Have you ever been the victim of impatient huffs or evil stares? How about rude comments? Rude service? Or maybe not rude service, but just plain impatient service?
And it's all because of the little jewels in your crown, your children. Join the club.
To be honest, I'm kind of getting tired of it. I understand if my kids are acting up and you don't want to hear it, but neither do I. Besides, Wal-Mart is a public place and families are bound to be there, shopping together. If you would prefer to shop when there are no kids around then go at 10pm when we are all home, with our children tucked into bed.
My husband and I like to go out to eat. It's our treat to ourselves and there are some days I really don't feel like cooking. We always pick "family-friendly" restaurants, it's not like we are going to the cute Italian bistro that doesn't have a kids menu let alone a high-chair.
Just last week I decided to take my son out on a lunch-date. Just me and him and some good food. I wanted to change it up a bit and decided on Applebee's. My son didn't care as long as he could have french fries. We arrived at 11:45am. They seated us in an area that had TWO other tables with patrons, everywhere else was empty. I immediately distracted my son with the provided coloring page and skimmed through the menu. I AM aware that I have a two-year old with me and that I am at a sit-down restaurant so I must be prepared to order when the waitress comes to ask for our drinks. I also have snacks in the diaper bag to hold him over till the food arrives. I watched the waitress wipe down two empty tables that didn't really need wiping, ask the other patrons if they needed anything else, flirt with (whom I am assuming was) the shift manager, and make eye-contact with me twice and then intentionally look away. After fifteen minutes I quietly packed up my stuff, told my son that we had to leave, but not to worry we would go somewhere else with french fries, and walked out of the restaurant. Five minutes later we were seated at Chik-fil-a, while the nice employees brought our tray out to us and we enjoyed a nice hot meal. During our stay there they asked if we needed refills, if they could throw my trash away, and if I needed anything else. And I didn't have to TIP them.
This isn't the first time something like this has happened to me nor do I think it will be the last. It's a form of discrimination and I don't like it. I could go on, but for the sake of not turning nasty, I will stop here.
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I Love getting stuck in a booth , 2 couples, 2 toddlering in highchairs and both chairs wont fit in fornt of the table. cant they give you a table and make it easier on themselves and you. sorry I know people are jerks and sad to say when we have kids with us it only makes them worse.
ReplyDeleteOh honey, I so understand. In fact, I was considering writing a very similar post. Good for you for leaving! I'm impressed. Whether it be at Walmart, a restaurant, or the mall, I get so tired of the all the looks, comments, eyebrow raises, etc. I try to keep in mind though that for every evil stare I get, I have three people who tell me my children are beautiful, offer to hold the door for me since my hands are full, or attempt to entertain my children with stickers while I'm trying to rein them in. Heaven knows, they make the world a much better place to be :)
ReplyDeleteps-buffets are the best with kids. It lets them get up and moving on occasion and I SWEAR by them!
ReplyDeleteI was going to say what Whit said. There are always people who love to comment rudely, roll their eyes and generally make me feel like a degenerate for daring to bring my 4 children out of their cages in the basement. BUT- for each of those people, I have had multiple people be there with a smile, reminding me to cherish their silly antics 'cause time flies and I'll wish it back, helping hands to open doors, put my groceries on the conveyor belt and simply make me feel normal instead of a freak show. I remember those people, because it makes a HUGE difference to me, and then I try to be that person. I try to smile sympathetically at the mother struggling with her tantrum-ing child, I try to be the nice commenter and I try to be the one to help out. It goes a long way in making me remember we have the best calling in the world (and the hardest).
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