happyhoix
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Post by happyhoix on Sept 30, 2014 11:53:38 GMT -5
My worst experience with this was at a Wendy's near a strip mall outside of Nashville, back years ago.
It was a couple days before Christmas and the place was packed with holiday shoppers. It took over 30 minutes just to get through the line to the cashier.
There were two young boys, maybe 7 and 9 years old, clearly wound tighter than a top with holiday excitement. They raced each other around the restaurant, stopped to try to peel the decorations off the windows, barreled into adults who were standing there in line, shrieking the whole time. I kept looking around trying to find out who their parents were and no one seemed to be claiming them.
Finally, as they rushed through the line yet again, a woman in front of me grabbed one of them, put her hands on either side of his head like blinkers (I guess to make sure she had his attention) and said very sternly "You are making me very unhappy!" THen she lets him go and the kid goes racing off again.
I noticed, when they went to sit down, that there was a second adult, I assume the Dad, who sat with them, but he completely ignored both his heathen sons. As far as I could tell, never said a thing to them or even looked at them.
I didn't have kids at that time, but even I knew enough to know she was using the wrong tactic. Rather than complaining about how unhappy she was, she should have been telling them how unhappy they would be, if they didn't calm their little asses down and stand quietly in line like everyone else.
The kids continued to race around the crowded restaurant, eating their hamburgers as they went, racing in and out of the bathrooms, shouting, etc. Worse.kids.ever.
This was years ago, I always figured they grew up to be axe murderers.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Sept 30, 2014 11:59:07 GMT -5
I have asked to move twice in a restaurant. Once I think we must have been sitting beside Archie's family - LOL! My biggest complaint is not really with kids at restaurants though. Every now and then you do get the 3 yr old throwing a temper tantrum or something but I have also certainly seen some kids who behave just fine in a restaurant. My complaint is really with parents who decide to take their 5 yr old to an adult movie (seen this more times than I can count), or a 2 yr old on a historical walking tour (yes, that happened to me), etc. I spent two hours on a historical walking tour straining to hear the tour guide over a screaming two year old. Not once did the parents decide that maybe they were making the other 15 people on this tour absolutely miserable. A movie theater in town finally caught a clue and now doesn't allow children under the age of 6 into ANY movie over a PG rating after the first show of the day. So all those ridiculous parents who want to take their kids to see movies like The Hangover will have to do it at 11AM in the morning. They are still shitty parents but at least the rest of us won't have to be exposed to knowing how many crappy parents there are letting their kids watch crap they shouldn't be. Something like this happened to me on a cave tour. We were going underground and it was dark and spooky. There were signs up all over, along with pictures about what you'd see and it was strongly suggested that young children not go. Once you started the tour, you had to go forward through the whole tour, you could not go back. A couple of families took toddlers on the tour and they were inconsolable. They screamed, cried and whimpered over the tour guide's voice, making it impossible to hear anything for the entire 90 minute tour. I left the tour with a headache, and I suspect I wasn't the only one.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Sept 30, 2014 12:06:30 GMT -5
I do get a little annoyed when people just assume your kid is going to be a monster. I remember a guy on flight to FL sat down in the aisle seat in the row next to us, gave my son and I a dirty look, then asked to be moved (quite vocally). I was like WTH? My son was just short of 2 at the time and had been on a lot of flights. He just sits and watches his movies on his portable DVD and doesn't say a word. I've only had one bad flight with him and it was just a short island hopper one where he didn't have his own seat. Normally he does. ![](http://syonidv.hodginsmedia.com/vsmileys/yeahthat.gif) I got so many glares when I brought 8mo DD on a plane... she didn't cry once. She did giggle and clap her hands a few time, but if people find that annoying, they can GFT. The drunk guy in front of us who heckled the flight attendant every time she walked by was pretty irritating, but unfortunately, his parents were nowhere to be found. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/wink.png) My next flight, after my flight with the screaming triplets was out to WA the following month for Christmas. It was a VERY full plane. I had the aisle seat and the 2 seats next to me were empty. I knew that they weren't going to be empty (I couldn't get that lucky) and just before the doors closed, a woman walked down the aisle with a toddler and an infant. Shit! I will admit, my stomach sunk because this was on the long leg of my trip (ATL to SEA). Toddler sat next to the window, woman with her infant sat next to me in the middle seat. Those children were wonderful and the worst problem I had was trying to fish one of the infant's socks that had fallen off to the side of my seat. But I had been sensitized to those screaming triplets and because of THOSE kids, I expected the ones I was next to were going to be as bad. So when someone sighs, chances are they had a lousy flight like I did and that there is a reason why they are sighing and/or asking to be moved. Believe me, I would have taken a seat on the wing myself to get away from those triplets! It was so bad on the plane that when we landed in ATL (short flight, thank God!) that one of the other passengers asked the parents where they were going. The parent answered Phoenix, and everyone NOT going to Phoenix breathed an audible sigh of relief!
