Babies in the dining room

[sillysailor 1955]

Here's a simple solution, remove the stupid inconsiderate parents from the dining room:D

[Almost Packed]

Well, my parents never took me into a dining room when I was a baby (in the 40's, when we travelled by train. Mom kept me in the compartment.) When my five kids were babies, we got a sitter and enjoyed a nice restaurant dinner. When we cruised, we left them at home with Grandma. When my grandkids (2 1/2 and 6 mos.) were visiting this summer, I watched them while Mom and Dad had a nice dinner at Outback. Two weeks ago, several friends and I went to Red Lobster to celebrate a birthday, and two constantly crying babies and toddler siblings who ran around all over the place made it a pretty bad experience. The waitstaff politely kept trying to get the parents to move to a private room, but they refused. It was really awful (but we got free desserts). If you can afford Red Lobster, you can afford a BABYSITTER! Nobody thinks your kids are as cute as you think they are. It's just common courtesy to let Baby stay in a comfortable home environment. How do you teach a baby table manners? Really - Baby is much more comfortable at home!

 

The Voice of Experience

 

i am completely aware of that...heck, i don't even take my kids on cruises. but no, dining rooms are not only for adults, we don't live in the 40's....and june cleaver is now out of the kitchen and apron!

 

yes, parents with cranky kids need to be respectful. however, i'm thinking the op is overreacting..i think any kid crying to him would upset him.

alot of it has to deal with the age of the child...children up and running around, heck no! that is not tolerable..misbehaving is not tolerable. crying is different.

 

my kids are well behaved. they have good manners and always have as i raised them that way...from the beginning. they know how to behave.

 

i have 3 kids and owned/operated a daycare...i'm pretty experienced with kids.

[Almost Packed]

yes, i agree...a screaming baby after many minutes of screaming should be removed...a fussy baby? no, i think that's tolerable...so much better than the woman who laughs like a horse...or talks too loud. do we get to ask them to leave?

 

 

however, dining rooms and restaurants are not just for adults....and that was my main argument here!

 

i have left a theatre when my baby started crying. i have left a restaurant when my baby was screaming bloody murder. a little fuss? nope....they need to calm themselves and learn new environments...if you run out every time they will never get use to it.

 

I'm not talking about a new born here...of course age has alot to do with it.

[sharecruises]

What the people are complaining about here goes way beyond "normal"...that story of the family with 4 little ones, twins etc....eeek....that would really put a damper on dinner for me

 

I think most people will understand that babies cry,make noise...but when the parents sit there and ignore them and they go on and on...annoying the other diners...that is just wrong...not the babies fault..it is the fault of the PARENTS

 

what about asking the maitre d' to change your table?? If enough asked maybe they would ask the parents to take the baby outside or even offer to bag up their meal..give em a doggie bag?? Just a thought....has anyone in such an ONGOING annoying situation tried asking to move??

[Megan_Strick]

Well, my parents never took me into a dining room when I was a baby (in the 40's, when we travelled by train. Mom kept me in the compartment.) When my five kids were babies, we got a sitter and enjoyed a nice restaurant dinner. When we cruised, we left them at home with Grandma. When my grandkids (2 1/2 and 6 mos.) were visiting this summer, I watched them while Mom and Dad had a nice dinner at Outback. Two weeks ago, several friends and I went to Red Lobster to celebrate a birthday, and two constantly crying babies and toddler siblings who ran around all over the place made it a pretty bad experience. The waitstaff politely kept trying to get the parents to move to a private room, but they refused. It was really awful (but we got free desserts). If you can afford Red Lobster, you can afford a BABYSITTER! Nobody thinks your kids are as cute as you think they are. It's just common courtesy to let Baby stay in a comfortable home environment. How do you teach a baby table manners? Really - Baby is much more comfortable at home!

 

The Voice of Experience

 

 

Wow! With all do respect I didn't have kids for other people to babysit. Our children are now 10 and 16. When they were younger if they couldn't go we didn't do. I never had the luxury of a babysitter as both our mothers passed away when our children were very young. I do agree to not let the baby cry and ignore them but not to bring them at all is crazy.

