Column Favorites (from Charlotte Parent)

Kid Carts

Let’s get one thing straight right off the bat; I love the grocery stores in Charlotte. I almost always find what I need. I love triple coupon time. When my oldest son was younger, he loved riding in the cart shaped like a race car, cookie in one hand and steering wheel in the other. We were great shopping buddies back then.

Then one day he took notice of something that he had never really seen before: the dreaded “shopper in training” carts. You have no doubt seen these little carts, their flags proudly announcing to any unlucky shoppers nearby that a tiny terror is behind the wheel. Now I am sure that there are little girls who push their carts sweetly and help their Moms shop, but I have a four and half year-old boy. Wheels are meant to move fast in his world!

Our trip to the grocery store pretty much always goes the same way. My son walks into the store and grabs himself a little cart. While I am adjusting my baby in the seat of my cart, the oldest typically takes off in search of the cookie bin. The grocers are smart people. They leave their sugar bombs right where my son can easily fuel himself into a insulin frenzy before mowing down innocent folks testing the freshness of the produce. I am right on his heels, trying to throw groceries in my cart while attempting to convince him to stay with me.

Of course, you have no power once they have their own cart. His personal favorite thing to do is a long run and then balances his body on the handle so he can glide through the aisles. I pride myself on trying to have well behaved kids, but with the little carts, all bets are off. I know people must hear my idle threats to take it from him if he doesn’t behave, but he doesn’t hear me. He is talking to the lobsters in the tank.

Don’t get me wrong, he does help. If there is a coupon dispenser, I can always count on him to pull one or twelve of them out and hand them to me with pride. I could do without him running the cart full force into the back of my ankles, but I know it isn’t easy to learn to drive so young. He just wants to have a good time and I can’t blame him for that.

But I do blame the grocery store. The folks behind this idea know just what they are doing. By the time I reach the cereal aisle, he has a few surprise items he has helped himself to in his little basket. He is usually just coming off his sugar high when he sees a box of Lucky Charms or Coco Puffs that he simply must have. Telling him no at this point is dangerous business. We are almost done. I can see the check out. If we can get through the next couple of aisles, we are free and clear. I let him get the cereal. The grocery gods smile and wink at one another.

By the time we reach the check out, I have sore ankles, a cranky baby, only half the food I came for, a tiny cart full of sugar and my son requesting a bag of M & Ms. The candy shelves, perfectly positioned at his eye level, taunt him. While he whines about getting candy, I find myself trying not to eye the bottle of wine in the cart. He sweetly helps to unload his groceries on the belt and while I am wondering where he even found Cheetos, the woman at the register says what a good little helper I have. I know she is right, but I still make a silent promise to myself that next time we are not getting a little cart. I can almost hear the grocery gods laughing.