Nighttime Is the Right Time for Recharging with Netflix #StreamTeam

I won’t lie – having three young boys is exhausting. I try to embrace the chaos and enjoy my time with them most days, but there are also days I’m just hoping to survive. Whether it’s a great day or one I’ve barely made it through, I feel like doing a little dance every night when they are all finally asleep.

I love them to bits, but I need some time for me!

My time to relax and recharge is in resting on my living room couch with a great show on Netflix streaming. I pop some popcorn or make a mug cake and John and I caught up on our favorite shows, or discover new shows. There are SO many options on Netflix that it’s easy to find new stuff to watch, and Netflix personalized recommendations, based on shows you’ve watched in the past, are really helpful.

Netflix suggested these shows as ones you have probably heard of but may not have watched yet:

1. Orange Is the New Black
2. Scandal
3. Pretty Little Liars
4. Sherlock
5. Breaking Bad
6. Parenthood

I’m a huge Orange Is the New Black fan. I finished the second season within about a week of it’s release earlier this month (it would have been sooner except that I can’t watch it with the kids around). If you haven’t watched it you really should; it’s a great show and the second season did not disappoint. When does season 3 come out??

Scandal and Pretty Little Liars are guilty pleasures for me. They both remind me of soap operas a bit, but they’re fun to watch.

John and I watched Sherlock together and it’s a really good show; Benedict Cumberbatch is awesome, and I was kind of hoping he’d be picked as the next Doctor on Doctor Who, but I’m happy to keep watching him on Sherlock.

Breaking Bad is LEGENDARY. I was on the edge of my seat for the entire series.

Parenthood is a story about my family. Okay, maybe not exactly, but I can relate to all of the characters so I feel like it’s my family.

Then there’s the sleeper hits – the shows Netflix recommends that you may not have heard of, but you should definitely try:

1. Weeds
2. Call the Midwife
3. Freaks and Geeks
4. Shameless
5. Top of the Lake

I love Weeds. I was a fan of Mary-Louise Parker on The West Wing so I was excited to see her on Weeds. If you loved Breaking Bad you love Weeds, too.

I haven’t watched Call the Midwife or Shameless. I’m putting those on my list of shows to check out soon.

Freaks and Geeks is hilarious and it’s several actors who are famous now that were just getting their start then – James Franco, Seth Rogen, Jason Segel. It only lasted one season and that’s such a shame.

I discovered Top of the Lake this year because Netflix recommended it for me. Top of the Lake is a mini-series set in New Zealand and it’s a little weird, but really interesting, and it stars another alum from The West Wing – Elisabeth Moss.

Now here are some of MY recommendations for what to watch when you’re trying to relax and recharge:

• Science-fiction(ish): Doctor Who, Eureka, Fringe, Warehouse 13, Firefly, Torchwood,
• Crime/mystery: , Luther, Leverage, Lost, The Riches, The Returned, The Dollhouse, The Black Donnellys, Dexter, Sons of Anarchy, The Walking Dead, The Fall, The Killing, Rectify, Lie to Me
• Funny/wacky: New Girl, Arrested Development
• In a class all it’s own (the best series ever made, in my opinion): The West Wing

Please tell me your favorite Netflix picks! I’m always looking for new shows (or movies) to check out!