Handling Public Puking

       When Alex was four I took a day off from work just for the two of us. I had taken days off before and it was always fun and memorable. This day was no exception. We spent the day at the pool and had a lot of fun. It was getting to be late afternoon, early evening and I decided we needed to go. On the way home I drove by our local theater. It is a grand old place that has stood the test of time and has gone from old time opera house to the only movie theater in our little town. I decided that Alex and I would hurry home, get cleaned up and return for the first showing. We just made it and took our regular seats. As a special treat I let him get a soda with his popcorn. I hadn’t been big on letting him had soda but why not tonight? We were watching the first of the ‘Pirates of the Caribbean’ movies. He was cramming popcorn into his little mouth and drinking his soda like a pro when suddenly he looks at me and says “I’m gonna frow-up.” Oh crap, vomit. I rush him out of the seating area and head for the restrooms which are naturally locked. I’m a little worried now as there is nowhere close enough to get him in a hurry to keep from violating the carpet. Or is there? Trash can at 4:00. Holding him over the trash can in the lobby was an experience in learning that when you’re a parent you must be creative to avoid catastrophe and not care what kind of looks you get in the process. We did see the rest of the movie but now Alex gets to choose one or the other, soda or corn, never both, never again.