[TnTnFlorida]

... i'm thinking the op is overreacting..i think any kid crying to him would upset him....

 

You are assuming a lot about me. Actually, I am a "her," not a "him," and babies actually do not bother me at all. My husband is the one who usually over reacts, and the first night as soon as the baby started he commented. After that EVERY SINGLE NIGHT the other people at our 8 person table made comments at the baby crying. That is the reason I posted it. And my husband, (the over reactor) commented that he felt bad for the baby, who was probably upset at all the noise and chaos. But he was still irritated at the parents that night after night he had to listen to the baby. We mentioned it at breakfast on the last morning, and the people with us asked, "were you in the Imagination towards the back?" Turns out they knew the table we were refering to. They said they had a baby at their table too, and commented several times how glad they were that they weren't at the other table. Also, we were 2 tables away. If we were right beside them, and had to listen to this every night of the cruise we paid for, I would have been much more unhappy.

[halos]

Here's a simple solution, remove the stupid inconsiderate parents from the dining room:D

 

I agree.

babies are innocent and adorable as far as I'm concerned ;)

Some parents on the other hand...............

[halos]

I do agree to not let the baby cry and ignore them but not to bring them at all is crazy.

 

Not bringing a baby on a cruise isn't crazy if you're comfortable leaving your child OR if you personally feel that a cruise ship is not a proper environment for a young baby.

 

 

You are assuming a lot about me. Actually, I am a "her," not a "him," and babies actually do not bother me at all. ...................... Also, we were 2 tables away. If we were right beside them, and had to listen to this every night of the cruise we paid for, I would have been much more unhappy.

 

Don't feel that you need to explain yourself. I think most of us can see you aren't overreacting ;)

[Tapi]

Just to give all of you a heads up, we will be traveling with a 1 year old on the Dream, and YES we will be going to the main dining room!

 

HOWEVER, I will be the first one who will have zero tolerance for a crying baby. If my son starts crying, I will be taking him back to the cabin, or we will choose to have dinner at the buffet that night. ;)

[TnTnFlorida]

Just to give all of you a heads up, we will be traveling with a 1 year old on the Dream, and YES we will be going to the main dining room!

 

HOWEVER, I will be the first one who will have zero tolerance for a crying baby. If my son starts crying, I will be taking him back to the cabin, or we will choose to have dinner at the buffet that night. ;)

 

Have a wonderful time! As I said in the original post, my brother brought his two year old on our cruise in May, and we LOVED having her with us!:)

[halos]

Just to give all of you a heads up, we will be traveling with a 1 year old on the Dream, and YES we will be going to the main dining room!

 

 

:) Have a great cruise :)

[petro772]

Take them out. ;)

[Nebr.cruiser]

As a mother and grandmother, I would hope that everyone realizes that of course babies will cry and fuss at times. I would be tolerant of just intermittant, normal baby noises, but when it gets to be continuous, loud and distracting it's the parents job to take the baby out, both for other people's sakes and for the baby's sake.

 

Any parent who would sit there and let a baby cry continuously for 20 minutes or more, or fuss noisily, is committing a mild form of child abuse; The baby is trying to communicate, in the only way he can, that something is wrong; hungry, tired, wet, uncomfortable, something. It's a form of extreme selfishness to let your child, and other people, suffer rather than disrupt your meal.

[rottiemom]

It's one thing to be trapped on an airplane with a crying baby, but in the MDR on a cruise ship? Please, if you are a parent who has a baby or a small child, and you are on the 10/25 Splendor cruise, can you please take the baby out of the MDR if they cry more than 10 minutes? I will buy you a cocktail......after you have put the baby to bed! Do we have a deal?

[Chacooe]

I'm a mom of three, and I'm with OP. No, the dining room is not strictly an "adult" place - but if a baby is on a crying jag (not an occasional whimper - from what OP describes, it sounds like it was probably full-throttle wailing), it's uncomfortable for everyone. As for toddlers, there were any number of times when I left DH behind to pay the bill in a restaurant while I went out to the car with the tired/bored/cranky toddler. As for today? I have a nine year-old who wants to know when he can come to the supper club with us so he can have lobster and shrimp cocktail.:eek:

 

As I understand you can take your 9 year old with you to the supper clubs, at least that is what John Heald said in his blog awhile back. A mother asked if her 7 year old was old enough for the supper club and he wrote back and said "Yes if they are well behaved and don't get up and run around the area."

