So, what are you doing next month?

My first date with Jeff was on October 25, 2002.  It was a blind date, and therefore, starting off from scratch getting to know each other.  One month later was Thanksgiving and I had invited my family (many months prior) to come up to Arlington to celebrate the holiday with me.  Everyone (Dad, Rita, Mom, Jim, Meghan) was able to make it except Lori.  She was living in Paris at the time and it really didn't make sense for her to make the journey overseas for essentially a 3 day trip.  However, Lori decided to surprise everyone and showed up on my doorstep Wednesday night.  It was very exciting for me to cook Thanksgiving dinner that year and have everyone together.

At this point, Jeff and I had dated for a month.  I knew my family was eager to meet this new boy I had started to get to know and any opportunity for him to meet my whole family would be far and few between.  I arranged for us to go to lunch at Old Ebbitt Grill the day after Thanksgiving.  My dad loves Old Ebbitt Grill because he likes to think he will run into a Senator or some VIP at the table to next to us.  Plus, I think he enjoys dining so close to the White House.  And, the food is pretty good.

So there we were, all sitting at the table giving Jeff the opportunity to meet my family and my family the opportunity to meet Jeff.  Please remember, I had only known him one month.  Halfway through the meal, I get up and go to the bathroom.  When I return, Jeff leans over and says, "Your dad just invited me come to Orlando for New Year's."  WHAT!?!?!  Of course my dad waited until I left the table to do this.  I was mortified!  We are fast approaching the 10th anniversary of this infamous lunch and I can still feel how hot my face got when Jeff clued me in on what happened.

 It wasn't until a few days later, that Jeff and I were driving in the car and he brought up my dad's invitation.  If I remember correctly, Jeff said very casually, "So, what do you think about your dad asking me to come next month?"  I replied back with a shrug, "Sure, if you want to."  And with a tip of the hat to Paul Harvey, 'and that's the rest of the story.'

I guess my dad wanted to make sure I didn't let this one get away. I can laugh about it now, but at the time I was ready to go back to the bathroom and stay there.  And this story is the reason why I silently chuckle to myself when I hear the words "Old Ebbitt Grill".

And Coming Up On Our Left...

Last night we met long-time family friends from when I grew up for dinner.  They were in town for 2 nights, 3 days to show their 10 year old daughter Washington, D.C.   We arranged to meet at Old Ebbitt Grill so they would be within walking distance of their hotel.  Plus, as a bonus, it was super easy for Jeff to metro and meet us after work.  I grabbed the kids and headed into the big city to get to the restaurant.

In the Spring of this past year, Ian's first grade class went to D.C. and hit all the major monuments.  It was actually quite impressive how many landmarks they made it to within a 4 hour trip.  Sam fell asleep in the car as I was crossing the 14th Street Bridge, so I started pointing out various buildings to Ian and saying what their significance was.  I pointed out the Bureau of Engraving and Printing.  I pointed out the Holocaust Museum.  As we were crossing over Constitution Ave., Ian excitedly exclaims, "Oh! I remember that tree!!  That's where the bus dropped us off."

It was so funny!  I then quickly realized, it's all relative on what Ian finds to be noteworthy and I what I do.

Dinner went swimmingly well and a good time was had by all.  I was very proud of the kids and even though this was a "grown-up" restaurant (read: no balloons!), we didn't cause a scene and can easily show our faces again. 

On the drive home, Sam, now completely awake, is taking in her surroundings and asks how tall the Washington Monument is.  Actually, her question was, "How tall is that brick building?".  Jeff says, "I think its like 150 feet.".  Ian then corrects Jeff and says, "No, its really 555 feet."   A little stunned that Ian had such an exact answer said with such confidence, I picked up my iPhone and asked Siri how tall she thought the Washington Monument was.  Wouldn't you know, Ian was correct!   This was something Ian learned during his field trip (5 months ago).  Way to go Ian!

Stay tuned for why there will always be a soft spot in my heart for Old Ebbitt Grill.

The gentlemanly thing to do.

Sam and Ian have a bit of a competition going on between them.  They are taking delight in seeing who can go to Panera Bread for lunch more times without the other one being there.  It's funny that this is what they are bickering over.   When we pick Ian up from school, before he can even close his car door, Sam will say to her brother, "I went to Panera Bread for lunch and you didn't"   You can imagine how this makes Ian feel and thus the need to even the score on the rare occasion Sam has school and Ian doesn't. 

After Sam's appointment with the latest doctor, we found ourselves in Herndon, at lunch time, with a Panera Bread within walking distance.  Sam saw this Panera Bread from the parking lot and it was a no-brainer where we were headed after the appointment.  We walked in at the height of the lunch rush and took our place in line.  The line, incidentally, was about 35 people deep and went out the door.  Yowzer!  Sam and I were the ONLY ONES not wearing a business suit.  We were the ONLY MOTHER/CHILD combo.  Every single person (other than us) in the crazy-packed Panera Bread was a working professional.  Sam did great waiting in line with me and fortunately, it was only about 10 minutes before we made our way to the front.  The guy next up in line, saw the wave from the employee that he could go up and order, turned around and said to me, go on ahead.  We should take his place in line and be just a little closer to getting our food.  He was helping out a mom with a young child and did the gentlemanly thing.  It was very refreshing!

Unlike close to 3 years ago, when we had a group of about 5 moms and 12 young kids (all age 5 yrs and younger) eating at a Panera Bread, right after blueberry picking.  We got lucky and found a bank of empty tables that were all next to each other. This would allow our whole group to sit together and eat lunch.  It was perfect with the exception of one lone guy sitting at the end of one of the tables.  There were other tables available at Panera Bread.  You would think that this guy would've gotten a clue and offered to move to a different table.  But no, he literally sat there while our group of moms and kids crowded together, practically sitting in each other's laps, so this guy could have his 4 top all to himself.  It was really something else to see him just sit there and continue to eat.

