We often hear from mom bloggers, but what about the dads?
Clint Edwards, a father and author of the parenting blog “No Idea What I’m Doing: A Daddy Blog,” shared a story a little while back that has resonated with many.
It’s about his toddler daughter, a meltdown, and a dinner at Red Robin that didn’t go as planned.
His tale is a potent reminder that parenting is not about being perfect – instead, it’s about the journey.
Clint found himself in a challenging situation when his two-year-old threw a tantrum at a restaurant because she wasn’t allowed to throw chicken strips.
As the only one who had finished eating, Clint had the task of removing his screaming and kicking daughter from the restaurant.
As he carried her past the bar, he noticed the stares, particularly from those he assumed were childless, their faces seeming to say,
“If you can’t control your kid, then don’t go out.”
Clint’s response? He can’t control her, not all the time, and certainly not yet.
She’s two, and it will take years to teach her how to behave appropriately in public.
The only way to do that is to expose her to real-world experiences, say no repeatedly, let her throw fits, and then say no again.
These lessons require patience, hard work, and real-world experiences.
Clint apologizes to those at the bar who were irritated by his child’s tantrum, but he reminds them that they are part of this practice.
Their parents did the same with them, and that’s how they learned to be respectable individuals.
Here are Clint’s exact words and he nails it:
“I’m stuck in the van with my toddler. We went out to dinner as a family, and she had a meltdown because mom wouldn’t let her throw chicken strips. So she screamed, and screamed, and kicked and kicked, and since I was the only one finished with my meal, I had the pleasure of dragging her out of Red Robin.”
But the situation just got worse.
“I carried her past the bar and everyone stared at me, most of them childless, I assumed. No one with children would give me that straight faced, lip twisted, look that seems to say, “if you can’t control your kid, then don’t go out.”
He continued:
“Well… no. I can’t control her.
Not all the time.
Not yet.
She’s two and it’s going to take years to teach her how to act appropriately in public, and the only way I am ever going to teach that is to take her out and show her what’s right and wrong. By saying no a million times, letting her throw a fit, and telling her no again.
These lessons take patience, hard work, and real world experiences, and I’m sorry to those at the bar who got irritated by my child’s fit, but you are part of this practice. Your parents did the same with you, and that’s how you now know how to recognize when a child does something irritating in a restaurant. It’s how you learned to look at a situation and say, “That parent needs to control their kids.”
“It’s how you learned to be a respectable person.
I get it. Kids are irritating when they are loud in a restaurant. I know. I’m living it. But before you get angry and judgmental, realize that what you are witnessing is not bad parenting, but rather, parents working hard to fix the situation.
You are looking at what it takes to turn a child into a person.”
Clint acknowledges that children can be annoying when they’re loud in a restaurant. He’s living it.
But before anyone gets angry and judgmental, he wants them to realize that what they’re witnessing is not bad parenting, but parents working hard to correct the situation.
What they’re seeing is the process of turning a little kid into a “person.”
This story serves as a great reminder for those who have not yet embarked on the journey of parenthood.
It’s a testament to the hard work, patience, and real-world experiences that go into raising a child.
So, the next time you see a child throwing a tantrum in public, remember Clint’s words: “You are looking at what it takes to turn a child into a person.”
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