Surviving Eating Out with 2 Under 5

My hubby and I love going out to eat! We enjoy it but...not with our kids with the ages they are right now (18 months & almost 5). They get impatient, they don't want to sit at the table, they're distracted by everything going on around them and the other people other tables. They each have a Kids Tablet & I have a Kids Mode on my phone (such a lifesaver!) But they tend to get loud and messy, and then once it's time to eat they don't want to turn off the games, so we try to avoid using Electronics and save them as a very last resort.
I'm a huge follower on Pinterest of all things "Mommy Hacks" and both my mother and myself are huge into Organization. A lot of Pins come up when you type in "restaurant busy bags". I think it's a great idea to have a bag in your car that is filled with items to help keep your kids happy in a restaurant or anywhere that you're really waiting for a long time. We even used this bag when we were buying my husband's second car at the dealership because it took like 3 hours for us to sign all the papers and these little toys really came in handy. 

So this is my version of a restaurant kit for my kids:

Okay first and foremost this is the newest item for my restaurant kit; it stays in the car and I use it so much more than I initially thought I would when I purchased it off Amazon. It is a walking harness, a portable high chair, and a cart harness for when the straps in the shopping carts are broken. It's a Lucky Baby/ Yochi Yochi brand 3 in 1 baby/toddler safety harness. 

I absolutely love this and I have used it at least 4 times a week in the past 3 weeks. We went to the zoo before we purchased this harness and my youngest screamed his head off when it was time to eat lunch! He didn't want to sit in the highchair, he didn't want to sit in his stroller, he just wanted to sit on my lap and try to get my food from my hands as I was trying to eat it. I placed him in the chair next to me but he kept moving and I was afraid he would fall off of it, so my meal was not enjoyable.  

This harness has a permanent place in my car! I went to my friend's house the other night for dinner and used it as a high chair! Absolutely love this product! A must have for moms! It lives in my Thirty-One Utility Tote in the trunk of my car along with a Deluxe Utility Tote with my other must have car items (for another blog) and a laundry basket for groceries. 

Okay time for the bag part of the restaurant bag. The bag I use was gifted to me for my oldest when he was about 2 years old. It's a usable type bag with short handles with Cars characters on it so it's really rather perfect for this kit. 

Inside I have a sketch book with stickers, A felt Travel Busy Book from the dollar bins from Target (it has a road with cars & signs, a map of the US with puzzle pieces, and Tic Tac Toe), Color Changing Markers, Spot It Jr. Card game, Disney Eye Found It Card Game, Fruit snacks, Melissa & Doug blocks, Gerber Place-mat, 2 sippy cups, and wipes. 

(Inside the Gerber Place-mat I always have utensils and a disposable bib)

Here's my youngest sitting at the restaurant, in his portable high chair, eating from his place-mat. We decided to go to Buffalo Wild Wings because of the TVs and the noise level is already louder than at normal restaurants so if the kids got a little loud, it would be okay. Our youngest stayed in his seat and played; our oldest went thru the toys fairly quickly but eventually settled down and played with the stickers until our food came.

Another way we personally survive eating out is we bring food for our kids so we don't waste money on new foods they will either throw a fit not to eat or just completely ignore altogether. Our oldest is extremely picky when it comes to food and our youngest is going through a phase of trying new foods, some he loves and some he throws on the floor; so we brought with us pasta for the oldest, cheese sticks and fruit snacks for both, and Gerber yogurt, cereal bar and Gerber Grabber for the youngest. When our food came, we asked for carrot sticks along with our wings so they could have a veggie with dinner too. 

Both kids did a great job behaving! Definitely planning on eating out more often with the help of this kit to make it less stressful and embarrassing for us, as well as less boring for our kids.