Personal DVD player in the Dining room?

[bruce-r]

What is this woman thinking? I read This message in the family section and could not believe it. I could only think that they have the TV on 24/7 while they are at home.

[jhannah]

A DVD player in the dining room is totally out of place. If a child is not able to endure meal service then he/she is probably not mature enough to be going on a cruise. Just my opinion.

[iceman93]

I could only think that they have the TV on 24/7 while they are at home.

 

Feeling mighty judgemental, aren't we? It could just be that a Baby Einstein DVD is perfect to get the parents through a meal uninterrupted. I'm not saying I agree with that parenting approach, but there's no sense dragging a thread over into the HAL board just you can throw stones.

[JimVrhovac]

Most of the tables do not have an excess of room. If the kid uses headsets and mom or dad wants to put the DVD set in their plate would have no problem with it.

 

Personally feel that it is out of place but as long as it does not interfere with our dining experience would have no problem with it. If this child gets their way now imagine what that household will be like when she is a teenager. Hope they get prepared.

 

Jim & Ruth

[alsas]

I understand the question of manners BUT I FEEL THAT HEAD SET AND DVD MAY BE THE LESSER OF OTHER EVILS.No babysitter and parents not getting to the eat in dinniong room....Maybe cut some slack....Happy sailing ALSAS

[bepsf]

Where do people get the crazy idea that this is even remotely appropriate?

 

Good manners are taught at a young age and reinforced all their lives - not something that is tossed aside for convenience-sake until they have to put on a suit to get a job.

 

...and parents wonder why their kids have ADD nowadays.

:cool:

[hammybee]

I once watched a kid entertain himself by picking his nose throughout the dinner, for 12 nights, on a cruise, a few years ago. I would have given him a DVD, if I had one on me.

 

Late seating is mighty late for a 7 year old. The DVD was probably the better alternative.

 

I would have hired a sitter or done the Lido. That's just me.

[Copper10-8]

I once watched a kid entertain himself by picking his nose throughout the dinner, for 12 nights, on a cruise, a few years ago. I would have given him a DVD, if I had one on me.

 

Late seating is mighty late for a 7 year old. The DVD was probably the better alternative.

 

I would have hired a sitter or done the Lido. That's just me.

 

Now there's a day at the beach! Pass the potatoes please!:eek:

[mechcc]

This thread is about a 15 month old! The parents need to get a grip and realize that as parents there are some things that just can not be enjoyed by themselves at this stage in their child's life. You can not expect a 15 month old to sit still through an hour and a half to 2 hour dinner. When the child is 4 with crayons and matchbox cars, yes. But not at 15 months. The DVD will result in taking to much space on the table, the 15 month old singing, dancing and clapping. Cute for the parents, distracting for others. Get a babysitter for a couple of nights and eat in the Lido with the little one most nights.

I love children, have some, and really want grandchildren. But children are children and vacations have to be tailored to their age appropriateness. Cruises are great for families of any age - just not all activities are appropriate for all ages.

[bplazo]

I see it all the time, kids with dvd players and adults on cell phones!

[Kathyh1313]

no, No, NO! DVD's do NOT belong in the dining room. I agree with the poster who said as parents we must often give up what WE would like to do, to do what is BEST for our children.

 

IMHO, the parents were spoiled, over indulged, call it what you will. The parents are used to getting their own way and now they are training THEIR child to be the same way.

 

I am a nurse manager and am now hiring young, 22 and 23 year old new RN's. Most of them are lovely, responsible young adults. However, some have no clue how to interact in an adult professional environment. Come to work late...not my fault, don't feel like working today?.....call in sick, have something more "important" come up....Oh Kathy...I can't work tomorrow...I have to........:eek:

 

This DVD in the dining room is just one more symptom of today's over indulged, lack of responsibility society.

 

You CAN have a family cruise, you CAN take your 15 month old, you CANNOT do whatever you want to the detriment of others. You SHOULD do what is best for your child which is not subjegate them to a 2 hour meal in a formal dining room. Use the lido to feed your child at an appropriate hour, hire a babysitter, put the DVD on in the cabin and THEN the parents may enjoy the dining room.

 

Stepping down off my soapbox now......:o

 

Happy cruising, Kathy (the mother of a well adjusted 24 year old who was taught good manners)

PS: When in a social situation, I put my pager on vibrate and step out when I need to use my cell phone. My parents taught me good manners too!

[PrincessYoga]

There was a child (about 12) on our cruise that had a DVD or Ipod at every meal. Our 6 year old (my wee cousin) pointed out how that was bad manners without being prompted. The only need for this I can see is if a child has the likes of autism. In that case I can possibly see the use of music but not a dvd players resting on your plate.

[Vic The Parrot]

Feeling mighty judgemental, aren't we? It could just be that a Baby Einstein DVD is perfect to get the parents through a meal uninterrupted. I'm not saying I agree with that parenting approach, but there's no sense dragging a thread over into the HAL board just you can throw stones.

 

 

Who said he was throwing stones ???

