Screaming kid in a store.

fuzzybuddy

fuzzybuddy

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Location
The Sticks, Northeast PA.
It was a timeless scene, in the grocery store, yesterday. A 5 year old kid desperately wanted a toy. Mom said, "no". And the kid threw a tantrum. I have to admit the kid was good. He screamed notes that no opera singer could hit. He scored a "10" on the tantrum scale. The mom ,was being cool, The thing that got me was 70 years ago that was me. I just had to have a Davey Crockett coon skin hat. Ten years later that was my kid brother on the store floor. It's almost like a rite of passage. Were you ever the screaming kid, or the parent OR both?

BTW, Both me & my brother "paid" for it.
 

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Neither I didn't know we were poor but knew better than to ask for anything.

My sons didn't act up simply because that as a behavior wasn't tolerated. No hitting just take them out of a store and explain that kind of behavior wasn't how kids were supposed to behave.
 
Had that happen ONCE with my oldest. Threw himself down in the aisle and screamed murder. I simply took my cart to the next aisle and waited, where I could see through shelves but he couldn't see me. In a couple moments it dawned on him all was silence bu him; he jumped up and looked around frantically, at which point I stepped back around the corner. He joined me, and NEVER pulled that crap again.
 
Knight said:
Neither I didn't know we were poor but knew better than to ask for anything.

My sons didn't act up simply because that as a behavior wasn't tolerated. No hitting just take them out of a store and explain that kind of behavior wasn't how kids were supposed to behave.
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Same, exactly.

Tantrums are common with 3 to 5yr-olds; they want what they want. My second son went through that stage....briefly. No matter how full my shopping cart was, I'd just pick him up and leave, and he'd be looking over my shoulder at all the goodies we were leaving behind. Only had to do that twice. Twice, because he had to test me.
 
The very BEST reaction to a kid screaming and flinging himself on the floor in as store was........The Mother got down on the floor with the kid, and started doing the same thing, at number ten on the volume setting. Took about 2 minutes for the brat to shut up. Applause from the bystanders. JimB.
 
I guess there is something wrong with my memory cells in my brain because I don't remember being in any stores until I was elementary age. I'm sure I was taken into stores, I just don't have any memory of it (though I absolutely have memories of having to ride on my mom's bike's handlebars when she went to the store, memorable because it was pretty scary).
 
fuzzybuddy said:
Were you ever the screaming kid, or the parent OR both?
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No. I counted my blessings with my kids. Since they were around 3 years old, I took 4 kids, aged 3 (triplets) and 1.5 to any store without an incident. This is partly because I told them that if they ever acted up in a store (begging, tantrums, screaming, arguing), we would leave immediately, even if our cart was full. I meant it.
One time we ran errands and it took 7 hours, and no problems. We made three stops that really interested them: Lunch, snack, and Toys R Us. They got to pick one toy out of the $1/$2 aisle as a reward.

I took them to the grocery store, no problems there either. Each trip, I picked out something they could choose for the family. These were usually cereal, snacks, candy, and sometimes they could each choose one thing without a category being specified.They took these choices really seriously, so it felt like they were taking forever to decide. People always asked me, "Are they all yours"?

Same rule for restaurants. We could take them anywhere, and they behaved. The special treat was the restaurant. The managers and other patrons would stop by our table to compliment them. These were some of the same people who would look horrified when we came in -- I got a kick out of that.

They ordered their own food in restaurants, and paid for their personal purchases in stores. When the kids were 8 and 9, we ate lunch at the beach with family friends. The mom got up to pay for her kids (aged 12 and 9), and I asked her where she was going. To pay for what her kids bought. I said sit down, my kids will show them what to do.

At home, of course, they were not always angels.
 
win231 said:
I never screamed or threw a tantrum in a store.
I just took whatever I wanted.
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When the boys were 5, one of them wanted a book at Barnes & Noble and my husband said no. So he shoplifted it. Of course, our son did not hide it once he got in the van. So my husband wrote a letter of apology, and sent B&N a check. I would have turned around and taken our son to talk with the manager. Either way, he didn't shoplift again. Being deprived of the book probably did that for him.
 
We always got a lecture in the car.

All it took was the look to keep us in line or the simple question, Do we need to go back to the car?

I'm ok, and I get it when I see kids throwing tantrums. Heck, I still throw tantrums.

The thing that I can't stand is adults that insist on broadcasting their conversation to everyone within earshot as they try to reason with the child.
 
Screaming kids is not fun. It is not ok.

And some of us have actual hearing problems. And listening to high volume noise is not good for us.


As far as the screaming kids are concerned, to my mind, it is usually the parent's fault. They think it is cute. It isn't.

It is glaringly disrespectful to other people's legitimate needs for some peace of mind.


You can't go through life having constant sirens going off and be at peace.
 
My daughter was brought up with books. Before she could sit up by herself, she had a book in her hands. During a diaper change, she would have a tiny book to look at. At the supermarket, I always took a book with us. She would sit in the grocery cart and read. Never a problem with her asking for this or that.
 
Pinky said:
My daughter was brought up with books. Before she could sit up by herself, she had a book in her hands. During a diaper change, she would have a tiny book to look at. At the supermarket, I always took a book with us. She would sit in the grocery cart and read. Never a problem with her asking for this or that.
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That's because you are one of the good ones!
 
Pinky said:
My daughter was brought up with books. Before she could sit up by herself, she had a book in her hands. During a diaper change, she would have a tiny book to look at. At the supermarket, I always took a book with us. She would sit in the grocery cart and read. Never a problem with her asking for this or that.
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We always had books in the car. Two of my boys had colic. I'd put one of them in front of a bookcase, and he would calm right down. The other one, I had to hold in front of a specific mirror. He has always loved looking at himself.

At one point, I had to stop reading to my kids whenever they asked so they would play. I suspect part of that was because they wanted my attention.

We are a reading and writing family. I'd have loved to be a musical/sports/outdoorsy family too. So far, I'm the only one who really loves the outdoors.
 
JonSR77 said:
As far as the screaming kids are concerned, to my mind, it is usually the parent's fault. They think it is cute. It isn't.
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There is no way I'd stay in a public place with a screaming child. It's not always the parent's fault though, at least not intentionally. How anyone could think a child throwing a tantrum is cute is beyond my ken.
 
I myself never was, we knew that going out with mum was a privilege, not a right.
Besides Mum had really long fingernails that she would pinch us with under our arms. šŸ˜

My children, for sure all three tried it all three failed, I would just keep on walking not looking back, soon enough I would hear Muuuuum and the running of little feet looking for me.:LOL:
 
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