Taking both of my kids to the store can be stressful. When I do it without my husband, it is only done because I have to. When it is my husband and my kids, it can still be stressful, but I am not alone. It is easier when I have someone to help me keep an eye on both of the kids.
Grocery shopping is the worse. Neither one of my kids wants to stay with us. They both want to roam around. They both want things that they don’t need. I spend the whole time saying “No.” Then we get to the check out register. Really? Who’s bright idea was it to put chips and candy at the check out register? After spending the whole shopping trip going up and down aisles saying “no,” I just don’t have it in me to say it again. I just want out of there and I don’t want to listen to anymore temper tantrums.
When I go to the store with just one of my kids, it is a little easier. It’s easier to keep track of one, than two. If I am going to the store to just look around, I don’t feel stressed out when I am with just one of my children. Since I don’t have to get anything, I let my child lead the way. I follow.
Saturday was my son’s birthday. He received birthday money that he split up and piggy banked part of it and the rest was to spend. He wanted a game for his Nintendo DS. My daughter had to go to school for half a day in order to make up a snow day. My husband and I took our son out for a birthday breakfast. Afterwards, we hit the pawn shops and the local indoor flea market in search of used Nintendo DS games.
My son loved it. This is a boy that walks as slow as a snail when we take him to stores to get things that the house or my husband and I need. When this little boy has money to spend, and can spend it any way he chooses, he becomes the energizer bunny.
We didn’t find anything in any of the places we went to, so my husband dropped us off at home. Our daughter needed to be picked up at school and I was determined that our son be given the opportunity to buy what he wanted without his sister’s presence. I knew that if she was with us, she would be begging me to buy something for her.
There was one last store that we could go to for a great deal on Nintendo DS games. It was Sam Goody, a small store that was going out of business. They primarily sell music CD’s, DVD’s, and games. I took my son there to pick out a game, but, once we got there, he wanted nothing to do with the games. Up and down the three small aisles he went. He was on a mission to find the perfect CD.
It took a while, and I was just about to give up, when he finally stopped, pointed, picked up a CD and headed for the register. Wow! He did it! He picked out an item for himself with determination and confidence. I had to shake my head and laugh at his choice, though. It was Shania Twain’s Greatest Hits. Now it’s in his CD player and he listens to it over and over again. We left for the beach that evening, and when we returned on Sunday, he went straight back to his room to listen to his Shania CD. It could have been worse. He has been watching all of the different music channels. He could have picked out something that I absolutely hated. I would have let him buy it, but I am so glad he picked out a country music CD.
