
Judge Not
Most judgement of others comes from lack of information. I’d like to share why I have ‘that kid’ at the grocery store.
Although my son just turned eight, he often sits in the shopping cart and…brace yourself for it…plays on his tablet. Yep, we do that. People stare, shoot me dirty looks and occasionally make comments. You too, may even have rolled your eyes. I get it.
Here’s the why. I don’t have a village raising my son. I have me. If we need food, then he has to come with me to the store to get it. He hates it! It’s a ‘have to,’ so not enjoyable for him.
We also have a limited budget, so I need to be able to concentrate on my list and get the things we came for without him being distracted and overstimulated by all that’s going on around him. When he gets anxious, I get anxious. If he is quiet and content doing his thing, then my mind is where it needs to be in that moment.
Finally, I feel it’s important to make healthy choices for what B and I eat. It’s much easier to do that when I’m the one making the choices. There is no, “I want that, I want this” happening. I ask for his input on flavors or have him pick out his breakfast cereals. He enjoys organizing the cart as I hand him things and he builds a fort around himself. He’s happy and I’m happy and we leave the store with healthy foods. This is a win in my book, regardless of what the other people at the store think.