BIG Adventure

So, Dan was off from work today, and we wanted to do something fun. It was WAY too hot for the Bronx or Central Park Zoos. Even too hot to go to the beach. Maybe we'd just hang by the wading pool in our backyard all morning...

When the thunderstorm hit during breakfast, Dan came up with a CRAZY plan! Let's go to the movies! Toy Story 3. He billed it to James as "like TV but really, really big." James got excited, so we decided to go for it.

We knew it was risky, but we figured the 9:30 AM show was likely to be pretty empty. It was. We got there early enough for James to explore the theater and go potty. We also decided to splurge on some popcorn, "like the man in the yellow hat" (James kept comparing his experience to that of Curious George from his book).

We got into our seats just before the previews started. I think there were two or three other groups in the theater with us. James sat in his own seat between us and was mesmerized during the previews. He sat there wide-eyed, eating popcorn. So cute!

Toy Story 3, for those of you who haven't yet seen it, begins with a train scene. And Mr. Potato Head was there. "Great!" I thought, "He's going to love this!" Well... not so much. He got really worked up, "What's the train doing?!" He started crying, so I started walking out with him, but he couldn't tear his eyes from the screen. We stood by the side/exit path for a bit, and he then was ready to sit again.

There were a few other emotional outbursts. If things got at all tense on screen, James got upset. He gets upset with crashes (even when it's in a book we're reading). Dan took him for a walk at one point, then they came back and sat near the doorway. They also got up during the scary climax, but they did make it back for the ending. There were also a few times when James wanted whatever was on the screen. (This has happened with television as well; he wants something on the screen and gets upset.)

During the credits we pointed out the window at the back of the theater, and again James felt connected to George (who explored the camera room in his story). So we finished on a good note. Yea!

We came home and James was so exhausted, he fell asleep eating lunch! He then napped three hours. We figured that the experience had exhausted him, but it turned out he woke up with a fever. Uh oh.

Here's hoping he gets a restful sleep (with no movie-induced bad dreams) tonight and feels better tomorrow.

Oh! One more thing-- Toy Story 3 is GREAT!!!! (I cried.)