Eating Out

B.C., or Before Child, Paul and I enjoyed going out to eat. We enjoyed it so much that we ate out often, more often than we ate at home. A.C., or After Child, we still enjoy eating out but it rarely happens. Early on we tried to go out to eat but I found it just wasn’t that relaxing of an experience. Kaia would get fussy or needy and one of us would have to soothe her or I’d have to nurse her. Meanwhile, expensive restaurant fare sat on the table getting cold. It bothered me to spend the money on restaurant food and then not be able to enjoy it. So, we saved going out to eat for when the in-laws could make it into town to babysit (about once a month), or monthly Parents Night Out, and enjoyed those precious dinners out even more. When Kaia was about 15 months old I decided that it was something I missed too much and that we were going to make a commitment to try to eat out once a week as a family. Occassionally we’ve had those magical dinners out where all the forces of the universe collide to make a perfect family dining experience: Kaia eats well, behaves well, and entertains herself in the restaurant-provided highchair while we eat our overpriced restaurant fare in marital bliss. However, there are times when she gets fussy and needy. We’ve actually walked out after ordering(of course we informed the waiter) b/c she was so worked up I knew there was no way we were going to be able to eat and it was disturbing all the other customers. That time was probably partly our fault b/c she was getting close to naptime.

However, the last few times we’ve been out to eat as a family we’ve encountered a new challenge. Kaia refuses to eat or drink anything. I know that she’s hungry. She will chow down when we get home and put her in her highchair. But at the restaurant, she won’t drink, won’t eat her own foods that we’ve brought, won’t touch any restaurant food. Nothing, nada, zilch. She behaves just fine; she just won’t eat.

I am afraid we’ve created a highchair monster. She has a space saver highchair at home, the kind that straps on to a regular dining room chair and has a tray. I’m glad that she eats in her highchair. I just want her to be a little flexible. In the restaurant highchairs, the table hits her right above chest height. It’s a little high for her to drink from her straw cup and keep her chin tucked for easier swallowing. They also have a lot less support. We usually snug her or our coats around her to keep her supported around the trunk. The other factor when eating out is a distracting/different environment. I don’t know what to do about that. That’s the whole point of eating out – to be in a different environment.

One of her therapists suggested we use her portable travel highchair, which also has a tray, at home for a while. Then, when we go out to eat again, she suggested we bring it to the restaurant for Kaia. Great suggestion but the actual implementation, frankly, is going to suck. That’s a lot to lug into a restaurant. But, if it is the only way, we’ll do it.

Does anyone else have any other suggestions? Did/do your kids do this? Was it just a passing phase?