The Indy Escape
One of the best moments of my day is when I pick my seven year-old up from school. Azul is always excited to see me and the feeling is mutual. Yesterday, when he found me in the sea of parents waiting outside his first grade classroom, I was greeted with a smile and a hug. We walked hand in hand off campus, and while we were talking about our day’s independent adventures, a little girl’s voice overtook the conversation with a loud, “Bye Azuuuul!”
I smiled and looked down at my little friend and then of course took the time to make fun of the fact that a girl was talking to him. He is at the age where this, meaning girls, is a sensitive subject, so of course, I said, “oooooooh.”
I received a growl and a wrinkled nose as a response and then he said, “Want to run for it?”
“You want to run?” I asked, I was intrigued by his reaction.
Then he began to sing the Indiana Jones theme song and started to pull me along.
“Da da da dum
da da dum …”
All of a sudden I was ready to follow his lead! I have never had the opportunity to run to a theme song before and it was awesome. We ran while holding hands, fleeing the sinister sound of a seven year-old siren, and my little Odysseus continued to sing as I aided him in his escape.
“Da da dum dum
da da dum dum dum …”
We made it to the car unscathed, and if you are ever in a situation where you need to outrun a rolling bolder or a schoolyard crush, I highly recommend singing the Indiana Jones Theme Song.
Seven year-old not required.
Dream Girl
We took Azul to Disneyland to celebrate his 5th birthday and it really is the place where dreams come true… While we were there we hit it hard, spending 6 to 8 hours a day at the park for three days straight. We rode everything we could, which included Space Mountain. I had never been on this ride and wasn’t sure what to expect, but the best motherly advice I had for my five-year old was, “If you see something that scares you, just close your eyes.” And he did, through the entire ride! When we got off, I was wondering if we were really going that fast or was it just the wind blowing at us. It’s dark and you feel disoriented and you’re moving from side to side on a roller coaster, so I wasn’t sure what it was. Then I took just one look at the park-provided photo (you know — the picture they take of you while you hit the climax of the ride and then try to sell to you at the end), just one look and I knew, we really were going that fast. The other thing I knew, my chi-chis hadn’t looked that good in years! The cruel treatment gravity had handed me was gone, thanks to a quick few seconds of free fall on a fast-moving roller coaster. So of course I bought the 5×7 and 4 wallet package. I wanted proof that dreams really do come true in Disneyland.
Carmelina Hart 