If you’re, say, an eleven-year-old boy, then this summer’s box office blockbusters will be right up your alley. Flicks like Iron Man (May 2nd), the X Files (July 25th), Indiana Jones (May 22nd), The Dark Knight (July 18th), Speed Racer (May 9th),  The Chronicles of Narnia (Prince Caspian), The Incredible Hulk (June 13th), and Hancock (July 2nd) will keep male tweens, teens and dudes of all ages pretty busy at the popcorn stand this summer. Not to say some moms won’t see these movies (don’t we get dragged to at least a couple of them?), but for me, I’d rather not see a movie that also has an action figure as a part of the merchandising. The one I’ll be most likely to see of my own volition is the Dark Knight where the late Heath Ledger plays a very twisted Joker, and it’s hard to say no to a Will Smith movie during the summer (Hancock). Since my hubby has a press “family” pass for Indiana Jones and we happened to name our eldest after the action star, that one will be on my movie card, too. But still. Don’t even get me started that none of those movies star a female superhero. Looks like Angelina Jolie in Wanted is a close as we’ll get to some real kick-butt gals this summer.

Throw in some comedic fare like Stepbrothers, starring Will Ferrell (July 25th), and the Love Guru, starring Mike Myers (June 20th), and Get Smart (Steve Carrell) and you may start to believe you’ve been officially crowded out of any movie studio’s demographic. Hey, I’m a fan of all three of the stars, but that still leaves me wanting something more, something, oh, I don’t know, something that pulls at my heartstrings and has a bigger plot that doesn’t involve farting and blowing things up, perhaps?

Don’t despair, fine lady. Somebody somewhere thought you were worth throwing a few actors together, hiring a screenwriter and movie crew and ordering craft services for a few months in your honor.

Alas, a few chick flicks are on the horizon. Thankfully one is a biggie, probably the biggest of the summer: the much-anticipated TV-to-film phenom Sex & the City (May 30th) with the original cast, our four beloved girlfriends (all four of them leading ladies), dishing it up and dressing up (eighty wardrobe changes!) for our anxious eavesdropping ears. Schedule a Girls Night Out with your girlfriends. Whether or not you’re into martinis and Manolas, you’ll enjoy kicking off the summer with your friends before being buried in kids activities and smelling like chlorine all summer.

Made of Honor starring Sexiest Man Alive Patrick Demsey (in theaters now) is a nice eye-candy treat, and all the way into the hottest part of the summer, we can slink into the theaters to see Mamma Mia! starring Meryl Streep based on a Broadway musical by the same name. Sewn together with the upbeat tunes of ABBA, it’s sure to be a crowd pleaser. Just don’t think about taking your eleven-year-old boy.

To see trailers for the movies listed above, visit http://www.quicktime.com.

Note: I know I said I’d blog about outdoor living spaces as a hot trend, so next week I’m doing it up even bigger, with pictures of one Oklahoma City woman’s gorgeous outdoor living room and how we can “steal that look.”