A tale of two little girls
DH and I were having breakfast yesterday (near WDW) and noticed two little girls.
The first one was 3 years old and was with her mother (no wedding ring so maybe a single mom). She sat upright in her seat and was so well behaved. She used her fork in a very lady like manner. Her manners were unbelievable. When they were finished the little girl even tried to push her chair back to the table (her mom had to help). We told the mother who confirmed that she was 3 years old how well behaved she was. She was adorable.
The table on the other side of us had a mother, father and a 4 or 5 year old little girl. The little girl was up on her knees at the table leaning over everyone's meals. She ate most of her food (pancakes, eggs and potatoes) by grabbing handfuls, opening her mouth very wide and shoveling a fistful in her mouth. With much of it dribbling down her cheeks onto her shirt and the table. She was a PIG. Really disgusting.
It made me realize what some of you go through with the feral skids that you have inherited. The child with the single mother was light years better behaved than the older little piglet.
I honestly do not know how you tolerate it.
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I see examples of this all
I see examples of this all the damn time and it really makes me shake my head.
But these days, with all the free range parenting going around, even saying no to unreasonable things seems "abusive" to kids.
At Easter last year, DH's cousin's grandson was a nightmare--I swear I thought DH was going to punch this six year old in the face because he started hitting DH and when DH told him to stop, he started kicking him,thinking it was funny. His parents and grandparents thought it was "adorable" but DH was livid.
DH and I just practically
DH and I just practically stared at the "good" little girl. She was so perfect. She had something on her plate like blueberries I think that she was eating by hand. She picked up each one with 1 finger and a thumb - no fist grabbing - and ate them one by one.
She used her napkin, she smiled and was sweet.
The sad part is that good behavior especially in a child friendly restaurant is so rare that we just couldn't stop watching her.
Dtzy, How does your DH react
Dtzy,
How does your DH react to that? If I do it, he gets upset with me because he thinks I'm insulting his parenting (which I am). Then he'll say that he'll keep an eye on SD, but never does. Somehow, I always end up bieng the bad guy when I point out their manners, but if I don't, he never notices. Is there something you say that diffuses the situation?
Ha! For SS, table manners was
Ha! For SS, table manners was really a huge evolutionary leap in unlearned skills when I met him.
Forget table manners. SS just would not eat AT ALL. Before I met him the kid had absoluetly no concept of "family dinner" and "home cooked meals". DW and her ex just ordered take-out regularly when they were together and they would eat in front of the TV or wherever else they felt like.
When SS came into my life, I changed all of that. I was brought up that home-cooked meals are the norm and take-out was a rare treat. "Family dinners" must have seemed like some obscure alien culture to SS. When he first moved in, SS tried to pick up his plate from the dinner table and move to the couch so he could watch TV. I shut off the TV and told him to get back to the table pronto. The look on his face was one I would never forget. Yes, I was mad at him, but I quickly realized that I cannot be mad at a kid who was never taught how to eat properly. So I took it upon myself (with DW's blessing) to teach him the "right way" to dine.
SS is far from being able to dine with the Queen, but he is SOOOO much better than when I first met him