do you take an infant to a movie theater?

[Minnie824]

There is a thread on the restaurant board, whether parents are rude or not taking under 2yos to dinner late. Anyway, it got me thinking. I was wondering if parents take their infants, or small children to see movies the parents want to see? I was talking to a friend who has an 8yo, 6yo and 2 mo and she said they went to a lot of movies this summer. So, i asked who watched the baby. She said no one, we brought him with. I have 2 kids, and I have never taken them to a movie as a baby. For some reason, that is one of my biggest pet peeves. To me, its a sacrifice having kids...you get a sitter, or you wait til its on video and rent it. I dont like being disturbed during any movie listening to babies crying. Is it just me, or do others feel that way too?

 

[Cinderella_68]

ITA Minnie! That's what God made Drive-ins for! We are very lucky to have a Drive-In nearby, but even if we didn't, we wouldn't take our toddler to a movie that wasn't for her. Even then, waiting for video would be better, since her attention span isn't quite ready for a feature length movie.
If DH and I get a sitter and go to dinner and a movie, nothing peeves me more than kids running around or jumping on their seats, and babies crying without being taken out of the theater!! If we don't have a sitter, we each see the movie with our friends, taking turns with the kids.

 

[pixie dust 112]

There is a thread on the restaurant board, whether parents are rude or not taking under 2yos to dinner late. Anyway, it got me thinking. I was wondering if parents take their infants, or small children to see movies the parents want to see? I was talking to a friend who has an 8yo, 6yo and 2 mo and she said they went to a lot of movies this summer. So, i asked who watched the baby. She said no one, we brought him with. I have 2 kids, and I have never taken them to a movie as a baby. For some reason, that is one of my biggest pet peeves. To me, its a sacrifice having kids...you get a sitter, or you wait til its on video and rent it. I dont like being disturbed during any movie listening to babies crying. Is it just me, or do others feel that way too?

I'm with ya on this one! Drives me when small children are at a movie. The first time my DD went to a movie was for Lion King when she was almost 3. Took her to a matinee of a kid appropriate movie. I especially hated the crying kids at the movies when my kids were little and it was the rare occassion when DH and I got a night out and we were paying a babsitter! I understand that everyone needs a night out now and again, but don't understand how a night at the movies with a crying infant can possibly be fun or relaxing for the parents. I think it's got to be stressful!

 

[gris gris]

I never go to the movies because I'd rather wait for the DVD - but we did go see Talladega Nights and there were 3 or 4 babies there. I have a 4 month old and never would have thought to bring him. If he cried I'd have to get up and leave. What a waste of $$!! I guess I just don't see how it's enjoyable to have your baby with you (unless you're sure he/she will sleep the entire time). Plus I wonder if it hurts their ears?

 

[carrie s]

I wouldnt take a baby to the movies because the volume of the movies are so loud it can damage a babies hearing.
Some movie theaters now have"mommy matinees". They will have the volume lower and keep the lights on so parents can bring there little kids, and they wont bother anyone else because everyone there has young kids with them.

 

[pambo'shouse]

I have taken my kids as infants on a few occasions. However, only up to about 4 months. All of mine slept ALOT during that time. It was not a movie that would be loud, and was usually during the week in the daytime when it was practically empty. I also do not like screaming kids in the theater that you just paid $16 to get in (date for you and hubby) so I would have left if that was ever a problem. After 4 months when they are awake and making noise we didn't go. Now that my youngest is 1 I do not bring him because he "talks" way too much.

 

[Stimpy]

Nope! Could never do it to myself, my kids or the other people in the theater.

We do have a baby movie at our multiplex now so I guess I would do that if I really wanted to see something that bad. Otherwise we wait for a babysitter or DVD.

We went to see Lord Of The RIngs, opening weekend about 9pm show so it was a full house. 2 parents walked in with 2 toddlers in PJs and a baby in an infant carrier. Alot of people sighed at first but about 30 minutes into the movie, the kids just started screaming and crying and the parents did nothing. I was so irritated (and felt bad for the children since it was the parent's fault)! DH and I spent the time and money to get a babysitter for our own small children so we could have a kid-free night and we had to listen to these poor kids screaming the whole time.

 

[logan&tylersmama]

here in CT, they have movies for mom's during the day where they encourage you to bring your children (mostly infants). They dim the lights, turn down the volume and moms are there feeding thier babies, rocking them or just paceing back and forth. I saw alot of movies while i was out on maternity leave. It was really nice and most of the time DS slept. It was nice to get to actualy see adult movies for a change in the theather and not just all the G rated movies.
Jennifer

 

[Schachteles]

I have a girlfriend who does this all the time...he will turn a year in October...they usually go to a later movie like 10pm or so with the hopes that he will sleep...and she just nurses him all the way through it to keep him content...VERY ODD if you ask me.

