No Strings Attached

I have been asked by more than one party recently if their “X” aged child would be all right at Dragon Con or not.

So I am going to give you my opinion based on observation and Caroline’s experience at the convention.

Caroline has been going to Dragon Con her entire life. I know we are in the unusual situation of being guests of the convention, which give us certain perks. I am hoping that what I write will be of general use for someone just going to Dragon Con.

I am asked “what age is a good age for a child at Dragon Con”? I say it depends on the child really.

There are a lot of families at Dragon Con. I know a number of children that, like Caroline, have been to Dragon Con every year of their lives. Some of them are adults now. Dragon Con does try to be family friendly.

Dragon Con is big really big. You may think it is a long way to the chemist’s but that is nothing compare to Dragon Con. The convention is spread over seven (?) hotels and the apparel mart. There can be (is) a lot of walking at Dragon Con. There is time between panels and events to get from point A to point B but I add 10 minutes to my time and 20 if Caroline is with me because of the crowds. Caroline is not partial to crowds but she sucks it up for Dragon. You have to keep an eye or hand on your kid pretty much the whole time.

There are a number of panels in all the various tracks that are geared to children. Some of these are hands on like the puppet making workshop for kids. Others are regular panels with speakers and the like. The program book gives you a fair idea of what the panels are about and who they are geared for.

There is the parade, which is a lot of fun to watch for kids. There are the gaming sessions that the older kids can sign up for. There is the Yule Tide Ball for the Harry Potter fans. There are concerts and costume calls and a lot of things to do with the kids both day and night.

Caveat here. There are performances and a couple of contests, especially in the evening, that are for adults only. There are costumes showing a lot of skin or the super hero equivalent of the naughty nurse costumes you see at Halloween. There are some extreme body mod people wandering around so you may be explaining why someone looks a certain way to your child. I had to explain what someone had done to their ears because they had taken out their plugs and their ear lobe was down to their shoulder. There are areas of Dragon Con, especially after dark, which you want to steer clear of with younger children.

Feeding your child can be a challenge especially in the food court since most places get slammed and stay slammed for most of the convention. I tend to stagger our meals so I am not up against it during the busiest times of the day.

If you are staying at a hotel, I suggest, especially for the younger children, a break at some point in the day just to get the noise out of your ears. To use a bathroom that you control and just decompress from all the input. I still do that with Caroline and for myself.

I have also been asked when can one let one’s children run around Dragon Con. I can say that Caroline has limited freedom like if she is in artist alley with Dad, she can wander that room, the art show, and the bathroom but no further without a trusted adult. If she wants to go anywhere else, she is accompanied. Ariel wasn’t allowed to go to a panel on her own until she was 16 and even then we had her check in via text. There are a lot of people at Dragon Con and not all of them have your or your child’s best interest at heart but I don’t think the hazard is any greater than wandering around NYC or a theme park.

I hope this helps and please ask any and all questions you have. I am an old Dragon Con hand and am willing to tell you what I know.

I am grateful to parents who can navigate Dragon Con safely with their children.

And I have been reflecting back on the year and what she has learned and what I have learned.

It is amazing how, when I was a kid, time in school seemed to stretch into eternity especially at the end of the year but as a parent I blink and we are here.

I am glad that math is going back to learning and rote memory. New math was fuzzy math to me. There were a few clever tricks but nothing beats going over one’s times tables over and over.

I don't know if my child is going to have a signature. They are no longer teaching cursive to children in the New York schools. Caroline’s teacher made a serious effort to get the kids to learn script so they can at least read it. I am going to have to teach her that myself. Why aren’t they teaching penmanship? Well it boils down to “the test” which most of the year is taken up with and computers because fewer people write in script.

I am not happy with the pressure put on the teachers to get their students to perform well to “the test”. All we are teaching our kids is how to take tests well. Where is the knowledge that is going to spark the next great Invention? We use to be first on the planet for innovation and creative thinkers. Don’t think we are there any more.

I am very appreciative of Caroline’s teacher this year who encouraged her creativity and thinking outside the box. I also appreciate that her other teachers didn’t try to steam the tide of creativity that is Caroline. Caroline is a good abstract thinker and I think that will serve her well in the future.

