Baby Steps
Today I took the kids out for lunch. We sat outside with one other family, two parents and a 2.5 year old. Those parents spent their time chasing their child around the tables and had to sprint out into the parking lot a couple times when the kid was able to escape the gated area. They gave up on their meal after it became clear that the child was not going to magically transform into a sedentary being anytime soon. They got to-go boxes, paid their bill, and fled the scene. I came to lunch armed with iPads, play doh, and crayons. We all sat without incident, ate our food when it arrived, and even ordered dessert. This isn't the first time this has happened, but I took the time to be grateful for it today. It wasn't long ago that we regularly gave up mid-meal. Dessert wasn't an option, because we couldn't even survive the main course. My kids are not perfect, they spend their days trying to come up with various ways to break my brain, and they are successful in those efforts most days. But today we ordered dessert. Like real people (who play with play doh during a meal). Baby steps.