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sam
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Post by sam on Sept 30, 2014 12:11:27 GMT -5
I'd have to admit, it isn't very common that I've had to deal with arrogant parents and their misbehaving kids. Even in McDonalds. I do believe it isn't the norm and those few times do stick out in my mind. I'm sure there are many more times we've sat next to behaved kids and never knew they were even there.
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movingforward
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Post by movingforward on Sept 30, 2014 12:17:24 GMT -5
I had an infant (looked to be about 8 months old) that sat across from me on my flight from Ireland back to the USA. That child was great almost the entire flight. Only cried on take-off and landing. I admit my heart sank when I saw that family sit down right across from me. My friend was in the aisle seat behind them and there was an empty aisle seat a few rows back. She ended up moving. When we landed she asked me if the child bothered me and I said no. One reason I believe the kid was so good on such a long flight though is because the parents really worked hard to keep her content. They played with her, walked her up and down the aisle until she fell asleep for a few hours, and mom and dad traded off pretty equally with duties. Like penguin I had some bad experiences in the past but this kid didn't bother me at all. She was a whole lot less annoying than the 3 drunk business men that sat in front of me on my trip to Vegas 2 weeks ago. You just never know.
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raeoflyte
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Post by raeoflyte on Sept 30, 2014 12:22:57 GMT -5
I had an infant (looked to be about 8 months old) that sat across from me on my flight from Ireland back to the USA. That child was great almost the entire flight. Only cried on take-off and landing. I admit my heart sank when I saw that family sit down right across from me. My friend was in the aisle seat behind them and there was an empty aisle seat a few rows back. She ended up moving. When we landed she asked me if the child bothered me and I said no. One reason I believe the kid was so good on such a long flight though is because the parents really worked hard to keep her content. They played with her, walked her up and down the aisle until she fell asleep for a few hours, and mom and dad traded off pretty equally with duties. Like penguin I had some bad experiences in the past but this kid didn't bother me at all. She was a whole lot less annoying than the 3 drunk business men that sat in front of me on my trip to Vegas 2 weeks ago. You just never know. That doesn't always work. When my sister was 9 months old she cried for hours about to board a delayed flight from Germany to the US. Not going wasn't an option and you can't always soothe little ones. Thankfully for my mother, the flight attendants and other passengers were beyond helpful, especially when sis finally fell asleep. My mom didn't have to carry anything but the baby.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 30, 2014 12:29:03 GMT -5
Not going wasn't an option and you can't always soothe little ones.
I flew alone with Babybird a few times when she was a baby and always tried for the aisle seat so I could walk with her and/or take her to the back of the plane if she cried, especially on the night flights so as not to disturb people who might be sleeping.
Unfortunately, I couldn't get the aisle seat on one of the flights. I politely asked someone to switch with me (and explained that it was so I wouldn't disturb her if I had to get up mid-flight) and she said no. I was horribly embarrassed (I hate asking for stuff like that) but luckily another young couple overheard the exchange. We'd been chatting before the flight and I knew they had a little baby themselves (who wasn't with them). So the dad switched with me. It was really nice of them - especially when I DID have to get up during the flight and received multiple dirty looks even though I was responding as quickly as I could to my squalling infant.
Sometimes the parents really are doing the best they can. We understand it sucks for you to have to hear our baby crying. In some situations, it's unavoidable.
But babies or toddlers full-on losing their shit in restaurants while the parents sit back and chuckle does not qualify as such a situation.