In both situations, I think back to the men in my life and wonder what they would've done.  Without hesitation, I can tell you that my dad would have not only given up his place in line for a mom and her small child, but without any prompting he would've moved his food and himself to a nearby available table.  That's just the way he is.  No need to even ask if this would be his inclination to do.

However, after both experiences, I came home and posed the same situations to Jeff and asked him what he would've done.  I know that deep down Jeff has it in him to do the right thing.  However, it would probably take that person asking him and suggesting it first.  Jeff can be a bit oblivious (he'll admit this himself). He has a huge heart and would do what he can to help others. I know this and have seen him in action.  I only hope that we are raising a son with the same kindness instincts.

Is it Monday yet?

Most people don't like Mondays.  I will take a wild guess and say this is probably the least popular day of the week. In fact, there is a very funny movie quote in the film, "Office Space".  "Sounds like someone has a case of the Mondays."  And the Carpenters have a famous song, "...Rainy days and Mondays always get me down."

However, Mondays could become my most favorite day of the week.  I have discovered something quite fantastic and am in love with this idea.  One of my most favorite restaurants now offers a DATE NIGHT!

Choices by Shawn, which I have written about before, caters to those with food allergies, but has a wonderfully tasty menu for everyone - even those who can tolerate gluten, meat, high calories, etc.  They now advertise the following on their Website:

Join us every Monday Night

for

DATE NIGHT

We will entertain your children while you have some wonderful

quality time with each other.

Price

$5.00 per child (includes dinner)

$30.00 Minimum dinner for Mom and Dad

 Reservations Required

So, this is all I needed to see and the next thing you know, one of my favorite mommy friends (KELLY!!!!!!) and her family joined us this past Monday night.  What a wonderful evening it was!  We dined (don't you love the use of this word - Dined?) from 5:45pm to about 7:10pm. Wowee!  When was the last time I could do that at a restaurant with the kids?!?!  Usually we have to get in and out in 40 to 45 minutes.  And, we were able to have a leisurely meal, not rushed, with all the courses (salad/soup, entree, dessert) in the proper order.  Usually Jeff and I instruct the waiter to bring everything out at once. 

The kids had a great time and we didn't hear one peep out of them (they were in a separate room next to us).  My dream is to become a regular at a restaurant I really like.  A place where I walk in and they automatically know what I may order or suggest something new based on my tastes.  A place where it may be crowded, I don't have a reservation, but they see me coming and always have a table for me.  I am not sure Jeff is a fan of my vision, as it would take many, many visits in order for this to occur. And, then of course, you need to keep up the frequency of visits.

BUT, if I could accomplish this dream, this is the exact kind of place I'd want to be a regular at.   Have I mentioned that this restaurant is only 4 miles down the road from where we live?  Does it get much better? 

I will be back for date night on Mondays.  The amount of money we spent for dinner was totally reasonable and saved us easily $40 in babysitting costs.  That in my opinion was the best of both worlds.  Have your kids with you, but somewhere else.  :)

Can we get that to-go?

We've been down this road before. The warning signs are there. We are approaching the end of eating at restaurants with Sam. We went through this phase with Ian and couldn't go out to eat with him for about 8 months. It just becomes too stressful and no one enjoys it; not us, not the wait staff and certainly, not the customers around us.

I look around at other families with toddler-aged children and I don't know how their kids can sit there so calmly waiting for their food or their parents to finish eating, or even for the check to arrive. It must be genetic because my parents never get tired telling me that when I was a baby, my dad would eat his food super fast and then take me outside while the rest of the family enjoyed their meal.

Jeff and I figured we've got 40 minutes from the minute we walk in the door of a restaurant to the minute we need to be walking back out. Our strategy we developed with Ian and now implement with Sam, goes something like this -

1. We only pick extremely child-friendly restaurants...think balloons, loud noise and usually a tv screen or two surrounding us. Our most favorite places we'll go with the kids include: Glory Days, Red Robin, Champps, Rio Grande, and Ho's Dynasty (not sure why, but we've always had a wonderful experience with the kids doing Chinese). We've gone to many other restaurants, many times (Villa Bella, Cheesecake Factory, Coastal Flats, Maggiano's, etc), that are kid-friendly, but the stress level for Jeff & I most definitely rises, because Sam needs to be on the quiet side. The noise level in the restaurant isn't loud enough to drown her out.

2. We try to arrive right at the 5:00pm hour. This is before real hunger sets in with the kids and we haven't ruined their appetite giving them lots of snacks.

3. Before we walk in the door, we pretty much already know what we will be ordering. Why waste precious time looking at the menu?

4, As soon as the waiter comes by asking us what we would like to drink, we tell them we are ready to order. We also add that as soon as the kids' food is ready, please bring it out. And, if we ordered an appetizer, we throw in that we don't need that first, just bring out whatever is ready as it is done.

5. When the food gets brought to the table, we tell the waiter we are ready for the check. We also anticipate any to-go box needs and ask for the container then too.

6. We pay the check usually halfway through the meal. This way if we need to make a quick escape, we are ready to do so.

Even with the strategy in play, we still have to juggle a very squirmy toddler and figure out what tricks we can do to keep her happy. It gets harder and harder the more she wants to move around and explore. With Ian, we had to take an 8 month hiatus from eating out and then it was like a switch had gone on and he was safe to take out in public again. We've now entered this same stage with Samantha. At least we know having lived through this before, that it is only a stage, and once we get through it, it will be enjoyable again for everyone at the other side.

Until then, we will just have to be content with Panera Bread, Cosi, and other fast food places that give you your food as soon as you order. At least this stage we have now entered is budget-friendly.