To think if you're taking a baby of under 18 months out for a meal

[Souredstones]

It's ok to take some small toys for them but under no circumstances is it ok to take the annoying noisy battery operated ones especially if you're going to set them off and the child proceeds to ignore them.

I would not have been amused either. Restaurants and gastropubs and other similar establishments are not the place for noisy toys.

And no, I don't think they are really the place for a toddler, either.

yes I read it fine

Just how long do you think crayons entertain a child for? An average dinner takes at least an hour out in a pub/restaurant. In that time my kids would have gone through crayons, books, stickers, walked around outside copious amounts of water and I'd probably end up escorting to the iPhone/iPad too.

Watching with interest. I just had this conversation with MIL who has just bought DS (3.5 months) some musical toys "to entertain him on the plane". She says the other passengers will prefer it to baby screaming. I said I wasn't sure they would see it that way.

I am very surprised to hear some haven't misread.

I think the overwhelming majority of people would be annoyed by this unnecessary noise.

I'd prefer a noisy toy to a screaming child.

YANBU

To take noisy annoying toys is just rude and selfish. There are plenty of other toys and I'm sure they can cope without noisy toys for an hour or two

Escorting? Damn phone- resorting

I'd prefer a noisy toy to a screaming child.

that,

I used to sit and talk to mine when they were small, play silly games (quietly) and just generally interact with them and help them eat their dinner. Y'know, normal stuff.

They've eaten in resteraunts since babydom and never needed to take anything noisier than the child themselves.

What I find really offensive is pish pubs are the braying fools who frequent them and get drunk but that's ok because they're eating a meal too. As Julius nudges Geoffrey and bellows on about the jolly good time they had on the rugby tour I would welcome a vtech anything. It would undoubtedly make more sense.

That's where interacting comes into it. And if they're bellowing or screaming remove the child (with a parent) to a space away from the other diners.

Seriously all parents have had to do it at some point! It's part of training the small people in the art of eating out

Sometimes a bit of nose from a toy is a better alternative than a shouting/screaming/running child. Its not ideal and it is something I would avoid but some children can't be calmed with books or colouring especially not very young children.

See I find them annoying too northernlurker and have been known to ask a manager to remove them or find us a new table

YADNBU! Fair enough if you want to test your own sanity at home with jingly pieces of crap, but it is not fair to inflict them on the rest of the population. And not just small children either. We were out to dinner on holiday and the parents produced an iPad for their kids (aged around 3-10) and let them watch The Sound Of Music at full volume. We were not impressed, though I guess it could have been worse

I agree children are noisy but if it's not the type of place where there is stuff for the kids to do then you do need to take something to entertain them but as someone said whats wrong with paper/pencils/quiet toy??

If your child can't be entertained like that then maybe it's unfair to take them at that age and find a more young-child friendly place because it must be fairly boring for them too.

I don't think children should be 'seen and not heard' and you do expect some noise with toddlers but I don't think in the name of 'tolerance' you should have to put up with ANYONES excessive noise. I'm talking to you mr-IPad-film-watching -no -headphone wearing-selfish twat for the entire 2 hr train journey home.

Interacting?? But then the threads about loud parenting start. Can't win

was the rest of the pub deathly quiet then?

Most pubs I go into are noises places.

Exactly usual.

It was a pub not a funeral. Some noise is only to be expected!

I don't think many 18 month olds can colour in or draw pitures

See I prefer loud parenting to annoying shitty noisy vtech style toys

Pictures*

but if you go out to eat there is noise anyway is it just these toys that get on your nerves or was it the fact that the parents were ignoring him that is annoying you.

No noisy toys
No mobile phones constantly ringing
No loud conversations on aforementioned phones

Thinking on it mrsjay it was probably a case of 6 of one half dozen of the other. The toy was being set off for no reason