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S10.E07: All Aboard!


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Interesting - and disappointing - news. It guarantees a tougher time socially for both Will and Zoey. At least if they tend to follow this same pattern, and it looks like they are right now. Poor little pudders...

I think Zoey seems to be catching up more quickly, Will is still very toddler-ish to me. I enjoy watching his happy innocence, but wonder how that will play out in a school setting where kids can be assholes. I said to another poster that I wouldn't be surprised if Will was in an alternative school rather than a mainstream kindergarten.

As far as the dubbing, I wasn't paying close attention last night, but it wouldn't surprise me. The producers have done it several times in the past.

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For me, the good news is that Will and Zoey are catching up and becoming closer to age appropriate.  The bad news is that the show becomes less special and interesting as the kids become more typical.  I could see the same type thing by going across the street and watching the neighbor's grandchildren or volunteering at the nearby pre-school.  At the same time, TLC production is recognizing that and bringing in more and more produced and forced situations such as the Manwich commercial.  Almost nothing in this episode was simply organic to daily life.  Bedtime was as close as it got as well as I can remember. 

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I found it surprising Jen didn't ask Zoey to please stop sucking her fingers while she was talking about the spicy dinner.  You can't speak well with your fingers in your mouth and it is rude to the person you are speaking to.  I think Judy and Dave were in the house to help out with baths and normal bedtime routines between filming.  The whole idea was for Jen to spend time alone with the kids because she had been working on a project so that might have been a reason for Judy and Dave to stay off camera.

I figured she had her fingers in her mouth to try and soothe the spicy feeling going on in her mouth due to the food. Plenty of children resort to putting fingers in their mouth if what they ate was too hot/spicy.

I hope Will and Zoey can channel their joy into fierce determination in the world outside of the Klein Arnold cocoon.

When they do, it will be because of Bill,Jen, and other people in their lives as well as other factors.
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Girls mature faster than boys in general. At least that's my experience. And they are bossier.

I think Will will catch up one of these days. I hope he keeps the same zest for life. It will take him a long way in this tough ole' world.

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I agree. I think that Zoey seems on target for her age, while Will seems behind for his age. I think that very soon, Zoey is going to pass Will on a maturity level. If they each keep maturing at the same pace as they have been, she will soon be behaving as though she's older than him. I think that, right now, they act about the same age, even though Will is 1 1/2 years older. Poor little guy.

I'm not sure how many toddlers you know, but I work with them every day. Will is definitely beyond that stage of development. Notice his curiosity about the way things work, his on-point conversations with his parents, and his creativity. He is kind and understanding to his little sister. He is learning how to behave in social situations, and he is often "the life of the party."

Any teacher would be glad to have this sparkplug in her classroom!

As for Zoey, she acts younger than a typical four-year-old, but that's to be expected. She had a rough start and will take more time to catch up. That "licking" behavior is closer to a toddler than a preschooler. Her speech is in very short sentences. We don't really know what her areas of interest are, because we don't see much of her private life, only what the show chooses to show. When I was 4 I used to have to help dust the furniture. After watching the news about Teamsters striking, I declared myself on strike and went around the house declaring it. I'm not certain Zoey has reached that level of social awareness.

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Such a cute episode!  I laughed at how excited Will was on the train when he had to hand over his ticket.

 

And I was soooooo waiting for Zoey to get ketchup all over that cute little outfit at the bowling alley/arcade lol 

I bet Bill spent a pretty penny on that claw machine. Which is fine, he can probably afford it.  I'd have a hard time saying no too if i had one child that got a prize and one that was still waiting.

 

 

There is an ignore feature on here right? Can someone tell me how I use it?

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Gunderda, at the top of the page to the left of the blue My Shows button on the right side is a little "person" button that should have your name attached if you rest your mouse cursor on it.  Click that and select Manage Ignore Pref.  Make a note of the name(s) you want to ignore as you will need to type those in.

