Winston at Dance
with the attendant spaghetti sauce ketchup stain. (I showed Winston the picture, and she corrected me on the origin of the stain.)
The Movie Deal
It’s the holiday season, and this means, usually, that lots of kid friendly movies are to be released at the theaters. The ones queuing up for this year- Enchanted, Fred Claus, Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium - are ones that Shep and I have agreed that we wouldn’t mind taking the kids to see. So, on Friday night after Bear went off with his grandfather to indulge his fascination with online games, the girls and I decided to see a movie. But, which movie would it be? This would turn into a sort of shell game. Shep and I both agreed that seeing Enchanted and Fred Claus would be kind of fun. We went to see a movie a few weeks ago, and sat in on the first few minutes of Bee Movie which we thought was kind of lame so neither one of us wanted to pay for that one. I realized that in order to leave the opportunity open for us both to see movies that interested us and not leave the other one out, I would have to encourage the girls towards a choice that neither one of us had previously considered, Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium.
I went on to IMDB and read the reviews, and they looked pretty good - though the trailer kind of made the film seem less magical and more annoying. I found an old $10 AMC gift certificate that Monkey won a year ago for participating in a community trash pick-up day, and then began the process of finding the theater to which we would go. The AMC theaters were out because the start time was too late. The other local theaters were too expensive. Then, it turned out that a theater the kids go to with their daycare was showing it, and the cost would be a total of $11 for the three of us. This was perfect! It was cheap and I could see this theater the kids visit almost every Friday during their summer vacation.
Now for the manipulation process. “Monkey,” I said, “would you like to see Mr. Magorium’s Wonder Emporium?” and I showed her the film’s website. “Yes!” was her enthusiastic response. Winston, however, wouldn’t be such an easy sell. Monkey sensed this too and began talking to her excitedly about how it’s about a toy store and magic and she would love it. “I want to see Bee Movie”, Winston replied. “But, Winston, look at how cool this looks,” and we played the online trailer. “Bee Movie!” she insisted.
“Ok, how about this? Why don’t we ask Daddy to take you to Bee Movie?”
“Will he?”
“Yes, of course, honey. He loves taking you to see movies.”
“Ok”
Great! So, we packed up and drove to the theater. I was really, really surprised when we arrived. I knew it was a two screen movie house, but I didn’t expect it to look one step removed from the sort of place where people go see pornos and then whack each other off in the seats. I couldn’t just turn the car around and go to one of the AMC theaters with the later start times. This was the place where my two older children have seen at least a gazillion summer movies. So, the girls and I donned our coats and walked in through the dingy doors which had glass that was totally obscured so that it would be impossible to peek inside and see what was going on. A man greeted us at the door, opened the ticket office and took our $11 for the tickets and another $5 for sodas. Since the lobby was almost completely deserted, we weren’t sure if it was okay to go ahead and find our seats. We opened the doors hesitantly and saw that no one was inside. We carefully stepped down the aisle and found the most optimum seats in the place for viewing the movie.
We needn’t have worried. No one else showed up to see the movie. I have never seen a movie in a completely deserted theater until that night. I have seen movies with maybe only 5 other people who weren’t a part of my group, but never completely alone. So, even though I should have used the opportunity to teach the girls about proper movie going etiquette, we threw out all the rules and talked and laughed and at one point - cried (but not because of the movie) - audibly.
As we left the theater, we saw not one other person. No one at the concession stand. No one in the restroom. It was, I tell you, creepy, but also really, really cool. I think we will definitely go back. And plus, we all got our sparkle back!
The day after, Winston was convinced that her daddy would take her to see “Bee Movie” and so later in the evening I finally got around to sending him an email to warn him.
That night I took the kids to spend the night with their Daddy. Winston fell asleep early and when she woke up several hours later, she freaked out because she didn’t know immediately where she was. After her daddy calmed her down, the first thing she said to him was, “Just say yes to Bee Movie.”*
*Ok, so I know the punchline is kind of lame, but if you knew this child you would recognize her brilliance as the 4 year old champion of well-timed one-liners. I don’t know where she gets it.
Winston’s Sassy New Haircut
Their father took this picture, and I’m wondering if they posed like that on their own. My sister called this the “Paris Hilton poses”. Winston is a Monkey see, Monkey do kind of girl, and Monkey is definitely a super competitive, I’m going to eat your head for lunch but I’ll do it with a perfect manicure girly girl in training - of whom, I have to admit I am in awe and totally proud.
My cough is beginning to feel like a member of the family
as in one that comes to visit but won’t go away again. It’s developing odd little characteristics. Now, when I attempt to draw a deep breath - which, inevitably ends in a loud cough with deep base tones - I hear a small creaking sound that could possibly be wheezing. The cough has lessened in its frequency, so maybe the wheeze is a sign of pink, healthy lungs to come. Or maybe not.
I was thinking about starting my winter running routine tonight, but fortunately it took forever to get the girls to settle down and go to sleep and so there wasn’t time to squeeze in even one lap around the block. I’m wondering if running in the night air, especially when it’s a little cold outside, will force a little tough love on my respiratory system and it will stop messing around and get serious about functioning properly.
The move is getting closer. I have not left even one camp chair at the new house - partly because I’m not making moving a priority, and partly because I feel guilty about starting the move before the lease officially begins. It feels something like theft, though Daryl, the man who sort of kind of manages the house, says he thinks my deposit entitles me to take any liberty I choose with the start date of the lease. I will probably write a lot more about Daryl in the coming months - if he lives long enough for me to work up any sort of narrative. I have a feeling that he might be a really interesting man, but he looks like he’s about 80 and smokes a couple of packs a day. I was surprised to learn from the owners that he’s a lung cancer survivor (surprised that he survived lung cancer, that is). He’s destined to shed this mortal coil to the sound of irony’s sardonic laughter - maybe he’ll be run down by the Marlboro Man’s trusty steed.
I decided tonight to cut Winston’s hair this coming weekend. Her eczema is horrible now. I guess the drier weather isn’t going to be kind to her skin. I believe shorter hair can cut down on the time it takes to wash her - and thereby keeps her away from the skin dehydrating effects of water more, and it will also be easier to apply lotion to her skin with her hair out of the way. We also agreed tonight to start a large scale water drinking campaign. Every one of us needs more water, and so even though I know it will mean lots of hassle - especially when we’re not at home - I am planning on encouraging her to drink several more glasses a day than that she already consumes. I’m hoping this will help lessen her symptoms. Poor little Tigger. None of the usual treatments seem to be affecting her now. Her eczema is certainly going to be a great big giant pain in the ass for her as she grows up.
Winston’s 1st Bike Ride
In which she rode her tricycle to the park.
