Dining in the dining room with little ones.

[AmyJ of Ca]

We got back from a short trip to Vegas with our 4 kids and it has got me worried. Our 2 youngest are 19 months and 5 months and the 19 month old was a nightmare when we would try to eat. After chasing her through the casinos because she couldn't stand to sit in her high chair, we finally resorted to getting food in the food court and bringing it to the room to eat. Now I'm scared that we may have a similar problem with the baby next year on our West coast cruise. She'll be about 15 months. How do you keep an active toddler happy and content while you try to eat. We had new books and little toys that were new to her but it didn't work. I'd really hate to eat my meals in our room because eating in the dining room was making us want to jump ship!! Any suggestions? Amy

 

[deebs]

I hate to say this, but it may be worth booking Flounders a few nights. We went when my dd was 3 and son 10 months and meals were far from relaxing. I never even made it to desert half the time. 1 1/2- 2 hours for a meal is a long time for the little ones to sit through

 

[smchan]

Originally posted by AmyJ of Ca
We got back from a short trip to Vegas with our 4 kids and it has got me worried. Our 2 youngest are 19 months and 5 months and the 19 month old was a nightmare when we would try to eat. ... I'd really hate to eat my meals in our room because eating in the dining room was making us want to jump ship!! Any suggestions?

Well, in Vegas, I'd give them a bucket of nickels and a fake id and wish them well on the slots.

On the ship, consider the onboard child care to help with your sanity.

Sam

 

[bratray]

hi

i've been through this myself at restaurants and felt very bad for others when my kids were misbehaving- if they wouldn't stop after 5 to 10 minutes it was out to the car for us- but of course you can't do this on a cruise

bring little snacks they enjoy from home in zip lock bags

a favourite blankey or pacifier (if they fall asleep, all the better)

be a little lax with rules & if they want to "play" with their food, let them, as long as it's not bothering anyone else

stock up on some free toys from mcdonalds or burger king and give them one or two each nite at dinner

try to relax - this is a cruise filled with kids so everyone realizes that kids have melt downs

 

[AmyJ of Ca]

What are the chances of getting both of the little ones in Flounders at the same time? I was worried because we would need 2 spots that it may be more difficult to get times during first seating. All I keep imaging is one of them breaking loose at the same time the waiter is bringing in all the plates stacked with everyones dinner and you can imagine the rest... or that my husband and I having to trade off courses to get through the meals..("I'll take appetizers and half the main course, meet you at the front door and you can have the 1/2 the main course and dessert.") Oh well, we knew the job was dangerous (to our sanity) when we took it.

 

[smchan]

Originally posted by AmyJ of Ca
Oh well, we knew the job was dangerous (to our sanity) when we took it.

LOL! I admire your attitude.

Sam

 

[webray]

Why not leave the kids at home and make this special for you and hubby.

 

[HookedonMagic]

First, IMHO, you've already tackled the most difficult part...you've identified a possible problem and you've left yourself plenty of time to plan! You have a great attitude and I'm sure it really will all work out well for you. All kids are different...maybe your little one will actually enjoy sitting through the meals or at least be distracted long enough by all of the action to let you enjoy your meals! The wait staff really tries to help with the kids...it's Disney, afterall, they expect kids in the dining rooms.

We cruised on Disney when our son was just fifteen weeks old (we have a teenage daughter and it was her spring break.) Anyway, it was just a three day cruise and we used Flounders every night for dinner. GASP! Upon boarding, we headed straight to the nursery to meet the staff and sign up for times. We were first in line and had no problem reserving every spot we desired (Just be friendly...the staff appreciates smiling parents...I think they must deal with some very cranky and demanding passengers.) It worked well for us ... we thought the staff was great.

Another idea...We cruised last March (on RCCL) with our then 15 month old son. He behaved the same way you describe your 19 month old...there was no keeping him still. Our solution was to bring my mother along. She (and our then 14 year old daughter) watched our son while DH and I ate at early seating. Then, we took over with the baby while my mom and our daughter ate at late seating. He didn't eat a single meal in the dining room the entire week. Certainly not perfect, but there is just no easy solution to make meal time go smoothly with toddlers.

Again, I hope it works out for you! Happy Sailing!

 

[qofhearts]

Skip dinner with the kids. We tried with our DD at 18months and ended up eating in the room or up at buffet. It's just too slow for the little ones. I would try to book Flounders or attempt the meal. The Staff on the cruise is great with kids and they totally understand if you have to step out for a minute. The last cruise DH is 3 now, she would finish before us and ask to go to the Oceanneer's club. So they would hold off bringing out the entree until whoever's turn it was to take her to the club came back.

As my DH found on his PRIVATE (rough day at sea)tour of the Galley on Magic that they have a seperate prep for the kids meals so they can get them out faster- ours always got her meal at our second course. Don't forget you can always get the rest of your meal to go if it doesn't work out!

 

[MarcyIn Florida]

Originally posted by AmyJ of Ca
or that my husband and I having to trade off courses to get through the meals..("I'll take appetizers and half the main course, meet you at the front door and you can have the 1/2 the main course and dessert.") Oh well, we knew the job was dangerous (to our sanity) when we took it.

First, I'm glad that someone else has these same concerns. I've read posts here where peple complained about misbehaved kids, and all i could think was "Oh, please let them not be talking about my kids!"

Second, what you describe above is what we did in the dining rooms, but a little differently. Either my husband or i took our 18 month old out of the dining room in between courses -- an hour plus for meals was just too much for her. But we found that a break in between courses -- often in the piano bar outside of Parrot Cay (I forget what it's called) was all she needed to let off some steam and get ready for some more sitting.

My other big suggestion is to bring your own crayons -- our servers never had more than one crayon per kid, and this made our kids crazy (and made them fight over colors). Bringing our own box, as well as other fun stuff, made the meals go more smoothly. e also ALWAYS ordered them a cold appetizer (the fruit plate) so that they had finger food to munch on immediately.

In the end, though, we also fed them a couple of times in Topsiders. Our toddler loves to look at the food on buffets, so she always eats quite well when we took her there, and she was less likely to get antsy.

If you have any questions about cruising with litle ones, feel free to PM me! I've done it with a 2.5 year old (while pregnant), an 18 month old, and a 4 year old!

 

[AmyJ of Ca]

We are taking Grandma with us on our cruise but it was on the requirement that she wasn't there to babysit for our kids. She is the full time caretaker for my FIL and we just want her to be able to relax and enjoy herself for a week. My SIL and her family is on the same cruise with us but we really don't want to burden everyone else with our little bundles of "joy". I guess it will be a good excuse to book another cruise so we may be able to enjoy a meal. We have marched our older ones out to the car on more than one occasion when they weren't behaving in a restaurant and have actually we get complimented quite often on how good they are while we dine NOW. (A little fear does wonders )They are 7 and 5 years old. Now that we have the little ones the thought of going to a restaurant sounds more like some kind of cruel torture rather than a break from cooking. Maybe if we are first in line when we board, and go camp out at Flounders until they open, they'll see how much we NEED a few (read many) quiet dinners! Amy