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sam
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Post by sam on Sept 30, 2014 12:29:47 GMT -5
Flying can be hard for the little ones. It can be irritating, but not much can be done to comfort at that age and I am understanding.
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chiver78
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Post by chiver78 on Sept 30, 2014 12:32:33 GMT -5
this passenger wins the award for worst seatmate...damn. link
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 30, 2014 12:32:47 GMT -5
Flying can be hard for the little ones. It can be irritating, but not much can be done to comfort at that age and I am understanding. ![](http://syonidv.hodginsmedia.com/vsmileys/thumbsup.png) It's nice to hear that instead of "People with kids just shouldn't fly" for a change. FWIW, my kid was very well behaved during most of the flights we took with her as an infant. I can't believe I thought that was difficult. Yeah, she needed a truckload worth of crap but she couldn't run away from me and everything she needed for entertainment could fit under my shirt! Nothing short of a life-altering emergency would induce me to take her on a plane these days ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/smiley.png)
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Nazgul Girl
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Post by Nazgul Girl on Sept 30, 2014 12:35:08 GMT -5
Taking off and landing can hurt the kids' eardrums, and sometimes they have earaches all through the flight. It's just the luck of the draw.
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Nazgul Girl
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Post by Nazgul Girl on Sept 30, 2014 12:35:46 GMT -5
All of this makes me wish I was a grandma ! I don't know if that's ever going to happen, though.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Sept 30, 2014 12:41:18 GMT -5
I have asked to move twice in a restaurant. Once I think we must have been sitting beside Archie's family - LOL! My biggest complaint is not really with kids at restaurants though. Every now and then you do get the 3 yr old throwing a temper tantrum or something but I have also certainly seen some kids who behave just fine in a restaurant. My complaint is really with parents who decide to take their 5 yr old to an adult movie (seen this more times than I can count), or a 2 yr old on a historical walking tour (yes, that happened to me), etc. I spent two hours on a historical walking tour straining to hear the tour guide over a screaming two year old. Not once did the parents decide that maybe they were making the other 15 people on this tour absolutely miserable. A movie theater in town finally caught a clue and now doesn't allow children under the age of 6 into ANY movie over a PG rating after the first show of the day. So all those ridiculous parents who want to take their kids to see movies like The Hangover will have to do it at 11AM in the morning. They are still shitty parents but at least the rest of us won't have to be exposed to knowing how many crappy parents there are letting their kids watch crap they shouldn't be. Something like this happened to me on a cave tour. We were going underground and it was dark and spooky. There were signs up all over, along with pictures about what you'd see and it was strongly suggested that young children not go. Once you started the tour, you had to go forward through the whole tour, you could not go back. A couple of families took toddlers on the tour and they were inconsolable. They screamed, cried and whimpered over the tour guide's voice, making it impossible to hear anything for the entire 90 minute tour. I left the tour with a headache, and I suspect I wasn't the only one. That is the greedy tours fault. I'd demand my money back.
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andi9899
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Post by andi9899 on Sept 30, 2014 12:53:11 GMT -5
Freaky, huh? She was young enough to be flattered. I was with her at the time. He was cute, in her defense, but I had my suspicions. They were right. Something just was "off." I had a server once slip my then boyfriend her phone number. I took it an tore it up. Later in the dinner, she did it again! I left without tipping her. I should have spoken to the manager. Well, I should have let her have the boyfriend. He ended up being a nut job.
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Wisconsin Beth
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Sept 30, 2014 12:55:22 GMT -5
Reading threads like this makes me appreciate my older kids so much. It's been years since I've had to deal with the dirty looks and rude people the second they see a toddler out and about anywhere. I did actually get flak once at a restaurant because I was letting the kids play quietly next to the table. The waitress came over and said I needed to keep them in their seats and out of the way so she wouldn't trip. We were sitting in a corner booth and she hadn't walked by once. I told her they would be in their seats, but we'd already been waiting 45 minutes for our food, and the attention span of a toddler isn't that great. If she wanted them off the floor she could tell the cook to light a fire under his ass and get us our food. She shut up and walked away. Came back a bit later to tell me it was going to be another 15 minutes, for a burger and some grilled cheese sandwiches. We walked out. I didn't tip for the drinks. Only time I've ever not tipped at a restaurant. I usually order some kind of appetizer for the kids to shorten the wait before they have food to eat.