I can say we took my DD to see Madagascar when she was about 2 weeks old it was a matinee and we were the only family there. But people surely did give us the look when we got there...the look like I hope they are not sitting next to me!

 

[princesstigerlilly]

When I had my first (who is now 12), our lamaze teacher/new mom coach encouraged us to take the infants to a movie as a group. 8 or 10 of us new moms and new babies and saw City Slickers 2. The babies were all less then 6 weeks old, and the exercise was to get us out of the house with support of other moms and to not be afraid to take our babies places. It was a midweek showing, the very first show of the day and the movie had been out for a while. There were 4 other people in the theatre and ALL of the babies slept through the movie, lol. Not a peep out of them.
We all were nervous, but when we saw it was no big deal we felt a great sense of accomplishment.

I took him to a few other movies after that as he was a phenominal sleeper. I followed the same rules (first showing of the day, movie had been out a few weeks and they were all 'quiet' movies). Not once did he cry or fuss, if he had, I would have left. It's not worth the $6 to annoy everyone around me--be it 2 people or 50 people. We eventually started doing other things as the weather warmed up and he grew into a different sleeping pattern.

Now, taking a 14 month old is another story...I tried it once with DS 12--it was obvious as soon as the movie started (it was a kid movie--Babe, I think) he wasn't going to sit, so we left. The manager saw me leaving and offered to return my $$. I thought that was generous as I knew the risk of taking a toddler.

Even at kid movies I wil not allow my kids out of their seats. It irks me to no end to be in a theater with a toddler running up and down the stairs or in front of the movie screen.

 

[Tikki-Tikki]

HI
Ive been reading this with interest and i think its great that a whole family can enjoy a film together if they wish to pay for the pleasure, my little girl has been coming to the movies since she was a baby, i can honestly say she has never made a peep appart from the odd "i need the toilet" i think its a bit sad that children are seen as annoying when in public, im very proud of my kids and the fact that i have introduced them to many social situations means that they are very well behaved in public unlike most adults who talk and loudly whisper their way through movies and get rowdy in restaurants, although would`nt take my kids to a film they were`nt interested in just so that i could see it, thats where grandmas come in handy!

and anyway, we adults all take over disney and act like starstruck 8yr olds!!, is`nt that supposed to be for kids!

 

[Not so Dumbo]

If it were an adult movie...nope no way. If it were a children's movie....probably only because most of the time those movies are never quiet anyways. There's always a child or children talking, laughing, or playing around. However, if my baby started to cry I would still take them out.

 

[mareed]

I have a girlfriend who does this all the time...he will turn a year in October...they usually go to a later movie like 10pm or so with the hopes that he will sleep...and she just nurses him all the way through it to keep him content...VERY ODD if you ask me.

I can't imagine what could be odd about this. I was going to suggest that taking a nursing baby to the movie would be very easy (depending on the temperament of the baby, of course). I think that there's no place for a "crying" baby in a movie theatre. If baby cries, then a parent should leave with the baby immediately. And if you know your baby's temperament/schedule and you know they wouldn't be quiet during a movie, then don't take them. But, I don't see how a quiet/sleeping/nursing baby would bother anyone else.

 

[tlmdisney]

When my children were infants we took them to the theater a couple of times. They do tend to sleep through the movie. As they got older into Toddler age it became more difficult. Not for those around me but for me I would have to go sit in the lobby and let the kids play, even through Kids movies. So it was such a waste of money that we stoped going to the movies for awhile. Even now at 5 and 8 it is sometimes hard for my kids to sit through a whole movie so it is just not enjoyable.

 

[glass slipper girl]

With my oldest I would often take him to movies as a baby with other moms and babies from playgroup but it was midweek during the day so it wasn't a crowded theater. DH and I did occasionally take him to the movies with us (maybe twice?) as a baby but we would go to the 7 pm showing during the week so again, not crowded. We always sat right on the aisle so we could make a quick getaway if need be. DS always slept through the whole thing but we went in with the game plan of that if he woke and started to cry, whoever was holding him would immediately get up and take him out. No trying to see if this or that would work, he would immediately be brought out so as not to disturb anyone else. We used the same philosophy when going out to eat. We did have to take him out a couple of times from restaurants but once we'd get him out we could start him on a bottle or something and bring him back in and he'd be fine.

When DS #2 was born I would have LOVED to have been able to do the same thing but DS #1 was 21 months old and would not have slept through a movie so it was a no-go.

