A Brighter Sunshine: Cate's first "real" movie!!!!

Last weekend we did something new and exciting! Ric & I did a special time with the girls. He took Lucy to the zoo with a friend and his son - Lucy had a great time and still is talking about it. Meanwhile, I took Cate to a real movie theater to see her first feature film! She has been to see a couple plays and even to see Curious George at a small local theatre but never to see a full length movie. Cate picked out a cute outfit and even asked for a hair bow! We went to see the new Disney Nature movie Chimpanzee. One of the reasons Cate hasn't been to a movie before this is that she is very sensitive to loud noise. We saw it affect her at Disney and it affected her at the theatre experiences I mentioned above. You know how loud movie theaters are - its absolutely crazy - and then add to that a big dark theater and a bunch of strangers and it just didn't seem like the right thing for Cate. But she is six years old and since deserved a treat after a week of getting ALL GREENS for behavior at school. I thought Chimpanzee was a good candidate not only because she loves animals and is always watching documentaries but because it was filmed by the Jane Goodall Society so it is all real life jungle film footage and was bound to be quieter. Well I was right - for once ;->!

Of course before I could be right we had to walk into the theater while the previews were playing. For some unknown reason Regal Cinemas thought it was a good idea to preview The Hunger Games before a rated G Disney movie. We walked into a fight scene I'd guess with techno music blaring. Cate turned around and walked out before I had the door closed. So I decided that maybe popcorn was in order. After a very long wait we took our popcorn and sprite back into the theater. This time the movie had already started and it was almost silent when we walked into followed by a calm narration by Tim Allen. The movie was excellent for Cate - all animals and only a little drama/scariness. She was mesmerized by the chimps and of course the popcorn. She spent a little time in my lap during the attack of the rival chimp gang but mostly she tried to sit in her own seat. That was challenge in itself because she is not really heavy enough to hold the collapsible seat down if she scoots back too far so my arm got a little workout trying to hold it down for her! The film this team got of these chimps and the story that unfolds is truly amazing. All in all it was an excellent mommy-daughter afternoon!