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All kids are different and parenting is going to be different for each child.
We used a wrist leash once for my son. He was about 18 months old and we went to Sea World. He couldn't see any exhibits from his stroller but he was a kid who had gone from crawling to running and we didn't trust him to NOT bolt. The leash gave him some freedom to see everything without getting lost and without us constantly running after him.
My daughter would burst into tears from a sharp "Shannon!" to "the look" and would immediately stop misbehaving. My son however received spankings.. it was the only thing that worked with him. He's 7 now and spankings don't work (although his dad still tries that method)... What works now is grounding him from Game Boy and Playstation. It KILLS him and he behaves with that threat.
My kids know that whining and having temper tantrums only makes my NO more firm, but that they get what they want from their dad if they whine enough. Kids are smart!
As for restaurants, when they were younger, we went out to eat a lot but we had our list of what we called "kid friendly" restaurants. Those that gave us extra napkins, had crayons and coloring things for kids, those who gave us saltine crackers for the kids to keep them calmer while waiting for dinner to arrive, etc. AND we always tipped waitresses who did those things VERY WELL. My son is a bit hyper and when he got restless, his dad would take him for a walk (not run) around the restaurant to look at the decor or, if the weather was nice, he would take him outside for a few minutes to use up some of his energy, etc. This was done quietly though!
We were at a Hallmark store out of necessity (I tried not to take my son to such places whenever possible) and while I was paying, he touched something he shouldn't have. I gave him "the look" and a firm "Nathan, DON'T!". The cashier thanked me for caring enough to say something to him and said most parents don't.
There is a balance between "Seen and Not Heard" and letting them run amuck.
Dee
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