Before I had children, I loved shopping. I could spend hours at the mall or browsing though the cosmetic aisles of any drugstore. I would go to the grocery store without a care in the world. It was peaceful and relaxing. I saw the mothers in the store with their screaming kids, and I just knew that would never be me.
Fast forward 10 years later, and there I was. I was that mom with those kids. I had a darter, who, as soon as she felt the grip of my hand loosen, she was gone, running away laughing. I had a screamer, who screamed when he was happy, when he was sad, bored, or amused. And last but not least, I had an infant who refused to sleep anywhere other than his own bed, and would wake up at the slightest noise. This was a fatal combination while running errands, and I’m sure you can imagine how lovely shopping was with my three amigos.
One fateful Sunday afternoon, my husband and I made the error of heading on over to Crest after church for some last minute grocery shopping. The kids were tired, and so were we. We made it event free half-way through the store before everything went downhill. Downhill fast.
All of my kids were crying, bickering, and begging to go home. They began trying to claw their way out of the extra long train-like grocery cart as I tried to maneuver the monstrosity through the aisles which were jammed packed full of people. I was frazzled and was trying to keep a fake smile plastered on my face so the other shoppers wouldn’t notice that I was seconds from turning into crying maniac. To make matters worse, there may or may not have been a jar of pickles that somehow managed to be catapulted to the ground, only to smash into a thousand pieces of a juicy pickle mess. A sweet angel lady came up to me and told me not to worry and that it would all be okay, which made me feel about a million times better. Apparently my fake smile wasn’t fooling anyone.
After the shopping trip to end all shopping trips, I knew that I needed to get things under control. I knew that I needed to make some changes, and I knew that my kids needed to learn how to behave appropriately while in the store.
After much trial and error, I finally discovered what works for my kids. I’ve found that if I follow these steps, running errands goes much more smoothly!
Survival guide for shopping with small children.
- Have clear expectations – I always try and let my kids know exactly what I expect from them before we go in. I explain that there will be no whining, no fighting, and that we will only be getting items on our list.
- Get them involved – I let them help me pick out the produce or I let them help me mark items off of my list. Involving my kids keeps them from getting bored and wreaking havoc throughout the store.
- Practice – When my daughter was around two we had huge issues trying to get through the store. So one day I took her to Target when I didn’t actually need anything, and I warned her that if she started acting up we would be leaving the store immediately. About 30 minutes later, she started acting up (being loud, trying to run away, etc.) and we promptly left the store. She was not wanting to leave Target and was extremely displeased that I actually followed through with my (usually empty) threat. From then on, she knew this mama meant business when I threatened to leave. Also, playing grocery store is a great way to practice. Little children learn best through pretend play so this is a great way to teach them the dos and don’ts of shopping.
- Don’t set yourself up for disaster – I try not to go after church anymore, or when my kids are in need of naps. I discovered that by going when my kids were awake and in good moods, the trips went MUCH better. Find the time of the day when you’re kids are at their best and go then!
- Reward Positive Behavior – This doesn’t mean I always buy the kids something. Make a sticker chart or go to the park afterwards! I would much rather reward positive behavior than focus on the negative all of the time. So if my kids are behaving in the store I try and reward them in some way. It’s hard for little guys to sit still for a long time, and sometimes a grocery shopping trip can be long and boring!
What tips would you have on your shopping trip survival guide?
