The Boy has not been as well-behaved as usual when going out to eat. I'm not sure exactly when this started, because so often he is a model citizen at the table, but this morning, he was "that kid." When we arrived at a diner this morning, a family with what looked like a 6-year-old boy, a 4-year-old boy, a dad, and a grandpa merely noticed that there was a baby in the room (I still think that if The Boy had hair, he'd look less like a baby, because he does have an "older" face). The Boy wanted to play with things. He wanted to play with straws, and ice cubes, and we just didn't want him to do it. He wanted the creamers, which was fine last month when he didn't think about opening them up and preferred to sit there and build towers with them. Now he just wants to open them. Same with the jelly. He had no interest in his books or toys, and he did not want to drink his water with his straw, preferring to play with the straw instead and make a mess. Naturally, his voicing of discontent drew some comments from the family that noticed him, just that he was a noisy baby. It was a bit disappointing because we frequently get the opposite type of remark. Not a major deal--win some lose some. And no other small children in the place
It is possible that he just can't be taken out to breakfast first thing in the morning unless he has some pre-breakfast before we leave.
On the other hand, his behavior in the supermarket has shifted in a positive direction. He used to dislike spending too much time sitting in the shopping cart and preferred to be carried. I'd put him in the sling or front-pack when he was smaller, mostly avoiding this issue, but once he grew larger, it was imperative that he ride in the cart. I'd avoid taking him to the store for this reason. Now that he is a little older and more interested in everything, he is great fun at the supermarket. I ask him to name things and he knows several of them. He has recognized apples for awhile ("ap"); today he actually said both syllables. Granted, it had the same sort of separation that the little kid in Meet The Fockers used for another word that sounded like apple but wasn't. If you've seen the movie, you remember.
After Daddy got home and we relaxed for a bit, we took The Boy outside for a ride on his tricycle. I have included the link. This is a great toy! We moved it to the second setting outside, which is a trike for pushing around. Mostly, he was interested in riding around on it by pushing his feet, but we tried a bit to get him to use the pedals. There is also a foot rest, but it doesn't seem as though it is in the right place for him. Also, he had only used it inside, on the first setting, which is as a rocker (so it doesn't matter where his feet go). Nevertheless, now that Spring is coming, we'll be spending more time outside!
It gets boring inside. We just have to be sure to put on sunscreen (for The Boy and for pasty-white Mommy) if we'll be out for longer than half an hour or so.
4 comments:
That toy does look fun! I think I'm going to get us a wagon for the summer. Did your son have much energy when we was on chemo? I wonder if I will need one with Summer or if she will be up for a lot of walking.
I hate it when Summer is "that kid." Thankfully it rarely happens.
You'll start to recognize a pattern of her having energy and appetite vs. feeling crappy. Generally her best bet for feeling good is 2 weeks after/1 week before chemo. That's what my mother said about her own treatments and that's what we notice with The Boy. Counts are also the best during that time, so it's best for socializing.
It's not a bad idea to get a wagon anyway, because they're fun.
My daughter is "that kid" only at Red Lobster. We've gone there a few times - several when she was an infant, and twice since she started walking. She has to get up and walk around the restaurant, check out all the fish, inspect the lobsters, check out the fish again. Anywhere else, she will sit pretty happily while everyone eats. It's odd.
We're trying to get her to do some tricycle work too...but she's not interested in making an effort yet.
Consider yourself lucky, because Andrew is nearly alweays "that kid". Anytime we have gone out to eat, or attempted to go out to eat, Andrew must throw the silverware on the floor (except he usually likes to keep the spoon). I have to feed him off my plate, which is kept out of his reach. If it takes more than 20 minutes to get our food, he will start getting bored, so he must be distracted with crackers or something to munch on.
Oh, and then there's New Year's Eve when we tried to eat out as a family. The food took about 35 minutes to arrive, and 2 minutes later, we were boxing it up becaues Andrew threw a temper tantrum (too long of sitting and he wanted to crawl around the restaurant).
I just think it's the age, and totally doesn't reflect on our parenting. Their minds at this age are go-go-go.
Of course, we have had one or two good experiences eating out, and those were a nice treat for us. But we don't let our guard down. :)
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