Tables and Chairs

by Ezmy Before having Budsie, A. and I enjoyed many a pub night with our friends from grad school and work. Since having Budsie, these nights have obviously become less frequent. But while few of our friends in Ottawa have children, this has thankfully not stopped us from getting together for the odd beverage. The fact that Budsie can now sit in a high chair, happily entertaining himself with food and chattering with passing waitresses, helps immensely.

When we discovered that a few of our old haunts had high chairs, A. and I were ecstatic. The perfect example? D’Arcy McGees on Spark St., a pub A. and I used to meet at after particularly long days at work. During Winterlude, we decided to see if they were family friendly. We were delighted to find out that not only did they have a highchair for Budsie, they could also set us up at a semi-private table with room for the stroller and everything. Most exciting.

So food was ordered and beverages were served. And then the inevitable happened - Diaper Explosion. Budsie and I headed to the loo. I did my usual scan to find the changing table. Was it on the wall? Nope. How about in one of the stalls? Hmmm, no. Well, maybe there was a space next to the sink? Oh dear. Thankfully, Budsie is a good sport and managed a diaper change half in the sink and half out. He found the shiny taps quite amusing.

Sadly, this is not the first time this has happened. It turns out that a number of family-friendly pubs with high chairs, and even kids’ menus, do not have change tables. I’m not entirely sure why this is. But I think it’s important to warn my fellow Ottawa parents, particularly those of you who, like me, are new to this gig: When asking about chairs, remember to inquire about tables as well.

Ezmy is a new mum to son Ewan (aka Budsie). When she isn’t working on her master’s thesis, or playing games with her boy, she’s blogging furiously about life as a stay-at-home mum in our nation’s capital. Follow Ezmy on Twitter (@ezmytweets) where she posts daily resolutions and updates on life with an active and very vocal baby.