Villians do exist...but so do Super Heros

This Sunday is going to be like any other this summer. In that same breath, it is not. You see this summer has been filled with movies that The Things and I have been looking forward to. Thing One has been looking forward to the movie Batman which was released last night. I woke up as many of you did to the news of what occurred in an Aurora, Colorado movie theatre at the midnight showing of Batman. Listening to all the news as it pours out minute by minute, overwhelms me with feelings. Feelings of anger, fear, and most of all loss. I feel deeply saddened to hear of children being shot most of all.  How does one not fear villains when they come to life?

Many media outlets have spoke  of what this will do for the movie's sales.  Other's speak of movie theatre security and it's future.  It is absolutely ludicrous how an action of one insane man has prompted so much action and dialogue of the simple act of going to see a movie at a theatre.  It is as if the villain has reached more than just those 71 injured.  The epidemic of fear has struck in so many of us.  To that thought I think, but what about those who showed such superb bravery?  Like the police officers that put injured into police cars and drove them to hospitals, rather than wait for an ambulance.

I often think of all those invisible capes we all wear.  We all have the ability to help and be brave and overcome whatever a villain's venom has touched.  So will you go to a theatre?  Will you feel safe?  Those are all questions we ask ourselves now.  I for one will not let one villain ruin yet another little boys dreams.  I will put on that invisible super hero cape, face my fears and hold that little boys hand tightly. 

As in all super hero comics the villain will go down and there will be justice.  Stand tall and brave my friends and let those invisible capes flow proudly.

Mama Kat's World Famous Writer's Workshop: Phobia re-visited

Mama Kat's World Famous Writers workshop had a prompt that I couldn't avoid.  It was recent and fresh and I had to share:  A case of the nerves! When was the last time you had them and how did you get through it?

Sweaty, a slight tremble in my hands, eyes wide open, heart pounding, and a nervous smile. That is what happens when I see a dog coming towards me. It doesn’t matter the size, the breed, how friendly they are, or even how much they are barking at me.  I have over come the screaming and running the opposite direction, phase of this fear. Although in my head I am doing JUST THAT.  My dad helped me overcome that side of my phobia when I helped raise a dog from a puppy at the age of 10.  Still, in the back of my illogical head I want to run and scream. It makes for tense forced feelings inside that do not manifest themselves outwardly, but that I suffer silently in my mad head.  Or am I really that illogical in my dog phobia?  I mean after all I still vividly remember the day our little Chihuahua “Ronnie” bit my big toe while I was playing with him outside.  I was 3 years old, and I still remember. 

Flash forward to Monday, March 12, 2012. Thing Two is three years old and loves and adores dogs, particularly the small non-threatening type.  I have always told her that not all dogs are to be approached and played with, and specifically not to pull ears or tails.  I haven’t wanted to scare what is natural for her to love dogs and be around them because of my fears.  So this day in particular was tense, nerve racking and exhausting as any day I have had. 

I was picking up the children from the baby sitter and I was talking to the sitter as Thing One was finishing up his dinner.  The sitter was telling me what a great day they were having and that my daughter was in the backyard with her husband and her grandchild.  That is when I heard it.  The scream that sent chills through out my body.  I ran outside only to see Thing Two’s cherub like face covered in blood.  I could see a gaping hole on her top lip.  “MOMMY, the DOGGY HURT ME”  I knew the sitter’s dog had bit her.  All at once I felt her pain, her panic, and my adrenalin propelled nerves were set in.  From the moment I scooped her up and got to the ER two blocks down the street is a blur.  I know we got there in a matter of seconds and there are about 2 lights to get there, so I can only imagine what I did.  

Once in the ER it was standing room only. Thing Two was screaming and screaming and saying it hurt.  I wanted to cry with her.  As a parent it pains you to see your flesh and blood in a terrible situation, you want to make it better.  I knew if I did lose it, it would not help her.  I just repeated to myself everything is ok, it is in God’s hands now.  Standing in line to get checked in a child around her age handed her a small toy that was apparently just purchased in those little coin machines.  He said “It’s ok”.  Watching that transpire was like a sign to keep cool and it would be okay.

