Do You Take Your Kids Shopping With You?

Discussion in Toys, Kids & Baby Stuff started by prose • Dec 2, 2015.

  1. prose

    proseActive Member

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    My son is at the age where he will not sit still, he constantly wants to be on the move! He really hates riding in the cart at the grocery store. If I bring him with me, I usually have my husband with me and one of us will keep our son entertained while the other shops.

    Today I tried to do a little Christmas shopping at the store with my son. He would not have it! We left the store without a single thing. Next time, he is staying at home with my husband while I shop, or we will get a babysitter.

    Do you take your kids shopping with you? Does it effect the way you shop, or how much money you spend?
     
  2. Jasmine2015

    Jasmine2015Active Member

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    I don't have any kids so the answer would be a no. But I do have younger siblings and there were times I had to take them to the store with me. All they want to do is jump around and look at stuff. Sometimes you might end up putting something in your cart to quit the child but then that means your buying things not on the list. At the same it takes practice to teach kids how to behave in certain places and that can't happen if you don't bring them along occasionally. I remember watching a clip of super nanny and she helped parents deal with the same type of problems of kids wanting to act up in public or in the store.
     
  3. Denis Hard

    Denis HardWell-Known Member

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    If it can be avoided one never should take a kid shopping with them. Because they'll be running back and forth or nagging you to buy them some junk food or anything else they think they like, you'll want to get done with the shopping as fast as you can and might end up spending more money than you planned to [for obvious reasons] or whilst shopping in a hurry you'll forget some items and will have to come back to get from the store later.
     
  4. Corzhens

    CorzhensWell-Known Member

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    When the kids were still young, they love to go shopping with us particularly in the supermarket because you know kids, they are preoccupied with snack food. As they grow, they would shift their focus on the department store where they always head for the toys section. And being teenagers, they wanted more of the clothes section and footwear. Isn't it funny that kids also have their stages when it comes to shopping? That's my experience with them which I was not able to experience during my younger years because my mother seldom brings us in her shopping trips.
     
  5. GemmaRowlands

    GemmaRowlandsActive Member

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    Sometimes you can't help taking your children shopping, because there is nothing else for them to do while you go to the shops, but often if there is a chance to do so, you should leave them at home. You will probably find that you make a lot of impulse buys if you have children with you, and if you're doing this then you will waste a lot of money in the long term. So no, I would never want to take children shopping if I could avoid it.
     
  6. clauemi

    clauemiActive Member

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    Yes I take my kids shopping with me all of the time. I actually feel weird shopping without them lol. They are now 3, 5 and 7 years old but when they were smaller they knew better than to throw tantrums and fits. As soon as they started getting into that age I said to myself ' I'm not doing this'. I'm not going to be one of those moms who's kid is screaming like a maniac because they don't get what they want. Of course my kids, like all other kids, have to touch everything and can't sit still. I would tell my kids that as soon as one of them started acting up, we were heading straight home. I kept true to my word and every time one of them started misbehaving, I would leave everything we had and we would leave. No more tantrums and misbehaving for us. It's not very practical at first, especially when you have things to buy like groceries. I'm glad I did it though because now shopping is a lot easier and enjoyable for all of us.
     
  7. sidney

    sidneyWell-Known Member

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    I also don't have any kids, so the question is not applicable, but I agree with your new method of not taking the kid shopping with you, because it will just be a hassle and you will spend more money because of them and they will slow you down while shopping.
     
  8. purplepen88

    purplepen88Active Member

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    I like to take my kids shopping just to teach them how to behave in public. It's a great way to teach social skills like holding doors, saying please and thank you, waiting patiently in line etc. One time we were at the grocery store and my oldest heard a youngest having a huge tantrum and he my son said someone is having a bad day. When my kids were younger say 2 years old I would go to Walmart with them and we'd go look in the toy section. I would always let them know that Mommy was not buying anything for them. This usually worked quite well and no tantrum about buying toys would ensue. Only once did my oldest throw a fit at wanting a toy and my husband promptly carried him out to the car to have time out.
     
  9. Pat

    PatWell-Known Member

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    When my grandsons were younger taking them to the store was a nightmare, they would run around, not pay attention and touch everything. My daughter and I have a different method of discipline, when they were with me there was never a problem, when she was with us they acted like little animals. I would inform them that if I needed to tell them to stop more than once we would leave and they would get nothing. No yelling no need to repeat myself. When their mother was with us it was like they were two different people, all over the place, she would talk and talk and they would not listen. It got to the point I would not go into the store with them. Now they are little adults but then again they are teenagers.
     
  10. jessicazi

    jessicaziNew Member

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    I think shopping with kids is a great thing but it will cost me much more money than shopping alone.
     
  11. shoptodrop

    shoptodropActive Member

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    I do most of the time, but sometimes it's just better to leave the kids at home. Now we have 2, and one on the way so it can be a handful. We have to use 2 carts. One for the kids to sit in, and another for the groceries. So it's easier if just one parent goes to the store, which I'm so grateful that I have my husband to do those things. Plus toddlers like to act up while in the store. It's good to take them though so they can learn how they're supposed to act, how to shop, etc. My 3 year old learns that we have to pay for things before we can take it home. She gets upset if she's holding onto something and I take it from her to pay for it. I have to explain we are paying for it and she'll get it back. So there are little learning lessons in there too.
     
  12. DrRipley

    DrRipleyExpert

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    We are fortunate that the kids in our family are a bit more calm even at a younger age. We never experienced them throwing tantrums at the store or at least not too much, and they usually listen when we tell them to stay put. The downside is that when they come with us during shopping they tend to find some items they want and that just adds to the expense but since they do behave they get a bit of reward at the end which I think is just fair.
     
  13. Briannagodess

    BriannagodessActive Member

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    I do take my son grocery shopping with me. We always take him with us actually. The same thing, he is very active and won't sit still unless it's a car grocery cart. But sometimes, that cart can be used up since many kids go to the grocery also. So I just let him push the cart to keep him busy. It's really tiring that you have to keep an eye on the kid and pick up items as well. Lol. But it's fun because you get to bond with your kid. And I'm hoping that making him go with us always can make him used to grocery shopping and in the future, he would stay still. Haha!
     
  14. rz3300

    rz3300Active Member

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    Of course, and it is also a great way to teach them a lot about financing, spending wisely, where food comes from...all of that stuff that they will just ask questions about. That said, though, we all know that it can be risky. I have found that pre-teaching is always the key. Let them know beforehand what the expectations are and how they are to behave. Do scenarios, role-play...whatever it takes.
     
  15. morgoodie

    morgoodieActive Member

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    It depends on when I go shopping and if I have anyone to leave them with. My son hates to go shopping and would rather stay home but my sister is not always here for me to leave him home. So on those occasions, I have no choice but to take them with me. I try to make it interesting for them by letting them scan items on the shopkick app so they feel a little important helping out like that. I do not usually spend any more money when I take them with me because they know that I am not going to buy them anything extra. Sometimes, I let them take their money with them and they can buy one item. This seems to help a lot of the times they have to go with me.
     
  16. explorerx7

    explorerx7Active Member

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    I believe it's good to take them along. Many of them may be problematic at first, however, after getting used to the situation they may tend to be more cooperative. Probably a good idea would be giving them the responsibility of choosing a few items, that kind of participation would probably have a calming, learning effect on them.