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Great episode although I kinda tuned out during Jen's segment at the hospital.

 

Loved Will's excitement over the Polar Express train.  My favorite moment was when he very nicely asked Bill if he could have his own ticket.

 

If I was Bill, I would've steered as far away from the claw game as possible. 

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If I was Bill, I would've steered as far away from the claw game as possible. 

A couple possibilities

1.  The kids are not around these kinds of games much so Bill figured 'hey, why not?" and then likely immediately regretted his decision because he failed to realize how the kids would react if he didn't get something (however Will knew about prizes so I think this scenario is not likely)

2. Because of filming Bill figured "hey, why not?" because he had brain fart of how the kids would act if he didn't win anything lol

thank you to those who gave me instructions.  how tricky!

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I'm not sure how many toddlers you know, but I work with them every day. Will is definitely beyond that stage of development. Notice his curiosity about the way things work, his on-point conversations with his parents, and his creativity. He is kind and understanding to his little sister. He is learning how to behave in social situations, and he is often "the life of the party."

Any teacher would be glad to have this sparkplug in her classroom!

As for Zoey, she acts younger than a typical four-year-old, but that's to be expected. She had a rough start and will take more time to catch up. That "licking" behavior is closer to a toddler than a preschooler. Her speech is in very short sentences. We don't really know what her areas of interest are, because we don't see much of her private life, only what the show chooses to show. When I was 4 I used to have to help dust the furniture. After watching the news about Teamsters striking, I declared myself on strike and went around the house declaring it. I'm not certain Zoey has reached that level of social awareness.

 

Spot-on post. IMO, both kids are developmentally-lagging and socially-immature, but are absolutely making strides. The language improvements we see and hear are just the easiest things to spot when you only get to "observe" for 40 min a week. And I really hope Will has been IQ-tested because more and more I believe he has a normal intelligence. Just one that he isn't yet able to express. He may never earn a Phi Beta Kappa key but he seems to have a good memory, is very observant, loves anything mechanical etc. Barring anything permanent that might have resulted from his severe malnutrition, his future is full of possibilities.

 

PS - I think "sparkplug" is just about the best single-word description I've ever seen for Will on this forum. He should use it for his e-mail someday...

Edited by Wellfleet
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I agree. Zoey could recite the book Jen was reading. Will is not there yet. And I think that notion is supported by the fact that these kids do not do Talking Head moments..not even with Jen and Bill sitting next to them. They are very comfortable with the camera crew so there really is no other reason than Jen and Bill must not think they are ready for some reason. I am sure Jen and Bill would love to show them off in that regard if they could.

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I had forgotten about the ticket part of the episode, but I almost melted when Will asked so earnestly, "Dad, can I pleeeaaase have my own ticket?"

 

And I'm trying to figure out if Zoey getting that pig out of the machine was a producer plant, an animal just leftover from a prior player who didn't want it, or if Zoey really did shimmy her way up there. It wasn't clearly caught on camera, so I'm not sure. Either way, it was cute when she handed it to Will.

 

Back again to the diaper issue--if there is an issue because I haven't been paying attention--it is more than likely a physical problem and not a developmental delay. There are many, many boys adopted out of China with urogenital issues. Girls too, for that matter.

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I would not be the least bit surprised if one of the TLC crew stood there as long as it took to grab a toy and let it drop so Zoey could "find" it.  Bill's over-explanation of the situation made me even more suspicious.

Edited by Snow8585
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I agree that the children are making strides. I don't think that Zoey should be put in the same class as Will as far as development goes. I think that she's very close to target. I am not a preschool teacher, but I have grandchildren and I have raised a child. I know how average kids act at various ages. This episode was set around Christmas. That means that Will was within 2 months of tuning six. Average six year olds don't jump up and down or squeal like little babies when they are excited. They also don't suck their thumb. I know it's unpopular to say, but Will's pants still have that puffy look that diaper wearers have. Will acts like a four year old at best. He is very close to six years old. It's a shame, but I think that he is still extremely behind. I don't think that Zoey is noticeably behind for her age.