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Post by The Walk of the Penguin Mich on Sept 30, 2014 12:58:29 GMT -5
Something like this happened to me on a cave tour. We were going underground and it was dark and spooky. There were signs up all over, along with pictures about what you'd see and it was strongly suggested that young children not go. Once you started the tour, you had to go forward through the whole tour, you could not go back. A couple of families took toddlers on the tour and they were inconsolable. They screamed, cried and whimpered over the tour guide's voice, making it impossible to hear anything for the entire 90 minute tour. I left the tour with a headache, and I suspect I wasn't the only one. That is the greedy tours fault. I'd demand my money back. How is this so? There were signs and pictures up all over the facility stating that the tour was not for young children. It was strongly suggested that if your children were afraid of the dark that they not go down there. Parents were questioned at the beginning of the tour as to if they were really sure their kids could handle it. Some kid did do ok, but many did not. This was a HUGE fail on the parent's side, not the tour's.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 30, 2014 13:06:36 GMT -5
this passenger wins the award for worst seatmate...damn. link ![](http://syonidv.hodginsmedia.com/vsmileys/rofl.gif) Wow. I would have had that chick collared for assault.
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sam
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Post by sam on Sept 30, 2014 13:07:44 GMT -5
It was a little hole in the wall diner, not that busy, and I ordered them grilled cheese. Normally that means you have food inside of 5 minutes. If I'd known it was going to take an hour for something I can make at home in 10 minutes we never would have sat down.
That's why it was just "a little hole in the wall diner". It took an hour to get food. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/tongue.png)
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 30, 2014 13:10:39 GMT -5
Reading threads like this makes me appreciate my older kids so much. It's been years since I've had to deal with the dirty looks and rude people the second they see a toddler out and about anywhere.
I can't wait to have an older kid, quite honestly. Older kids rock. The idea of going through baby/toddler stages again is the #1 reason I'm so hesitant to have another child. At the very least it's going to be a few years because I can't do two at once.
Yes, she's cute but lots of days I just want to run away somewhere they serve unlimited booze. And I have a good kid - legitimately a very well behaved toddler. The older she gets, the more I like her.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Sept 30, 2014 13:10:54 GMT -5
That is the greedy tours fault. I'd demand my money back. How is this so? There were signs and pictures up all over the facility stating that the tour was not for young children. It was strongly suggested that if your children were afraid of the dark that they not go down there. Parents were questioned at the beginning of the tour as to if they were really sure their kids could handle it. Some kid did do ok, but many did not. This was a HUGE fail on the parent's side, not the tour's. The tour needs to make an age limit and stick to it. We went on a Segway tour on the cruise. Rules flat out said no one under 12. Guess what? 3 kids under 12 going every which way as well as banging into each other and us. Parents oblivious of course until kids disappeared. Then all hell broke loose. I love the fact that our guide wouldn't disrupt the tour to go search, sent the parents off and the rest of us clapped to see them go. I wouldnt want to be on my own in a strange country but in this case, they got what was coming to them. I wonder if the tour guide got fired? He was tipped VERY well btw!!
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chiver78
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Post by chiver78 on Sept 30, 2014 13:14:32 GMT -5
this passenger wins the award for worst seatmate...damn. link ![](http://syonidv.hodginsmedia.com/vsmileys/rofl.gif) Wow. I would have had that chick collared for assault. she was met by police, so she definitely got arrested for something. thankfully in all my years of flying, I've never had to deal with anything like that before....wow.
