I attempted to go to the grocery store again yesterday with all 3 boys. I HATE. HATE. HATE. taking all of my kids to the grocery store. Maybe it's all of the comments that I get, "Are these your kids?" "Wow! You have your hands full!" Yadee yadee yadee... Maybe it's the touching of everything, maybe it's the screaming, maybe it's their inability to sit still for any length of time. Probably it's all of the above. Normally I go to the store after Jared is home and the kids are in bed therefore avoiding meltdowns, giving in to treat requests, risking losing control and basically it gives me an hour to myself. After being out of milk, fruit, veggies... food, basically we were out of food for 3 days, I decided I couldn't wait any longer. So I gave myself a pep talk, "You can do this Nicole! Lots of people take 3 kids to the grocery store and they all survive!" So, after Cam's nap and lunch I made my list and out the door we went.
Well, despite my pep talk I did NOT survive. Apparently I am a horrible mother and have failed at teaching my children proper grocery store etiquette... or etiquette altogether. After 40 minutes I was barely out of the produce section and Gage had already had two time-outs in the corner. I should have chalked it up as a loss and left my basket and gone home, my kids were obviously out of control -- biting, spitting, hitting, poking, pulling, shouting, screaming. After 30 more minutes of pleading, begging, threatening and bribing I wasn't getting anywhere and had a breakdown in the middle of the cereal aisle. I completely lost it and started crying! I just stood there and cried! I decided to leave. Maybe my cart would still be there if I came back later. I started out of the store when my phone rang. It was Jared, he had just gotten home. I told him that if he wanted his children to survive he better come and get them from the grocery store, right. now. Jared had to come and bail me out!! School starts in 2 weeks -- I won't be attempting this again for a long. long. long time!
Number 1 mistake: Grocery shopping in the afternoon. Grocery shopping should always be done in the morning when the kids are fresh.
Number 2 mistake: Going to a new grocery store where I had no idea where anything was. Why can't they just have one basic floor plan for all of the stores, it would make life soooo much easier and I could get my shopping done so much faster.
Number 3 mistake: Letting Carter and Gage sit next to each other in the cart, what was I thinking!?!? They had a huge cart that seated 3 kids - seemed perfect, but no. It required that Carter and Gage sit next to each other and apparently they can't handle that.
Jared has been informed that we will NOT be having any more children!!!
13 comments:
you are not alone in that category...That same thing has happened to me with my 2, especially now that Weston walks he can't sit still! Children know how to behave, they just think they won't be punished in public so they act how they want! wish we had a magic wand to make everything go smooth with kiddos! sorry you had such a hard day...
Oh man, do I ever feel your pain! Remember when I watched your kids and I'd take all 5 boys to Sam's Club?? WHAT was I thinking? Actually, they were pretty good. I threatened and bribed them all so much I think they were scared to death of what I would do to them. And, of course, other people's kids always act better than your own (meaning your 2 boys were perfect and were setting a great example for my 3). Mainly I'd take them because the reactions people had were pretty funny. Loved doing that just to do something different during the day.
Now, however, I refuse to take more than one child with me to the store. I still have desperate times where I have to take all of them, and it always ends in tears (MINE!).
I have no solutions for you. Just letting you know that I read it and TOTALLY empathize with you. Oh, and don't forget to always buy yourself a treat. Chocolate works for me. I like to sit and eat chocolate all by myself, locked in my room, while someone else deals with the monsters. I mean boys.
That's a shame because you have such cute kids!
I try not to go into any place of business with all three of my children, alone, unless absolutely neccessary. I get enough "you have you're hands full" comments, as if I didn't know the reason I go to bed every night totally exhausted.
Thankfully school has started, so I can now have a full refrigerator again. And yesterday I even took Ruth to preschool/playgroup so I had only one, again I say one, child to take the the store. And said child is only starting to be mobile, in other words quite content to sit in a cart. I could have skipped through the aisles. I was in and out in no time and then had to find more things to do to kill time. It was a thing of beauty! Just dream of that, I suppose that is the advice I would give.
Game over!!
That cracks me up because that is totally the story of my life. In fact, that was us at Walmart yesterday. Aren't they cute:)
Oh funny- I am laughing at you right now! And telling Josh that we are waiting to get pregnant- something he dosen't mind doing at all! Now I HAVE to take mine in the afternoon. I can't wait to see you this weekend! Remind me when I need to pick you up agian...
Believe it or not. . . this too shall pass. :-)
Ha I dont even take one kid to the grocery store. I do mine at night when Zach is home and presley is in bed. But there have been a few times I ran to fresh and easy really quick and P did great. Im sorry about your crazy grocery experience. I agree one layout per franchise.
Oh Nicole! That is such a sad yet very entertaining story. What they need in your town is people who deliver groceries. Wouldn't that be something?
I can't even stand grocery shopping with 1 kid...
kids are fun, aren't they?!! just kidding. Seriously though, misery loves company b/c it's nice to hear that you have days like this too. Really, no more kids?
This is so, so , so my circus...I mean my life right now! I abhor grocery shopping and I think this is why...every time I go it is some version of your story you posted. NOT FUN!!! Oh the days when our hubbies will be home more and shopping for food will be a glorious thing. Until then...just know I'm right there with ya! p.s. I always just LOVE (note the sarcasm) trying to fit the food back in the cart after you check out. It usually ends up stacked pretty much on top of my kids. Oh the joys!
Okay, so you've heard it all, but yeah, no fun! All I can say is I'm sorry!!! Some of my most humiliating moments have been with my kids. I just have to say though, you are amazing Nicole!
I see why you have a ton of comments on this post, we've all been there and can say DITTO! I will don anything, go to the store late at night even though I live in the ghetto or should be sleeping - rather than take all 3 to the store. Hearing this from other people always makes me feel better though, because then we know we can't all be bad mothers! :)
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