I am a YOUNG mother of 3 wonderful kids. We have a 8 year old, a 5 year old, and a 3 year old. Our first 2 were EASY kids. The 3rd my wonderful baby is not so easy. She is funny smart, and a beautiful child she has a great personalty but... I fear that we have spoiled her, well of them really but I can't get her to do anything she doesn't want to do! She pushes any and all buttons possible. She will kick, scream, swear, hit, really anything! The worst is taking her food shopping. My hubby works 6 days a week and doesn't come home till about 6:00 pm so most of the time I have no choice but to take the kids with me. She runs all over the store, touches EVERYTHING, and if I even dare put her in a cart for misbehaving she SCREAMS the whole time! Now I know that this is my fault for not disciplining her enough in the beginning but I NEED to change it NOW! Do I leave the store? Do I let her scream? I am just not sure what to do! I feel like if I leave she wins and if I don't the poor people in the store have to listen to her. What do you think?

Get her to participate in the grocery shopping process. Talk at home with her about food -- show her cans and frozen packages and meat packages that you have stored, and ask her what should you buy. Also, spread out the weekly sale papers with her and point out foods that would be a good deal or fun to try. Allow her to help you write up a grocery list and then, in the store, ask for her help in finding and choosing.

I know -- it sounds weird and a lot of work, but if you can get her to invest in the shopping trip, she will be too busy helping you to cause a ruckus. Each of my sons took their turn sitting in the cart and being my shopping consultant. We talked our way through the store. Once they both were in school all day, I felt very lonely when I shopped and talked to an empty cart seat.

Later, at home, they helped me put the foods away in an organized way (soups together with labels facing forward, etc.). It's certainly worth a try and saved MY sanity!

That is a GREAT idea! Thank you. It does sound like a lot but well worth ALL if it if our family can get some peace!

Get all three to be your grocery shopping helpers. Cut out fruit and vegetable and other food pictures and use a glue stick to stick them to a 8.5x11 sheet of paper so the kids have a visual to take with for shopping. Talk about recipes and foods to make too before and after you go. Include them in the cooking/baking process as well, but keep it easy and safe.

The jobs will help them later when they're older and away from home when they have to do it on their own.

Spell out the names of foods, and tell stories about Daddy Tomato and Mommy Tomato and Baby Tomato (or whoever). Your imagination can go wild with this in how to do it.

I have started doing that with my 8 year old son teaching him to read the prices and how to know what is the best price of what you are getting etc. There is a lot of stuff that I didn't know when I moved out on my own at 15 that I wish my parents would have told me so I am deff. Trying to do that so he is ready for the real world. This would also be a great way to get them to try new fruits and veggies! Its very hard to keep the little ones attention though I hope this will work!

I think wondergirl has a great idea there. I work in a grocery store, and I see lots of parents shopping with children. The kids that help out and participate in the shopping are always the best behaved. Some of them even like to help me bag the groceries they get so excited. Haha I also see some of the kids get so into picking foods that they start reading the ingredients and I hear them making comments like "i don't know mom, that one has more sugar than this one...i think i want the one with less." so you can keep them occupied, teach them healthy eating habits, and how to stay within a budget all at the same time.

I worked in a library and was in charge of volunteers (among other things). One volunteer apologized, but had had to bring along her young daughter (no sitter that day). I (as a former teacher and mother) rounded up several jobs that I needed doing that the little girl could handle. I showed her how to carefully apply certain stickers to new DVD cases and where to put the stickers, how to put on the date due slip, and how to print the accession information on the back of the pictorial insert inside the plastic sleeve/cover.

That little girl did a more careful job than some of my adult volunteers, and wanted me to "hire" her!

MamaJacks, it won't go smoothly at first, but stick to it until you all get into a rhythm. My kids and I had enough room in the back yard that we made a vegetable garden in the spring, so that kept us busy with food too and the care of the garden. ("You mean to tell me that carrots grow in the DIRT????")