the natural fluid, fluid content, or liquid part that can be extracted from a plant or one of its parts, especially of a fruitOh the things I could blog about from my birthday yesterday. Cole and I took a trip to the Chicago Children's Museum and had lunch together--an overall exhausting day, but perfect weather and he was a great kid all day long. Mom was stuck at work in a meeting so Dad was on his own. And, being his birthday, Dad wanted a beer and burger from Jimmy Buffet's Margaritaville Bar and Grill.
Though they just slapped some posters on the wall to replace the restaurant that used to be there, I'm really not going to complain about them. They're just one example of other issues. The food and service were actually pretty good.
To her credit, the waitress was especially focused on Cole and making sure he was happy and comfortable. She openly admitted she has no clue what kids need, but her instincts were right. Glasses and food away from the edge of the table, putting the mashed potatoes in first so his food arrived quickly, etc.. She was just being nice.
Underneath it, however, was that attitude that if I'm a dad alone with a one year old that I must be struggling. Well, don't get me wrong, going anywhere with a toddler is hard work. Let alone dining. Don't get me wrong, I'll take the help. But I also hope we left giving the impression "wow, what a well-behaved little boy and that father really had his act together in caring for him." I had bib, toys, snacks, something for him to drink, pacifier, extra clothes, blanket.
No, this is is about juice--
Me: What kinds of juice do you have?
Waitress: Oh, we don't have juice.
Me: Well, what juice comes with the kids meal where it says "milk or juice?"
Turns out, the "juice" is lemonade or fruit punch. She usually suggests parents run across to the quick mart.
What? I'm sorry, but this is unacceptable in a place that specifically lists itself as kid-friendly. Now, their menu also says they have strawberry-banana smoothies. Which I'm hoping is legit. But it's bad enough I was feeding my one-year-old french fries. We stuck with the milk I brought and water.
Insert here a discussion about parents who put blue sugary crap in a bottle and say they're feeding their child "juice." Insert here a discussion about how kids don't even really need real, actual juice.
If you have squeezed, honest-to-goodness extracted insides from an apple, orange, grape...that is juice.