Ian's Little Joke

A couple of weeks back, we went down to Hilton Head to register Matt for his half marathon and have dinner. Here's a funny moment that I've been meaning to write about because it highlights Ian's maturing speech and humor.

Dinner was in a restaurant that I wasn't quite sure would even be kid-friendly. It just looked too nice for kids. Moms, you know what I'm talking about! But they did have a high chair and the kids were beautifully behaved through the whole meal. Even Zoe, who usually attempts a crazy escape at some point mid-meal, sat contentedly until we were all done.

I'm not sure if this happens to everyone with kids, but we usually have a few people walking by comment on the cuteness of the kids or the redness of Ian's hair. However this particular night, the amount of commentary was crazy! So many different people passing by had something to say!

As we walked out of the restaurant, we were stopped one more time by a couple sitting together near the entrance. "I just HAD to tell you how proud I am of you guys for bringing your kids out! They are such well-behaved children! Good for you! Oh, and such a cutie..." (etc., etc.). I really do like talking with people, but I guess I was just tired at that moment of being like a traveling exhibit. Such sweet people, and such wonderful comments, but as we were leaving Matt and I almost simultaneously came to a conclusion...

We were the only young couple there with kids! (And all of the people commenting were observably older than us).

"Matt, I think I figured out what tonight was like. It was kind of like visiting a nursing home. You know, when the old people are so excited to see little kids because they never do?"

"The food was a lot better, but yeah, I was just about to ask: where are all the kids?"

Ian was paying attention, and interjected with an amazingly observant, "All the kids ran away. They just ran away."

Matt and I nearly died laughing. Ian certainly is growing up and adding humor to our lives! And this is another reminder that kids are ALWAYS listening, and understand far more than we give them credit!

We tried asking Ian why they ran away, but he only smiled at us with his adorable mischievous grin. He was enjoying his little joke. :)