So yes, I've done it but I've tried to do it in such a way that I do not disturb those around me. Going at times when it is not crowded and baby will be sleeping AND if baby woke and started making noise (be it crying or cooing loudly) then we left the theater immediately. I would not bring a toddler who isn't going to sleep through the movie nor would I dream of bringing a baby and spending 5-10 minutes "shushing" and trying to calm a fussy baby before leaving with him.

 

[gris gris]

HI
Ive been reading this with interest and i think its great that a whole family can enjoy a film together if they wish to pay for the pleasure, my little girl has been coming to the movies since she was a baby, i can honestly say she has never made a peep appart from the odd "i need the toilet" i think its a bit sad that children are seen as annoying when in public

I don't think anyone is saying kids are "annoying when in public". People on this thread are saying they don't belong in a movie theater where the purpose of being there is to be quiet and watch a movie. I'm glad your DD has never made a peep. But there are many others that do. It's not like at a restaurant where you can just get your meal to go and leave with your kids. At a movie theater, you'll miss the rest of the movie. This is why I would take my 4 month old to a restaurant but not a movie.

 

[glass slipper girl]

It's not like at a restaurant where you can just get your meal to go and leave with your kids. At a movie theater, you'll miss the rest of the movie.

I think this is the key. Like I said, I brought DS #1 to the movies as a baby BUT I did it fully aware that if he fussed, I would leave the theater. Hopefully it would be something where I could calm him down in just a few minutes outside in the lobby or something and could then go back in and finish them move but if I couldn't, I was prepared to leave and miss the rest of the movie if I had to. I was willing to take the risk of the cost of my ticket to do that. So I didn't feel like my son would be bothering anyone because if he started making noise, he'd be gone. I wouldn't take a baby if I wasn't willing to take that risk and leave if I had to. When I think back, another Mom and I did leave the theater once. We went one weekday afternoon to see The Mexican and our babies were older babies (maybe 8 months?) and we hadn't done this in a while. Neither my DS or her DD was crying but they were making baby noises (cooing, laughing...happy noises but still noises). We left about 40 minutes into the movie because of this. That was the last time we attempted to take them to the movies. We figured they were now old enough that we couldn't expect them to sleep through so our "movie days" were over.

 

[rt2dz]

Haven't read the thread. Hope I didn't miss anything.

We took our oldest all the time to the movies. But, we planned it for nap time or bedtime. Before the previews were over, he was asleep. So HA! to all those dirty looks. Honestly, I don't think most people ever knew he was there. There never was a peep, and had there been, we would have IMMEDIATELY been out of there.

Our second. No movies for him. IF we do take him to a movie, it is a kids movie at a child friendly time. When he was <1, naptime or bedtime would usually work, but we also had to leave a lot. He just isn't the type to be quiet.

With our third, he prefers to nap in a bed, so again, only kid movies. Amazingly enough, he's actually pretty quiet--eats or watch or plays with a silent toy, but I wouldn't even try if it isn't a childs movie.

 

[mdinecola]

and it infuriated me. It was a children's movie and my seven and four year old have just gotten to where they will sit and enjoy watching at the theater and low and behold, there is a mom who sits by us in a PACKED theater and lets her <2 year old and about 5 year laugh and giggle and tickle each other, roll around on the floor and run up and down the aisle. Our theater has 4 ft aisles, but still not that huge when you have a kid stepping on your toes and running in front of MY kids who are minding their manners and quietly trying to watch the movie. I think it is a matter of teaching your children to respect others and not always feel like it's ok to act like a fool. Sure, kids will be kids, but when they get my kids ages and still want to act that way, it makes the parents look like complete morons. There are places you can take a toddler and places you can't. I have, on the other hand, been to plenty of movies where the children were behaved or sleeping and where the parents realized that it was time to leave and didn't further disturb others with their screaming kids. Some people just don't get it, though......................

 

[Lisa_Belle]

I've seen some kids at movies who were better behaved than some adults. One time, this group of ladies ranging in age from about 30s to 50s (old enough to know better) in front of us were talking loudly as to what they thought the outcome of the movie would be. I already knew what happened, so about 30 minutes into the movie I leaned up and told them. They gave me the dirtiest looks, but they were sure quiet after that.

Now, when we go to see a G-rated children's movie - such as Cars - I go with the expectation that there will be lots of kids, not all of whom are going to sit there like proper young ladies and gentlemen at tea. I do think parents need to teach their kids to behave, but I also understand that some of them just aren't going to do it. I can either let it get to me, or I can let it go and enjoy the movie and explain to DD how NOT to act.