Everything I Thought was Wrong

Just four weeks ago, I sat in Francine Bistro, one of the best restaurants and my favorite restaurant in Camden, Maine, if not the whole of Maine. We have been going here for years, and it has always been a special experience, a treat. It's a somewhat pricey place, but tiny and homey, with mismatched wooden furniture, almost always locally sourced food, inventive ideas, and excellent execution. The chef, who has opened two other restaurants in the area since (Seabright and Shepherd's Pie), is the best in the area, and we have always had memorable, delicious experiences at his establishments. Flash back to four weeks ago, when my mom and I were able to snag a table at Francine for two with no reservation. We sat down next to a woman in short shorts, her husband, and her approximately 10-year-old daughter, who played throughout the meal on something akin to a Nintendo DS. Actually, I have no idea what it was, bc I don't keep up with that crap, but still. This is a place we always cherished and dressed up for (and if you know me, I don't dress up for anything). I was dismayed by the casual family and it made me mad. I even had the gall to tell the little girl, feeling my typical bossy teacher oats, that she should enjoy her dinner. 

Flash forward to four weeks later, and here I am on an airplane, doing my best to keep Shekina from screaming while my mom does her best with Godson. Last night, Shekina stood up on the restaurant banquette multiple times and hollered out. When she wasn't standing and yelling, she was slumped down and pouting. Meanwhile, Godson screamed such bloody murder when we tried to put him in a high chair that you could hear him throughout the entire first floor of the somewhat large hotel for nearly fifteen minutes. If I was the old me, I would have glared up a storm! But I'm not. I've changed quickly as I've realized how much harder parenting two newly internationally adopted kids is than teaching a class of 20+ mostly immigrant and refugee kids. "Wow" is pretty much all I have to say right now, as Shekina repeatedly pulls on my arm and shrieks with delight at the iPad while everyone rests in the dimmed dark on our daytime Turkish Air flight. I don't even care anymore! New perspectives are amazing...