Bringing non-eating children to specialty restaurants

[Rockwife]

[quote name='mkad1109']I am sorry to go off topic, and I don't mean to offend, but so what? I used to bring my children up lunch sometimes too and just Monday brought my 14 year old daughter Subway because she wanted it. If my kids wanted something everyday and I could do it without an excess cost of money and time I would. Why do you insist on being so judgmental as to what people do with their children. I forget the saying but it goes something like "Pride cometh before the fall". I do the best I can with my children, assume parental love is really more important than any specific child rearing practices and am very careful NOT to judge others who may do things differently. I truly hope if you have children they are happy and well adjusted, and then good for you. But please stop assuming you have found the recipe for child rearing. There is none![/QUOTE]

I think you could speak to any public school teacher to find the answer to "so what". Many will tell you there is an epidemic underway. . . kids are calling the shots in their homes and bringing that attitude in their classrooms and society at large. These kids are in for a very rude awakening because they never learn to cope with any level of discomfort. Those of us here worrying aloud about the enabling going on have great concern for these kids and their futures, just as we would if someone came on a public board talking about keeping their kids in cages or washing their mouths out with soap- we are *concerned* and have every right to express it.

The OP could have avoided this whole discussion had she simply stated this child had special needs. She didn't, so many of us thought it was the case of spoiling. No one was saying a child should be forced to eat foods they don't like, but there were warnings against a parent catering to unreasonable demands (ie fixing two meals every single meal). If the child was not special needs I would recommend having THEM fix their special meal if they could not eat what was prepared for the family. Six is plenty old to make a sandwich or cold cereal. Seems like a good compromise to me, but what do I know? I only have kitties and puppies!

Happy Travels to all.

[newmexicoNita]

[quote name='AWinkler']Valen ~ Thank you for your graciousness. I'm pretty sure I would not have been such after all the judgmental posts. Your friend is lucky to have you in their life, and so is that little boy. I hope you three have a really wonderful cruise. Please let us know how it went when you return.[/QUOTE]
you are right about everything you have said AWinkler. I want to apologize if I responded to Valen in a negative way. The first post didn't clarify any of what she has now explained and it appeared this was simply a spoiled kid..Valen, I hope this turns out to be the vacation you hope it will be.

NIta

[calmac]

Valen, I hope the 3 of you have a great cruise and that you have happy mealtimes.

As it is the little boy's guardian who is taking him on the cruise I just want to check that you have all the necessary paperwork in place (NCL requires some sort of signed form if a child is not travelling with parents - sorry not sure of the details just know it is a requirement).

[Tokaybean]

[quote name='AWinkler']Valen ~ Thank you for your graciousness. I'm pretty sure I would not have been such after all the judgmental posts. Your friend is lucky to have you in their life, and so is that little boy. I hope you three have a really wonderful cruise. Please let us know how it went when you return.[/QUOTE]

Very well said and I agree; have a great cruise and talk with you when you get back. Followup is always interesting to read.

[KerCar]

[quote name='Valen9']Not exactly. We want to be sure that in the worst case, he'll be getting enough of a balanced diet to stay healthy. He's picky about the peanut butter but not so much about the bread, so if we bring along a jar of it then we're sure we've got a protein that he'll eat. Many of his 'guarantee' foods are from Trader Joe's so we can't be certain we can obtain them en route.

My friend also gives him Ovaltine regularly, just to take care of any nutrients he might not be getting. We just call it chocolate milk... and we'll have a jar of that as well since I'm pretty sure I didn't see it on the menu on the Jewel. Between these two, we can be sure that he'll be reasonably well-fed even if he shuts down and won't try anything new.

I hate to make him sound more dysfunctional than he is! He'll eat pasta and very plain hot dogs and a lot of different kinds of fruit, and I do admit I'm probably over-worrying this a little. I just do know that [B]any [/B]approach where you try to force him into anything will just result in resistance. And I know that if he has something the he knows will be familiar, he can relax and maybe try more new stuff.

