How to shop with the baby – practical tips
Lindsey MitchellPlenty of regular, everyday situations become stressful for mothers. Whether it’s driving the car with the baby inside, or something as mundane as shopping. But it doesn’t have to be something extraordinary and stress-inducing. All you have to do is plan everything creatively and give yourself some comfort and convenience so that you can avoid all the possible complications along the way. Here are several little tips on how to survive shopping on your own with a baby.
Stroller at the store – yes or no?
Your husband or partner works abroad, is on a trip, sick or simply has no time. You need to handle bigger grocery shopping on your own. What to do? First of all- don’t panic. It’s not like shopping is some kind of drama and just like you go with the baby on a walk, you can also handle shopping as well. But what to do with the stroller? Are you supposed to park it outside and carry the baby in your hands? Absolutely not! Other shoppers or the staff may be giving you judgmental looks, but most of sane people will treat you with kindness. Some might even help you at the door or on the stairs. A baby is a client too, they have the right to go in the store in a stroller just like every other “motorists” which means people in wheelchairs and senior citizens with walkers. There is nothing extraordinary about that and you shouldn’t feel awkward about that in any way. Strollers in a store are a normal occurrence, so don’t stress yourself and just go right in.
What about the logistics?
Right. You have a long shopping list including large sizes and weights. A stroller with your baby in one hand, a shopping basket in the other… How to handle it all? Well, it can be done. All you have to do is take the baby seat out of the car, or a carrycot with your baby in it. Then you can place it inside a bigger shopping cart. The baby can travel safely whereas you have a whole lot of space and convenience when doing bigger shopping.
The second option available is a stroller with a carrycot. It has a bigger size, which means it may well become a shopping cart in itself. That way you can have the baby inside, or on your chest in a carrier whereas all the wares are placed inside the stroller. You can also make use of the shelf underneath the stroller, or the roof over the carrycot.
Is there an ideal shopping stroller? In my opinion, yes! For me it's Austlen Entourage, which has a huge storage basket, literally huge!
Shopping with a shawl
The best and most convenient option would probably be going shopping with a shawl. That way your baby is close to you, safe and relaxed. You have them under your control the entire time and don’t need to worry about the stroller taking a lot of space around the narrow shopping aisles. A shawl takes away all the stress related to thinking over the shopping process, over what and how and where to fit. In such case you simply grab one of the smaller shopping baskets in your hand, or a bigger shopping cart.
Another advantage is having both hands free in such situation and being able to use them however you please. The baby doesn’t get cranky thanks to being close to you while you have everything under control. It is possibly the best out of the available options for a mother that has to go shopping. It would be perfect, though, to plan such bigger outings together with the baby’s father. But life isn’t always perfect and that’s when we have to make use of our imagination and creative solutions.