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Firebird
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Post by Firebird on Sept 30, 2014 13:16:24 GMT -5
It makes the seatback-lowered-in-your-lap-ers seem like downright pleasant company by comparison! Maybe that's what we've been missing all this time... a little perspective... ![](http://syonidv.hodginsmedia.com/vsmileys/rofl.gif)
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The Captain
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Post by The Captain on Sept 30, 2014 13:19:47 GMT -5
I know I don't go out that often, but where do you all go that kids run wild? Where do parents think it is ok for their kids to run around in a restaurant? Where are parents able to ignore their children when they scream? We don't allow it at home, we certainly don't allow it out and about. While on vacation, we met up with a friend for supper with 2 of her 3 kids. So we had 4 kids between us and 3 adults. The boys would get loud and we would tell them to calm down, indoor voices. We met up with a friend for lunch at a mall in KC last winter with or 2 little girls. Her DD slept and my DD was happily entertained by borrowing my friends DH. I was at a birthday party with my kids and next door neighbor and our boys together can get rowdy, but if they got too loud we reprimanded them, told them to use indoor voices, etc. Eventually, they wanted to go eat outside and we told them to go for it. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/tongue.png) But really, where are all these places where parents are just magically able to ignore their children. I'm not saying we don't have our bad days, we certainly have. But no massive meltdowns (in the restaurant). No letting things get out of hand. I'm sure some people will point out that I let my DD walk up and down the aisle at a church congregational meeting on Sunday. But she wasn't touching people and she was quiet (the nursery was closed so the nursery attendant could be a part of the meeting). I sometimes wonder if it has something to do with population density. In smaller towns (where Sis and Dad live) they/we've never seen this stuff, even at the local diner. You are too likely to come across the same people again. I live in the Chicago area and never cease to be amazed at what we see. DH and I went out a while ago on a date night. NICE restaurant (white table clothes, waiters who have a bread crumb scraper, etc). There was a group of people celebrating what appeared to be grandma's birthday. Of COURSE there was the spoon banging kid in the highchair (they apparently brought their own - the restaurant didn't have any - should be clue #1) throwing food EVERYWHERE. Then the two boys who chased each other in circles around the three tables that were put together. Now admittedly the (semi drunk) adults were as loud as the kids, but at least their food didn't end up on the floor for everyone else to step around. Just.Lovely. We got a dessert comp'd. I have to presume everyone else in the room did as well. Not enough and we will not be back. So much for the romantic night out. OUR kid was home with a sitter. We have our 20th anniversary coming up. I really want a nice, quiet dinner with some nice music in the background. I don't think that's an unreasonable expectation for a high end restaurant.
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muttleynfelix
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Post by muttleynfelix on Sept 30, 2014 13:30:43 GMT -5
I know I don't go out that often, but where do you all go that kids run wild? Where do parents think it is ok for their kids to run around in a restaurant? Where are parents able to ignore their children when they scream? We don't allow it at home, we certainly don't allow it out and about. While on vacation, we met up with a friend for supper with 2 of her 3 kids. So we had 4 kids between us and 3 adults. The boys would get loud and we would tell them to calm down, indoor voices. We met up with a friend for lunch at a mall in KC last winter with or 2 little girls. Her DD slept and my DD was happily entertained by borrowing my friends DH. I was at a birthday party with my kids and next door neighbor and our boys together can get rowdy, but if they got too loud we reprimanded them, told them to use indoor voices, etc. Eventually, they wanted to go eat outside and we told them to go for it. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/tongue.png) But really, where are all these places where parents are just magically able to ignore their children. I'm not saying we don't have our bad days, we certainly have. But no massive meltdowns (in the restaurant). No letting things get out of hand. I'm sure some people will point out that I let my DD walk up and down the aisle at a church congregational meeting on Sunday. But she wasn't touching people and she was quiet (the nursery was closed so the nursery attendant could be a part of the meeting). I sometimes wonder if it has something to do with population density. In smaller towns (where Sis and Dad live) they/we've never seen this stuff, even at the local diner. You are too likely to come across the same people again. I live in the Chicago area and never cease to be amazed at what we see. DH and I went out a while ago on a date night. NICE restaurant (white table clothes, waiters who have a bread crumb scraper, etc). There was a group of people celebrating what appeared to be grandma's birthday. Of COURSE there was the spoon banging kid in the highchair (they apparently brought their own - the restaurant didn't have any - should be clue #1) throwing food EVERYWHERE. Then the two boys who chased each other in circles around the three tables that were put together. Now admittedly the (semi drunk) adults were as loud as the kids, but at least their food didn't end up on the floor for everyone else to step around. Just.Lovely. We got a dessert comp'd. I have to presume everyone else in the room did as well. Not enough and we will not be back. So much for the romantic night out. OUR kid was home with a sitter. We have our 20th anniversary coming up. I really want a nice, quiet dinner with some nice music in the background. I don't think that's an unreasonable expectation for a high end restaurant. I know i don't live in the a big city, but our metro area is 350k people. That isn't Podunkville. