My Personal Shopper

Going to the grocery store with Damon has always made me break out into a sweaty mess.  He cannot be confined.  He hates sitting in the cart.  I think once we spent an hour walking from the car to the front doors of the store, then back to the car for a time out...repeat, repeat, repeat.  I have tried time-outs, bribery (which is usually some sort of sticky treat that gets aaalll over me and anything else he can get his grubby little fingers on... and which doesn't last the whole shopping trip anyway, which means I would usually buy him another one)... I've brought the portable DVD player (yes, I seriously have) and the ipad.  But the kid just hates that shopping cart and wants to roam free or else.... or else everyone can hear how unhappy he is.  And then because I'm so stressed, I don't pay attention to what I'm shoving in my cart and I'm blindsided with a $200 grocery bill at the check out counter.

 

Enter my latest (well... a few months ago to be exact, just haven't gotten around to blogging about it until now) brilliant idea.  Yes, it was brilliant.

 

 

Oh man, he feels so legit with this little shopping cart.

 

 

It is sanity, on wheels, I tell ya.

 

At first I had a little trepidation.  I mean, who wants to carry a cart packed with groceries, a screaming two-year-old, his screaming baby brother, and an extra blue and green plastic shopping cart  through the grocery store after it has been shamelessly thrown across the produce aisle?  It was possibly just one.more.item. to have to lug around incase the all-too-frequent-tantrum ensued.

 

But, I hedged my bets and...to my astonishment and utter delight... (this has never happened)

...Damon was and still is a complete JOY at the grocery store. 

 

 

All because, he has a purpose!  See?

 

 

"Lunchables?  Check."

  

He feels so super cool and grown up.  He has never (knock on wood) run away from me with his cart.  Never gotten out of control.  He is kind and courteous in the aisles, stays right by me... asks me what's next on the list.  Shoots the breeze with the other grown-ups in the freezer section.  Seriously.  Best.idea.ever.  And I am not lying when I say he's never thrown a tantrum in the store since.  I promise, not ever.

 

Now I look forward to Wednesdays with a smile.  Quality time with the Damonater at the grocery store (while the Dominater is in preschool!  Angelic choir).  He's happy.  I'm happy.  And I would be lying if I didn't admit how fun it is to have, like, every 3rd person tell me how absolutely adorable my non-tantrumming-two-year-old is (I added the "non-tantrumming part myself ;).

He is pretty darn cute.  Look at that sweet, happy face. 

And his little "Baby Drew" in his cart.  Just like momma.

 

Speaking of the real Baby Drew... he is no longer crying either.  Baby bjorn, people.  Baby bjorn.

 

"Hmmm... now where is that brown gravy..."

 

He loves the checkout.  He puts all of his things on the conveyer belt.  He loads his own sacks.  He gets more "Awww, how adorable!'s" from the cashier and everyone else in line.  And he gets to keep the receipt after politely telling the cashier to "Have a happy daaay!"  Again, totally unprovoked and unprompted.

 

He even loads his bags into the back of the van for me.  And tells me, after we're all buckeled up and mosying on out of the parking lot...  "Fanks for making good choices in the store today, Mom.  You are a gweat sopper!"  Seriously, he says things like that.  I love it.

 

And if all that wasn't enough to make you run to your nearest walmart and buy a cheap $10 plastic shopping cart? Well... then I guess your 2-year-old is just better behaved than mine.  ;)

 

And excuse me for tooting his/my own horn.  Is my two-year-old usually this well behaved?  Heck no!  He is two.  Plain and simple.  Very, very two.  But I just had to celebrate our triumph at the grocery store!  Because it was a major triumph, indeed.  And his horn needed a little tooting.

 

 

Here's a cute little snippet of our latest shopping experience...

 

 

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