 

Zoey is definitely behind the average Four, there's really no doubt. Not significantly, but she is. It would be clearer in Zoey's case if we saw them in school where they could be compared to other kids about the same age. But it's a very good thing we can't do that. Socially I would guess that Zoey will probably progress a little faster than Will, mostly because she's able to express herself better at Four than he could. And because she's a girl. Girls in general develop faster than boys right up on through to about the age of 12. After that, the boys tend to catch-up and then, eventually, everyone levels-off.

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Will's screams seemed more than usual this episode, even the caption reference was "screaming."   He is a happy boy.  It seemed over the top yet no one said please don't scream.  And Bill dropped his head while explaining Will screaming on the Polar Express about hot chocolate.  Will was eating the sugar icing constantly during the gingerbread house segment too.  I wonder if it is a sugar problem or something more with regard to his overall development.  When they were doing bedtime stories in Zoey's bed Will acted like he was about 2 years old sucking his thumb.  Then he said Zoey's "scream" hurt his ears!

Love of sugar -- problem or development delay??-- I'm 56 and had a bowl of ice cream for dinner. Why can't it just be normal?

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Those kids seem to eat so much junk food and sugar. Bill buys Zoey not one but TWO giant milkshakes, they eat a ton of ginger bread and icing, cake, adult size mugs of hot chocolate, huge chocolate chip cookies on the train and giant hot dogs at the bowling alley. He talks a good game saying they eat healthy but the only thing i have seen recently was the bribery sushi. Those kids are probably on sugar highs most of the day courtesy of Bill. I think Jen tries and then pushy Nai Nai feeds Zoey more cake against Jen's wishes. No wonder they like Nai Nai.

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I agree that the children are making strides. I don't think that Zoey should be put in the same class as Will as far as development goes. I think that she's very close to target. I am not a preschool teacher, but I have grandchildren and I have raised a child. I know how average kids act at various ages. This episode was set around Christmas. That means that Will was within 2 months of tuning six. Average six year olds don't jump up and down or squeal like little babies when they are excited. They also don't suck their thumb. I know it's unpopular to say, but Will's pants still have that puffy look that diaper wearers have. Will acts like a four year old at best. He is very close to six years old. It's a shame, but I think that he is still extremely behind. I don't think that Zoey is noticeably behind for her age.

Unless something like being held back a grade or getting to skip ahead a grade because of advanced intelligence occurs, or they're assigned to a tutor who deals with multiple grades if they need some sort of "remedial" assistance, considering Will has been said to be in full-day Kindergarten & Zoey to be in a second year of Preschool (& at 4, she is too young for Kindergarten anyway) this season, I really don't see where Zoey & Will could end up in the same class for any reason.

If Will is still wearing diapers/pull ups at almost 6, I think that's his/his family's/his school's business (seeing as he probably has to go to the bathroom while he's there & might need special accommodations to do so if he does still use diapers/pull ups), not ours. I don't think any possible "bathroom" issues Will has (or Zoey) need to be brought up here, as it's a rather personal issue for people, including almost 6 (or 4) year-olds. As someone who's lived with similar issues since birth, because I was born with birth defects, some of which weren't repairable, I don't see what the fascination is with how Will (or Zoey) handles eliminating their bodily wastes (& I doubt anyone here is fascinated with how I handle this issue). As I already said, I think that's a really personal issue; especially for K & Pre-K kids, like Will & Zoey. If TLC/Bill & Jen/Will/Zoey wanted us to know how that happens, I'd think it would be/have been brought up in an episode of the show. Until it is, I don't think it's any of our business.

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I don’t think it’s a diaper look. I think it’s just the way a lot of dwarfs’s buttocks stick out. I’m thinking Amy and Zack Rolloft. Anytime Zack had shorts on they stuck out like they were padded but it was his natural body shape. I think that’s what we are seeing on Will. It’s especially noticeable on Will because he is stocky.

