OrganicAnn Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 There is one old drive in theater in our area. So tonight they finally have a kids movie I think DD will like. When DH and I were kids, our families periodically took us to drive ins. Not all the time, but some. They seemed to have died off. Have your kids ever been to a drive in? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghee Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Yes, but not in a while. You reminded me of something else to put on our summer fun list! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jennsmile Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Yes! We love going! Next Friday we are going to the Drive-in thanks for reminding me to look up times. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MamaT Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Not since I was a teenager. My friends and I went all the time back in the day. I don't think there is one anywhere around me now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Word Nerd Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 (edited) My older DD has been to one but was too young to remember much about it. We have one nearby, and it's on our summer bucket list to go. I hope there will be a family-friendly movie that's actually worth seeing soon! Edited June 16, 2012 by WordGirl Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
happyWImom Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Not since I was a teenager. My friends and I went all the time back in the day. I don't think there is one anywhere around me now. Same here. We lived for Friday nights & going to the drive-in! I think this is another thread that will date us. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jelbe5 Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Great fun! Pack snacks,drinks, blankets. We hope to go this weekend! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Amy in NH Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Not since I was a little kid. I have a vivid memory of a scary guy with silver teeth. On a train? It was terrifying. My sister and I probably weren't supposed to be watching that one; I imagine we were supposed to be asleep in the back of the car. So, how do you do it? Do you get out of the car and sit on the hood? Does everyone pile into the front to see the movie through the windshield? There's a drive-in about 40 minutes from here, but I don't understand how it works. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OrganicAnn Posted June 16, 2012 Author Share Posted June 16, 2012 They have either speakers or a radio channel you can tune in to. My DH said that his family would park their van backwards and open the back doors. I think my parents used to have the kids sit in the front seats and the parents would sit in the back (hmm I wonder what they were doing back there). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tap Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 My older kids used to go with their grandma every year. The theater closed a year or so ago, so dd5 will likely never get to go to one. We have made our own out door theater by using the projector on a screen outside for youth group events LOL Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
********* Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 My kids have never been, and the last time I went was when I was 17. I think there's still one open in Flint, where I grew up. It was fun. But we don't really do movies anymore; nothing worth watching. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MiniBlondes Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Oh, we love love love the drive in! Blankets, lawn chairs, picnics, such fun!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeannie in NJ Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 my very first movie was at a drive-in, it was Lil Abner. My parents would take lawn chairs for all of us to sit in. When I was a teen, if it was a night where they charged per person rather than per car, we would have one person drive the car and pay for one while the rest of us would be in the trunk, so sneaky lol as if the cashier did not know what was going on but they didn't care since everyone did that. oh also as a kid, we loved playing at the playground that was just in front of the screen and also going around and banging on the car windows where teens were "not watching the movie" and then I got to be a teen and also "did not watch the movie" Fogot to mention that my parents did not let me single date at the drive in only double date, but there was still plenty of action even on a double date. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crimson Wife Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Yes, we have one nearby and sometimes go on the discount Tuesday nights. We haven't been in a while because youngest DD has had preschool but she's off in August so we may go then. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
musicmommy Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 We got several times a year since our drive in is about 10 minutes away. The first drive in movie the boys saw was Cars and our oldest thought it was the coolest thing to sit in a car while we watched Cars. We usually take naps in the afternoon and pick up sub sandwiches on the way for a picnic. We always bring a few games to play, frisbees, etc. Since we live in a small town, we usually end up running into some friends there also. The boys love to load up the Suburban with pillows and blankets and we all curl up in the back, raise up the tailgate and settle in for the night. Our drive in always shows a double feature. If the second movie isn't something for them, we usually bring a computer with, put the younger boys in their seats and let them watch their own movie. I'm usually asleep though by about 10 minutes into the second movie. We love our drive in, but it sure makes for some late nights! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AndyJoy Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Yes--just twice. My small town in Idaho still had one when I was in jr. high and I saw Dragonheart and The Phantom. It went out of business shortly thereafter. Then when I was visiting my parents two summers ago when Keaton was an infant, we spent the day in another Idaho town that still has TWO drive ins. We saw Toy Story 3 and Prince of Persia that time. It was so nice to be able to see a 1st run movie even though I had a baby! It started at dark (9:00) so I just nursed him and he slept. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
