Toddlers in restaurant

[Anonymous]

Maybe this should be in the general parenting discussion, but here goes: I teach Kindergarten in Columbia Heights. On my lunch break yesterday, I dashed down the street to get a slice of pizza at Pete's a Pizza. While I was waiting in the very busy restaurant for my to-go slice, I noticed (how could one not?) several toddlers and mothers. The toddlers were sitting/lying on the floor in front of the soda machine playing with toy trains while the mothers were chatting and eating their food at a table nearby. There was no effort on the part of the mothers to remove their children from this area/have them sit at the table while I was in there (I waited a good ten minutes to get my order). Like I said, it was busy in there and all of the customers were trying to get their sodas and avoid stepping on the children at the same time. The management of the restaurant said nothing to the mothers. What was going on here? I will not pass judgment b/c I understand it's difficult to be a parent... but please, be a parent! These children were sitting in the line of fire and could have easily gotten stepped on hands. And why not at least try to have them sit at the table to help them learn about future expectations about how to behave in public? And also, I'm sure the floor wasn't too clean... anyway, just wanted to vent. A lot of times the parents of the children in my class will say to me, "He/she behaves so much better/differently here than at home..." Is it because the expectations in the classroom are clear? Just wanted to go the perspective of parents on this incident.

[Anonymous]

Toddlers, not kindergarteners. The toddlers were quietly playing. Who's to say they weren't seated at the table prior to your arrival, or after you left? You're armchair quarterbacking.

[Anonymous]

Totally agree. I'm a parent and I can't stand the laissez-faire attitude some parents have toward their kids' disruptive/annoying behavior in public places. I seldom go out anymore with a herd of moms/kids for that reason because invariably the kids act crazy and the doing nothing drives me NUTS.

[Anonymous]

12:27 is the mom who gets slapped by her toddler (NOT kindergartner) and goes "Oh, sweetie/buddy I'm so sorry you are so upset. If you explain to mommy why you are so angry and use your words, mommy will take you for ice cream later." Ugh.

[Anonymous]

Aw, leave the poor moms alone. They're probably really stressed out from having to back a fifteen foot SUV into a parking spot at Whole Foods while talking on the cell phone.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Toddlers, not kindergarteners. The toddlers were quietly playing. Who's to say they weren't seated at the table prior to your arrival, or after you left? You're armchair quarterbacking.

Who cares? They are blocking the soda machine when she was there. Kids need to learn respect for others right away. If they don't, they grow into the asshole illegally parked with his blinkers on, blocking a lane of traffic at rush hour. And the parents are already there.

If you and your kids can't look out for others, you should expect hostility.

[Anonymous]

I'm so glad to see the majority of the responses so far are in favor of parents being parents! I know kids will have melt-downs and "moments" that are unavoidable, but what you describe sounds not only lazy but disgusting.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Aw, leave the poor moms alone. They're probably really stressed out from having to back a fifteen foot SUV into a parking spot at Whole Foods while talking on the cell phone.

And parking it six inches over the line, forcing the next guy in line to park across the street.

[Anonymous]

OP, did you politely inform the moms that their toddlers were in the way? If it really bothered you, or if the children really were blocking access to the drinks, then I'm sure that the moms would have moved them. You could have also asked the management to speak to the mothers.

As a mom of a 3 year old who goes to Petes, I try my hardest to keep DC in place, but there are moments when DC gets past me. And if DC was in harm's way and I didn't notice, I would absolutely appreciate a notice from a fellow diner.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:OP, did you politely inform the moms that their toddlers were in the way? If it really bothered you, or if the children really were blocking access to the drinks, then I'm sure that the moms would have moved them. You could have also asked the management to speak to the mothers.

As a mom of a 3 year old who goes to Petes, I try my hardest to keep DC in place, but there are moments when DC gets past me. And if DC was in harm's way and I didn't notice, I would absolutely appreciate a notice from a fellow diner.

Oh, please. BE A MOM. It's nobody's job to see what your child is doing but your own. You would appreciate if someone told you your kid is in harm's way? Are you freaking kidding me? You should be the first one to know and promptly do something about it. I have a 2 1/2 year old and, yes, it gets hard to keep track sometimes and sometimes I just want to sit back and relax. Guess what? Not when my child is with me. I made her, I take care of her. And if she annoys someone or get in someone's way, I apologize. I'm no perfect mom, but I never expect random strangers to be watching my kid in a public place. Your post is ridiculous.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, did you politely inform the moms that their toddlers were in the way? If it really bothered you, or if the children really were blocking access to the drinks, then I'm sure that the moms would have moved them. You could have also asked the management to speak to the mothers.

