by Lynn I love the movies. I used to go once a week back BK - Before Kids. Now, I'm lucky to get to the theatre once a year. I miss it.

But happily, this summer we've discovered AMC's Movie Tuesdays. Each Tuesday morning at 10 a.m., the AMC Theatre in Kanata's Centrum is showing a movie for just $1 per ticket. It's not a current release, but something from the past couple of years that was a big hit with the kids. It's a great way to introduce my kids to the whole movie-going experience and the perfect outing for a rainy day.

Last week we went to our first showing, Monsters Vs. Aliens. We'd seen the movie before, which I consider a plus - that way, I don't have to spend my entire time answering question after question about what happens next. We plan to go often this summer, but with the almost-three-year-old in tow, I definitely plan to focus on movies we've seen before. Here's the complete schedule:

July 6 Madagascar (PG)	July 13 Madagascar: Escape 2 Africa (PG)	July 20 Hotel for Dogs (PG)


July 27 Kung Fu Panda (PG)	August 3 The Spiderwick Chronicles (PG)	August 10 Surprise Mystery Title

The best part about Movie Tuesday is that it's totally aimed at families. Everyone comes with kids, as young as small babies going right up to tweenagers. There's a ton of noise in there - don't worry, you'll still hear the movie over the crying babies and toddlers declaring that they need to pee, but at the same time, there's very little pressure to try to keep your own kids quiet. It's like a huge Mardi Gras party and everyone's invited. Well, except for the beads and drinking and toplessness. Whatever.

We brought our own snacks, due to the Captain's allergies. This is technically not allowed, but it's more of a don't-ask-don't-tell kind of policy. So the overall cost of the morning was just $4 -- well worth it for two hours of entertainment and my own swoony return to the movies. If you do want to buy snacks, they have a special kids' pack during these screenings for just $4 each.

These showings do fill up right to the last seat, so be sure to come early. We got there 1/2 hour early this week and already it was more than half full; larger parties that arrived at five minutes to ten were forced to sit in the very front row. If you're saving seats for friends, be prepared to be aggressive, and tell your buddies not to be late and make you look like a jerk. I'm just saying, LADY NEXT TOO US.

Good price, good fun, and child-friendly environment - I hardly need to say that AMC Movie Tuesdays gets a big Summer Of Awesome Must Do.

Lynn is mom to three tombliboos and blogs over at Turtlehead.