Eating Out

It's hard to believe that just three years ago Dave and I were eating out with no kids. Now our eating out experience looks a little different. It's rare that we take all three kids along, but when we do it's an adventure. Tricky, yes - but we have so much fun! Kids act so differently than adults at a restaurant. They do things I would never do. The last time we took the kids out to eat five differences stood out to me.

1. I would never:

...jump into the waitress' arms for a giant bear hug as soon as we walk in. George did. She didn't mind. It wasn't until she seated us that I realized she was still carrying him.

2. In all the times I've been to a restaurant I KNOW I've never:

...taken a nap under the table. But it's not Peter's fault. I'm the one who put him there. As Baby #3, he tends to get stashed wherever we can find a relatively dark, quiet spot. (I did put a blanket down.)

3. I generally don't:

...insist on seeing the person who cooked my food to tell him, "Thank you for the spaghetti. It was de-YIS-is!" William is a very thankful boy. He thought some random person stopped what they were doing, ran into the kitchen, and made spaghetti just for him. He was quite impressed.

4. I have left the to-go bad on the table before, but I've never left:

...my shoes. It's something I personally would definitely notice, but I guess one-year-old's don't. Thankfully Dave noticed them as we were walking out.

5. Before we had kids Dave would always throw out a casual, "Thanks," to the waitress as we left a restaurant. Now we ALWAYS have to say:

"Sorry for the mess."

Our kids tend to be pretty well behaved when we eat out, but I truly feel sorry for whoever has to clean up after us. I do it everyday so I feel their pain. But we haven't been banned from any restaurants yet. Just another fun family experience!

When Daddy Helps

I don't know what I would do without Dave. There is no way I could run "Baby Land" all by myself. This is what our family looks like going to church:

So even between the two of us we're a little short-handed sometimes. When Dave gets home from work he immediately takes the kids off my hands. How? By laying on the ground.

All he has to do is lay down and the boys could climb on him for hours. He is their favorite toy. No complaints from me when he's playing with them! But...occasionally when he's helping them get ready for something it doesn't turn out quite the way I expected.

On this particular day he dressed them to play outside. I found William with his pants on backwards, and George was wearing his big brother's shoes. And not just any shoes - CHURCH shoes. Then there's the occasional distraction when he's helping me clean up. Not a distraction from work or a phone call or the tv...but from the toys themselves.

Me: They have SO many toys.
Dave: Yeah...but this guy is pretty cool.

I guess this wouldn't be a problem for him if we had girls. I hope.

Often I find the house strangely quiet and I look around and find a scene like this:

When it's story time with Mommy we sit on the couch with books. When it's story time with Daddy they make a blanket fort and Daddy makes up the story himself. He's invaluable to me and the kids can't get enough of him. As we speak he is the "sleeping dragon." He fell asleep on William's bed while playing "knights." I guess every hero needs his sleep. I love you, Honey!

Boys and Girls

William just turned three. Lately we've been talking to him about the different roles of boys and girls. To him the biggest difference is that boys wrestle, and girls are the pretty, frilly, curly ones he likes to kiss at church. But he's still a little confused...

William: Someday I'm going to be a beautiful mommy!
Me: No, you're going to be a handsome daddy. A mommy is a woman. You're going to be a man.

William: Oh. Well, maybe I'll be a handsome woman.

Obviously we still have a little work to do in this area. Sometimes the relatives don't help...

William: I know why God made you a girl!
Me: Why?
William: He made you a girl so you could wear makeup.

Me: Oh. Do you wear makeup?
William: No! Only girls wear makeup.

William: But...sometimes Grandma puts makeup on me.

Thanks a lot, Mom! At least he knows boys and girls should look different. That might explain why he was so upset about my haircut.

He refused to look at me. When he finally forgave me he said I looked pretty...even though I look just like him now. I guess we'll both have to settle for that. :)