Of course, he'd probably be happy with a diet of M&M's, but nobody wants to peel him off the walls after THAT![/QUOTE]

Valen~ Sounds like you and your friend have everything under control:) The NCL dining staff is GREAT when it comes to children! The kid's menu is pretty extensive, so you should find something the little guy likes, but if not don't be afraid to ask your server to bring something else. Since the kid's menu was a little lacking in the healthy food department, I would always request fresh veggies and fruit be served with our meals. The waiters were always more than happy to oblige. One night our kids mentioned they were in the mood for mac n cheese. Before I knew it our fabulous waiter came out with two plates of mac n cheese from scratch! It wasn't even on the menu!

If you do decide to go to Cagney's or any other specialty, try to get the earliest possible reservation to ensure getting seated right away and the quickest possible service. The later you go, the longer dinner is going to be!

If you haven't already done so, be sure to check out the Family board. It's a great place for tips and advice on cruising with children. You should also be able to get info on traveling with a special needs child from parents who have done it! Have a WONDERFUL cruise:D

[KerCar]

[quote name='AWinkler']Valen ~ Thank you for your graciousness. I'm pretty sure I would not have been such after all the judgmental posts. Your friend is lucky to have you in their life, and so is that little boy. I hope you three have a really wonderful cruise. Please let us know how it went when you return.[/QUOTE]

Ditto that:)

[KerCar]

[quote name='Rockwife']
The OP could have avoided this whole discussion had she simply stated this child had special needs. She didn't, so many of us thought it was the case of spoiling.
[/QUOTE]


The OP asked a valid question. Some answered her question and offered advice. Others decided to judge her. Like AWinkler stated, this is not a parenting thread!!!! The fact that the child has special needs has absolutely nothing to do with the OP's original question. So IMO, it really wasn't any of our business:rolleyes:

[newmexicoNita]

[quote name='KerCar']The OP asked a valid question. Some answered her question and offered advice. Others decided to judge her. Like AWinkler stated, this is not a parenting thread!!!! The fact that the child has special needs has absolutely nothing to do with the OP's original question. So IMO, it really wasn't any of our business:rolleyes:[/QUOTE] [I] think most of us have apologized for butting in, can it be dropped now??/

Nita

[Rockwife]

[quote name='newmexicoNita'][I] think most of us have apologized for butting in, can it be dropped now??/

Nita[/QUOTE]

Ha Ha- Apparently not. Some are too busy judging those of us who judged.

Pot, meet Kettle!

;)

[Leafpeeper]

I recommend the kids buffet because it has chocolate cookies with peanut butter. Your child would probably enjoy that. I would post a question asking other parents what is available on the buffet. I'll bet you can get peanut butter and jelly sandwiches onboard. Why bring it if the ship already has it?

You could feed your child first and then go to your specialty restaurant later. As someone else posted, why not let your child enjoy being with other kids at the kids club while you have dinner? If I'm paying for a specialty restaurant, I don't want to bring kids with me. I loved raising my 3 children and enjoy my grandchildren but don't want to bring them to a specialty restaurant with me. That's Grammy's quiet time to relax. I would recommend LaCucina (Italian) because it is a family style restaurant. There was no fee on our last NCL cruise but I hear that now they are charging on some ships--only $10pp.

We are sailing with our DD and SIL and twin grandbabies in January. Grammy will dine early and then babysit so Mommy & Daddy can have their quiet time.

[terrymtex01]

[quote name='Leafpeeper']I recommend the kids buffet because it has chocolate cookies with peanut butter. Your child would probably enjoy that. I would post a question asking other parents what is available on the buffet. I'll bet you can get peanut butter and jelly sandwiches onboard. Why bring it if the ship already has it?

You could feed your child first and then go to your specialty restaurant later. As someone else posted, why not let your child enjoy being with other kids at the kids club while you have dinner? If I'm paying for a specialty restaurant, I don't want to bring kids with me. I loved raising my 3 children and enjoy my grandchildren but don't want to bring them to a specialty restaurant with me. That's Grammy's quiet time to relax. I would recommend LaCucina (Italian) because it is a family style restaurant. There was no fee on our last NCL cruise but I hear that now they are charging on some ships--only $10pp.