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/tongue.png) (I know, my parents live in Podunkville). We have a ton of restaurants around here, but most of them fall into the "family" category. There are very few "fine dining places". But I also don't go out to eat for dinner almost at all. I'll go out for lunch - weekdays and weekends, but very very rarely supper (like 3 or 4 times a year we'll do a sit down dinner out and maybe only half of those with the kids). So, I'm not out when kids are going to be crazy overtired/wired. I think you are much more likely to see that behavior at the end of the day. The parents are worn out by the kids. The kids should really be in bed, etc. Lunch time, the kids may be hungry, but a couple crackers keeps them occupied until food comes. Now DD's nap doesn't even start until 2, so we're usually pretty good. I'm also probably feeling a little cocky since the last time my kids went out to eat, we ate at a park and they sat for me on the picnic table seat nicely while they ate their lunch; and asked permission to go play once they were done. They were little freakin angels. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/wink.png)
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movingforward
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Post by movingforward on Sept 30, 2014 13:32:18 GMT -5
My favorite kid story is from a cruise I took about 6 yrs ago with 7 other people. My friend, who works from home, and takes care of two little ones (well, two little ones at that time) was SO thrilled to be on a 4 day vacation without her kids. This was the first night of the cruise and she was celebrating a little bit too much. I am not sure how many drinks she had by the time we went to the 10PM show on board but needless to say it was quite a few. We were in our seats waiting for the show to start when a couple showed up with a toddler. This kid was awful and the parents just let him run screaming up and down the aisles and up and down the steps. Finally, my friend yells out "will you shut that kid up! Damn, I came on vacation to get away from kids!" Everyone sitting near this child started clapping. The couple got up and left before the show started. I am certain she probably would have just bit her tongue like the rest of us if she hadn't had some drinks in her but I am guessing everyone around was glad she said something because we actually got to enjoy the show in peace.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Sept 30, 2014 13:33:10 GMT -5
It's not, which is why good high end restaurants won't allow kids. We have one here and DF and I go on our "anniversary" of getting back together. I've never had a bad experience or a bad meal. Service is impeccable.
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zibazinski
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Post by zibazinski on Sept 30, 2014 13:35:27 GMT -5
The restaurant should have said either we don't accommodate children or that they needed to leave. Choosing not to cost them more than this family's business.
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ArchietheDragon
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Post by ArchietheDragon on Sept 30, 2014 13:36:14 GMT -5
I know I don't go out that often, but where do you all go that kids run wild? Where do parents think it is ok for their kids to run around in a restaurant? Where are parents able to ignore their children when they scream? We don't allow it at home, we certainly don't allow it out and about. While on vacation, we met up with a friend for supper with 2 of her 3 kids. So we had 4 kids between us and 3 adults. The boys would get loud and we would tell them to calm down, indoor voices. We met up with a friend for lunch at a mall in KC last winter with or 2 little girls. Her DD slept and my DD was happily entertained by borrowing my friends DH. I was at a birthday party with my kids and next door neighbor and our boys together can get rowdy, but if they got too loud we reprimanded them, told them to use indoor voices, etc. Eventually, they wanted to go eat outside and we told them to go for it. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/tongue.png) But really, where are all these places where parents are just magically able to ignore their children. I'm not saying we don't have our bad days, we certainly have. But no massive meltdowns (in the restaurant). No letting things get out of hand. I'm sure some people will point out that I let my DD walk up and down the aisle at a church congregational meeting on Sunday. But she wasn't touching people and she was quiet (the nursery was closed so the nursery attendant could be a part of the meeting). I sometimes wonder if it has something to do with population density. In smaller towns (where Sis and Dad live) they/we've never seen this stuff, even at the local diner. You are too likely to come across the same people again. I live in the Chicago area and never cease to be amazed at what we see. DH and I went out a while ago on a date night. NICE restaurant (white table clothes, waiters who have a bread crumb scraper, etc). There was a group of people celebrating what appeared to be grandma's birthday. Of COURSE there was the spoon banging kid in the highchair (they apparently brought their own - the restaurant didn't have any - should be clue #1) throwing food EVERYWHERE. Then the two boys who chased each other in circles around the three tables that were put together. Now admittedly the (semi drunk) adults were as loud as the kids, but at least their food didn't end up on the floor for everyone else to step around. Just.Lovely. We got a dessert comp'd. I have to presume everyone else in the room did as well. Not enough and we will not be back. So much for the romantic night out. OUR kid was home with a sitter. We have our 20th anniversary coming up. I really want a nice, quiet dinner with some nice music in the background. I don't think that's an unreasonable expectation for a high end restaurant. Did you say Chicago or Hartford??
