Drive In!

As you might imagine, with two kids under the age of four, Dad and I don't get out very often. We probably only see a couple of movies a year in the theaters and usually regret going. It's always a little disappointing to spend a small fortune on movie tickets, only to spend the majority of the film struggling to hear the movie over the cell phones, loud conversations, and inane comments (not to mention the inevitable seat kicking). These days we just wait for movies to come out on DVD, Netflix them, and enjoy them in the comfort of our own home. But, since a nearby sports arena puts up a drive-in theater every summer, we thought we'd check it out this weekend.

Both Dad and I have fond memories of going to the drive in as kids. I remember seeing Star Wars for the first time at the drive in (which, of course, was a pivotal moment in the life of every aspiring geek of my generation ;). My parents have us put on our pjs, bring our sleeping bags and pillows, and we'd put down the back seats and get comfy in the back of the car. We would always make up a bunch of popcorn – remember that this was back when making popcorn at home involved heating some oil in a cast iron pan, pouring in the popcorn kernels, throwing a lid on it, and laboriously shaking the whole thing back and forth on the stove until the popcorn had finished popping. We'd put real melted butter on it, some salt, and transport it all in a brown paper grocery bag – it was the best! My sister and I would usually stay awake for the first movie and fall asleep during the second film.

Since neither Max nor Molly has even been to the theater, I guess this counts as their official first movie. We opted to see "Wall-E" and "The Incredible Hulk" – we thought both M&M would enjoy "Wall-E" and assumed that they would be asleep before the "The Incredible Hulk" started (since it wasn't really a movie I wanted them to watch). We gave the kids their baths, put them in their pjs, and packed lots of snacks and drinks. We told M&M we were going for a ride to see a "big TV" and they were VERY excited (especially Max). We got to the drive in early, hoping to get a good spot, but not really thinking about the fact that we would then have to keep M&M entertained until the movies started. We fed them snacks, let them climb around the car, and took them for a walk around the lot (until the mosquitoes drove us back to the car). We were obviously total drive in rookies, since most of the people there brought collapsible chairs, coolers, toys, etc. and really set up camp. The people in the car next to us even brought their puppy in a little portable kennel (to Max and Molly's great delight).

Right before the movie started, we brought them up front with us and let them sit on our laps (which resulted in them turning on the hazards, setting off the panic alarm, and hitting a bunch of other buttons before we got things under control ;). When the movie began, both kids were amazed by the "big TV." There was a short animated clip before "Wall-E" started, which the little kids LOVED. Max was laughing and squealing and clapping all the way through it. They enjoyed "Wall-E" – Max was intrigued by the "little robot" and the cockroaches. ;) It was a little "old" for them, however, and near the end of the movie both kids started getting crabby and fidgety (not surprising, considering it was already about four hours past their normal bedtimes). Max ended up climbing into the back seat and messing around back there for a while. After "Wall-E" ended and they started asking to watch it again, we told them they could watch more big TV, but they had to go sit in their car seats. They happily let us buckle them into their seats – both kids were sawing logs before the opening credits for "The Incredible Hulk" were finished.

Molly did wake up about a half an hour before the movie ended and decided not to go back to sleep. Dad and I managed to block her view of the screen for the rest of the movie, which didn't make her very happy. When the movie was over and the credit were rolling, Molly announced that she was hungry and she wanted to eat (this was after she consumed a good-sized dinner and huge quantities of snacks). We asked her what she wanted to eat and she thought a minute before answering, "Ummmm, hot dogs ... bananas ... cheeps (chips) ... cookies!" I guess now we know what Molly's ideal meal is! As we were driving home, Molly started waving and saying, "Bye bye, big TV. Bye bye!" We carried them home, plunked them in bed, and they went right to sleep. Although Max slept in until 8:30 the following morning, Molly was up with the sun and cranky as all get out. Thankfully, she took a nice nap, although it will probably take both kids a couple of days to catch up on their sleep. All in all, I think it was a successful outing – we might have to do it again soon!

Note: Unfortunately, this post sports a bunch of random photos, since I neglected to bring my camera to the drive in. :(