OK ladies, do you guys take your little ones with you out to run errands and just endure any tantrums or loud squealing that may occur?? I am a stay at home mom to a 14-month-old little girl who has a lot of energy but I have errands I have to get done during the week. I'm not bothered by hearing other children squealing and what not in public places but I don't want others to be bothered by my daughter. I've tried the stroller/shopping cart with toys, baby wearing and carrying her. It's often hit or miss ( but surprisingly she's done fairly well when taking her to restaurants but I think it's because she has our undivided attention and she has something to keep her busy). I guess I'm just looking for reassurance that a mom's got to do what a mom's got to do and for suggestions of how to keep her entertained during these errands. Thanks!
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It depends on how noisy you're talking. If it's normal child noise (babbling, laughing, a tiny bit of crying) then I would take my daughter almost anywhere. What's not okay is prolonged crying/meltdowns. It that happens, we leave whatever we are doing immediately.
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@alphagam84: I would definitely not classify what she does as a tantrum or excessive. Usually it's more of like a grunt or a squeal indicating that she wants to get down or she needs my undivided attention. I can usually redirect her with either reminding her that we need to use a quiet voice or giving her a little bit of attention but it has to be repeated several times throughout the trip. I do try to plan my trips around her schedule so that these episodes are not exacerbated by tiredness or hungriness.
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Oh heck yes...take her out! If I stayed at home in fear of my LOs throwing a tantrum or crying, I'd never get out. If I'm running to Target or somewhere, I'll stick them in the cart. My oldest is going to be 5, and he likes to ride in the big part of the cart while I'll leave my almost 2 year old in the front.
Snacks are key. My kids are totally distracted if they've got a good snack or toy in their possession. Singing and talking to them as you shop is also helpful. If either of them throw a huge tantrum, we're not opposed to stopping exactly where we are, leaving the cart of stuff and walking outside until they've calmed down.
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My kids almost always have a snack while we are running errands- I'm one of the millions of moms paying for empty pouches at checkout because I needed to grab some just to quiet them down.
For me it depends. Once we are at the store and I have errands I actually need to get done (like, we have no bread or milk for that day) I will just finish the necessities as quickly as possible if they are crying. I talk to them a lot while we shop (and sound like a loonie narrating everything). And bribes work on my older one. It gets easier when they understand bribes
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i absolutely take them with me. if they start losing it during an errand, i finish ASAP (especially groceries! no way am i leaving once i'm there) and go home. i typically cap out at 2 errands per outing.
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Oh yeah, def take her to do errands! However I've found that I have to have a targeted approach. I try not to do too much. If I'm doing car errands, its really only 1 store (max 2).
If I'm doing stroller errands I can usually hit up more places (I live near nyc so its walkable).
If i REALLY need to get a lot done, I get a sitter. -
When I had one kid - most definitely. DS2 is a challenge at times so I usually try to have an extra set of hands because he's the type that will just lay out on the floor if he gets mad. But this weekend I ran errands with all three and endured his tantrum. Mama has to do errands sometimes!
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Heck yes do your errands! You have to do them, and hearing a baby squeal for five seconds is not going to hurt an adult.
I tend to pack an entire lunch for my kids and schedule errands during lunch time. They sit in the cart and just eat while I do what I need to do. One snack doesn't seem to keep them busy long enough!
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The other day I was at Target with my 16 mos old and he performed at the register when it was time to give the cashier what he was holding. Another mom with two angels looked over. As we both headed for the door mine was finally nice and quiet and her oldest started throwing herself on the floor and kept it up in the parking lot. We looked at each other again and shrugged. We (most) of us have been there. Get your errands done.
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I take my 14th month old with me. He's typically well behaved and I pay attention to his attitude if he's having a bad day we wait till the next day. If he starts a meltdown we leave as soon as possible.
I try to involve him in my errands tell him what I'm doing and if I'm grocery shopping I ask him which one to take, and count as I put in the cart. And I have him toss stuff from the seat into the cart. He loves to push the cart so I'll let him out when he gets really antsy to push the cart or use one of those car carts.
I also like the places that have the free fruit or bring snacks for him because it's a great way to keep him occupied. I've also learned to avoid balls - like the huge bins with them -because he loves them and will have a meltdown if he doesn't get to play with them.
Oh! And he's talker and babbles most of the time we're in the store and I've never gotten any looks for it... and he gets loud too.
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@Littlebit7: this, word for word.
Plus, snacks. -
Children are humans that have every right to be in public. how will they learn how to act in public if they're always at home? I take my kids everywhere and anywhere I want or need. If they act out, I address it as necessary. Sometimes I have to get stuff done, other times it can wait and we leave. Kids shouldn't be punished for doing normal kid things. Unless you're at a 5 star restaurant or something, you do you..
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@nugget16: I suppose it depends on what kinds of errands we are talking about? I was a SAHM when my son was under 2 and I had a lot of anxiety about taking him out, what if he soiled himself, what if he screamed, etc.
So I started with small trips to build up my confidence. I would do one thing, and no matter how it went, I would go back home after it. Then, I added in another thing. I was eventually able to work up to doing a ton of things in a short amount of time and now, my son is happy to accompany me on errands. I mean, I can't go on a 5 hour shopping spree in Nordstrom just for myself, but if I need to stop at a few places, he'll come along no problem. Now, he even helps!
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Thank you all!! My husband says I'm over paranoid!!!but here's to new adventures!
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I really found 12-18 months to be a difficult age going out in public. They want to be running around and exploring and don't like being in a stroller or cart. So me personally I just saved my errands for after bedtime when I could stroll Target alone. We have strict bedtimes and DH handles bath and bed so I can scoot out around 7pm though.
My 3 year old is pretty good in public and has been fine going with me to places without much fuss since about 2.
If we do have to be out with DS2 (he's almost 16 months) we have lots of snacks and it's usually a family adventure on the weekend with DH and DS1 so someone can keep at eye on the baby.
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