Posted on 11/14/2005 5:51:48 AM PST by Cagey
Parent Says Restaurant Offers Kid Food, So It Should Cater To Kids
"We were surprised at how many times we would see children really out of control," McCauley said. "And we actually had people leaving the bakery because the children were so out of control."
So, he put a sign on the door at kids' eye-level, asking children of all ages to use their "indoor voices."
"We thought it was just a friendly reminder to people that when they come here, just be considerate of the people around them. We had no idea the kind of controversy that was going to explode out of this," McCauley said.
But some parents who spoke with NBC5's Natalie Martinez took immediate offense to the sign. The angry mothers said there are plenty of places in the Andersonville neighborhood where they can take their kids, even if they're acting out.
"I've e-mailed friends and said, 'Just so you know, this man has a sign up. I know there are lots of other options, and I'd encourage you not to go there,'" parent Kate Bremmer said.
When she spoke with Martinez, Bremmer and her kids were picking out goodies at a Swedish bakery, where all kids are welcome.
"Our custom has been to offer a cookie to every child that comes into the store for as long as I can remember," said Kathy Stanton-Cromwell, the co-owner of the bakery, which is just a few doors down from A Taste of Heaven.
Stanton-Cromwell said the cookie serves as "a good calmer" for kids who are acting up.
Bremmer said A Taste of Heaven "is not a five-star restaurant," so she thinks it should cater to kids, not the other way around.
"They offer ice cream cones and cookies and lots things that kids love, and therefore, I don't think that they should make such an issue of it," Bremmer said.
Other parents enjoying lunch with their kids at A Taste of Heaven were more diplomatic.
"I have mixed feelings about it. It's a little off-putting," one mother said.
Linda Wallace, also a mother who eats at A Taste of Heaven, said she thought McCauley was "sort of brave" for putting up the sign.
"It did cross my mind that he might offend some people," she said.
McCauley said he loves kids, although he has none of his own. He said he has no immediate plans to take the sign down.
Lol, she threatened to call the cops because your buddy wanted to move to a table away from her bratty kids? Ah man, if I didn't think she'd smash it against the wall, I'd have dialed 911 and handed her my cell.
Kids being loud in Chuck E Chees on the other hand, is expected.
Is this one of those "Brer Rabbit" things? "Please, oh please, don't take your badly parented, ill-behaving kids somewhere else".
Discipline based in this philosophy had another advantage: one behaved when Mom/Dad weren't even along on the outing. Who can forget Mom yelling as I went out the door, "Remember who you are!!!"
My kids are constantly getting compliments, and my wife and I are usually left shrugging our shoulders because the monsters we see at home are nothing like the angels that they pretend to be in public. Both of ours should go into acting, because every foray into the outside world is an Oscar winning performance.
Nobody said that children should NEVER be loud...they said they should have public manners. That would cover probably 10% of their awake time, right?
If she's loud and throws things, then I would recommend you limit the amount of time you spend in restaurants with her until she has more control, or hang out at Mickey D's.
That wasn't so tough, huh?
My mama was a first grade teacher for years. Her preferred method, short of the paddle (which was kept handy) was the two tendons on the back of the neck between her thumb and fingers. And know what? She was beloved by her students.
so true. and so lacking today.
I have two boys, 8 and 11, and if I see them sitting there perfectly quiet and still, even in public, I'd probably get a little worried and check their foreheads for a fever. Kids are going to be kids, I think there is an element in this country that doesn't have any patience for that concept and expects kids to be little adults sitting there seen and not heard. But again, in my book there's a difference between kids being kids and kids being out of control. Parents can't stop kids from being kids. But they absolutely CAN stop their kids from being out of control, and I don't think it's an unfair expectation to expect them to do so.
True. But I suspect many parents neglect to teach that such behavior is NOT acceptable at other places.
Please, no one is extending this to 1 year olds and you know it. Babies aren't disciplined and no one expects them to be.
They are learning sign language. It is amazing what they can already understand.
Do you understand the difference between discipline and punishment?
"Wow...I hope your daughter doesn't follow your example and grow up to be an idiot"
"That wasn't so tough, huh?"
This thread has moved to a level of irony that has gotten very amusing.
Discipline a 1 year old? You're mad. And I have 4 kids, 27, 25, 13, and 11, plus two grandchildren who are 2 and 9 months so I know damned well that I know whereof I speak. The best you can do with a 1 year old is hand smacking. Any discipline beyond that is well beyond their ability to understand.
Uh, yes, I think you should discipline her. One-year-old is not too young to be taught the concept of boundaries of behavior. We introduced our two kids to the concept of "no" at about that stage.
"Unruly children will be given a free ride inside the pastry blender followed by a one hour tour in the oven!
Frosting will be provided at the end of the tour...
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