[Chacooe]

I totally agree with Halos. I had 3 kiddos in 15 months. When they were babies, we would go to dinner at 4:30. If one of them cried, either DH or I would take them outside. There was even a time when we were traveling, we stopped at a hotel for the night and all 3 babies were screaming. I couldn't get them to calm down for anything. Long story short we packed up and left the hotel at 3am so we didn't disturb the other guests. I expect the same courtesy in public. If you baby/toddler is crying uncontrollably, you need to remove them from the public area. BTW, my babies are now 18, 16, and 16.

 

GayleR, I don't mean to be disrespectful at all, but your young adults are no longer babies. Babies are ones that are between the ages of newborn to 2. As the youngest of 5, I would get so embarrassed when my mom would introduce me as her baby, until one day when I was about 6 or 7 I finally told her how embarrassing it was to me. Parents sometimes don't stop to think how embarrassing it is to call one of their children, especially if they are teen agers, a baby. Think about it, at your age would you like for your mom to call you her baby? I introduce my youngest child as my youngest son, but I never introduce him as my baby, because he is no longer a baby. Just my opinion.

 

I definitely agree with the OP, when a child cries and cries, they are telling you something is wrong, so you should take them out of the dining room and tend to their needs before your own. I know when I was on the Carnival Pride last year, we had one like that in our dining room and a lady from the table next to me finally asked the Maitre D to ask her to take care of the baby, she was furious, she walked past us and she was saying to herself," now I don't get to eat because someone wants me to take the my baby out of here, when do they want me to eat, at midnight." The table next to us and one other table all laughed at her remark. She knew that it was one of the people at the other table because where she was sitting she could see the maitre D talk to this lady and then walk directly to her. It was funny. She did come back about 10 minutes later, and the baby was quiet the rest of the evening. I think it had a dirty diaper.

[velotaco]

I love babies as much as the next person, but if they are fussing, please remove them from the dining room. My brother brought his baby on our cruise in May, and if she was fussy, either her mom or dad took her back to the cabin for some quiet time or a nap. We just got off the Fascination this morning, and every night in the Imagination diningroom there was a baby who would start crying about 15-20 minutes into the meal. I was so grateful that we were two tables away, and not any closer. I found these parents to be rude and inconsiderate. When I had babies I didn't take them to adult places... I know things may be different now, but if they are fussing, be considerate to your fellow diners...please... and remove the crying baby!

 

People can be inconsiderate. Who brings a baby to the dining room anyway?

[nybumpkin]

As I understand you can take your 9 year old with you to the supper clubs, at least that is what John Heald said in his blog awhile back. A mother asked if her 7 year old was old enough for the supper club and he wrote back and said "Yes if they are well behaved and don't get up and run around the area."

I know - but the supper club is Mom and Dad's "date night.":) He settles for shrimp cocktail in the MDR the other nights.

[nrdsb4]

A

 

Any parent who would sit there and let a baby cry continuously for 20 minutes or more, or fuss noisily, is committing a mild form of child abuse; The baby is trying to communicate, in the only way he can, that something is wrong; hungry, tired, wet, uncomfortable, something. It's a form of extreme selfishness to let your child, and other people, suffer rather than disrupt your meal.

 

 

Exactly.:)

[halos]

As the youngest of 5, I would get so embarrassed when my mom would introduce me as her baby, until one day when I was about 6 or 7 I finally told her how embarrassing it was to me. Parents sometimes don't stop to think how embarrassing it is to call one of their children, especially if they are teen agers, a baby. Think about it, at your age would you like for your mom to call you her baby? I introduce my youngest child as my youngest son, but I never introduce him as my baby, because he is no longer a baby. Just my opinion.

 

.

:confused::confused:

Personally, I am sure there are some out there that feel like you do about this, but I'm 47 and if my Mom calls me her baby, I actually like it. She's my Mom, I will always be her baby, (even though I am the oldest of 3). I usually refer to my sister as my baby sister...she doesn't mind that either and she's 43.

