A LETTER TO THE LADY AT BRUNCH

This morning my friends and the kids got together for brunch. We tucked into our pastries, sausages, eggs... while the kids made a lovely, messy concoction of croissant and playdoh. Standard.

However, one lady took it upon herself to watch us and then proceed to question us/tell us off for allowing the kids to squirm in their seats, use the spoons to mix water and tea, use a table knife to cut the playdoh, climb over the chairs like we had no clue what we were doing as parents (why she thought her opinion mattered is beyond me). At this point I should add they were not near or harming anybody else.

This lady then asked my friend "Do you know that those are chairs?". Oh really? No shit Sherlock. Thank you so much for pointing that out. She continued to watch the kids with her judgemental eyes and then complained further to my friend thinking that we should all do as she clearly once did.

Once put back in her box, she gathered her things and moved with her son and daughter (who seemed to be in their mid-twenties). I never want to make anyone uncomfortable. If you know me you know I'm all about the peace and good vibes. But if YOU feel uncomfortable around families, then you came to wrong place.

If you want to sit down and read a newspaper on a Saturday morning with your twenty-something son and daughter, that's fine. But ours are CHILDREN. Four years old and younger. What did your kids do at four? At three? At two? Sit politely and not move through fear of being told off? If so, then I feel for them. This sort of behaviour from child-less people i might potentially understand (not accept, but understand). But as a mother? Really?

If you're out at the weekend and are after some peace, I suggest you don't go to a cafe where families will be. I couldn't give a monkeys what you think of my parenting style and what my son does. We'll never agree with everybody. But no one asked for your opinion today, and just like assholes, we all have one. So in future keep it to yourself, thanks.

Yours sincerely, The Dad Who Won't Stop His Child From Exploring The World Around Him