We were triaged and I waited outside the ER room so as not to make everyone else nervous with Thing Two’s cries.  I cleaned us both up from the blood that was on us and sat and sang to her.  It was really to soothe both of us.  As we sat there I watched ambulance come and go.  One ambulance was taking a child on a breathing machine to another hospital. Another brought a man with chest pain gasping and grasping his arm.  I rocked and sang and Thing Two was soothed and she even fell asleep for a bit.  In that moment I knew it would be ok.  My child was safe in my arms and she wasn’t in a life or death situation.  She was alive and we could get this fixed.  I thought of the parents of that child who was rolled out to another hospital and to the family of the man being brought in. 

Was the whole even nerve racking? Oh YES!  It was ten times worse when I had to watch Thing Two being restrained and get stitches on her pretty upper lip and here her scream “Why, Why, Why??!!”

I had to hold it together for her, for her dad who was pacing outside the ER room, for me.  So once the stitches and medication had been given and we were alone at home in bed, I cried.  I let all the tension and hurt out. 

I hope she can erase that fearful moment in her head.  I hope she is more resilient than I was.  I hope that the only scar she will carry will be the one on the top of her lip and not in her psyche.  That is what you do as a parent.  You never let them know that you too were scared.  You after all are their protector, the one that keeps them knowing that everything will be safe and normal. 

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What feelings have you set aside for the sake of your child's well being?

As always today's fab post brought to you with the help of:

It's a bird! It's a plane! It's...Spiderman Super Why and he cooks?

I had forgotten how much as a child I loved superheroes.  Mami always thought it was an odd thing for a little girl to be into, after all it was suppose to be a "boy" thing to do. Then came Wonder Woman and all I wanted to do or be was her.  To my mom's shagrin, I dressed up as her for two Halloweens in a row! I guess Mami wanted the type of daughter that would want to do tea parties and play with barbies and dolls.  Instead I was a gender bender, I guess that's why for a long time my mom and I had a hard time connecting. 

I was the little girl in jeans and a t-shirt who grew up in a neighborhood of boys.  Occasionally I would partake of so called "girl" activities, but most of the time it was ball, tag, and being a superhero.  Then my favorite superheroes came along "Charlie's Angels".  Talk about girl power!  They always seemed to facinate me in the way they could be pretty and tough in one big swoop.

So Thing One has gotten into role playing these days. Most notably being a superhero.  It all started with Big Cheese giving him a Spiderman coloring book you can find at any dollar store.  He must have been about one and a half and he was just taken by the whole bad guy, good guy action.  The action of the characters just sucked him in.  Before I knew it he could spot a Spiderman cup, hat, shirt, action character, from several feet away before I could even see it.  "Spiman, mama...Right there!!!" 

I've never been a fan of Spiderman particularly, but if my son was embracing it, so was I. So just when I accept his facination over the webbed one I get thrown a curve.  I couldn't figure out why Thing One was always taking the question mark magnet off the refrigerator and he was acting as if he was flying around with it.  What was this new behavior?  Big Cheese then went and purchased a new series of characters for Thing One.  I asked Big Cheese what these characters where, because low and behold one particular character had a wand with a question mark on it.  "What?! He hasn't told you all about Super Why?!" Big Cheese exclaimed.  Apparently he and Thing One had been watching PBS and happen to stumble upon "Super Why"  a superhero that enjoys reading and telling stories.  I had to TIVO it since I was never home when this particular show was on.  I was really happy with Thing One embracing a character that did more than just fight bad guys. 

Thing one now has many Spiderman outfits, and shirts and shoes.  He even has a dress up cape, mask and wand to become Super Why whenever his little heart desires.  One week he wouldn't even take it off to sleep.  It was a challenge to get him anywhere without the darn cape! Although there have been many times when my heart stops and I want to stop him from leaping off couches and other things because he is acting like Super Why or Spiderman.  I don't want to discourage this play I just want his imagination to go where it takes him, SAFELY.  

Thing One is definitely all boy, that's for sure.  Although, we had to buy him a kitchen set because he loves to pretend cook as well.  So my take away from all this, let my children be who they want to be.  I don't want to put them in a box and say this is a boy or a girl activity and limit them to just that.  They are discovering so much out in this big world and how they fit into it.  So for now, I have a son who flies through the air and cooks a gourmet meal.  I'm wondering what Thing Two will discover when she reaches Two.  Maybe she will be a princess mommy who drag races.