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Oh, boy! This boy has always given me a truly hard time since the day he was born. Came into this world a little earlier from his expected date, been kept in NICU for some days and ALWAYS in a hurry. Totally opposite from his elder brother. Gives him a tough time while doing anything together. More specifically, gives me such a tough mealtime, whether its a home or a restaurant.

All the moms can understand it. Don’t you? Home is, after all, a sweet home. You can do whatever, you can make him eat whatever, in whatever possible way. But what if you guys are dining out? You can’t possibly yell at your kid to finish his plate or you can’t pull him towards you when he is attacking the other kid for the sake of some toy? You only can mutter “come on sweety”, “oh baby come here”, “no darling, he’s another cute baby”.

In the end, you’ll give him a smartphone to keep him busy (just pray that he does not drop it and smashes your screen) or you’ll just hastily finish your food and run to your home. The good news is, after 3 years, I’ve miraculously learned to tackle this little piece of mine. Whenever he threw a tantrum, I could feel the disapproving looks from the other families, but soon my ‘amma instincts’ kicked in and made me sprang into action and get him to settle down.

WHAT WAS MY PLAN?

Just try these tricks.

1. A sneak-peak of his activities:

Give him a preview. Tell him where you are going, what you are going eat and how much. Tell him how to sit in a restaurant, not to scream there, not to pick a fight with your big brother and ANY OTHER kid. It is basically a ‘desi’ manner of every mother to warn their kids and to teach them some ‘last minute’ respect before stepping out of your home.

2. His Preoccupation:

Use distractions for him. It could be anything, from a toy to a smartphone. You can bring any storybook with you, so he could open it and make a story just by looking at the pictures. You can ask him to find the same colors as the pictures in a restaurant. Or you can simply play his favorite rhyme and while he’s watching, you can easily feed him.

3. Give him choices:

Ah, the toughest trick. If, by any chance, he got stuck up by the food you ordered for him, ask him what other food he’d like to eat. I know its really tricky and kids like ‘my piece’ don’t often fall into this trap. But you can give it a try.

4. Don’t argue:

For the love of God, don’t ever do this in public. Just simply nod your head in a yes to every question he asks. Be it about any color or a poem, say ‘yes’. “Amma, that blue color is matching my t-shirt.”, “Yes mera bacha, totally.”. “Amma, look! I want to sit on a wall like Humpty Dumpty and eat there.” “Ok, sweetie pie! Right in the backyard of our home.”

5. What if everything fails?

Simple. Pick up your bag, your kids and your food and run to your home, straight away. It’s not good for you to approve the disapproving looks from the strangers. It’s better to run for the sake of peace of the restaurant, but most importantly, for the peace of your mind. As I stated earlier, home is, after all, a really sweet home.