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gooddecisions
Senior Member
Joined: Dec 22, 2010 13:42:28 GMT -5
Posts: 2,418
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Post by gooddecisions on Sept 30, 2014 13:36:57 GMT -5
I've come across way more adults who don't listen and don't cooperate. Seriously, adults don't listen any better than children. Think about it, how many people have asked their spouses, inlaws, or peers to do something and they don't. I'm amazed anyone expects children to listen, be quiet and behave and yet for the most part- children do. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/smiley.png)
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Wisconsin Beth
Distinguished Associate
No, we don't walk away. But when we're holding on to something precious, we run.
Joined: Dec 20, 2010 11:59:36 GMT -5
Posts: 30,626
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Post by Wisconsin Beth on Sept 30, 2014 13:37:21 GMT -5
I know I don't go out that often, but where do you all go that kids run wild? Where do parents think it is ok for their kids to run around in a restaurant? Where are parents able to ignore their children when they scream? We don't allow it at home, we certainly don't allow it out and about. While on vacation, we met up with a friend for supper with 2 of her 3 kids. So we had 4 kids between us and 3 adults. The boys would get loud and we would tell them to calm down, indoor voices. We met up with a friend for lunch at a mall in KC last winter with or 2 little girls. Her DD slept and my DD was happily entertained by borrowing my friends DH. I was at a birthday party with my kids and next door neighbor and our boys together can get rowdy, but if they got too loud we reprimanded them, told them to use indoor voices, etc. Eventually, they wanted to go eat outside and we told them to go for it. ![](http://images.proboards.com/new/tongue.png) But really, where are all these places where parents are just magically able to ignore their children. I'm not saying we don't have our bad days, we certainly have. But no massive meltdowns (in the restaurant). No letting things get out of hand. I'm sure some people will point out that I let my DD walk up and down the aisle at a church congregational meeting on Sunday. But she wasn't touching people and she was quiet (the nursery was closed so the nursery attendant could be a part of the meeting). I sometimes wonder if it has something to do with population density. In smaller towns (where Sis and Dad live) they/we've never seen this stuff, even at the local diner. You are too likely to come across the same people again. I live in the Chicago area and never cease to be amazed at what we see. DH and I went out a while ago on a date night. NICE restaurant (white table clothes, waiters who have a bread crumb scraper, etc). There was a group of people celebrating what appeared to be grandma's birthday. Of COURSE there was the spoon banging kid in the highchair (they apparently brought their own - the restaurant didn't have any - should be clue #1) throwing food EVERYWHERE. Then the two boys who chased each other in circles around the three tables that were put together. Now admittedly the (semi drunk) adults were as loud as the kids, but at least their food didn't end up on the floor for everyone else to step around. Just.Lovely. We got a dessert comp'd. I have to presume everyone else in the room did as well. Not enough and we will not be back. So much for the romantic night out. OUR kid was home with a sitter. We have our 20th anniversary coming up. I really want a nice, quiet dinner with some nice music in the background. I don't think that's an unreasonable expectation for a high end restaurant. We did dinner out with the extended family for my parents 50th wedding anniversary a few years back. The restaurant was my DH's suggestion because he could eat there (gluten free/dairy free) and they put us in the basement party room. Which was awesome because when we gather, we get loud. And the kids had a bit more space where they could be. Admittedly, they pigged out on the crackers I had packed and didn't touch their dinners. This is a decent Italian place. Normally I wouldn't bring the kids but it really worked out in this case.
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