I occasionally see kids having meltdowns in grocery stores or malls. It's not a pretty picture. The kid is flailing about, kicking and screaming, or being limp while mom or dad tries to pick them up by the armpits (which inconveniently disappear when said limpness takes over). The parent is frazzled and frustrated and people stop to see what the commotion is about, making the parent feel like everyone is staring and judging.
I can honestly say I have never had to deal with a tantrum in public. My kids get frustrated and grumpy like any other kid, but they have never thrown a full out fit where people can see. Is it because they're shy? Is it because I purposefully never shop during the "witching hours" (i.e. naptime or dinner time or bedtime)? Is it because it is just in their natures (probably not, cuz we have our share of home/grandma's house tantrums)? I don't know.
But whatever the reason, I am grateful. The other day I took the kids grocery shopping at good ol' Walmart. As always, we stopped by the bakery to grab the free cookie. This will keep them happy through the produce and into bread and meat. Little Peach just hangs out in the sling, big kids walk. They know that if they run away (Honeybuns does this sometimes) they have to be buckled into the cart. We had to go to each corner of the store multiple times and the bathroom once, and they were great! The check-out guy even commented on how good they were. I did have to put Honeybuns in the cart once, then let her out to see the fish and afterwards, she stuck right by my side.
So while I do have my share of parenting woes and struggles, I am glad shopping with kids isn't one of them!
2 comments:
They're probably good because you take them out often enough that they're used to it. Parenting fail on my part. I do take my kids out pretty regularly now, but I hadn't until recently. Usually it's one or two places MAX. And if it's somewhere crazy like Superstition Ranch Market, I say a prayer, take a deep breath and brace myself for the inevitable running off/grabbing at fruit/trying to climb out of the cart/tantrums!
That is a BIG blessing. For us, I've learned timing is key. Remember when I made the mistake of going to the library right before dinner? Yeah, not a good time to take a 2 year old to the library I learned :)
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