Table for Three

We have taken Henry out to dinner many times. It used to be so easy. When he was tiny, he just slept in his car seat while we enjoyed dinner. Then he became old enough to sit up in a highchair, and he'd eat cheerios and smile at the other diners and at the waitstaff. Sometimes he'd eat a jar of baby food, other times he'd play with some of the small toys I keep in the diaper bag. Then he got old enough to want to get OUT of the highchair. We'd hurriedly eat our food before he got bored with his cheerios and goldfish crackers. Eventually Jeff or I would have to let him out and walk around the restaurant with him. Recently Henry has been a terror at restaurants. Almost immediately he gets bored with being in the highchair. He screams. He throws things on the ground. He arches his back and tries to climb down. If we take him out of his highchair, and hold him on our laps, he spills our drinks and drops our silverware. Lately it hasn't been fun taking Henry out to dinner. But, since we like to eat out occasionally, I really want him to get used to sitting in his highchair at restaurants. I want him to behave. I want Jeff and I to be able to eat an entire meal without having to leave the table while our food gets cold. A few weeks ago, we went to Outback Steakhouse, and it was a disaster. Henry screamed, cried, kicked, whined, and made the meal pretty miserable. We decided to chance another restaurant meal tonight...and it was great! We took Henry to The Spaghetti Factory, and we had a really nice time. Henry loved the bread. He loved his mac and cheese. He loved my meatballs. He played with his crayons. He fed Jeff. He smiled and laughed. He stayed in the highchair throughout the entire meal. He had ice cream for dessert. We all enjoyed our dinners. The Spaghetti Factory is not my favorite restaurant It's not Jeff's favorite restaurant. But, we will definitely be going there again, because apparently it's Henry's favorite restaurant.

I didn't take any pictures at the restaurant tonight, but here are some pictures that will illustrate some of our dining experiences. This is what Henry usually looks like by the end of the meal when we go out to dinner:

This is what Henry looked like throughout dinner at the restaurant tonight!