Out in Public

How do we take Payton out in public without making us all go crazy?  Well I’ll tell you…  we avoided it for a long time.  At our six-month checkup with our specialist, we asked her about taking her out in public.  We told her about our experience at Disney on Ice in which Payton didn’t understand that she couldn’t just run down and jump out on the ice; so Jimmy and myself took her in turns, walking her around the concourse at the arena.  Payton did eventually sit for Jimmy; but he had to have her way up behind our seats in a walkway.  Fortunately, a nice old security staffer saw Jimmy’s struggle and let them sit in a spot they weren’t supposed to be.

Our specialist response was pretty simple; but staggeringly difficult to hear:   Take her out to more and more places.  Well that makes sense; but that means more and more stressful situations.  The idea of going to more events gives us anxiety.  At the time, Jimmy said he’d rather walk over hot coals.  Our specialist did make a great suggestion though, and that’s to have a toy bag that’s only for public situations.  These aren’t everyday toys.  These are toys she only gets to play with when we’re desperate and out in the world.  That seems to have saved us on multiple occasions.  Our travel toy bag now consists of a toy called Magnatiles that are little tiles of different shape that are magnetic.  They’re a life saver.  We also have a Leap Frog that helps on longer car rides.  It’s basically just an iPad geared for kids. Forcing yourself to get your kid out in tricky situations is tough; but it’s necessary.