I love you...you love me

Ryan LOVES Barney. I can watch most kids shows, and even enjoy some of them, but I'm not the biggest fan of that big purple dinosaur. However, it makes Ryan so happy to watch Barney and listen to Barney music, that I put up with it. A few months ago I found out that a Barney concert was coming to York, PA, which is about an hour north of Baltimore. I knew it would be painful for me to sit through, but I also knew it would make my little guy absolutely ecstatic, so I purchased tickets. I decided to surprise him, and didn't tell him ahead of time about the concert. On the day of the concert, I picked him up at school right after lunch. He was excited to see me and I told him we were going to a special place, but that it was a surprise. He was so excited and kept asking me in the car "Where do you think we're going? What did you think the surprise is?" he even tried getting some clues out of me so he could figure out on his own where we were headed. "Will we be home for dinner? Am I going to school tomorrow?" Eventually he fell asleep in the car. I woke him up when we arrived and gave him a snack and drink as we approached the theater. When we arrived, he saw Barney signs everywhere, and leaped into my arms and buried his head in my shoulder, I truly think he was so overcome with excitement that he got embarrassed and didn't know what to do! As we waited for the concert o start, he was talking animatedly, wondering what songs they would sing. However, as soon as the concert began, he was stoic. He stared at Barney and the other characters and performers with a VERY serious expression. He wouldn't clap, sing along, get out of his seat, or dance. I kept asking him if he liked it and he claimed that he did (and I know he did) but you never would have known that by looking at him! I guess he was just overwhelmed seeing his idol up close and personal (we were in the 4th row). After intermission, I was able to get him to sing a long and clap a little bit, but in a very quiet voice. When I asked him later why he didn't sing, his response was "I did sing. I was using my inside voice." Surprising him with something he really loved was so much fun for me, it was even worth sitting through 90 mintues of Barney :)