Baby Bar & Grill

If you saw a young mother schlepping 3 kids into a sports bar & grill last night, that was me.

It was a long, stormy day in Branson. A trip to Wal-Mart with Ava was the major outing of the day, until dinner time when the power went out in the condo. We walked down to the theatre and restaurant building, and I had a feeling it would be a rough night when both of the girls tripped and fell on the way down, then we found the doors locked and lights out in the building. The cook came out to tell us they didn't have power either and that an electric pole was hit and knocked down nearby. 900 people were without power around the area. So where, oh where, would we get these kids dinner, and soon?? An old friend of my mom's was with us, and my mom also wanted to catch some of the football games that were going. Lucky for us a young lady approached before we got into our cars to leave. She asked if we were looking for a place to watch the game, and there is a family-friendly sports bar & grill that would have power. I didn't know there was such a thing, so I asked, "What exactly does that mean?" She said it's non-smoking and kids are welcome.

We pulled into the parking lot for the auto museum and toy shop and followed it around to the bar & grill. We made our way up the stairs, with only one more injury, Ava hitting her head on a piece of wood on the stair railing. As soon as we walked in I could feel my face changing into "overwhelmed and don't look at me." There were two guys playing pool right by the entrance, and the big smiles on their faces said to me, "She looks overwhelmed, and we've never seen that many kids in here." We made our way to a table, and on the way I paused where a couple had a baby in a carrier, and I said, "I'm glad I'm not the only one" with a smile on my face. When we got to the table I quickly moved Jenna to the end that had a more clothed picture of cheerleaders under the glass top than the other side with a girl in a bikini. Jared would occasionally jump and look around at the groups screaming and cheering with every other play of the games, whining "momma" and "up." Jenna doesn't do well with loud noises, said her "forehead was hurting," she hardly ate anything, and was hugging my arm most of the time. Ava warmed up to the place soon enough as she would clap and laugh along with the cheers around the room. As soon as the kids were done eating we decided to get going, and I'm glad we did because it started pouring rain as soon as we got in the car!

I was SOOO glad that the power was on when we got home. The groceries I had just bought weren't wasted, and I could give the kids a bath before bed. Jenna was exhausted and wanted to go to bed without a story, and Ava is in the portable crib. At the end of the day, it was nice to get a break from the rain for a bit, get out of the condo, and also be in a place where the adults were yelling louder, and being more rowdy, than my children. :)