I appreciate that her teacher worked with her on her test anxiety issues. Caroline does better with a goal and doing it in her own time. This year she had to learn to work within the clock parameters and for a while this was driving her nuts. But her teacher worked with her and the rest of the class on time management and relaxation techniques during test taking.

I appreciate all the other staff and teachers who kept an eye on her and the other kids while at school. She knows I get updates about her from various people I know there. I also get amusing tales o’ Caroline from them which make me smile. She seems to be a good influence on the people around her.

I am grateful to everyone who helped Caroline this year become the young lady she is growing into.

A week from Friday is Farpoint. I have a lot to do between now and then. This week I managed to get a majority of Caroline’s costume done and a part of Ariel’s

So we get into how many hours do I have left and how many of those hours can I devote to the projects and how much is everything else that need to be done.

The postcards are on the back burner for the time being.

I have a few things I have to shop for to complete the looks I am creating. Once I have those items, the costumes will be pretty much a snap.

Here is how I am looking at the next couple of days. Mondays are not great days to get things done due to all the other things I do.

Today-Make a list of missing pieces and go and get them

Tomorrow-Finish the headpiece for Caroline’s costumes and sew either snaps or Velcro to get the pieces to fit together. Finish Ariel’s tunic which is taking a little longer than I thought it would and her wig is going to be a two to three day project but it can be done in between other projects.

Thursday-Continue Wig. Start doll 1,2,3. And Ship since I have permission from one of the creators to make one.

Friday-Finish all costume pieces and clean up.

Saturday and Sunday-Wig finishing and doll making

Monday-My busy day in the real world

Tuesday-I hope to be at clothing the dolls having painted them on Sunday/Monday (and do another Crafty Tuesday with an update)

By next Wednesday I want to be basically done so I can spend the next two days getting ready for the convention.

So that is my time management plan for the next week or so.

I am grateful to be able to see my pieces of lawn again without snow on top.

I would like to offer my thanks to all veterans who have sacrificed so much allowing me to live the life I lead. If you love freedom, hug a Vet. I have had lots of friends who have served and some that are still deployed this day. To them and their families, know that I am thinking of you.

I am taking Caroline into the city for an adventure today. It is sort of at the last minute but she has been jonesing to go to the Natural History Museum for a couple of months now. She wants to see the dinos and look at the shapes of the rocks in the gem and mineral section. We will probably lunch at John’s Pizza because she really likes that place. It will be a Mommy and Daughter day in the City.

We are still dealing with Fig and her intestinal track and parasites. Now it looks like it might be a tapeworm which is a whole other medicine. Either way we have a worm sample to show the vet so we will know what is going on.

Peter has about four writing assignments that are due about the same time. We are not going to see much of him before Thanksgiving which is fine. Work in these difficult times is a blessing and we are grateful for each and every one of them. He is really good at getting a bunch of different things done at the same time. His brain is just amazing that way. Caroline understood the phrase “Daddy is on a deadline” before she could talk.

I am grateful for the opportunity to just take Caroline in the city and go see something on whim.

And honestly I tried to write my blog in “pirate” but it was just too hard to read after I was done so I am going to acknowledge the day by watching Captain Blood, Hook, Peter Pan, and one of the Pirates of the Caribbean.

I did get Ariel’s bathrobe done for her and she likes the picture I took of it.

(A picture of Ariel’s bathrobe with a skull pattern which she picked out on it)

Tomorrow Caroline and I go up to see Ariel. Caroline is very excited at the thought of this. She misses her big sister so much she invented an invisible little brother to keep her company. Yesterday she had two of her friends over to play and watch a movie. They watched “Monsters vs. Aliens” and created a very large tea party. Caroline pulled out her princess dresses so everyone got to wear a pretty dress and play together. They all had great fun. Today Caroline and I are going to recover the living room from all the toys that were pulled out.

I have a couple of projects for today and then I think Caroline and I are going to head to the playground since it is such a lovely day outside. I plan to not rush the day but let it fall into place.

I am grateful for being able to watch Caroline and her friends play.