Crap no way to say this but to say it.
My child was that child throwing a tantrum in public. My friend and I went out for dinner, and since apparently there was a kitchen fire at our local bdubs we opted for The Habit. And it looked like the rest of the town was there. All the tables were completely filled except a couple two seater tables outside. We let the older kids sit at one and we sat at the other. Our food didn't let us down- as The Habit never does & I tried sweet potato fries!! They are pretty good, especially dipped in BBQ sauce. We were letting the kids finish up their food & that's when it started.
The Habit has some yummy looking soft serve & the kids were asking for it- and to be honest I was contemplating it. But they didn't want to take no for an answer. I kept reminding my kids that they needed to sit down. Well the stubborn child didn't want to sit in her chair & I told her since she was acting like a baby to sit in the high chair. Don't be sarcastic with a 4.5 year old, they will climb into the high chair. Then the ice cream question came back- and after saying no I get the talk back. Calmly I told her that we were going to go home if she didn't stop. Well slowly it kept going and going. And I had had it with the sass, so I told the girls it was time to go home.
And it came without warning, like an earthquake, full on screaming and ridged body. I got her out of the high chair whole having "nooooo. I'm not going hoooone" and it wouldn't stop. I'm pretty positive my face was the color of my red shirt. I kept saying "I'm sorry" to my friend and her kids. Grabbed my purse & looked up to see how bad it was. Sure enough everyone outside looking at us & about half of the people inside looking at us. I literally couldn't think. I apologized profusely with a 38 pound wiggly weight in my arms. And then I finally had a thought "wow, going to the gym has helped. And holy moly I'm soooo sore!!! It was not a good idea to go that big yesterday. Fight the pain!! Fight.the.pain!!"
The screaming went all the way to the car. It continued as I buckled her in. It was as if she found out about Santa, the Easter bunny, and tooth fairy weren't real. That Disneyland closed forever. That every princess had died. I can't ever recall ever experiencing a tantrum like this in my whole 4.5 years as a mom
I text my friend an apology text. And she applauded me for keeping my cool. I'm still trying to figure out how I didn't yell. And weirdly I haven't yelled. When we got home I made her change into pjs, and I took all her books away. In addition to her books, all of her toys were put away and I took out the princess rugs in the girls room. She currently should be sleeping, about once or twice a month she needs to go to bed early so I know it won't mean she wakes up early.
I learned tonight that I do have some "woosah" in me. I apparently learned that kids at 4.5 can have public meltdowns. I also learned to be sympathetic to other parents who have dealt with this before and will have to. I wish I could apologize to every person that witnessed this ordeal. If you were there tonight, I am sorry you had to hear that while you were eating dinner.
But geez that was horrible and I hope it never happens again. And I am in need of a drink or two.
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