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I was just going to say the same thing. Jen and Bill happen to have flat butts, but Amy Roloff and some of the women on the Little Women shows have quite the booty on them. And it's been pointed out time and time again Will was all but starved to death and left for dead and according to the foster care was born with gastrointestinal issues, so it's very possible he could have life long issues. I'm still not sure why this dead horse hasn't been beaten to death yet. 

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Those kids seem to eat so much junk food and sugar. Bill buys Zoey not one but TWO giant milkshakes, they eat a ton of ginger bread and icing, cake, adult size mugs of hot chocolate, huge chocolate chip cookies on the train and giant hot dogs at the bowling alley. He talks a good game saying they eat healthy but the only thing i have seen recently was the bribery sushi. Those kids are probably on sugar highs most of the day courtesy of Bill. I think Jen tries and then pushy Nai Nai feeds Zoey more cake against Jen's wishes. No wonder they like Nai Nai.

I disagree. We see very little of their lives....most of which involves something special. My grandchildren get extra treats on certain days and are allowed limited treats most every day. They also eat very healthy meals, as do the Kleins.

In my post, I gave four examples of why I thought that Will gave the overall appearance of being younger than six. If I had it to do over again, I would have left the diaper example out and only gave three examples. In the future, if I post about Will's development, I will not include the topic.

Will and Zoey have come so far, having loving parents, and share their lives with us.....why does there have to be criticism of their development, instead of praise? No two children ever develop at exactly the same rate.

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If it is true that we do not see a great deal of their lives than one can not assume they eat healthy meals while the cameras are NOT rolling. Those kids are not just given treats for special occasions. They are shown eating junk food way out of proportion for their height and weight over and over.

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If it is true that we do not see a great deal of their lives than one can not assume they eat healthy meals while the cameras are NOT rolling. Those kids are not just given treats for special occasions. They are shown eating junk food way out of proportion for their height and weight over and over.

And you know this how?  None of us have enough information to know what they eat on a regular basis, however it's hard to believe pediatrician Jen is feeding her kids a steady diet of junk.  

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If W and Z were getting stuffed with too many treats all day long they would have weight problems and they don't. For being so tiny they seem in pretty good shape. And kids don't have to be on a "sugar high" to be bouncing off the walls--it's called being a kid. They're young, they have boundless energy.

I agree that Zoey seems further along for her age than Will is for his. And it is completely understandable--the picture of Will when he was first brought to the orphanage tore my heart out. He barely looked alive. It's remarkable that he rebounded so well.

But, as the mother of a son and daughter, my daughter who is 16 sometimes seems more mature than my 24 year old son! Not really in intelligence but in practical issues and "taking care of business." I see the same in W and Z.

And, thanks, I would be happy if I never heard here about these childrens' diapers, pull-ups or bathroom issues ever again!

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I thinks it's hard to say what they eat in real life vs. tv life, because the show features mostly scripted field trips and comped meals at restaurants. I might eat a corn dog and candy apples at the State Fair, but it's not like I keep those items in the fridge at home.

It seems like the kids do get a lot of sweets after dinner, but from my perspective it's odd because I grew up in a house where cake was only served on birthdays and Holidays. I guess for some households desserts are normal after every meal. We did see Jen attempt to limit the portions only to be overruled by Judy.

Edited by BitterApple
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I think it is great that the kids enjoy some decadent desserts but what I am concerned about is portion control. Childhood diabetes and obesity is no laughing matter. Bill, in my opinion, has little sense of that whereas Jen does. I liked that she had champagne and french fries. How cool was that? But the kids are learning and picking up habits that will stay with them all of their lives. Bill is with them more than Jen is and that is unfortunate in that regard because they probably view Jen as the bad guy getting them to eat healthy foods.  And if anyone reads the label on a MANWICH can they will see that is LOADED with sodium and corn syrup. Way to go Bill!

