Focus on the Family Magazine - October/November 2023

KIDS & TEENS / HACKS & FACTS
Dining Out
TABLES, TRIANGLES
AND A LITTLE TAPE
At restaurants, I used masking tape to attach the
children’s paper menu to the table so my daughter
could color it, and I didn’t have to pick it up off
the floor. I also brought triangular-shaped crayons.
They’re thicker than regular crayons, so little
hands can grip them easier, and they don’t roll off
the table.
—Lisa Johnson
tape the town
I rarely go anywhere without blue painter’s tape. My
boys have made roads for their toy cars, “repaired”
paper restaurant place mats or “fixed” the back of the
restaurant seat. We’ve practiced writing blue-tape letters
and numbers, and we’ve made tic-tac-toe games
on the restaurant table. Of course, painter’s tape is also
easy to clean up, so it makes for perfect restaurant
entertainment.
ice entertainment
—Amy Knowles
At family-friendly restaurants, I order a cup of ice when
we arrive. If food is delayed, we play table hockey or
blow air through straws to make the cubes race across
the table. And I always wipe down the table and seats
from the melted ice before we leave.
—Tania Alward
practice makes patience
Before I take my toddler out to eat, we sit down at a
play table with plastic plates and cups, and talk about
how big kids act when they eat out. (I even have an
older sibling take our order.) This helps my toddler
understand how to wait patiently.
—Evie Palmer
show me your worst
When my boys were young, I’d ask them to show me their
worst table manners, and they loved it. They ate with their
mouths open, fell off chairs, spilled, ran around the room
and said, “Give me this or that!” Then I’d ask them to show
me their best table manners. They’d sit up, chew carefully,
use utensils, speak politely and practice my suggestions.
When we dined out, I’d say, “Show me your best table
manners,” and tell them that if they did, I’d reward them
with a worst-table-manners meal at home. The game
helped them know what was required.
—Kelly Bakshi
SALLY DUNN-FOTF, AMBER DAY-ILUSTRATIONX, LALALULULALA-ADOBE STOCK
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FOCUS ON THE FAMILY CANADA
OCT / NOV 2023