It’s a Friday evening, and my husband, toddler, and I have ventured out for dinner. While we savor our steaks and discuss our plans for a future vacation, our 2-year-old sits in her chair, headphones on, engrossed in an electronic tablet.
For a toddler, she’s relatively well-behaved when dining out. Occasionally, we hire a babysitter to enjoy adult time, but most of the time, we choose kid-friendly restaurants.
For the past two years, I’ve been toting around an oversized bag filled with everything needed to mitigate potential chaos during our meals: wipes for messes, bibs and backup clothes for spills, and a variety of quiet toys such as crayons, coloring books, stickers, dolls, dinosaur figures, plastic keys, and a pretend phone.
It’s a hefty load that often requires us to request an extra chair just to accommodate my “Mary Poppins” bag of supplies! Yet, even with all these distractions, my child’s attention span lasts a maximum of 30 minutes.
Here’s a fun fact: toddlers tend to have a notoriously short attention span. Those who claim otherwise are likely either exaggerating or using some form of distraction, whether it be a screen or otherwise.
By the time our warm meals arrive, my little one is no longer the serene child depicted in a Norman Rockwell painting. Instead, she’s ready to escape her chair, spill the salt, or possibly unleash a full-blown tantrum. Courteous toddlers? They belong in fairy tales, alongside dragons and mythical heroes.
My options are limited: I can either take her outside for a moment to regroup, entertain her using sugar packets and salt shakers, or allow her to create chaos as I attempt to enjoy a single warm meal during my motherhood journey. More often than not, I end up with a cold meal, which I inevitably forget on top of the car as I drive away.
After countless purchases of coloring books and stickers that failed to hold her interest, I finally decided to invest in a learning tablet. I budgeted for this screen-time solution alongside my own wine and beer allowance. Why? Because at the end of the day, I’m fatigued and simply want to enjoy a warm meal and meaningful conversation with my partner.
I frequently come across discussions labeling screen time as detrimental for children. I often feel guilty for allowing my child to use these devices, but then I remind myself: my daughter doesn’t spend her days glued to the TV. To her, my tablet is a portal to connect with her grandparents when she sings “Twinkle Twinkle” to them. On average, she enjoys 95% of her time away from screens. A device that engages her with songs about counting and the alphabet for a mere 30 minutes twice a month isn’t going to turn her into a mindless zombie. Instead, it allows me to finish a meal alongside adults and complete a sentence with my husband.
Since introducing the tablet, our dining experiences have changed significantly. We no longer need an extra seat for my bag, and we can engage in quiet conversation at the table. When she begins to whine or act out, and our usual strategies fail, the tablet comes to the rescue. For all she knows, it magically appears at our table whenever we visit a restaurant like the Macaroni Grill, keeping her entertained for about 30 minutes while we enjoy our meal.
However, I occasionally hear disapproving comments from nearby diners, lamenting the prevalence of electronics among children. “Can’t parents interact with their kids and teach them proper table manners?” they ask.
Let me assure you, from dawn till dusk, my husband and I engage with our child. We actively teach her to behave at the dinner table and encourage her to do the same in public settings. Yet, it’s not always successful. Because, you know, toddler.
In our limited two-hour window in a public space, I need her to behave so that we all can enjoy our meal. You may have witnessed only a brief moment of our lives and deemed us inadequate for not adhering to traditional parenting methods. If you believe that even this small amount of screen time is severely impacting children, perhaps you should consider relocating to a place where such views are more widely accepted. Good luck trying to share that opinion on your social media from there!
In conclusion, modern parenting often requires a balance of technology and engagement to foster a nurturing environment for children. Integrating tools like learning tablets can enhance family meals and interactions, making dining out a more pleasant experience for everyone involved.
For those exploring other parenting topics, including home insemination, check out this article. You may also find valuable insights on your journey through this resource that covers various treatments related to fertility. Additionally, for couples navigating their fertility journey, this guide serves as an authoritative source.
Keyphrase: toddler tablet use at restaurants
Tags: [“home insemination kit” “home insemination syringe” “self insemination”]