Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Someone please tell me how u can go to a restaurant with a 16 month old. I'm dying to go to a nice lunch with my DH and DD.. But the only time she sits there quietly is when she's eating solids or snacks and I can give her snacks for a whole hour lol! She's not a bad baby at all... Just fussy sitting in a high chair unless she's eating something.

Message edited 12/27/2014 3:41:06 PM.

Restaurant With 16 Month Old

We take DS to Cheesecake Factory. It's loud enough that no one cares when he's loud.

Restaurant With 16 Month Old

DS is almost 3 and goes out everywhere with us to eat. I bring crayons, stickers, even small toys (like thomas trains or cars) to keep him busy. Between that and actually eating he's fine. We're usually in and out in an hour, we don't take too long. And if he gets fussy we just give him out iPhone to play with an app or watch a video while we finish eating. Good luck and don't let your LO prevent you from going out and enjoying yourselves!

Restaurant With 16 Month Old

We would just bring little toys to keep DD busy. At that age she liked the little coloring kits from the dollar bins at target, especially the ones with a marker. We also brought her mini magnadoodle out a lot and she loved giving us things to draw or guessing what we had drawn for her. We also made sure to be consistent about her sitting in the high chair. She knows getting up to walk around or sit on our laps is not an option. She doesn't play on our phones at all but I've seen plenty of people use that or a tablet to entertain toddlers at the table.

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Appetizers (bread, etc) in tiny pieces til dinner.
Dinner, have her eat.
Then, at 16 months, use some electronic device after she's done. Older, you can try toys.
It's def doable at nice restaurants... You just have to practice & there are phases in which it is tougher.

Restaurant With 16 Month Old

I bring my 10 month old everywhere. I just occupy him with food, toys, and songs

Restaurant With 16 Month Old

My DD was the same way, she needed to constantly be eating or snacking. We would order her food as soon as we sat down so it would come out first. Then I would just give her small snacks to keep her busy. I always had crayons and something to color for her too. Never used any electronic devices.

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

We've always taken DD, and now DS with us. As others have said, we bring crayons and coloring books with us. We recently bought a small magnadoodle, and that entertains her when she grows bored of the crayons. She is very social, so she tends to be fine as long as we chat with her.

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

My ds is like that, easily fussy & then if he sees us eating he freaks out! So I bring his milk, water, and a few jars of food with me... also I bring a half cup of Cheerios & give him only 2 or 3 at a time on a napkin so he can't eat them too quickly... this has been a lifesaver for us! We are able to at least eat our meal in peace. Then I bring a few books & toys, and sometimes the kindle so he can watch Thomas the train or something similar. Even still, we can't go anywhere too nice or the kind of place where we are stuck for too long, he can last probably an hour at most at the table, then he starts getting cranky because he wants to get out of the high chair & move around.

Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Dd is 18mo and she has been going out with us since a month old. I make sure to bring food she will like and lots of it. She loves to people watch and she's always waving at everyone and playing with the waitresses. We also don't linger. We sit down and figure out what we want to order, order as soon as the waiter comes over. We feel it out as far as dessert or not which we mostly don't do anyway. But snacks are key honestly

Restaurant With 16 Month Old

At 16 months we would keep giving her puffs or Cheerios and let her try little bites of our food. We'd also bring little toys for her to play with. Once she learned how to scribble with a crayon, we started always bringing little coloring books and a few crayons, as well as a couple sheets of stickers. She also likes to play little games on my phone lately.

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Thank u all for the suggestions... We rarely go out bc we both start getting anxiety when she starts getting fussy. I wasn't sure if was bad if we had to keep giving her snacks to keep her occupied. I'm so sorry to sound dumb but what do ur LO's do with stickers? Place them on a blank sheet of paper? The stickers sound like they would keep our LO occupied.

Restaurant With 16 Month Old

I stopped using the high chair out. Ds would want out and we found if he was in the booth with us it was a much more enjoyable time.

Also the more you go out the better it will be.

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

We start with books. They break out toys. Then some puffs and or bread. We order their food first then look at our menu. Crayons are also a plus. We go to cheesecake all the time. They have also been to nicer steakhouses and were well behaved. (Most of the time. Lol) We don't have iPads but that's an option too. Whatever works. There are times they act up more than others and we do say we are never going out again but we always do and it's fine.

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Restaurant With 16 Month Old

I think it's important to start taking them early and often. We would bring lots of toys, coloring stuff, etc. We only use the phone once in a while, but not often. As he got older, we also spoke to him about how to behave in a restaurant. But you just have to have an aresenal...crayons, paper, pencil, stickers, etc.

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

I've always taken my kids out to restaurants and for the most part, they are well behaved. My 2 year old refuses to sit in a high chair. He's much happier in a regular chair. Booths are good too because he can move around more. If he wants to sit in my lap until the meal comes, I let him. I used to bring snacks to keep him occupied. Now he reads books, colors or plays with stickers. He also likes playing with the sugar packets.

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Posted by xosweetiexo

Posted by alli3131

I stopped using the high chair out. Ds would want out and we found if he was in the booth with us it was a much more enjoyable time.

Also the more you go out the better it will be.

DH and I are both nervous taking her to restaurants

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Message edited 12/28/2014 6:38:54 PM.

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

We've taken DS from when he was about 6 months. We just take him to family friendly restaurants.

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Posted by xosweetiexo

Posted by alli3131

I stopped using the high chair out. Ds would want out and we found if he was in the booth with us it was a much more enjoyable time.

Also the more you go out the better it will be.

DH and I are both nervous taking her to restaurants

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Here's how: exactly two glasses of wine. Not enough where you're blotto and can't control the situation, but just enough where you really don't care

And also some other very amateur tips from this mom of three (9, 7, 4) who's been eating out with all of them virtually since birth...

I did kid-friendly restaurants almost exclusively. Not McDonald's, but not Peter Luger's either.
Tons of Puffs.
Someone mentioned magna-doodle...that worked great when mine were that age.
Do NOT have them bring her meal first. All that means is that she'll be done first and then you can't enjoy your meal...trust me on this one.
Books
Crayons
Have your DH be ready (or you, but I've always given the job to my husband) to remove her if the situation gets out of hand...just to walk her around for a bit.
And just know that most people are not irritated by your child. Most people fondly remember those days...can't tell you how many times we've gotten smiles and nice comments!
Then, of course, the wine

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old

Posted by Eireann

Here's how: exactly two glasses of wine. Not enough where you're blotto and can't control the situation, but just enough where you really don't care

And also some other very amateur tips from this mom of three (9, 7, 4) who's been eating out with all of them virtually since birth...

I did kid-friendly restaurants almost exclusively. Not McDonald's, but not Peter Luger's either.
Tons of Puffs.
Someone mentioned magna-doodle...that worked great when mine were that age.
Do NOT have them bring her meal first. All that means is that she'll be done first and then you can't enjoy your meal...trust me on this one.
Books
Crayons
Have your DH be ready (or you, but I've always given the job to my husband) to remove her if the situation gets out of hand...just to walk her around for a bit.
And just know that most people are not irritated by your child. Most people fondly remember those days...can't tell you how many times we've gotten smiles and nice comments!
Then, of course, the wine

Re: Restaurant With 16 Month Old