My husband lets our kids stand on the end of the shopping cart.
I do not.
Why? you might ask. First of all, I don’t feel like pushing around an extra 40 – 80 pounds when I’m at the grocery store. Second, I don’t think it’s the safest thing in the world.
Nowadays, I go to the supermarket infrequently. I do a lot of online ordering and parking lot pickups since there are too many noses sticking out of masks for my comfort level. As a result, my kids don’t go to the supermarket much either since we want to keep them home as much as possible.
But today, I needed to go to Whole Foods to pick up an item for my daughter. Since Whole Foods has been great about mask enforcement, I felt comfortable enough to take Ari there.
The two of us were waiting for our deli order to be finished when he decided to hop on the back of the cart. I asked Ari to get off of the cart. He didn’t. Instead, he replied with, “Well, Daddy lets me ride on here.”
“I’m not Daddy,” I reminded him.
Because he’s four he stated, “But Daddy lets me!”
With that, he stretched and wiggled around on the end of the cart. I was wearing a mask and almost finished with my deli order so I decided to grasp the front of the cart tightly so he wouldn’t topple over.
Eventually, my deli order was finished and it was time to walk to the cashier. I looked Ari square in the eye and gave him a choice: walk beside me or push the cart.
Once the pandemic is over and we return to grocery stores with the kids, I believe we’re going to have to adopt a more consistent parenting approach to cart riding!
Raising Literate Humans 
I really enjoy your writing style. I know that when I open an email from you, I’m going to be reading something that’s going to put a smile on my face. And, I really need more to smile about these days.
Oh, that’s such a lovely thing to say. Thanks, Julie.
That choice was the ticket. Leo, who is only 2, is much like Ari. He wants to make the right choice, but you have to find it. I hope the cart made it to check out without any mishaps along the way.
He was great at checkout. He likes to help unload the cart. Sometimes he’s a bit too enthusiastic with the unloading though. 🤪
I never let my kids stand at the end either….because my brother did when we were young and he wouldn’t get off. He started bouncing on the end and then I let go of the cart and it flipped over on top of him. Luckily, it landed right for him to be inside the basket upside down but it could have really hurt him.
Thanks for sharing
A tipping cart is one of the things I fear, which is why I’m a stickler about it.
Safety . . . like riding double on a bike. So hard to balance practicalities and the need to have some freedom. Love that you could still offer Ari two choices!
Happy with the choice he made!
Ari is a smart boy 😊
Yes, he is!
Oh the day to day decisions we have to make as a parent. As noted in your post, parents are constantly needing to guide good choices. It’s exhausting!
It is exhausting, but I wouldn’t trade it!
Ha! Nice to know that some things never change, pandemic or no pandemic. Everybody wants to know where the boundaries are, don’t they? I appreciate the way that the clarity of your writing voice (e.g. in the dialogue and in your use of short sentences/single line paragraphs) in this piece mirrors the clarity of your parenting style.
I appreciate these parenting posts! My husband and I agree on most of the big stuff, but it’s these little day-to-day things that we often do differently. We have the two level carts at my favourite store, so I let them ride in the bottom while I fill the top. We had to stop about a year ago because the kids are too heavy now. Now they fight over who will push. Of course, neither has been in a grocery store in months, and I think it’s been almost a year for Spencer.
Thanks for sharing this!
The shopping cart dilemma is a tough one, but not riding is certainly safer. My wife never lets me ride on the front of the cart, either. That said, when we’re in the big-box home improvement stores, she likes to ride on the lumber carts. Kids…
I can’t wait to hear about Ari’s adventures with grocery carts as he gets older. Trust me when I tell you that teenagers can find a lot of adventure with them! I’ll neither confirm nor deny firsthand knowledge.
I love that Ari got such a great choice! Sometimes in exasperation we might give less desirable choices. But pushing the cart is kind of like getting to drive the car for a four-year old. Brava!
Rock on, Mom! Those photos are perfectly captured. Sorry for laughing a little – do I ever remember (!!). I’m with you, though, on not pushing an extra 40+ pounds. Good for Ari, deciding to push instead.