A Cinematic Conundrum...

One of those less-fun-but-vitally-important things parents must do, as part of the basic job description, is set limits for their children. Before I had kids of my own, I don't think I ever contemplated just how frequent and ongoing a task this actually is (And why would I? I was a young adult with freedom and no boundaries, baby! Yeah, 'cuz that totally describes my responsible and sensible nature...oh, never mind...) On a daily basis, parents make choices about mundane issues such as "drinking no more than a certain amount of juice per day" or "banning partially-hydrogenated oils from our house" or "monitoring electronics-time"...or "for heaven's sake it's below 40-degrees would you please please please put on some long pants". (You know, hypothetical stuff like that.)

I've always considered Husband and myself to fall solidly on the conservative side of the fence, meaning that it seems we tend to impose relatively strict limits on our kids' behavior and privileges, compared to the wider Parent Population. One example lies in the field of, let's lump it under the term "entertainment media"--encompassing such things as video games and movies. Up to this point, the boys have known and accepted our standards: nothing above an E10-rated game, or a PG film. However, the rule was recently broken when we allowed Derek to see Hunger Games in the theater. It was actually an accident that led to this breach of protocol; I was supposed to go with friends from work, who mistakenly thought Husband was coming along and bought him a ticket. Thus, extra ticket, already paid for...and someone had to stay home with Riley. So Derek experienced the (for him) unprecedented opportunity to attend a PG-13 movie...and on a school night, no less! (I know, soooo shockingly permissive, for me! Maybe I'm finally ready to relax my death-grip-control over my children....hahahaha, who am I kidding?)

But that doesn't mean we're chucking the whole Family Code of Conduct out the window, or anything. It was just supposed to be a one-time deal...except then The Avengers dive-bombed into theaters. And I gotta tell ya, it looks mega-cool to me. (Okay, okay, I admit I have a bit of a thing for Iron Man, so what?) So we were discussing it over dinner one evening (well, mostly I was raving about how excited I was to go see it) when Husband made a startling announcement: he is not interested! Whaaaaat? But, you're...a guy! It's comic book characters! With guns and explosions and whatnot! And need I mention, Scarlett Johansson in a tight...leather-ish....thingie! C'mon, dude, what's up with that? Anyway, Derek instantly brought up the fact that he was able to handle Hunger Games. (See, I should've known that would come back to bite me in the butt...jeez, give 'em an inch...and they assume they're now authorized to see every borderline-appropriate movie Hollywood puts out. Then again, maybe my enthusiasm about the super-powers and the stuff blowing up was a tad too infectious...oops!) Naturally, when Husband volunteered to stay home with Riley so that Derek and I could attend together, Riley protested that he wanted to come along.

Now I was stuck--I didn't feel comfortable just agreeing outright, so I did what any Nerd Mom--I mean cautious, protective....scientifically-oriented parent--would do: I promised to perform some online research, looking specifically for both parental opinions and professional reviews by family-oriented filmgoers. What I found was a mixed bag of information regarding the onscreen violence and potentially scary situations...which did nothing to help me make a firm decision about my sensitive, easily-upset 8-1/2 year old accompanying us. I mean, Riley's still working through the "cover your eyes when things get too frightening" stage, (Voldemort in Harry Potter? Viewed through barely-slitted fingers. Gollum in Lord of the Rings? Peeking out from behind the couch...) so I just didn't feel confident that he could handle big screen mayhem just yet. However...then I found out that ALL of my friends had already rushed out to see Avengers during its opening weekend, most of them bringing their children for the ride. (Reminds me of another famous Parental Line: if all your friends went to the movies, would you...jump off the bridge...too? Or something like that. Incidentally, in this particular case, the answer is Y-E-S!) And wouldn't you know, a fellow Soccer Mom pal who happens to have sons exactly the same ages as mine told me it was completely fine for the younger brothers. In fact, she proclaimed it "not scary at all".

Well, alrighty then, that's good enough for me! Looks like Riley graduates to the Big Leagues, and I've got not one, but TWO movie dates for the first major blockbuster of the year. And for my part, I promise to fulfill my Mommy duties by putting down my popcorn to shield his eyes if it turns out he really needs it at any point. (As for my buddy, I forgot to ask her--if Riley turns out to have nightmares afterwards, he can come stay with her family for the night, right? That sounds fair...) Superheroes, here we come!