ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

out at a restuarant, not family dinners at home.
what do you think?
yes, its keeping the kids quiet, at least theyre not screaming/crying.
OR
no way doesnt belong.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

We don't go out too often with the kids bc it's not easy or too enjoyable. My 3 yr old doesn't like to eat much so going for food doesn't excite him. When we do go out its usually with the family for something like a bday party or jist to get together. My parents don't like kid type places so we go to nice, but loud restaurants.
With all that said... I personally think its fine. We don't go out often, I don't want to spend my whole dinner trying to keep him entertained, I want to eat and enjoy and have some conversation.
DH's iPhone works great, we bring coloring books and/or my iPad. He will either play games, watch a show, color or do all three or if his cousins come along then he plays with them. My 1 yr old can eat so that keeps him entertained and if he starts to get jumpy then I put in a show for him too.
Like I said... We don't go out a lot and I want to at least try and enjoy.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

No way! Dinner, whether in a restaraunt or at home, is a time to spend together as a family, talk, and enjoy a meal. I think it's so inappropriate to have an Ipad, video game, DVD player, etc at a dinner table. I also think you're not teaching your child how to behave when out to eat, you're simply distracting them. I am all about modeling the behavior we want to see from her and having our DD understand how we expect her to behave in certain situations. My DD is 4 and has eaten out A LOT since she was born and she has always been extremely well behaved when we are out to eat..........no electronics needed.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

Absolutely not. Outside of a special needs child who genuinely cannot help their behavior, I say you are doing your child NO favors by pacifying them with an iPad.

Learning how to behave and keep busy without a nonstop stream of short-attention-span stimulation-- a restaurant, a church, a waiting room, etc, is a VALUABLE skill that is not emphasized enough in today's world.

I'm not saying that I expect kids to sit with their hands folded the whole time, but we would much rather see our 6 yo and 3 yo occupying themselves with pencils and crayons, or chatting with us, than just zoning out in front of some game or movie.

I totally understand that parents want to eat a meal in peace sometimes too. If getting a sitter is too expensive, just wait till the kids go to bed, order some chinese or thai, and open a bottle of wine... doesn't get much cheaper than that!

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

I just have to add that I bet this thread turns ugly.

First, the anti-iPad people are going to be accused of "judging", or "not knowing the whole story". To further this case, there will be 942 hypothetical scenarios presented, where the iPad was justified and not just lazy parenting. ("But.... but what if both parents were diabetic and had low blood sugar, and they just COULDN'T muster the energy to interact with their child until the food came! You see! You don't know the whole story")

Then the final smackdown will come when the pro-iPad camp suggests that they have "bigger things to worry about anyway" than what fellow diners are entertaining their children with

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

If it keeps my 2 year old who is not yet mature enough to understand that being loud or disruptive outside of home, entertained... then so be it. I have no issue with it. I don't have shows or games really on my iPad, I do have drawing and coloring apps, spelling apps, flash cards, etc.... I don't usually bring the iPad out to restaurants, but will let my 2 year old play with my phone. My 3.5 year old is content coloring with the paper/crayons the restaurant usually supplies.

I really don't care what other parents do or don't do as it's no concern of mine since it doesn't affect my family.

When my kids are older and can carry on a real conversation (catching up on our days, what's going on with school, etc....) then, I would not allow the electronics at the dinner table.

ETA: I actually had "polite"
words with a man at a diner last night because he had something to say about what was going on with my 2 year old and how I handled the situation. Honestly, we were in a diner, not a five star restaurant, if he didn't want to be bothered by other families, him and his family should have gone elsewhere. It was when another family sat down at the table next to him, his wife and his two young children that they left their un-eaten plates and walked out....

Message edited 10/15/2012 7:52:46 PM.

ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

I don't care what others do.

I have given the iTouch and other devices during dinners out in order to eat in peace or wait in peace before the food comes. Not every time, but sometimes.

To me, it's the same as giving your child a toy at the dinner table or having them arrange the sugar packets. I don't see much of a difference. I'd love to meet any kid who sits there perfectly from seating to leaving the tip without any entertainment at all.

I don't see how it can possibly effect anyone else or why anyone would care what I chose to do. The volume is always off.

I guess I just don't care what people think?

Message edited 10/15/2012 7:52:47 PM.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

I think it depends on their age, we've brought the DVD player when our DD was 9, 10, 11, 12 months. If we want to go to the diner for breakfast, I think its perfectly fine to bring it so she doesnt bother anyone else. I dont plan to continue to do it when she's older (2, 3, 4, etc) and I dont think bringing it now is going to ruin my chances of ever teaching her how to behave in a restaurant when she is older.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

yup, we give our DS our phone to watch mickey or guppies if he is starting to lose it in a restaurant. He is 29 months.

