Do you bring your babies to the restaurant?
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When my kids were younger, I would only take them to a restaurant where we could colour on the menu's. Now that they are older, I have no problem taking them. I love kids, I have 2 but if I'm out I don't want to hear a screaming baby the whole time.0
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Yes I take my kids to restaurants and they behave themselves. If a child is restless or crying, the parents should remove the child for a little bit. My youngest tried to throw a fit once, and only once, but when I took her away from everyone and made her sit in time out for a few, she stopped and was able to join the rest of the family. Discipline is not just for when they are at home.0
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As a former waitress, I have a couple of things to add:
1) If they are polite and well-behaved, no big deal. But, if they are running around screaming like wild animals it is not my fault if I drop a tray on their head. Remember, there is HOT food coming out of the kitchen and people carrying drink trays. I do not want to injure your child anymore than you want your child injured. I have actually reminded parents of that fact when little Johnny is running around like a banshee.
2) If your kid opens up all the sugar packets and drops/throws food on the ground, the PARENTS should clean the mess up, not the waitstaff.0 -
I have two kids, ages 2 1/2 and 1 1/2. We stick to family friendly only. If they get a little out of hand we don't feel so bad since people who patronize these restaurants kinda expect it. Luckily my kids are pretty well behaved but they do get a little loud toward the end of the meal. I only do fancy restaurants for date nights with me and the hubby.0
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Our baby boy is One. We take him out pretty regularly, not to expensive restaurants though. Usually he is not cranky but if he is we go home or one of us takes him out temporarily. Going out and having children is not easy. Getting a babysitter is difficult at times too. Please be gracious to others and don't judge too harshly. I know I did before I had children.0
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Yes...I take her to meals. She is normally awesome. If she is having a bad day and is fussy, one of us takes her outside. I don't want to ruin anyone's meal....including mine, lol! I am lucky though....our little one is great in restaurants especially at breakfast. I wouldn't take her to a fancy restaurant at this point...only because it would be a waste of money. If people automatically assume she is going to ruin their meal when we walk in the restaurant with her, too bad. Some people really need to loosen up. Not all kids are horrible in restaurants.0
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Last I checked this is America and you can bring your children anywhere but an R rated movie. I might have thought the same way as you before i had kids, but until you have them and know the situation as to why their children are with them, you shouldn't judge. Perhaps there is NO family to care for them and the friggin parent needs a night out. Albeit, I've always kept my kids as quiet as possible when out, stepped outside if I had to and had the most respect I could for others, but we all gotta eat, and kids are a part of us.0
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OK I'm going to try to sayt his nicely and by no means did we take our son to fancy rest. but.....
Our son had a medical issue that caused him to become feeding tube dependant for a little over 2 years. He never learned to "eat" like a normal child. We did intensive therapy with early intervention and 2 children's hospitals in order to "teach" him to eat again.
ON top of that, he is non medicated ADHD.
Eating out is hard.
When he was little we tried to go out to eat right after a feeding session at home when either he ate enough orall or I tubed the rest into his feeding tube. Then we had to wait about an hour and head out to eat.
I couldn't just drop him off at a baby sitter.....this was a medically complex kid (healthy now thank GOD) on multiple medications that all had to be timed apart.
At one point one of our early intervention goals was to start doing feeding therapy in public because well, people EAT in public. WE all do.
You would not believe the stares we got. To others, it looked like I had the most spoiled kid on the planet. He would kick, sometimes scream, I started out only feeding him a "snack" at the mall in the food court.
Fast foward to now, he's 5.5 (still unmedicated ADHD) but still does not understand all the "social" skills that come with eating out. He still only eats because it's on a schedule. Very rarely does he eat because he is hungry or likes very much the food put in front of him.
If you saw us out to eat, yes I am still feeding him with his fork or mine or whatever I can get my hands on in order for him to eat. That's just how it is. He will be on his knees, under the table, asking about everything around us. His mind runs 100 MPH 24 horus a day.
It's not because he is a brat, it's because he got dealt a ****ty hand in life and we are still paying the consequences to this day.
We are just glad and amazed he eats by mouth at all. The original goal was to have his tube out by the time he entered K5, well, he enters K5 in the fall and got his tube removed before starting K3. He beat his goal by 2 years people, that is amazing.
I also know a HUGE amount of tube fed children on line. He is the ONLY child I know of how has gone from 100% tube fed to completely oral all at home and did not have to be admitted into an intense rehibilitation feeding program at a children's hospital.