Edited by Snow8585
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I think it is great that the kids enjoy some decadent desserts but what I am concerned about is portion control. Childhood diabetes and obesity is no laughing matter. Bill, in my opinion, has little sense of that whereas Jen does. I liked that she had champagne and french fries. How cool was that? But the kids are learning and picking up habits that will stay with them all of their lives. Bill is with them more than Jen is and that is unfortunate in that regard because they probably view Jen as the bad guy getting them to eat healthy foods.  And if anyone reads the label on a MANWICH can they will see that is LOADED with sodium and corn syrup. Way to go Bill!

Oh, I don't worry one little bit. Jen is medical doctor , she knows the real deal about nutrition and Bill supports her.

Just because they parent differently than you, does not make them wrong.

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Bill does what he wants in terms of feeding the kids. He does not sit there and say OK, let us be examples to show the viewers what a healthy meal for kids looks like. Jen may be the doctor but she is not around when he buys all the ridiculous amounts of food for the kids,   He even made a snarky comment about Jen wanting to test everything for mercury or something like that. There is no reason to believe that he behaves differently off camera. They have been doing this now for many years and are very comfortable living their lives in front of the TLC crew. Jen and Bill are even consulting producers for the show.  In fact, he likes to ham it up for the cameras so naturally he would order huge hot dogs for the kids, his comment being there was no where healthier to eat on the way home, total bs. And i truly believe the kids are picking up bad eating habits from him.

Edited by Snow8585
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And--in the same episode--there was a plastic bowling set in the closet, which Bill or somebody set up & Bill, Jen, & Will all were shown playing with it for awhile; so I was a little surprised Bill was acting like neither of the kids was familiar with bowling (but I'm in NO way trying to equate this to lying, or anything else negative, on the part of anyone in the Arnold-Klein family). Perhaps Bill legitimately forgot about that, or thought that Will played the toy version when he was too little to remember doing it.

This is exactly my thought on this detail as well as several others that seem to be a perfectly logical reason rather than an unscrupulous plan. Will was so little I doubt he would relate the toy to the actual sport of bowling. 

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Bill does what he wants in terms of feeding the kids. He does not sit there and say OK, let us be examples to show the viewers what a healthy meal for kids looks like. Jen may be the doctor but she is not around when he buys all the ridiculous amounts of food for the kids,   He even made a snarky comment about Jen wanting to test everything for mercury or something like that. There is no reason to believe that he behaves differently off camera. They have been doing this now for many years and are very comfortable living their lives in front of the TLC crew. Jen and Bill are even consulting producers for the show.  In fact, he likes to ham it up for the cameras so naturally he would order huge hot dogs for the kids, his comment being there was no where healthier to eat on the way home, total bs. And i truly believe the kids are picking up bad eating habits from him.

How do you know this? It's not clear to me at all on the show that any of this is happening. These are huge, negative assumptions, IMO.

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I think it is great that the kids enjoy some decadent desserts but what I am concerned about is portion control. Childhood diabetes and obesity is no laughing matter. Bill, in my opinion, has little sense of that whereas Jen does. I liked that she had champagne and french fries. How cool was that? But the kids are learning and picking up habits that will stay with them all of their lives. Bill is with them more than Jen is and that is unfortunate in that regard because they probably view Jen as the bad guy getting them to eat healthy foods.  And if anyone reads the label on a MANWICH can they will see that is LOADED with sodium and corn syrup. Way to go Bill!

I have MANWICH in my house, we enjoy it occasionally. We eat well for the most part and are not overweight. But life is all about moderation.....and a little fun. No need to make everything a huge deal.

If I remember correctly, Bill shopped from a grocery list made by Jen....and he and Will stuck to it. What makes you think Bill feeds his children so badly?

I think they are wonderful parents, and compliment each other very well. Will and Zoey are so very very lucky.

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We've seen the visits of the children with their doctors.  "Overweight" or "abnormal blood values" have never been mentioned.  They are active as the dickens so I don't think a day out with dad that includes some forbidden treats is going to create a lifelong problem.  Growing up, we ate healthy meals but on the rare occasion we got to eat in a restaurant we lived it up.
 

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I think it is great that the kids enjoy some decadent desserts but what I am concerned about is portion control. Childhood diabetes and obesity is no laughing matter. Bill, in my opinion, has little sense of that whereas Jen does. I liked that she had champagne and french fries. How cool was that? But the kids are learning and picking up habits that will stay with them all of their lives. Bill is with them more than Jen is and that is unfortunate in that regard because they probably view Jen as the bad guy getting them to eat healthy foods.  And if anyone reads the label on a MANWICH can they will see that is LOADED with sodium and corn syrup. Way to go Bill!

They don't have to "get them" to eat healthy foods.  Zoey and Will have shown that they love their veggies, and they're not picky eaters at all.  Remember how excited Will was at the grocery store when they bought baby carrots?  Will even wanted the large bag.  In my opinion they're fed healthy food the majority of the time, with a treat on special days.

Edited by Honey
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Honestly, it's not like the doctors would criticize Bill and Jen's parenting on camera. I don't think the kids are overweight, but if they were, that's not a discussion that would be used for episode fodder.

 

Absolutely. And aren't there confidentiality issues involved here anyway? I believe the cameras stop rolling as soon as the "real" appointment starts. If Zoey was ever anemic, for example - or Will really did need to lose some weight, we would never see discussion of that. At least I would hope we don't.

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We've seen the kids eat plenty of veggies and healthy meals. Both were thrilled with sushi, shrimp and rice, even if it was too spicy for Zoey, and I know I've seen Will devouring broccoli. The home cooked meals have been pretty healthy. Is a small styrofoam cup of hot chocolate on a special train ride or extra bites of cake doled out by grandma going to lead them to a life of health issues? Not at all. 

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Absolutely. And aren't there confidentiality issues involved here anyway? I believe the cameras stop rolling as soon as the "real" appointment starts. If Zoey was ever anemic, for example - or Will really did need to lose some weight, we would never see discussion of that. At least I would hope we don't.

 

Agree.  And remember "we only see a small portion of their lives..."   

 

My issue is the adult portions served to the kids and for that matter to Jen and Bill!  Order children's portions or an adult portion and a couple of plates.  What a waste of money and food.  I had to laugh when I saw Will with Bill's credit card in the arcade.

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My issue is the adult portions served to the kids and for that matter to Jen and Bill!  Order children's portions or an adult portion and a couple of plates.

 

It's their money. If they can afford it, that's their choice.

 

It also depends, quite frankly, on the restaurant and on Bill and Jen's choices. Bill and Jen are adults, they are allowed to order something other than a Happy Meal or the *child menu* even though they are not the size of an adult. They're also allowed to each order a separate meal and not say "We're SO TINY we're ordering one meal and bring us plates!" in case they don't want to have to eat the same meal simply because they are not average size.

 

They're adults, they have the same right to order off the adult menu that we all do. And ordering off the children's menu is really quite restrictive - children's menus exist to deal with picky eaters who don't like fancy food because they're still maturing. Just because Bill and Jen are small, that doesn't mean they have to have milk, mac and cheese, and chicken tenders - or share an entrée - unlike any other adult with money.

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Agree.  And remember "we only see a small portion of their lives..."   

 

My issue is the adult portions served to the kids and for that matter to Jen and Bill!  Order children's portions or an adult portion and a couple of plates.  What a waste of money and food.  I had to laugh when I saw Will with Bill's credit card in the arcade.

I don't eat a lot, but I am sure as hell not ordering off the kid's menu. Perhaps they box up the leftovers and take them home. Who cares?

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A lot of restaurants don't allow shared entrees and seriously they haven't been thru enough in their lives without the expectation they order off the kids menu like 5 year olds? I'm sure that wouldn't be humiliating at all either. 

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