The Protective Bubble

Because Kaylani is such a good quiet baby, we tend to take her out a lot, or at least what we consider out a lot. We go out shopping, to run errands, and especially out to eat. Tonight, we went to our favorite restaurant, Sotto, in downtown Princeton. We were a fairly large group for a small restaurant like Sotto (6 adults and Kaylani), so space was fairly limited, but they gave us a great table in a corner. The one downside was that the table was right near the servers area at the bar.

Every time we're out in public and Kaylani is sleeping in her carseat/stroller, I get a bit protective. No matter what the conversation is, or where I'm looking, one eye is always on Kaylani. And as people come close by, I pay extra attention to them just to make sure they don't crowd Kaylani (or my) personal space. I'm not a worrier by trade (Mommy might disagree), but there's just something about restaurants and people walking nearby that put me on a higher alert level.

Waiters would walk by and give enough space to make sure they didn't bump into the stroller most of the time, but sometimes, they would get a bit close. Maybe someone was calling their attention, or they had food, or a tray full of drinks, but whatever their reason may have been, they were a bit too close for my liking. You know the line in Tommy Boy where Tommy (Chris Farley) says "and I just want to jerk the wheel into a goddamned bridge embankment!"? Well that's what I felt like. Every time someone walked a little too close, I wanted to shove them out of the way, even if they weren't actually that close.

Tonight, my urges weren't quite as strong, but I can remember a few weeks ago when we were at a local Indian restaurant (that wasn't quite good enough for me to even link to here). There was a birthday party going on, and this kid (probably about 8 years old), kept running around the restaurant. That day, Kaylani was in her car seat on the floor, and every time the kid ran by, I really wanted to stick my arm out and shove him about 5 feet away and into the ground. It would have been so satisfying to know that I saved my sweet little girl from being run over, and also because I would have put the hyperactive kid in his place.

Anyways, I'm sure I'm being a bit overprotective, and also a bit psychotic about Kaylani's personal space, but hey, she's tiny, she's fragile, and she's my little girl. But it's also something she's going to have to get used to because whenever she brings a boyfriend, or even just a boy friend home, the same thing is going to happen. I'm going to shove them 5 feet away into the ground, and by "shove", I mean "run", and by "5 feet away into the ground", I mean "over in my car." That, though, is a story for another day.

In the meantime, here are pictures from the last 3 days. I especially enjoyed taking the pictures of Kaylani in her armpit high tights, or what I referred to as "baby fashion torture" while Mommy was dressing her. Enjoy!