Shopping with kids

[anewme]

I hate Shopping with five kids. How do you do it, do take all of them?

[3blue&1pink]

I have three and nope I do not take them all.

I either wait for DP and take them all, or call my MIL to watch one while I take two alone.. or if we are doing a big shop on the weekend the MIL takes one while we take two shopping!!!

We are expecting #4 next year and I think my shopping days are going to go flying out the window pretty fast :laughing:

[JabberJaw]

I have 4. i try to take only one or 2 at a time (hubby has a couple !) but in times i have to take them all, i give them jobs...get this and that etc,, it works long enough usually and then i usually reward them with a treat if they are good. I dont bother to bribe them IE ' if your good you will get' because they generally misbehave and get something anyway! It is not an easy task! But yep defiantly find making them all special helpers work well.
The littlies feel really important and i try to pick out something in the isle that they need to look for. I would have to say about 85% of the time it works.
I also make sure they are well fed and have been to the toilet as this has too been a problem in the past!
Good Luck

[Starlet]

Sometimes it's unavoidable and I have to take all three with me(hubby works away 2 weeks on, 1 week off), though I try to go when DS1 and DS2 are at school. I will usually get the older ones to be my helpers and get things off shelves and put them into the trolley. DS3 will usually have food to keep him quiet lol. And they older boys will get a gingerbread man from the bakery if they are good helpers.

I haven't had too many problems taking them shopping(sometimes they get run over by other peoples trolleys if they aren't watching what they're doing!!)

[Mum&bubs]

Gosh I can't imagine shopping with 5 kids! I have two, and I sometimes struggle with that, let alone 5!

I usually mix it up with my two. Sometimes I go alone, sometimes I take turns with my girls, one comes with me one week and the other the next week. Or DF & both of the girls come and we all go together.

[kirstenriley]

online shopping online shopping....lol

[hailsntwang]

I am the eldest of 6 and my mum used to take us all shopping with her.

We were given our pocket money at the end of the shopping trip - once we got home but only if we behaved.

If we misbehaved we had to wait until the following week and try again. (even if we had done our chores all week, the final chore was behaving in the shopping centre).

It worked!! Kids want their money:laughing:

[maisymum]

I hate Shopping with five kids. How do you do it, do take all of them?

That would be hard. We have 3 kiddies and i do the shopping with the youngest when the other 2 are at school, shopping with a 18 month old is hard enough! :laughing:

[mitty]

I don't mind taking two kids shopping. We have an 8 year old and a 2.5year old. The 2.5 year old comes shopping with us all the time and is great--yes he whinges but we try to make a game of it. He loves putting things on the checkout---thing.

When this bub comes I will be going shopping by myself and leaving the three with hubby--his punishment and my sanity. Cos I think i will need my shopping trip out alone to cope with 3 kids. Only kidding mostly

[sja]

I have 4 under 5 and I usually do the shopping with all of them. The older two walk with me, the baby in the trolley and the 2yo is either in the trolley (if I can get a twin one) or walking. It's only stressful if the 2yo walks as he likes to touch everything.

I get the older two to help me put the items in the trolley. They get the items off the shelf, pass them to their brother and he throws it in the trolley. I talk about what we buy - mainly because DD eats gluten free and I have to check labels for it. Also talk about bulk buying, and how to choose nice fruit and veg. I let the older two help me with my fortnightly meal plan and the shopping list, so they are pretty involved in the whole process and love being part of it.

I've never bribed my kids to be good and I've never let them have anything they ask for that isn't on the list. We stick to the list - if I try and get something they know isn't on the list they often call me on it. I even use lists for non-grocery shopping trips (it helps me to not impulse buy). But if the kids see something and say they like it, and they've said it nicely and behaved for the whole trip, I will often pop out another time and get it for them as a surprise.

I usually go shopping first thing in the morning before the shops are too crowded and while the kids are still nice.

