Pay Attention to your Kids

Yesterday, while sitting in a neighborhood healthy coffee shop, I noticed two different parents come in, order food with their talkative 4 year olds, and then politely ignore them the entire time they were at the coffee shop. One dad was reading a book. One mom was reading a magazine. Each kid talked to the parent off and on, eventually resorted to seeking attention from neighboring patrons, and then tried again to talk to parent. It was painful to watch. I wanted to walk over and tell them, "Talk to you kid! In ten years this kid isn't going to want to talk to you at all, but maybe if you talk to them NOW they'll talk to you--at least a little bit--THEN!" But I kept quiet, sipped my peppermint tea, ate my quinoa salad, and tried to read...

After picking Alexandra up from daycare, we headed up to Prospect Park to enjoy the glorious day. We locked up the stroller and set out for a walk: first stop, dog beach to see the doggies swim and to feed the ducks/geese. AGAIN, a mom, with kid in stroller (granted, this kid was maybe one) and mom reading a novel, kid just staring off into space. No interaction between the two. We fed the geese and ducks a whole snack trap of animal cookies and cashews and never once did I hear the mom talk to her baby. Huh?

What is in the water around here?

I don't get it. Yes, I have moments when I sneak a glance at New York Magazine when Alexandra is playing with blocks, but then she usually comes over and we look at the pictures together. Or I'll try to quickly check my email, but then she'll come over and want to see horse videos on YouTube, and I quickly defer to her.

Am I just crazy, or does anyone else out there think you should be present with your kids when you're with them? As Alexandra edges towards turning two, and I watch her become a little girl from the mushy baby she once was, I can't help but feel that each day with her is precious. Maybe it's me, maybe I'm a sap, but I really think if you choose to have kids you should pay attention to them.

(photo: alexandra and i making cookies)