A Kids Free Meal

They were sweet.

Succulent.

Delicious.

And I got to enjoy them without a miniature hand coming at them.

I was at IHOP with my friend Amanda. Kids free. Our meal had arrived. And get this.

I WAS ABLE TO DIG RIGHT IN.

I didn’t have to cut anyone else’s food.

I didn’t have to remind someone that it was time to SIT DOWN and stop staring at the old man.

It was Heaven.

I was trying those new cheesecake pancakes. The strawberry ones. And they were amazing.

“So good,” I said to Amanda with my mouth full. Oops. Better swallow first. I don’t want to scare my friends off with my appalling manners.

I loved how I could eat everything on my plate and not have to share. Because you see, everything I order the kids suddenly want.

After we ate, we headed to the movie theater. We were going to see Letters to Juliet. I got my buttery popcorn—and then proceeded to spill most of it on the counter. I am the biggest klutz, I tell you. I constantly spill things. I think I spill my cups more than my children. Tom is used to it now. Whenever I tip something over he just goes, “I’ll get the paper towels.”

I’m sure the poor teenaged movie worker was irritated with me even though he said it was okay. But what else could he say? “SonofaBITCH lady!”

The movie was entertaining. But here’s my gripes:

Amanda Seyfried’s character says to her guy, “We should want to be together all the time.” (And that's not a spoiler, she says it in the preview..)

Um.

Here’s the thing. I don’t want to be with Tom all the time. I need to my space. I don’t get when couples flip out if they are apart for a few hours.

So I wanted to call out to Amanda (the actress, not my friend Amanda), “Actually, not true. Space is a healthy thing.”

Oh, and the word “love” was said too early. I hate in romantic comedies when the man and the woman suddenly love each other after knowing one another for a few days. Please.

This also happened in The Ugly Truth. I’m supposed to believe that these people hated each other and then boom, they love each other?

I think I’ve grown cynical with age.

All in all it was an enjoyable movie. It made me want to go to Italy. Mainly for the food though. I LOVE Italian food. I wish I had Italian family members who cooked for me all the time.

Of course I’d probably be incredibly fat.

But oh well. At least I’d have all the pasta and canolis I could eat.