Dinner

When we got home from church James got a phone call from his co-worker Jong asking if we'd like to join the gang in Palmer Square in downtown Princeton. Sounded like a better alternative to scrounging around in the fridge for whatever I could dig up. There would be one couple from Amsterdam, a guy from Germany and a couple from Korea with their 18 month son. I was quite excited for this adventure, relishing the fact that we actually got to go out and get to know James' co-workers a bit better. A promising sign, Jameson didn't even complain about the clothes I wanted him to wear. :)

We were fortunate enough to find an ideal parking spot on the street, less than a block from the determined meeting place. We hauled the behemoth stroller out of the trunk and strapped the kids in. A rather large tantrum followed when Jameson realized that Stellan got a steering wheel but he didn't. (Who designs a stroller like that anyway? Obviously they've never heard of sibling rivalry.) Ignoring the glares of everyone around us, we tried to calm him down while heading to the restaurant. We were pleased to see the group at a table on the patio. What a quaint setting. We steered the monstrosity of a stroller (is it obvious that I'm not a fan of the double stroller?!?!) onto the patio, unloaded the kids and parked the now folded up stroller in a corner. We were a bit tight but it would do. We promptly ordered the kids apple juice and then helped ourselves to the bread.

The kids noticed the large fountain at the entrance of the restaurant and wanted to see it. (Well, Stellan calls it a mountain but it's close enough, we know what he means.) We took our turns entertaining the kids and even managed to keep them dry.

Our pokey waiter, who was very nice despite the fact that he was so slow, took our order for the boys and brought it back relatively quickly. (Afterall, how difficult is it to make pasta with marinara sauce?) But then it took him FOREVER to take our orders. The boys finished their meal before we even placed our orders. Lovely. What to do now? Well, back to the fountain we went. A woman came up with her two boys and we started chatting. Now I have another person to call for playdates! I'm so glad I meet such nice people. Looking forward to getting together with her soon.

I headed back to the table to place our order while James played with the kids. James came back long enough to tell the waiter what he wanted and then headed back to the fountain. We both ordered salads, we really weren't that hungry.
Unfortunately for James he wasn't able to spend much time actually sitting and talking. Fortunately for me, I have a wonderful husband who let me sit and talk to his co-workers. (A bit ironic, I get it.) I really liked everyone and had a great time learning more about them and their countries. (Did you know that they never take "doggie bags" home in Europe? A new experience for them and one that they don't expect to adopt while living here.)
Our meals came and I choked when I saw James'. He had the smallest salad I thought it was an appetizer. No wonder he's so skinny! A short while later James came over and said that he needed to change Stellan's diaper, he pooped. I asked if it could wait long enough for us to eat our salads (afterall, two bites and he'd be done).
"Uh, no honey, it's pretty bad."
"It can't wait 5 minutes?"
"I think it's a blow out."
"Oh."
James took him to the car while I persuaded/bribed Jameson to sit long enough for me to eat my salad (large enough for a meal and very delicious!!). James was gone for quite some time, I was a bit concerned. He came back carrying Stellan who was now clad only in a t-shirt, a diaper, socks and shoes. How embarrassing!! (For me, not for him. He couldn't care less!) Apparently it was a blow out indeed. The shirt should have come off too but I'm sure there was a sign somewhere that said "No Shirt, No Shoes, No Service". At least we had those covered! Unfortunately, due to the soiled shirt, there was now a noticeable smell that followed Stellan. Needless to say, this was the end of our evening. James quickly finished his two bite salad, paid the bill and away we went.
We promised to get together with his co-workers again once we find a reliable babysitter.