We are sailing with our DD and SIL and twin grandbabies in January. Grammy will dine early and then babysit so Mommy & Daddy can have their quiet time.[/quote]

I almost posted this earlier, but didn't. I have said several times on CC that the P,B and J's that you get through room service are the best I have ever had. If a kid needs the P, B and J a certain way, I would bring my own, but room service's are a tripple decker kind with peanut butter on one layer and grape jelly on the other. Most of the time with the crust cut off. YUMMMY. On the Sun I had to have at least one a day.. LOL. Often had it as a midnight snack.

[calmac]

[quote name='Leafpeeper']I recommend the kids buffet because it has chocolate cookies with peanut butter. Your child would probably enjoy that. I would post a question asking other parents what is available on the buffet. I'll bet you can get peanut butter and jelly sandwiches onboard. Why bring it if the ship already has it?

[COLOR=Red]You could feed your child first and then go to your specialty restaurant later. As someone else posted, why not let your child enjoy being with other kids at the kids club while you have dinner?[/COLOR] If I'm paying for a specialty restaurant, I don't want to bring kids with me. I loved raising my 3 children and enjoy my grandchildren but don't want to bring them to a specialty restaurant with me. That's Grammy's quiet time to relax. I would recommend LaCucina (Italian) because it is a family style restaurant. There was no fee on our last NCL cruise but I hear that now they are charging on some ships--only $10pp.

We are sailing with our DD and SIL and twin grandbabies in January. Grammy will dine early and then babysit so Mommy & Daddy can have their quiet time.[/quote]

The OP has already stated that, for their party, this is not a viable option.

[peanutJMV]

[quote name='Valen9']I'll be taking a 6-year-old picky eater with me on a cruise next month. We'd like to be able to take him to specialty restaurants (rather than leave him in babysitting), but we'll likely be bringing our own food. (It's all we can do to hope to get him to TASTE something off of our plates!)

Will we be forced to pay a cover charge for a child in this situation? Has anyone else ever encountered it? What do we tell them?

And yes, we're actually planning to take about a week's worth of food along for him. We'll bring his favorite brand of peanut butter and other items, and plan to get regular white bread (he's not that picky about the bread) and things like milk and hot-dogs at the buffet. We'd pack him a meal and bring it along to the specialty restaurant.

Thanks in advance for any advice.[/QUOTE]
----------------------------------------------
No need to pack him a meal, not necessary, what could you possibly pack him for dinner that they wouldnt have on the ship? there are plenty of choices, chicken, pasta, mac/cheese, hot dogs, burgers etc and a childrens menu. You didnt say which ship your sailing, the Dawn has a childrens buffet that is nice for the kids, if he doesnt like any of the choices could always take him to blue lagoon.
He might just surprise you.

[Sandyrella]

[quote name='Rockwife']
The OP could have avoided this whole discussion had she simply stated this child had special needs. She didn't, so many of us thought it was the case of spoiling. No one was saying a child should be forced to eat foods they don't like, but there were warnings against a parent catering to unreasonable demands (ie fixing two meals every single meal).[COLOR="Red"] If the child was not special needs I would recommend having THEM fix their special meal if they could not eat what was prepared for the family.Six is plenty old to make a sandwich or cold cereal. Seems like a good compromise to me, [COLOR="Red"]but what do I know? [/COLOR] only have kitties and puppies!

Happy Travels to all.[/QUOTE]

Excellent point!

[Sandyrella]

[quote name='KerCar']The OP asked a valid question. Some answered her question and offered advice. Others decided to judge her. Like AWinkler stated, this is not a parenting thread!!!! [COLOR="Red"]The fact that the child has special needs has absolutely nothing to do with the OP's original question. So IMO, it really wasn't any of our business[/COLOR]:rolleyes:[/QUOTE]

I couldn't agree more!

OP, good luck with your cruise. I'm sure that everything will work out fine and thank-you for having the grace to come back to respond in such a positive manner. Have a wonderful trip!

[Rockwife]

[quote name='Sandyrella']I couldn't agree more!

OP, good luck with your cruise. I'm sure that everything will work out fine and thank-you for having the grace to come back to respond in such a positive manner. Have a wonderful trip![/QUOTE]

I do know one thing very well, Sandyrella. Back when people thought it was "none of their business" to comment on lousy parenting they also considered child abuse "a private family matter". It goes both ways.