As a mom of a 3 year old who goes to Petes, I try my hardest to keep DC in place, but there are moments when DC gets past me. And if DC was in harm's way and I didn't notice, I would absolutely appreciate a notice from a fellow diner.

Oh, please. BE A MOM. It's nobody's job to see what your child is doing but your own. You would appreciate if someone told you your kid is in harm's way? Are you freaking kidding me? You should be the first one to know and promptly do something about it. I have a 2 1/2 year old and, yes, it gets hard to keep track sometimes and sometimes I just want to sit back and relax. Guess what? Not when my child is with me. I made her, I take care of her. And if she annoys someone or get in someone's way, I apologize. I'm no perfect mom, but I never expect random strangers to be watching my kid in a public place. Your post is ridiculous.

Are you telling me that your child has never had an accident? Never fallen, never tripped, never put her hand or mouth on something inappropriate even while in your presence? Oh please, get off your holier-than-thou platform and realize that all moms (and dads) are human and have *gasp* for a few seconds been a few feet away from their child.

[Anonymous]

I agree. I met friends for sushi at a tiny restaurant yesterday after older son's preschool and I warned them little brother (23 months) would prob. have a window of about 15-20 min before he really needed to get up. I wasn't eating, the restaurant was a matchbook, ppl were trying to enjoy a late afternoon lunch...as soon as i could see his signals i hightailed it out of there with him and we strolled the block before everyone finished up and we regrouped for ice cream.

I am ultra-concerned about getting in the way. Kid's restaurants are one thing,,,but I tell my kids that can't be running around in busy places where waiters have trays of food or ppl are carrying hot coffees, etc. I try not to be a nuisance to the population at large. I am also the type to deplane last when i know it will take longer to get all of our cr*p together and I don't want to block the aisle--esp when ppl are trying to make connections, etc.

Alot of parents these days think everyone should work the day/schedule around them and their children.

[Anonymous]

OP here. No, I didn't say anything. Maybe I should have. I figure it was the moms' responsibility, not mine. Didn't want to get into it on my short break...

My experience as a teacher makes me want to look out for the welfare of all children, but that gets overwhelming. I figure if I can keep my own class happy, safe, and ready to learn, then I'm doing what I can do and still keep my sanity. That said, in this incident, of course I would have said something if it was anything other than benign neglect.

Still, I wonder what would have happened if a customer trying to get their soda had stepped on a little hand. What kind of hell would have broken loose...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Alot of parents these days think everyone should work the day/schedule around them and their children.

I agree, but I also think that these days a lot of people (like the OP) think that its not their business to do anything even if a child is in danger.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:OP, did you politely inform the moms that their toddlers were in the way? If it really bothered you, or if the children really were blocking access to the drinks, then I'm sure that the moms would have moved them. You could have also asked the management to speak to the mothers.

As a mom of a 3 year old who goes to Petes, I try my hardest to keep DC in place, but there are moments when DC gets past me. And if DC was in harm's way and I didn't notice, I would absolutely appreciate a notice from a fellow diner.

Oh, please. BE A MOM. It's nobody's job to see what your child is doing but your own. You would appreciate if someone told you your kid is in harm's way? Are you freaking kidding me? You should be the first one to know and promptly do something about it. I have a 2 1/2 year old and, yes, it gets hard to keep track sometimes and sometimes I just want to sit back and relax. Guess what? Not when my child is with me. I made her, I take care of her. And if she annoys someone or get in someone's way, I apologize. I'm no perfect mom, but I never expect random strangers to be watching my kid in a public place. Your post is ridiculous.

Are you telling me that your child has never had an accident? Never fallen, never tripped, never put her hand or mouth on something inappropriate even while in your presence? Oh please, get off your holier-than-thou platform and realize that all moms (and dads) are human and have *gasp* for a few seconds been a few feet away from their child.

I'm with you. I admit, I have had to turn my head away from my child to pay a cashier or tend to my other child. It takes only a moment for the toddler to get into something he shouldn't. Is it a stranger's responsibility to say something? In most cases, no. But I certainly appreciate it when they do. Just this past summer my toddler wriggled away from me and bolted for the intersection while I had the baby strapped to me. I was on him in a flash, but a few strangers on the street also moved to block from the street. I was incredibly grateful. They could have stood there and sniffed, "nope, not my job," but I'm glad they didn't.