Saturday, October 13, 2007

Broken Plane

My son's plane broke. This shouldn't be a big deal. After all, toys break all of the time. (At least they do in my house.) Unfortunately, the minute the toy plane broke, it became my son's all-time favorite toy. When he asked me to buy him a new one, I tried to explain that we had gotten it from the museum gift store, that we can't replace it at the regular stores we go to. He's not asking for a new plane anymore. He's asking to go to the museum. He's three-years-old. Is this a good thing?

Yes, the beloved plane came from the Smithsonian Air & Space Museum in Washington, DC. The plane itself was only about five dollars, cheap by gift store standards. The museum isn't that far away... only about an hour drive from here (assuming no traffic, which happens from approximately 1am to 2am daily.) Entrance to the museum is free. The problem is that in DC parking is at a premium. Okay, I exaggerate. Parking is nonexistant (unless you really do go there around 2am, but that's too scary to consider.)

I had hoped that this obsession with the plane would cease, but every day since the plane broke my little one has asked to go to the museum. My next course of action was to explain that we can't replace every broken toy, especially one that was purchased so far away. I thought I was winning this argument until the rest of the truth came out. My son hadn't broken his plane, a sibling had. It was an accident to be sure, but the bottom line was that his plane was broken beyond repair by a big sister, and my son is devastated because apparently this plane has always been a favorite toy.

So now, I am contemplating making the drive into Arlington (down the road from the National Cemetery), catching the Metro (subway), and then walking with a three-year-old the 1/2 mile (or more) to the museum just because my son's plane broke. Summing it up, I will get to spend three hours in traffic, an hour on the subway, an hour at lunch in Arlington (not bad if you don't consider dining with a three-year-old), thirty minutes walking between the subway and museum, and an hour or so at the museum, and five minutes in the gift shop (because I am not buying anything else besides a new plane!) Then we also add in parking in Arlington, $4, subway fare, $6, toy airplane, $5, Tylenol for the headache and back ache that are sure to ensue, $3, spending time with my three-year-old alone in Washington, DC, it had darn well better be priceless!

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

hi traci:
cute post. thanks for stopping by my 9/11 post today. thanks for what you said about patriotism.

i have soooo many fond memories of going to the metros, the museums, old historic sites, plantations, monuments, (but the traffic was horrible -- i swore never to drive there). fun to hear you talking about the va/d.c. area. and for the longest time when i was a kid, i really thought the air and space museum was called the "AARON SPACE MUSEUM." that amuses me to remember that again since reading your post just now.

i was born in d.c. and raised in fairfax, virginia until i left at age 18 to join the Air Force. and while in the Air Force, i volunteered for an assignment in alaska and fell in love with this place and have lived here ever since (almost 20 years now).

i am adding you to my blog favorites sidebar because i don't want to lose your blog address. i am having too much fun reading you.

thank you for your service to our country as well, kathleen :)

Avery Gray said...

Does the museum have a website? Can you purchase things from it? If so, then, shoot, I'd just buy it online! Saves you the hassle.

Not that going to the museum isn't a worthwhile endeavor, but if you were looking for a way out of it...

Traci Hunter Abramson said...

Great idea, Avery. I did look online, but no luck finding the plane. I think I'm going to have someone who works in DC check and make sure they still have them before making the trek.

Thanks for your comments Kathleen! I used to live in Fairfax too before moving further south. Too much traffic!

Anonymous said...

LOL! It's funny how we consider and sometimes do things like this for our distraught little ones.

Anonymous said...

how about calling the store? see if they will let you purchase it over the phone and mail it to you? might save you all the in-person and traffic hassle if you can avoid it. hope that you can get this easily. real nice how you are trying to save the day for your little man.

hey, i have had a lot of fun cooresponding with you today traci. i like it. did you receive a long note (about my friend who i used to hike with on saturdays) from me on the buzz via that contact mail thing? i tried to just write you directly, not just leave a note on the buzz blog thing. not sure if it worked? have no idea if it works yet. you made my night tonight brighter, thanks, kathleen

An Ordinary Mom said...

The mere fact that you are contemplating doing this for your son is priceless.

I second Kathleen's idea, see if the store will send you another one in the mail.

Fairfax, VA is where my mother grew up. Small world!

Autumn Ables said...

Oh my. I feel and see your dilema. Priceless and PAINFUL! Good luck. The only thing I have to offer is this: Let's have a group fast that your son will forget about the plane! teehee hehehehehehehe {yes, I'm laughing at myself}

Traci Hunter Abramson said...

Was someone fasting for me? My son is now obsessing over the remote control car that broke six months ago instead of the plane. Maybe by the end of the week, he'll get so wrapped up in halloween that we can put off the museum visit until a school vacation day so I can take the rest of the kids with me too.