"Movie Mayhem 2"
Well, I did it! I made the bold decision to take my 4 year old back to the movies.
I decided that I would give him another chance to “act right” in the theater. If you don’t know what I’m referring to, scroll down and read the entry called “Movie Mayhem”.
I decided to pick him up from preschool early and take him to see Ratatouille or Rabittouille as he likes to call it.
We stocked up on candy and one drink and in we went. I have to say that I was nervous. I was tired and not really ready for a fiasco like the last one.
But, I wanted to have some one on one time with him and see how he would do.
Before we went into the theater, I gave him the speech about not talking out loud and not drinking his entire drink all within the first 5 minutes.
You see, he HAS to have something to drink while he’s at the movies. He’s always got to have something to drink. He’s like a camel in the desert.
We found a seat, in the front row (so that I don’t have to climb up and down the stairs every time he needs to potty) and sat down.
Immediately, he starts talking very loudly. He says, “It’s taking too long to come on. When will it be over?” This was before the movie even started.
He pretty much talked as loudly as he wanted throughout the entire movie. I would tell him each time to whisper or just be quiet.
A few times I had to take him out of the theater b/c he couldn’t hear me telling him to be quiet, LOL.
We ended up going “potty” only three times. This is a small miracle! Anyone that knows him will understand. For him to last 2 hours and only go three times? That’s just crazy!
I do have to say that the movie was very good. I liked it. I don’t think it’s just for kids. I’m by no means a movie critic, but I would suggest taking children from the age of 2-12 to see it.
By the time the movie was over, we were more than ready to go. Out the door we went with our pillow, blanket, and my umbrella of course!
Check out the comments and share yours by clicking HERE.
I decided that I would give him another chance to “act right” in the theater. If you don’t know what I’m referring to, scroll down and read the entry called “Movie Mayhem”.
I decided to pick him up from preschool early and take him to see Ratatouille or Rabittouille as he likes to call it.
We stocked up on candy and one drink and in we went. I have to say that I was nervous. I was tired and not really ready for a fiasco like the last one.
But, I wanted to have some one on one time with him and see how he would do.
Before we went into the theater, I gave him the speech about not talking out loud and not drinking his entire drink all within the first 5 minutes.
You see, he HAS to have something to drink while he’s at the movies. He’s always got to have something to drink. He’s like a camel in the desert.
We found a seat, in the front row (so that I don’t have to climb up and down the stairs every time he needs to potty) and sat down.
Immediately, he starts talking very loudly. He says, “It’s taking too long to come on. When will it be over?” This was before the movie even started.
He pretty much talked as loudly as he wanted throughout the entire movie. I would tell him each time to whisper or just be quiet.
A few times I had to take him out of the theater b/c he couldn’t hear me telling him to be quiet, LOL.
We ended up going “potty” only three times. This is a small miracle! Anyone that knows him will understand. For him to last 2 hours and only go three times? That’s just crazy!
I do have to say that the movie was very good. I liked it. I don’t think it’s just for kids. I’m by no means a movie critic, but I would suggest taking children from the age of 2-12 to see it.
By the time the movie was over, we were more than ready to go. Out the door we went with our pillow, blanket, and my umbrella of course!
Check out the comments and share yours by clicking HERE.
Labels: bathroom, candy, mayhem, movie, potty, preschool, preschooler, Ratatouille, theaters, toddler
posted by Melissa Swanson at 11:49 AM
Melissa is a student, a working mom, and the mother of 4 boys (ages 4, 7, 8, and 10). She is costantly fueled by the tenacity of her boys and their ability to make her laugh! What they say is true, "Laughter is the best medicine!"
14 Comments:
after reading this, i had a thought- instead of having to tell your little boy he is being too loud, why dont you try a system-maybe get stickers you can keep in your purse & explain to him @ home that if he gets a sticker(make them something NOT CUTE like those little neon dots or something)then getting a sticker would mean that he needs to lower his voice-it might be a good reminder that is quiet for the BOTH of you that wont embaress him & YOU & you might find a reward system for him if he doesnt get very many stickers- i know its sort of a reverse, but its more of a visual & he would notice the action of receiving one-
the idea hasnt been flushed out much, but you might find some way to adapt that where it might work for you!