So, please be compassionate when you see a family struggling while they are out to eat. I cannot tell you how many times I would go home and just cry. We got horrible looks all the time.0 -
it would be interesting to see how many of the people who don't like children "spoiling" their meals don't have kids of their own?
I have 3- screaming kids in restaurants is unacceptable- ALWAYS. Take them out- accept you need a time out for a while from certain places while the kids are young. Before you know they are teens who want nothing to do with you- take your dates then or get a sitter. As a mother of 3 I am here to tell you I do NOT want to hear any kids when I am trying to have an adult evening. I dont want to hear mine, yours or any. Love my kids- tolerate others' - but not in adult venues.0 -
With a 4 year old and a 2 year old who are little terrors of awesome. As a rule of thumb, if it has "Family" in the name of the resturant... we dont' give a hoot, but we DO ask to be sit away from couples or near other families with like minded kids. Some host/ess do attempt that sort of sectioning.
With that being said; if we are forced to bring our kid to a pricier resturant $25+ a plate is pricy for me, if they start screaming, I vamoose out the door to scold, settle, or bury my kid. Hehehe. Pulling the 'Pssh, why should we care, they are 4.' doesn't cut it with us, and we don't expect other families or couples in a higher end resturant to put up with us... heck if the waitress/waiter came over and asked us to leave we'd understand.
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its got nothing to do with the baby, its the parent
if the baby cries, you remove him
i have always gotten compliments on my childrens behavior in restaunts
and they have been in restraunts alot more expensive than $25.00 a person
its called teaching them manners
This is my view as well. I have taken my kids to fine dining restaurants every since they were babies. My ex-husband was an executive chef, so we always went to upscale places. I would walk outside or into a restroom for crying of bad behavior.
By doing this, and expecting good behavior, my boys know how to handle silverware correctly and cut a steak (which most adults can't do). They don't put their elbows on the table. They chew with their mouths closed. They are polite to waitstaff, and always say please and thank you. They don't do gross things at the table. They know how to use "restaurant voice".
The down side is that they now have expensive tastes, and crave things like smoked cheeses, kobe beef, and sushi...0 -
"However if I'm paying $25 a plate minimum and it's a nice, upscale restaurant, I think it's totally inappropriate to bring young children. No kids menu? Then that place probably isn't for children."
This is the principle we apply when we go out....usually family friendly places but occasionally we will treat ourselves to a bit of an upscale dinner. No kids menu, they don't go....mostly because we can't really afford to feed all of us at $25+ per plate but still...0 -
I have fought on both ends of this. I don't have kids but I've been to places with crying babies.... A grocery store or department store I understand because a mom has to do what she needs to do, she shouldn't be held prisoner in her own home just because she has a baby. But if it were in a nice restaurant where the parent(s) could have made baby sitter plans or something, I think the baby should stay home. When people go to a restaurant the price that they pay for their food not only goes toward the food cost, but it goes toward the atmosphere as well. If they allow children to be running around and babies to be crying (Like a Denny's on a weekend morning) then I'm not going to pay. I would have to speak with a manager or leave. I honestly wouldn't ask them to shut their kid up, as tempting as that is.... They are free to be there, just as I am. So, it's a tough situation.0
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I think it's cute that you think you won't take your baby to place like that one day.
Everyone makes "rules" for their future babies.
And then they have a baby.
This. I used to be the OP. Now I have a kid. I think the point here is that I (like most others) would not leave my child screaming and just ignore it. But crazy us - we tend to meet his basic needs.0 -
My youngest is 22 months old and we have enough trouble getting him to sit at the table through an entire dinner. That said, we have brought him to family style restaurants, but not somewhere that might be considered "fancy" noooooo thank you. :laugh:0
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Last I checked this is America and you can bring your children anywhere but an R rated movie. I might have thought the same way as you before i had kids, but until you have them and know the situation as to why their children are with them, you shouldn't judge. Perhaps there is NO family to care for them and the friggin parent needs a night out. Albeit, I've always kept my kids as quiet as possible when out, stepped outside if I had to and had the most respect I could for others, but we all gotta eat, and kids are a part of us.
Pretty sure, I have seen children at R rated movies... I have seen a 9 year old at a showing of the Dictator not too long ago....0 -
OK I'm going to try to sayt his nicely and by no means did we take our son to fancy rest. but.....
Our son had a medical issue that caused him to become feeding tube dependant for a little over 2 years. He never learned to "eat" like a normal child. We did intensive therapy with early intervention and 2 children's hospitals in order to "teach" him to eat again.
