We were out of diapers AND wipes as of Friday afternoon, so after Kevin got home from work we went to Costco and then to Chili's for dinner. (We had some coupons and really, who likes to cook after you've been out running errands?!)
My kids LOVE eating out. They are so great to take because they sit in their seats, eat their food, and have a good time. All four of 'em.
Friday night they were apparently so good that the waitress kept commenting about it and then said several other customers were saying the same thing. YAY! It can be really hard being so conspicuous all the time and so it's nice when your kids are noticed for something positive.
Anyway, I'd felt so drained that week, and I realized that taking the kids out to dinner really, really helped. It helped me to appreciate them and have a great time with them. I love eating out (we really don't do it all that often) so it's something fun for ME that includes the kids. Because they generally do so well at restaurants it's not stressful in the least. In fact, it's actually pretty relaxing.
Totally boosted my spirits and reminded me that it's really important to pursue fun things with my kids, especially if I've been feeling discouraged. Because I'm always reminded what amazing little people they are and how blessed I am to have them as my children!!!
(And in the name of having fun, yesterday afternoon we all went to the zoo and got to spend a long, amazing, uninterrupted time with the gorillas. One of them was really mad because another adult there was provoking him--it wasn't us, I promise! Anyway it was SO neat, but I felt SO bad for the gorillas. What a lame existence--instead of roaming free, they have to live in an exhibit where weird people come and gawk at them all day. It just seems cruel. After the zoo Kevin wanted to take us out for Ethiopian food, yay! Super yummy though slightly more stressful as you sit at mesobs not tables and you're there a long time, so the kids DID get restless--they weren't bad, just restless. :) But the food was great!!! We hadn't had it since January. Wow I guess we ate out twice this weekend. That is definitely NOT the norm!)
Monday, March 16, 2009
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4 comments:
Hi Brianna,
Wow, your post inspired me. I dread going out to eat with our kids (ages 6, 3 and 1.5 yrs). We do NOT do well sitting in our chairs until the dinner is over and *something* will be spilled. I'm a good (and strict) parent... I swear! But eating out is definitely not our forte. (Even though I love it.)
And to be honest, we've been cutting back on our 'eat out' budget and haven't eaten out as a family in 6 months. That's a lot of eating in, which is great because we eat healthy foods, and the kids can be excused when they're done to go play in the family room. The hard thing is... how do we "practice" restaurant behaviors at home, so that we have a pleasant dining-out experience?
What's your secret? love love love your blog!
Wendi
wendi i'm not completely sure why the kids do well at restaurants. like i said we DON'T eat out a lot (usually)--it's expensive and not as healthy. for us the main thing has been enforcing rules at our dinner table that translate to restaurant settings.
at home we don't allow our kids to leave the table or their seat until EVERYONE is done eating. it's just always been that way. so, when we eat out, they're used to sitting and being at the table.
when they were a little younger i remember having to take one of my kids outside once or twice to talk to them about how they were behaving. they didn't like having to leave, and learned pretty fast.
also because there are four of them, i think they keep each other entertained, so that helps too!
hope you're doing well!!!!!
My new favorite is eating breakfast out. Well, it is really an old favorite, but the "new" part is doing it with the kids. Restaurants are pretty good about getting breakfast on the table so there isn't a lot of waiting time, and who doesn't love french toast with whipped butter and a bunch of syrup. The kiddos stay pretty happy. Ainsley is still a bit of a challenge, but I am sure another few months and it will be smooth sailing!
Yeah Rachel the age that Ainsley and Kaitlyn are at is a little tricky. Kaitlyn does well but definitely gets restless before the other kids!
My kids love having breakfast out tho we don't do it much. My parents used to take them out for breakfast sometimes and Anna is obsessed with funny face pancakes!!!
What's your favorite breakfast spot???
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