"My kids aren't going to act like that!"

I'm sure the title of this entry already has Mom, Dad and Jari Jo laughing their butts off! I vividly remember saying it and I am regretfully eating my own words. I was a stupid teenager when I made that comment and I had no idea of what I was talking about. Let me just say this, "You told me so!" :-)

This morning before church Scott looked up to see what times the movie Clone Wars was showing in the theater. Since Gage has pretty much mastered tying his shoes, it was time for us to follow through with our promise. The first show was at 12:20 pm and we decided that would be the one we would go see. After church we ate lunch and then went to the theater. On our way there, Gage started throwing a fit saying he didn't want Emma to go to the movie, or me for that matter. He wanted to have just him and Dad go. Obviously he is starving for some "alone time" with Dad. We told Gage that we were all going and that was that. He continued to throw a fit. I personally don't care much for Star Wars, so I thought that maybe if the Kitt Kittredge American Girl movie was still showing, that maybe Emma and I could go to that. It is no longer in the theaters here, so that idea was out. As we got inside the theater, I saw that the movie Journey to the Center of the Earth was still showing. I've heard that it is a good movie, so I asked Emma if she would want to go to that movie with me. She didn't. I think she knew how much Gage wanted her NOT to go to Clone Wars, which made her want to go to it even more. She was not going to go to any movie but Clone Wars, and with the fit Gage was throwing, I didn't want to go to the movie with them. I bought 1 ticket to Journey to the Center of the Earth and 3 tickets to Clone Wars. Gage in the meantime is completely out of control, throwing one of the biggest fits I have seen. We would have turned around and left if we hadn't already bought the tickets. I'm pretty sure they wouldn't have refunded our $25 (or maybe they would have just to get us out of there?) Anyway, I asked the kids what they wanted from the snack counter and Emma happily pointed out the kids' combo pack. Gage wasn't at the counter, so I just ordered Emma's and then figured I could get the rest of our items when Gage figured out what he wanted. He was so mad about Emma coming to the movie that he looked like his head was about to explode. Despite this, Scott and I (amazingly) stayed relatively calm. I'm sure that was mostly because we were in a public place and I'm quite certain every eye in the place was watching us. When I was trying to figure out what Gage wanted, he finally blurted out he wanted an extra-large popcorn and a slushie. I really wasn't wanting to buy the slushie, but I also didn't want to fight with him any longer, so we ordered a large popcorn and a slushie for Gage (I figured he and Scott would share the popcorn during the movie), drinks for Scott and I and a popcorn for myself. We attempt to proceed onto the theater while Gage continues to throw a huge fit. As we're walking down the hallway to our theaters he is throwing such a tantrum that I am nearly about to throw my pop and popcorn and kick ass (sorry for the language, but man I was SO FRUSTRATED!) When we finally get to the theaters (mine was right next door to theirs) with a big smile and my 3-D glasses falling onto my face from atop my head, I say to Scott, "See ya, wouldn't want to be ya!" He laughed. I really enjoyed my movie. I was kind of glad Emma chose not to go with me because I think she would have gotten scared during a couple parts of the movie when the characters were being attacked by fish with great big teeth that were flying through the air, and in 3-D, it was a bit scary, and also with the big T-Rex that was chasing them through the center of the earth. I thoroughly enjoyed my movie and was sad when it ended. My movie ended before theirs did, so I sat out in the lobby and waited for them. When they came out, everyone was thankfully in decent moods. Scott said he had to drag Gage out of the theater before the movie started to straighten him up because he was ticked off that he got a large popcorn and a slushie. He said he wanted the kids' combo pack like Emma's. WHAT?????? UGH! Later on in the afternoon, when we were trying to talk to Gage about his terrible behavior he says to me, "Mom, next time please don't buy me a slushie at the movies." I said, "Gage, that is what you asked for, so that is what I bought you." He replies, "I didn't really think you would buy it." Exactly what I thought.

Thankfully, Gage is showing remorse and every time I bring the subject up he starts to cry, especially when I ask him what he would have done if his teacher had been in the theater and saw him acting like that. I know that typically when this kind of behavior happens with Gage, it is because he is over tired. Which is why I have to be very diligent at getting them to bed by 7pm during the school year. AND, let me tell you, when fall/winter comes and it starts getting dark at 4:30, I may have to move the bedtime up to 5:30 just to keep my sanity!

I know you guys enjoyed this post (Mom, Dad and Jari Jo), and the only reason I decided to post about it was because I just knew it would make your day..............me eating my words! :-) (They sure don't taste very good!)