The kids and I were running errands this morning and as lunchtime approached, I had a decision to make. Get groceries then go through the drivethru and let S eat lunch on the way home (this keeps her awake in the car, thus assuring me she will take a long nap when we get home), or eat first and go grocery shopping without children whining because they are hungry and seeing all the food is making them (and then me), crazy.
I opted for option #2. This was the first time I had taken both of them inside a fast food restaurant by myself. The problem is hands. Specifically, not enough of them. I carry a diaper bag on my arm and the baby on my hip. Usually my other hand is holding onto the 3 year old who no longer walks anywhere, but jumps and insists that she is Tigger (or a kangaroo if she is wearing pants with pockets on them. For her “joey”, she explains). When the nice lady behind the counter hands my order to me on a tray, I have no way of taking it from her.
We arrived at Wendy’s at 11:30 and I was pleasantly surprised to see the lunch crowd had not arrived yet. There were only 3 people in the whole place. Our first stop was the bathroom. I would blame this on S who has only been fully potty trained for about 6 months and has introduced me to restrooms all over town, but I have to admit it was me. As we walked down the hall my cell phone rang. Normally I would let it go instead of digging around in the diaper bag to answer it, but it was SO LOUD! As it was going off I remember that E had been playing with it at home and turned the volume all the way up! People were staring so I got down on one knee and started rooting for it. When I found it and said, “hello?”, I looked up to see S walking into the men’s room! “No, No, No”!!!
After I confirmed my appointment with the Picture People for tomorrow, we all went in the correct bathroom and into the only stall big enough for all of us…the handicap one. Here comes a dilema that I have faced before: what to do with E while using the toilet? I had to help S with her pants and then up onto the stool. Meanwhile E is crawling around on the floor. A PUBLIC BATHROOM floor. Gross! When S is finally wiped off and pants up, it’s my turn. It is not easy to pee while holding a 10 month old who is kicking his feet and flailing his arms. And all the while, S is taunting me saying “I’m going to open the door now, okay, Mommy?” Thank God we were the only ones in there!
When we stepped out of the bathroom I noticed a little line had started to form. S waited until we got up to the line to announce “Mommy didn’t wash my hands”. Oh Lord. She was right. If nobody would have heard it, I would have let it go. But I wondered what would people think of me, and since I didn’t have the hand sanitizer with me, back down the hallway we went.
Turns out the bathroom was the biggest obstacle I had. I ordered lunch and while they were putting it on the tray, I got E in a highchair and told “Tigger” to sit with him and wait for me. By the time I got back to the counter, the tray was ready and we all sat down together for a nice lunch.
Maybe I’ll try it again sometime! :)
3 Comments
sounds like you really had a time of it! in some restrooms now they have these little seats that flip down out of the wall for infants while you’re ..erm.. ‘going’. they are the handiest things ever and should be mandatory for all bathrooms! :)
our pool has them in the changing rooms, which is really nice because looking after a baby when you’re trying to get into a swimsuit is a nightmare.
how sad am i – i googled it, they’re these. http://www.diaperdeck.com/babyholder.htm
I love it! I have seen those somewhere before, but they are definitely not the norm! This particular Wendy’s didn’t even have a changing station!!!! Is that legal?