My Dinner with Jack

Emily was having a farewell happy hour with her co-workers tonight, and there was a showing at our house at 6:15. Thus, Jack and I had to eat out, and although we could have done McDonalds or something, we'd had good success at a Mexican place, Benny's, early in the week, with the three of us, so I decided to take Jack there. They bring chips quickly, which is always key.

I had hoped to sit next to Jack in a booth, but unfortunately it's a bit more crowded on Friday at 6 than Monday at 5:15. So we ended up at a small table in the corner, outside on the patio, facing each other - me in my chair, Jack on a little booster seat. Other patrons about 4 feet away at our elbows.

And Jack was great. The guy brought chips, and Jack shoveled them in, dipping them in salsa, which was hot, but he only minded when he got a really spicy bit, which he would react to with a brief yell of discomfort -- then go right back to shoveling them in. Every once in a while he'd pause to glance at the couple next to us...okay, he'd stare openly at them...and then go back to his food. He ate chips, ate a taco, let me eat my enchiladas and drink my margarita. The whole time I was worried he'd fall off the booster seat or something, but in fact he didn't move -- just sat still and ate. He even started to figure out the straw toward the end of the meal; that when you're drinking milk with a straw you don't need to raise the entire cup above your head.

The only problem with having a meal alone with Jack like that is that, well, he doesn't talk a lot. He just sits there and eats, making noises every once in a while and so forth, laughs at times, but you can't really have a conversation. I thought about having both sides of the conversation, but that would have been a little odd too. So we both just ate, and then at one point music came on, and we both bounced and smiled, and he danced a little in his chair. And then the meal was over and I scooped him up and we went home.