Date Night {in full}

Last weekend I took Buby on a date. Actually, I may have driven but he called all the shots. It was a fabulous four hours just the two of us. We needed it. First stop was the local AMC, because movies are a special treat. About twice a year we'll take Buby to a movie theater. He relishes every minute of the experience, from preview to final credit.


[Buby's first film on the big screen was Bee Movie in the fall of 2007. My Sweets took him to see Horton Hears a Who after Bleu was born in April 2008. I knew I couldn't go with a newby, but I was so green. It's one of my favorite Seuss titles. Buby saw Ice Age: Dawn of the Dinosaurs with me in 2009 and later Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs with the whole fam. That's when we made a mental note NOT to bring Bleu back to the theater anytime soon. She was good, but two hours is TOO long to ask a 1 year old to be still and quiet in public. She's never watched TV or movies at home, and she's just not into it on any level. Now a rock concert... that's more her alley.]

For our date last Saturday Buby and I chose Alvin and the Chipmunks: The Squeakquel. My parents played the original for him over the holidays, and he was pumped for a follow-up. Usually I bring a small backpack and sneak all of our own kid food and drink into theaters. The thought of little bodies consuming that processed concession stand junk makes me cringe. But this time I made a small concession of my own. In addition to our bottles of water and healthy side snacks {granola and Kashi 7 grain}, I bought Buby a kid-size popcorn to split. He was over the moon. I mean Crazy Happy.


The theater was packed with three and four year olds laughing their tushies off. It was a fun room. The film was clever, cute and entertaining. {But be warned: I heard the word "stupid" several times. It really ticks me off when kid movies do that. So unnecessary.}


After the movie we galloped our way over to the food court to spend some quarters riding a robot. The movie theater is in the mall. We rarely ever go to the mall, but the few times we've passed those mechanical robot/train/aircraft rides--you know the filthy 75 cent ones--I've noticed Buby's eyes bug out with interest.


Indeed, he loved it.

On our walk back to the car way we passed by an in-mall Dunkin' Donuts. Buby came to a screeching halt, jerked my hand and shouted, "Mommy, Look! It's Alvin! And Simon! And Theodore!" The coffee shop had a little display of stuffed characters up high on a corner shelf collecting dust. I'm surprised Buby even noticed. So we walked in and I asked the manager where she found those. She said Build-a-Bear upstairs. I asked Buby if he'd like to take a detour. Yes, he said, as long as we could ride the elevator and not the escalator.

Build-a-Bear didn't have a single chipmunk. The saleswoman said they sold like hotcakes when the movie first premiered and they wouldn't have more in until the DVD was released, maybe around March. Bummed we were, but I was feeling pretty good that I could convince Dunkin' Donuts to sell me theirs. Because, well, my awesome kid really would love them, I never buy him anything like that, and THIS WAS OUR DATE NIGHT. Back down at DD I asked a manager if she'd sell them to me. She wouldn't do it. I asked her to name her price, and she wouldn't do it. She said Build-a-Bear donated them and it wouldn't be right to sell them. Okeedokee.

So we left. Lunch was calling. I asked Buby to pick a place. Any place. He chose "The Fish Place," which is really a sassy Jimmy Buffet-style burger joint with live music and fried pickles and fancy copa cabana pudding desserts. Buby ordered mac and cheese, steamed broccoli and milk. I consumed a huge plate of fried pickles all by myself. Not that I'm complaining. We split the dessert, which consisted of homemade banana pudding, vanilla wafers, fresh strawberries, cream, and coconut. It was really something.

We took our sweet time and caught up on everything under the sun. Buby said he missed Daddy and Nola but liked having me all to himself. While we were waiting for the check I said, "Ooh... my belly hurts." Buby said, "Not mine!" We laughed. That boy is NEVER full. Then he said, "Mom, I had a very special day with you. Thank you."


First, I couldn't believe he called me "Mom." Are we there already? Second, that is sooo Buby to show unsolicited gratitude. He notices and appreciates everything people do for him. He's big on out-of-the-blue thank yous and I love yous and doesn't take much for granted. At four years old. It's cool being on the receiving end of that... as a mama. I mean MOM.

Alas our date came to a close. We pulled up to the house and Buby offered, "I like going on a date with you. I love you very much. Lets do it again. Maybe tomorrow."