and wrote home to his owner Sophie about his adventures. In one episode, he found himself in the South American jungles and some animals, a jaguar, a toucan and a sloth (not too sure)on particular, purposefully got themselves caught by poachers to live in a zoo; only they weren't going to a zoo but to a restaurant that served exotic animals. So, if you believe one, you'd have to believe the other, right? I guess you'd have to be demented too, right, to want to go live in a zoo?

Anyway, they liked Over the Hedge, and Madagascar. Mika watched Monster House through his fingers. We haven't watched Ant Bully yet, but we should, coz it's about a destroyer and Mika's a destroyer too. He likes to kill bugs and he thinks he's doing us a service. Some months ago, I found a ladybug and excitedly called to my hubby and the kids. My husband picked up the ladybug and gave them a close-up look of it and accidentally dropped the ladybug on the ground. Immediately, Mika stomped the life out of that bug. Let's hope after the movie, he'll change.

The other day I bought Hansel and Gretel VCD for them. Not bad. It had Dakota Fanning but she wasn't the main character. Inez watched it twice and wanted to watch some more but Inez's Daddy said it's time to watch big people show, so she hasn't asked to watch it for the 3rd time yet. She's very into fairy tales now.

I remember I loved fairy tales as well, and my mom told us quite a number of fairy tales like the one about the king who wanted to marry his own daughter because she looked so much like his wife. She said yes upon the condition that a dress like the moonlight was made for her and the king made it happen. She then asked for a dress like the sun and the rainbow. After that she escaped and worked as a servant in a nearby kingdom. When the young king threw a ball, she attended in her 3 dresses, and the young king was very smitten with her but knew not where to find her until she dropped her ring by accident into his broth. And they lived happily ever after. I remember making my mom tell me that story over and over again. When I was old enough to read, I read all the Ladybird books like The Elves and The Shoemaker, The Gingerbread Man, etc. When I was about 11, I read all the Andrew Lang fairy books I could find in the library: The Red Fairy Book, The Yellow, the Olive, I think there are 12 altogether. I found them in Acmamall and bought the whole set. Working Mom has one set too. My daughter would usually bring out a book sometimes and ask for a fairy tale or two. Since I have to read aloud, I usually choose short ones. Mika is not into fairy tales yet (or ever, I dunno) but it's nice that he loves books too. He likes the Grolier ones with Opposite Words, etc. and of course Dora the Explorer!