Jiffy Pop | bleuwater

One of my all time favorite movies growing up. It was broadcast on TV annually around Halloween.

Remember when we used to watch broadcast TV as a family? We didn’t have cable and there were three main stations, ABC, NBC and CBS. We had a local channel and PBS. That was it.

During holidays, we’d gather as a family in front of the TV and watch the holiday-themed movies. Mom would make popcorn in a big pot on the stove. If we were really lucky, we’d get to help shake the foil covered Jiffy Pop over a burner. For Halloween we’d watch Wizard of Oz and The Great Pumpkin.

Christmas included movies that my parents liked including It’s a Wonderful Life and White Christmas. I liked Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer, A Charlie Brown Christmas and Frosty the Snowman. My parents had us watch A Christmas Carol, but it was way to scary for me with the ghosts of Christmas past. When I had kids, I introduced my kids to my childhood favorites plus Meet Me in St. Louis.

Now that it’s Lent and Easter Season there are more movies to watch together as a family. I admit as soon as cable and streaming came into our lives, we don’t watch movies together very often. We watch TV together more for football games than any movies. My husband and I end up in separate rooms watching TV, reading or listening to podcasts on our laptops.

I wrote about five Easter movies HERE.

This is a movie I remember watching as a family on Easter weekend.

Do you watch movies together as a family?

What were your favorite holiday movies growing up?

I posted this Easter week in 2014. There are a number of new movies released in the past five years that might be added to this list. Or, maybe some classics that I missed? Please comment below if you have more ideas for Easter movies.

When I was a kid, the major three TV networks aired Holiday Specials. My mom would make popcorn in a big pot on the stove, or if we were lucky, my brother and I’d get to shake the aluminum-foil bursting “Jiffy Pop” right on the electric burner. We’d gather on the sofa or in chairs to watch — get this — as a family – the “Holiday Special.”

Around Halloween, it was Wizard of Oz and It’s the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown. Christmas had a bunch of great ones. My favorite was Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer, but we also watched A Charlie Brown Christmas, and my Mom and Dad’s favorite — It’s a Wonderful Life.

This Easter, I’d love to rekindle the tradition of sitting down with family to watch holiday movies together. Unfortunately, my son’s having a riotous good time at UCSB and my daughter will be off to see Lorde, Lana Del Rey, Beck and Arcade Fire. Yes, she’s going to Coachella!

If I can convince my husband, or maybe alone, I’m going to check out Netflix, Apple TV, or Google Movies to watch my list of must-see Easter movies:

1. The Robe. Starring Richard Burton, Jean Simmons, and Victor Mature. 1953. Won two Oscars.
2. The Ten Commandments. Charlton Heston, Yul Brynner, Anne Baxter. 1956. Won 1 Oscar.
3. Ben Hur. Charlton Heston. 1959. Won 11 oscars.
4. Passion of the Christ. Mel Gibson director. 2004. Not for the faint of heart!
and at theaters: