Why I carry a large purse

We are at a restaurant. We have just placed our order and my son is not interested in the activities on the children's menu. There is only one solution: The cards in Mommy's purse.

For the record, I carry two sets of cards in my purse. There is a regular deck, which we've never actually used, and an UNO deck which we use quite often. As we wait for our food, we deal the cards and play a few rounds. It passes the time and tends to make the servers smile when they check on our table.

I started carrying cards in my purse a few years ago after waiting a particularly long time for our food. Before UNO (my son was four when he learned to play) I carried other items to keep him occupied - crayons, paper and activity packs. I was thankful when I switched those items out for the relatively small deck of cards.

As a Mom, I've carried a lot of extra items in my purse - straws, extra diapers, toys, wipes and snacks. A deck of cards? That's easy.

And I've found that a deck of cards far beats the alternative. Sometimes I look around the restaurant and I see what our lives could be: There are children playing with smartphones and tablets at the dinner table. And that is not what I want for us.

So, for those parents who are looking for activities to distract their children at dinner or for those parents who default to the smartphone while they wait for dinner to arrive, I have one suggestion: A deck of cards. Just try it and see what happens.

(We all know you have room in your purse to carry them.)

Why do you carry a large purse? Tell me in the comments.