I'd prefer to save my sanity and let others enjoy their dinner

ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

at the restaraunt...... we don't start off with it, its for if ds starts to get restless ( 3yo)....... older kids I think should be able to sit still through a dinner.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

Nope, not for us.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

i don't think there is anything wrong with it, i haven't done it but i bring crayons and coloring books, and restaurants give those out too,
whats the difference btwn coloring and playing on an ipad, you can let them do it alone or interact with them for both

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

I don't bring the iPad out of the house because i dont want it to break, but DH and I both have iPhones. We usually all talk and color with the kids until the food comes. Once it's dinner time and DS have eaten and DH and I want to sit and enjoy our dinners and a drink, then the phones are brought out if needed. My older DS can easily get though meals without anything, but it wasn't until he was probably 5 years old that I could say that. Younger DS is only 2 and barely eats, so yes, he can watch a show or play a puzzle while the rest of us eat in peace. I don't see the big deal, nor do I feel the slightest bit of guilt over it.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

No, its family time. DS can have a quiet toy (usually a car). Most places we go with him have crayons too.
DS is 4 - we go out a lot for a 4 year old - Red Lobster, Ruby Tuesday's. He knows what is expected of him when we go out and he has gotten time outs in the restaurant for not behaving.

I'm not a fan, but to each his/her own.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

I think it depends on age.

IMO the under 3 crowd can't really help themselves in the patience department for an hour and a half dinner. That doesn't mean we don't practice it in other, more reasonably timed, situations.

Over 4 I would expect my kids to be able to sit for the dinner and enjoy conversation as the entertainment.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

I limit my child's screen time immensely so I don't think it should matter where I limit it. Like a PP said I would rather him use it in a place where it will allow people around him to enjoy themselves. I doesn't mean that he's not going to learn to interact or that he can't sit still otherwise. He's done that fine. I can't expect him to be interested in every topic of conversation and my adult time is limited. In fact, he cannot use it during dinner at home but he can use it when we are out.

It's funny but I know very few people who do not use DVD players on long trips yet no one has chimed in to admit to that.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

Posted by computergirl

I just have to add that I bet this thread turns ugly.

First, the anti-iPad people are going to be accused of "judging", or "not knowing the whole story". To further this case, there will be 942 hypothetical scenarios presented, where the iPad was justified and not just lazy parenting. ("But.... but what if both parents were diabetic and had low blood sugar, and they just COULDN'T muster the energy to interact with their child until the food came! You see! You don't know the whole story")

Then the final smackdown will come when the pro-iPad camp suggests that they have "bigger things to worry about anyway" than what fellow diners are entertaining their children with

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

We go out usually at least 1x a week.

Sometimes I do allow DS to have his ipod, or ds. Other times not. Depends on his mood, my mood etc.

Sometimes I bring workbooks or other toys for them. I see no issues with it.

My child can sit quietly without being entertained, I mean he goes to catholic school and is expected to sit through a full mass with his whole school. This week he went to mass 2x (with school and with us) he sat fine, with no additional entertainment necessary.

He can go out to dinner with no toys and be a very well behaved kid. Just last week a man at another table complimented both my kids on being so good and all I could think was yes they were good considering its 1 hour past bedtime and we are just eating! lol

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

My DS is 2 1/2 and I use my iPhone as my "last line of defense". For example, if we go out with my inlaws, it's usually not to a family restaurant, so we're not rushed out. They get a cocktail, appetizers, dinner, and dessert, so the meal can take a while. I'll usually entertain DS in other ways that has him included and interacting at the table with everyone, then will start pulling things out of my bag- books, small toys, etc. Usually towards the end of the meal, when I can see he's had enough, I'll break out the iPhone. My goal is to keep him seated quietly at the table.

As he gets older, the expectations will be different as he will understand more and I don't think I'll allow the devices to come out during dinner at that time.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

Posted by Hofstra26


Can I ask an honest question, not directed to just you. If your child isn't allowed to use an IPad at the dinner table at home and they are ok with it then why don't the same rules apply when you're out? It doesn't make sense to me. Just wondering.

Re: ipads at the dinner table, what are your thoughts?

I'm not a fan, but you don't always know the circumstances behind it. My friends let their DD have one, and while I wouldn't give DD one, their DD needs it to be calm. They'd never be able to go out to eat if they didn't give it to her. There is background as to why she needs it and it's completely valid. I've seen the looks people give them, and while I used to be the one to give looks, I do now understand it.