ON top of that, he is non medicated ADHD.
Eating out is hard.
When he was little we tried to go out to eat right after a feeding session at home when either he ate enough orall or I tubed the rest into his feeding tube. Then we had to wait about an hour and head out to eat.
I couldn't just drop him off at a baby sitter.....this was a medically complex kid (healthy now thank GOD) on multiple medications that all had to be timed apart.
At one point one of our early intervention goals was to start doing feeding therapy in public because well, people EAT in public. WE all do.
You would not believe the stares we got. To others, it looked like I had the most spoiled kid on the planet. He would kick, sometimes scream, I started out only feeding him a "snack" at the mall in the food court.
Fast foward to now, he's 5.5 (still unmedicated ADHD) but still does not understand all the "social" skills that come with eating out. He still only eats because it's on a schedule. Very rarely does he eat because he is hungry or likes very much the food put in front of him.
If you saw us out to eat, yes I am still feeding him with his fork or mine or whatever I can get my hands on in order for him to eat. That's just how it is. He will be on his knees, under the table, asking about everything around us. His mind runs 100 MPH 24 horus a day.
It's not because he is a brat, it's because he got dealt a ****ty hand in life and we are still paying the consequences to this day.
We are just glad and amazed he eats by mouth at all. The original goal was to have his tube out by the time he entered K5, well, he enters K5 in the fall and got his tube removed before starting K3. He beat his goal by 2 years people, that is amazing.
I also know a HUGE amount of tube fed children on line. He is the ONLY child I know of how has gone from 100% tube fed to completely oral all at home and did not have to be admitted into an intense rehibilitation feeding program at a children's hospital.
So, please be compassionate when you see a family struggling while they are out to eat. I cannot tell you how many times I would go home and just cry. We got horrible looks all the time.
of course sympathy is called for in your case. but Id have to ask anyway- why not make life easier on all of you and use restaurants that are more appropriate for the behavior? If not for him but yourself. Instead of eating somewhere nice or even borderline nice (chain restaurants) why not mc donalds, chuck e cheese or chick fil A etc.
When my kids were out of control (terrible 2s- boys, basically untrained animals til about 2. 5 or 3 yrs old) Id stay home. Simple. In time they grew into humans and we go where ever we want. They act like gentleman at the table and Im not stressed or crying when I get home.
As I said - you have a certain situation that is unlike most of us. Why not take an easy road once in a while- if not for some peace to others- but for your own sanity.0 -
Depends on the formality of the restaurant.
I used to bring them to more relaxed places and still do as babies/toddlers, but if their behavior became unacceptable (crying/throwing/whining/running around), I would send my wife out to pack them up in the car, then I'd pay the bill and leave. One warning, and then it's over. They learn fast if they can't get away with it.
A more formal, quiet place where there's no kids menu? I don't even bother when they're young and messy. Maybe now since they're older, but I'd bounce them out just the same if they couldn't hold to a proper level of etiquette.0 -
Sorry, but I can't tell you when my baby is going to be fussy and upset. And yes, I will take him out of the room if he starts crying. I'll even hurry my family along and take my food home if things are going that badly. But don't be an a**hole and lump everyone with a crying baby into the same "omg they are so loud and annoying and not taking care of it and I should've have to deal with it and they should just be going to eat crap food at Denny's if they want to go out". Because that's just rude. I am allowed to try to enjoy my life with my family. I had a very unpredictable baby and he could be perfectly content one second, then be screaming bloody murder the next. And even if I DID take him out to calm him down, I still got dirty looks. My daughter was completely different. I've been taking her to symphonies since she was not quite three. She sits still and if she starts getting a little loud, you tell her and she immediately takes it down a notch. And frankly, a kid's menu is NOT what I look for when I eat. I want QUALITY food, and my kids can share off of me. I don't eat out much, but when I do, I don't want fried crap and wilted lettuce.0
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Last I checked this is America and you can bring your children anywhere but an R rated movie. I might have thought the same way as you before i had kids, but until you have them and know the situation as to why their children are with them, you shouldn't judge. Perhaps there is NO family to care for them and the friggin parent needs a night out. Albeit, I've always kept my kids as quiet as possible when out, stepped outside if I had to and had the most respect I could for others, but we all gotta eat, and kids are a part of us.
Pretty sure, I have seen children at R rated movies... I have seen a 9 year old at a showing of the Dictator not too long ago....
How do you know he was 9? lol0
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