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March 28, 2006
"Family night at McDonalds is now a recognized form of Birth Control in Minnesota."
With Mrs. Racetrack at work tonight, Mr. Racetrack gave me a ring about meeting up at McDonalds in Cottage Grove for a night of toddler frolic. Thinking that it might be time for Jack to behold the wonders of "Playland" I said that we would meet them there after Jack and I got haircuts and Fabulous Babe got off of work.
Key detail missing in his pitch: It's family night on Tuesday.
When we pulled into the lot I noticed a lot of cars. When we walked into the McDonalds the wave of shrieking laughter rolled over me like a tsunami. As we ordered our food the spectacle in "Playland" was like nothing I had ever seen: a sea of children and almost every table occupied by a parent. It was like watching a riot beginning to unfold. I told the manager that inviting teens to work "Family Night" would go a long way to preventing them from wanting to have sex. (The teenage co-workers who heard me all laughed and nodded an enthusiastic "yes".)
Watching things I realized that the staff was actually taking orders and bringing it to tables. There must have been 5 staff making sure everything was going ok and they never stopped moving. Our McDonalds is great anyway but tonight was pretty impressive. The manager already has the staff trained to bring food out to your table if you have a toddler and that scores big points with me. The staff is usually spot on, and the woman that supervises "Playland" is pretty focused on making sure it all goes well, just like tonight.
Jack wasn't hungry tonight and he and Kate had a great time playing. (Several of the solo moms noticed Jack and asked me about the two of them.) The only low point was Jack running at full tilt and plowing into a table with one corner of his forehead which promptly began to swell and will no doubt be the size of an egg by the weekend. He cried for a few minutes but we shook it off and he began crawling around within minutes.
It was a good time tonight. Much playing and frivolity on the part of Jack and Kate. Mr. Racetrack and a learning experience for me. Earplugs are highly recommended.
Posted by Jim at March 28, 2006 09:30 PM