[~Candy~]

I go when hubby gets home.. & I'll take just 1 or 2 with me or sometimes none!! or I'll pick up things we need before I start work (as I work at woolies). I love parcel pick-up to :thumbsup:..I'll do the shopping in the morning with just 1 or 2 little ones...then pick it up later in the arvo after I do the school pick-up. But...all in all, the 4 kids are well behaved compared to some I have seen ...eeek

[Lastcenturymum]

I am the eldest of 6 and my mum used to take us all shopping with her.

We were given our pocket money at the end of the shopping trip - once we got home but only if we behaved.

If we misbehaved we had to wait until the following week and try again. (even if we had done our chores all week, the final chore was behaving in the shopping centre).

It worked!! Kids want their money:laughing:

Oh I like that!!

sja, sounds like you have a good plan too. I used to manage with 3, and half the secret was having them help, and having the list written aisle by aisle (hate it when they go and move things!) They didn't dare run off, it wasn't an option:devil: At least with older children you can go when they are at school or leave the older couple at home in the holidays or go of an evening.

My hubby used to take all 3 shopping at night, he just loved the attention he got from the checkout chicks telling him what a great Dad he was :D

[WorkingClassMum]

I am the eldest girl of 7. My Smum would take 5 of us shopping.

I had to push the trolley :rolleyes:, sis#1 and sis#2 where given a list each and a basket, and Smum walked the aisles holding onto bro#3 and sis#3 (or sis#3 was in trolley).

We'd get a treat each - at home after the shopping was put away!

I frequently shop with my niece and nephew and my two kids. And I do something similar.

I get my niece to push the trolley, and give DS and DNephew items to get while I hang onto (like grim death) to DD.

I also shop at high speed - in and out - no hanging around when I have all 4 kids

[Josh]

I dont take my kids shopping at all, too much drama, my mum watches them or my 2 older daughters look after them, I would go insane if I had to take them:hair:

[jacethisa]

I find shoping with my 4 can be highly stressful at times.. I lay down the law before we go in.. I say if you behave this will get done faster.. My kids are 9, 5,3 and 11 months..

if the older 2 are good then the shopping trip goes ok.. We get our 3yr old to get things and help out or he is happy to sit in the trolley..

Thats just grocery shopping.. I don't get to do other type of shpping too often.. The kids drive me nuts and DH tends to wander off and do his thing and I am always left wandering the toy aisle lol

[mummyof5]

I try to knock over as much as I can on my 1 day a week with both younger kids at preschool, but in hols and stuff like that it isn't always possible. My DH is Navy, so it's not like I can wait till he is home to go shopping, lol, unless we don't want to eat for 3 months.
I do get the older kids to help as much as possible, and one of them is usually pushing either the trolley or the stroller. I do use bribery,:D especially to keep my autistic child enthusiastic about being there, and try to keep the shopping trips short.

[MissSookyLaLa]

online shopping sounds like a good idea...

jazzah...ten kids? wow! Im impressed, no wonder you dont take them shopping! though it would be handing to have so many hands to help carry the groceries in!

[MissSookyLaLa]

online shopping sounds like a good idea...

jazzah...ten kids? wow! Im impressed, no wonder you dont take them shopping! though it would be handing to have so many hands to help carry the groceries in!

[bronny-jane]

sometimes only 3.. sometimes 2... sometimes dh just does it while i stay at home:D

[LuvMy4Babes]

My older 3 kids are at school full-time so mostly I only have my 3 year old son to take with me and he's generally really good at shopping. On school holidays however I do take all 4 with me.

Like SJA, I take them early in the morning when they're happy and no-one's tired and it's not a drama at all :)

[melbryan]

I am about to have my 4th and they are all under 5 years old.
I took them today and MY GOD that will do me for about a month. They had to get haircuts DS2 screamed and refused so we went home.

[Starlet]

I just found an online shop that delivers to my area, so guess what I'm doing next week! YAY! No more waddling around the shops trying not to pee myself LOL.

[LuvMy4Babes]

Tracey, do you mind me asking who does the online shopping? I'm in Thornlie so they probably deliver here too.