KungFuPanda Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 We LOVE it. Don't pack snacks unless you know it's OK. If this is a drive in in MD, you are not allowed to bring in outside food without a permit. Also, make sure you can turn off or cover up your headlights on theater property. Ours doesn't let you park with running lights on. We bring lawn chairs and blankets so we can sit outside in front of the car. Drive in's can attract mosquitos so bring your bug spray. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
djsmom Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 We bring chairs, blankets, and a cooler of drinks & snacks. The drive-in near us has a radio channel you tune into. We pull our SUV in backwards and open the lift gate. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nukeswife Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 The last time I went to one was when my oldest was a baby. As far as I know that one is now closed and where we live now there aren't any left. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeslieAnneLevine Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 (edited) I went all the time when I was a kid. It was an old-school drive-in with a crappy playground and the "5! 5 minutes to...showtime!" thing that counted down the 10 minutes before the movie started. I can remember seeing so many movies there: Grease, ET, Vacation, Gremlins, Ghostbusters, Mr. Mom... My son has been only once, but hopefully will go again soon. We go to the movies often so I need to save one for the drive-in (right now they're showing The Avengers and Madagascar 3, both of which we've seen). Edited June 16, 2012 by LeslieAnneLevine Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GnomeyNewt Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 We have one about 15 minutes away and go all summer! It is great when you have babies especially, but of course as they get older we only go to kid-friendly movies. They've fixed up the playground over the years, so it is huge and we have 3 screens, and a lot of movie choices. They usually do 2 movies for the price of one, but you have to be willing to stay up pretty late. They still use their old-school movie count down and voices to announce the movie and during the breaks. It's kinda cool they didn't upgrade since it has a cool vibe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dana Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Not since I was a little kid. I have a vivid memory of a scary guy with silver teeth. On a train? It was terrifying. My sister and I probably weren't supposed to be watching that one; I imagine we were supposed to be asleep in the back of the car. Bet it was one of the Bond movies with Roger Moore & the silver teeth is Jaws. Can't recall which movie it is right now though. We've got a drive in about 40 min away. May need to take a look at what they've got playing.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynn Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 I lived across the street from one when I was a kid. Lots of summer nights spent there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nd293 Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 Yes - and they love it! We grew up with drive-in, but the last one closed in our home city long before my kids were born. I was so excited to find that there was one in the city we now live in. Our drive-in tends to show a child friendly movie every school holiday, and we try to go with a friend - the kids love moving between cars. For dh's birthday we went to the drive-in to see a regular (ie not children's) movie - we put the kids in the back of the car with iPad and headphones to watch a kids' movie while we watched ours. It's cheaper than hiring a babysitter! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paintedlady Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 We have one in our home town and go quite a bit. It's a lot of fun! We try to remember to bring lots of old blankets & pillows for the kids to lay out in the back of the truck, munchies/drinks, bug spray, and sweatshirts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soror Posted June 16, 2012 Share Posted June 16, 2012 We have one not too far away, it was 2 but one went out of business. You can bring your own snacks here, but no coolers iirc. We like to back the van up and put the back seat down. We haven't been in awhile though, there are so few movies worth seeing and they start so late. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LostSurprise Posted June 18, 2012 Share Posted June 18, 2012 Its pretty easy to do a search for drive-ins in your state. This national database has 7 in Virginia. I remember going as a child. We'd put sleeping bags in the back of the station wagon and we were supposed to go to sleep after the first kiddie feature. I saw Star Wars, Fox and the Hound, Song of the South, Rocky 2, and the Cat from Outer Space for the first time at a drive-in. When I was a teen I thought they'd all closed. I reconnected with them when I was newly married. Fun! We take the boys at least once a summer. The little ones can wander through the car and play and the older ones watch the movie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Girls' Mom Posted June 18, 2012 Share Posted June 18, 2012 We used to go all the time when I was a kid/teen. It was cheap entertainment, and it was close to us. The first time I went was as a baby so my mom could see Star Wars. The last one was Toy Story 3 with the kids. My kids had never been until we went to one in Texas. There aren't any close by where we are now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mrs Mungo Posted June 18, 2012 Share Posted June 18, 2012 I have been, but my kids haven't. There is one by my mom's house, and we will be visiting this summer. Great idea! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.