That's actually a good idea. The reason I think so is b/c my son has some hearing problems. He doesn't realize he's being so loud and cannot hear me when I tell him to be quiet. I have to get him to look at me. I think doing something visual, like stickers, will show him instead. I may have to actually bring it into the theater though. Maybe if I made columns like talking, getting out of seat, and playing....then, have stickers already on it. I could take away a sticker every time he broke one of the rules. Then, at teh end of the movie, if he had a certain number of stickers left, he could have a toy or candy that I already have in my purse. He works well with rewards. I hate to bribe a child, but is it really bribing if you're trying to teach?
Personally I think you'd be rewarding bad behavior. He'd learn that he can be just so bad but still get something in the end.
Just my opinion, and, no, I don't have the answer! LOL!
This is why I need other people's opinions. I don't always have the best answer. That's a good way to look at it. I'll have to sit down and think of what would work best for him. I'm glad you suggested this though. Thank you!
I feel that kids at that age have to have absolutes, ie: "if you talk ONE TIME in that movie, we won't go back for x months." The next time, it's "if you talk one time, we won't be back for a year." Etc, etc.
THEN the tough part......stick to it.
Wavering makes them master manipulators.
The thing is, my son doesn't understand the concept of time yet. Everything is yesterday or tomorrow. He wouldn't understand a month or year and so on. Some kids can understand time at a young age, but he cannot. I've tried to tell him things like that in the past. He just looked at me like I was crazy, LOL!
Well, then tell him y'all aren't going back until YOU say so. Once that time has passed, tell him how long it's been and then tell him the next time it happens it'll be even longer before y'all go back. By that time, he'll be old enough to understand the concept. Heck, he may even be old enough to drive himself! LOL!
LOL! You may be right. If I didn't take them anywhere based on their behavior, they'd never leave the house, LOL! No, they are really good kids. The little one just doesn't get the concept of disturbing others yet.
with the sticker thing- i am referring to the plain jane ones used in marking pages for work-basically the dots -something you can use in the here & now & place on his person so he understands that he has to be quiet (or do whatever has been discussed beforehand) -its not a reward for getting a sticker but more like a scarlet letter (which wont really bother him because he is a child & doesnt know)-its just a way to let him know he needs to be quiet without having to raise your voice yourself & thus lead by example! you dont have to use a chart overall unless you want to- i would just do it in places where you need a "secret code" to communicate like a movie theater! i dont think he is acting out necessarily, but more acting his age-he doesnt know any better & isnt intentionally doing wrong so this is more of a communication issue-which can be done by either signals or in the example case, stickers-just something between mom & child to open communication! it just may work ! you can put the sticker on his shirt during the movie -he will notice you doing it & know what it means-if he doesnt listen, THEN you can treat it as disobeying & move fwd that way!
I definitely plan on giving this a try. I'm not sure when we will get to go to another movie, but when we do I will post the progress. You may just be onto something!!!!
I think the first time I took my son to the movies he was 3- he didn't last 20 minutes. So it was simple- we didn't take him again until I felt he was ready. That was about a year later. Since then he does great at the movies-no bribing involved.
I keep telling myself that I just won't take him back to the movies for a while. But, I decided that I'd rather teach him how to act while he's young. He is getting progressivelly better.
Do you have trouble with your child going to the bathroom a lot during a movie?
Popcorn anybody!! I have a 2yr old she loves popcorn and food so when I take her I let her pick out her favorite snacks and we buy them together . I love to stop at the Dollaer store for most of the snacks she has her own snack bag {its a Hello Kitty lunch pal }. She really loves going to the movie now because I can watch the movie also without getting up 1500 times like you do. The potty thing I tell her that we can't get up because the movie will go off and she never moves now. For talking loud I tell her to be so quite because the old man in the movie can't hear and she so impressed with that. TRY IT IT WORKS GREAT FOR ME !!
I'll try that. We do sneak our own snacks into the movies as well. Someone will probably read this and I won't be allowed in there anymore. I just cannot afford their candy.
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