Grocery shopping with three and me

Most parents hate grocery shopping with their children. I actually love it. We have such a great time. It’s a lot of work though. All three of my children are very close in age. Zariah is 17 months apart from Anaiah and Yasir. When I’m shopping, I have a difficult time finding a spot for each child in the shopping cart.

Since my family is large, I need a lot of groceries. However, my children take up the majority of the space in the shopping cart. The wholesale stores seem to be the only stores with shopping carts large enough for my family. Unfortunately, i don't shop there. I don’t like the idea of paying for member fees...Some Targets have really cool shopping carts with special child seats. They are very large but not at all Targets. They help but it is hard to get around the store with them.

I always end up having to carry a child. I would prefer if Anaiah and Zariah can both sit in the carriage. It makes it easier for me to not have a child walking around the store. They walk slow and don't always pay attention to where they’re going. Of course they like to touch things. So it is best for me if they are both seated in the carriage. Since there is only one seat in most carriages, I put Zariah in it. Sometimes I try to make them sit together but they are both getting to big to do that. When I put Anaiah in the basket of the carriage, I have to make sure she doesn't step or sit on food. She gets annoyed because she is covered with food. So I walk around carrying Yasir, Zariah is in the shopping carriage and Anaiah is walking, sitting with Zariah, or in the basket of the carriage.

Once we figure out the seating arrangements we really do have a good time. We discuss the different foods we see. We talk about the colors. Things we like and dislike. We taste food which is always a good time. We plan meals while we walk down the aisles. I enjoy going out with my children even with some of the challenges.