 

 

:confused:

[whogo]

A child deserves parental attention. The message the DVD player sends to the child is, "Leave Mommy and Daddy alone."

 

Talking nonstop on a cell phone gives a similar message, "These piddly things I talk about constantly with my friends are so much more important than you are."

 

The child should be learning manners and other social skills at dinner, not watching television.

[bruce-r]

There was a child (about 12) on our cruise that had a DVD or Ipod at every meal. Our 6 year old (my wee cousin) pointed out how that was bad manners without being prompted.

That makes me think that your cousin's parents are doing a good job.

 

Vic, thanks for the support.

[Atomica]

Absolutely not - there's no way that belongs in the dining room. I know there's lots of great kids shows & movies that can be very educational, but it's just not appropriate.

 

We were in a restaraunt a few weeks ago and there was a kid in there with his family who was eating dinner while he was using his laptop, and that struck me as inappropriate. I love technology, and use it every day at work, but it's OK to leave it at home!!

[cruzincurt]

Kids today (and their parents) are totally wacked out. They are adding DVD players to our shopping carts to keep the kids ocuppied while in the grocery store; they have to watch a DVD on the 5 min ride to school. Today, I sat through a presentation about adding public address system and loudspeakers into school classrooms and putting microphones on the teacher to try and keep the kiddo's attention. I guess the kiddos today have hearing problems as well.

 

I like the idea of using those remote control dog collars to get their attention.

 

As for the DVD in the dining room, the kiddos are obviously in control and it is simply an electronic pacifier or babysitter. I perfer they just up their medications to keep them quiet.

 

Katyh1313...I agree, when I interview those college grads to hire them, they want to come to work when they feel like and listen to an Ipod while working. Thank you all those liberal parents and educators of the 80's & 90's for the fine products you raised.

 

Oops, slipped off my soapbox there..

[sswitenki]

I totally agree. If a child cannot behave in the dining room on their own, the parents should have a babysitter or take them to the Lido. A DVD player is not appropriate in the dining room. Phones also do not belong in the dining room! I hate listening to peoples conversations on a cell phone and listening to the ----- ringing. Just my opinion.

[Nectarologist]

If I may play devil's advocate...how does a 15 month old watching a DVD affect anyone else's enjoyment of a meal (assuming there is no volume to distract you)? Or maybe it doesn't it's just the principle of the matter. This would be a good one for a poll. Interesting topic.

p.s. only playing devil's advocate, nothing personal.

 

Kathy1313 wrote in part: "I am a nurse manager and am now hiring young, 22 and 23 year old new RN's. Most of them are lovely, responsible young adults. However, some have no clue how to interact in an adult professional environment. Come to work late...not my fault, don't feel like working today?.....call in sick, have something more "important" come up....Oh Kathy...I can't work tomorrow...I have to"

 

I agree with you. But I also feel that today's employers are to blame in part, however, only a very small part. Loyalty btwn an employer and employee just doesn't exist anymore. It is a two-way street, employees are not willing to give 100% when employers do not. Unprofessional people have always been there but the employer-employee relationship of the new millennium now gives the slacker an excuse to do even less. My wife and I both work in health care too. It's ashame b/c ultimately it's the pts who suffer. To pts it's their well-being, but in reality it's a business.

[bruce-r]

Thank you all those liberal parents and educators of the 80's & 90's for the fine products you raised.

 

That's quite a sweeping generalization there.

 

[cruzincurt]

My observation stands. Today's educators are reaping the seeds planted (today's parents) in the past 10-20 years, they just won't admit it.

 

As for watching an educational DVD, there is a time and place for everything. The dining room is one place to learn social skills. Instead we have these kids become isolated, loners, and some end up doing some very anti-social things such as shooting fellow classmates.

 

Nectarologist...Come to work, every day, on time, dressed appropriately, don't surf the web, don't listen to music, work 40 hours and I'll give you a paycheck. People tend to forget that we don't work for a company, we work for our customers. We give them products and services, they give us money which we can then pass on to our employees.

[SnorkelBear]

On our last cruise there was a guy watching a DVD at dinner. It made it difficult for me enjoy the music on my Ipod, and it made almost impossible to focus on the e-mail I was writing on my PDA. My cell rang and he shoots me look like I was disturbing him. The nerve!

[griswalds]

There is probably another thread on this subject as well but I would have moved tables if at all possible. We had one cruise where the fellow brought his own Kraft salad dressing to the table, every night. I thought was that bad enough until I read this story.

 

Griswalds

[Randyk47]

Given the choice I'd take the salad dressing guy over the DVD child. :D While part of me understands keeping the child entertained and quiet at dinner another part of me says I don't want a DVD player at the table nor an unruly child for that matter. There's no way to make this sound quite right without it coming off like I'm anti-child on cruises in a posting but we'd probably request to be moved in the case of the DVD player.

[cruisecache&squash]

Last year in the dining room there were two boys about 4 or 5 at the table with their parents. Every night they had earphones and some sort of screen-I couldn't tell if it was a DVD player or gameboy or what. Anyway, we thought it was just sad.