Just the thought of going to the store with your baby makes you nervous? No wonder. Kids can have a lot of wishes that we don’t necessarily want or can carry out. The store and the various products present there make our kids really difficult to control. Check how to survive shopping together without unnecessary stress
Our kids are bombarded with colorful advertisements from a very young age. No wonder they want to have everything! For obvious reasons, this is not possible. Even if you can afford many things, it is not a good idea to satisfy every whim of your child. So how to survive shopping with a child?
At first, it’s worth asking yourself whether shopping in a hypermarket is really a good idea. A huge store, a multitude of stimuli and products can overwhelm even an adult, let alone a child. Of course, sometimes we have no choice, but in most cases, the matter can be played differently. If you absolutely have to jump into a huge store, maybe the child should stay under the watchful eye of another parent? This does not mean that it is not worth taking children shopping at all. Shopping is an elementary part of life and there is no point in pretending that it is not. However, if you are taking your child with you, we advise you to choose a small neighbourhood store, where there are far fewer stimuli. Start with short daily shopping trips and choose the right time of day – shopping with a tired toddler is a prelude to trouble!
When you go grocery shopping, you would probably buy something for your child anyway. Not necessarily another toy, of course, but something to eat that he or she particularly likes. So it’s a good idea to involve your child in the decision-making process and let him choose his favorite fruit or snack. This way, the toddler will feel that he has an influence on the situation and, on top of that, he can buy something. This may allow you to avoid nervous situations
It may happen that the child will want to buy something we cannot afford or simply do not want to buy. What to do in such a situation? Experts agree that you just have to be honest. Children understand more than you might think. Calmly explaining why you don’t want to buy a certain product is always a good idea. The ideal situation is when we can offer your child something instead of what they would like to buy. For example, a healthy but delicious snack instead of a candy bar.
Probably many times you have seen nervous scenes, when some toddler got into hysterics in the store. Watching this from the side is not pleasant, let alone when it happens to you and you have to deal with it! Unfortunately, many parents will experience this. But there are ways to deal with it. First of all, remember that a small child is not doing it maliciously. They just don’t know how to deal with difficult emotions yet. As a parent, above all, do not focus on the fact that everyone is looking at you. When a child is hysterical, calm is necessary. It is also not worth shouting, because it will only make the toddler more angry, so the effect will be the opposite of the intended one. You need to let the child get angry, but be beside him and support him. He or she may need you to give them a hug
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