Big amusements for small people

By Whitney

We spend half a day at the Santa Cruz Boardwalk this weekend, a place where Kettle Corn passes for lunch and a Ferris Wheel rises high above a beautiful California beach.

Ferris Wheel

Santa Cruz Boardwalk

Our five-year old is incredibly brave and wants to go on any ride that will have him. Our nearly three-year-old wants nothing to do with the mechanical monsters that keep engulfing her brother and his friends for two thrilling minutes at a time. She also does not want to hear the noise of the rickety roller coaster or see the water splash over the edge of the log flume ride. In short, she is scared of almost everything at the boardwalk, and whimpers in fear, contorting her body at the sight of miniature train rides the same way she does before she receives an injection at the doctor’s office.

In general, we respect her anxieties and don’t brush them off. We validate her feelings and agree that “Those are loud noises” and “I know you want to walk as far away from the blue man on stilts as possible.” We allow her to leave public restrooms without flushing because her anticipation of the flushing sound has resulted in one too many potty accidents.

So we went into this outing knowing that we’d be doing a lot of holding her, covering her ears and turning away from spectacles. We did not pressure her to go on any rides. And you know what? She surprised me.

Santa Cruz Mohawk

She went on a ride — and she liked it! She sat in a little boat-shaped vehicle with another child she knows, held onto the pretend steering wheel and waved proudly at us every time she came around the circle.

I felt excited and hopeful. I wondered if the rest of the outing would be more relaxing. I started to wonder if we should have bought more ride tickets, because suddenly we had two kids– not one– who like to be turned round and round or bobbed up and down by large machinery.

But no, her adventurous behavior was a short momentary lapse of anxiety. The only ride she took for the rest of the day was in the stroller we brought with us to the boardwalk.