I don't believe my youngest (21) gets embarrassed when I call her my baby either.

This is a personal comfort thing. You obviously have an issue with this, but that doesn't mean everyone else does too.

 

It's one thing to be trapped on an airplane with a crying baby, but in the MDR on a cruise ship? Please, if you are a parent who has a baby or a small child, and you are on the 10/25 Splendor cruise, can you please take the baby out of the MDR if they cry more than 10 minutes? I will buy you a cocktail......after you have put the baby to bed! Do we have a deal?

 

I agree!

My heart breaks for babies on planes. There are times when the pressure is so bad on my ears that I can't imagine being a baby and feeling that. No wonder they cry!!

[Lady_Jag]

This is one of those isssues like smoking that is not limited to cruising, and that you will never win no matter what side of the argument you're on or how many times you try to argue your point.

 

Yes, babies cry. There are some parents out there who think that ignoring it for 20 minutes or more will make the crying stop, or maybe they just haven't got a clue what to do, so they do nothing. And yes, that is very annoying to the people around them.

 

But, rather than give the parents and baby the stink eye, make comments to your tablemates about how rude and inconsiderate "those people" are, or wait until after the fact to discuss how horrible it was to hear a baby cry night after night, perhaps a more tactful and effective approach would be to go straight to the source?

 

I'm not knocking the OP's complaint. It's just that sometimes all it takes to make a toddler stop crying is for a stranger to step in, get on his level and say "aw! I feel that way too sometimes, but I'm not so good at expressing myself as you are."

 

You can try baby talk with infants (sometimes the new face distracts them), but most often if the baby is very young, you have to approach the parents directly. There are nice ways to suggest that a change of environment might settle their little one down, or that a nice warm swaddling and pacifier might make baby more comfortable in the cold dining room.

[CapeCodCruiser]

It is the responsibility of the dining room manager to see that all of the customers have a pleasant atmosphere in which to dine. I will usually ask the Maitre D to handle the situation. Intervention from them is usually better received than from fellow diners.

[GOLDENBONNY]

wow, i can't imagine that.

 

babies cry, toddlers fuss.

 

i don't know when a dining room was ever considered adults only! in a movie theatre i would expect people to leave if their child misbehaved but in the dining room? throwing a fit/tantrum, yes, i could see leaving with the child for some discipline...but a baby crying! no way should they be expected to leave. if children do not start out at an early age learning how to behave properly, then you'll end up with an older kid misbehaving.

 

i certainly would not expect anyone to take their child out of the dining room for crying. it's a baby! you were actually one too once...and i bet you cried even in a dining room.

 

sorry,but you are funny,people did not paid mony to listen to my baby cry.no one should nave dinner on cruise and listen to cry baby.I had same problem with my baby last cruise ,she did not like dinning room,so after 2 nights we just had dinner in buffet.Itsd my baby and other people should not suffer .

[G'ma]

wow, i can't imagine that.

 

babies cry, toddlers fuss.

 

i don't know when a dining room was ever considered adults only! in a movie theatre i would expect people to leave if their child misbehaved but in the dining room? throwing a fit/tantrum, yes, i could see leaving with the child for some discipline...but a baby crying! no way should they be expected to leave. if children do not start out at an early age learning how to behave properly, then you'll end up with an older kid misbehaving.

 

i certainly would not expect anyone to take their child out of the dining room for crying. it's a baby! you were actually one too once...and i bet you cried even in a dining room.

 

Hence, the problem.......:rolleyes:

[halos]

It is the responsibility of the dining room manager to see that all of the customers have a pleasant atmosphere in which to dine. I will usually ask the Maitre D to handle the situation. Intervention from them is usually better received than from fellow diners.

 

I have to agree.

In certain circumstances, I would approach a person with a distressed child...if I were in a mall, supermarket or out in a park someplace. I remember what it was like to be a Mom with a screaming kid and it isn't fun.

But while I'm dining out?? No. On a ship, I would casually mention something to the waiter...ask him to talk to the Maitre'd. I would not leave my table and approach theirs. To be honest, a stranger coming over to the table and even with good intentions, trying to make the baby stop crying could indeed make it worse.