Our last brunch at The Club. This was BEFORE the meal.

Brunch is a lovely invitation, especially for Mother’s Day. The idea of not being responsible for the cooking or doing the dishes is always welcome. And who doesn’t love being showered with a little extra love on Mother’s Day (while getting to spend it with Mymom)?

So when my folks called to extend an invitation for Mother’s Day Brunch at their country club, my first reaction was a smile, but quickly my mind started to race.

Does Jack’s sports jacket still fit? I’m fairly certain that he ate his last tie. Could use one of Dan’s? I wonder if he could reach a bow tie with his mouth. Does Target sell bow ties? I’m not spending another $80 at Vineyard Vines for a single-time use.

Then, I started thinking about all the other pitfalls that might be lurking at the country club. We’ve enjoyed many wonderful times there, but Mother’s Day is sure to be a scene, and that just adds to potential problems we could face. A simple outing for brunch can be complicated for our family, especially when there’s a coat and tie involved.

The diaper bag needs to be packed. We’ve changed it’s name to “The Satchel of Freedom” (thank you Peter). The new name focuses the attention on the fact that the bag allows us to rome free, but it’s purpose remains the same. It’s full of diapers and wipes and a change of clothes. The change of clothes includes socks. When Jack goes to the bathroom, it’s not uncommon to require a FULL set of new clothing. Do we have a another set of “fancy clothes” to fill the satchel?

This brings me to the next concern when going out for a meal with Jack. We need to consider the bathrooms for any needed “costume changes”. When Jack was a little younger, I could get away with bringing him into the Lady’s Room and sneaking into the handicap stall without attracting too much attention. At seventeen, Jack is harder to sneak in without creating a lot of puzzled looks. People try to be polite, but I feel the stares as I start to walk Jack toward the bathroom. His hopping gait doesn’t help staying inconspicuous. Sunday at The Club might be crowded. Is there a private bathroom hiding somewhere?

Yikes! Sunday is going to be really REALLY crowded.

A big crowd means that they might squeeze in extra tables. Now that Jack has added hopping to his repertoire of behaviors, if tables are too close together, he tends to knock against people causing quite a scene. It’s particularly awkward when he bumps a table and then tries to snatch a piece of bread off a stranger’s plate. Dan and I have both learned many funny one-liners to try to apologize for such instances, but it’s still not fun.

This isn’t going to work.

“Let’s definitely get together Sunday, but is there any chance we could go somewhere else? Somewhere Jack friendly.”

Mymom gets it. Although she loves showing off her grandchildren, she has helped more than once assisting in a complicated clean up, and she understands that Mother’s Day may not be ideal at a crowed club.

I made a reservation for an early dinner at a local restaurant that has broad isles between tables and large, private bathrooms. We will get ready early in case of any unexpected delays, making sure Jack is wearing dark colored pants to mask any spilling/leaking. No jacket or tie required. The Satchel of Freedom will be packed and ready for any unfortunate events and we will draw straws to see who gets to feed Jack.

I’m much more relaxed with this new plan, but we never leave the house without crossing our fingers. Going out with our boy is always an adventure.

Happy Mother’s Day!

Love, Jess