The other day we were at Babies R Us and I had an epiphany! Lol. First off, Grant was having a major meltdown because we bought a package of binkies for the new baby, and NOT him. He was knawing on the package, trying to rip it, and screaming at the top of his lungs for BINK-Y!!! Jim does not tolerate that, so usually he’ll take him out and wait until Grant (or Gabe) cools off. Either that, or we usually just leave.:) It’s nice when we are together because usually when I’m alone I just sit there looking mortified and giving apologetic looks at the other shoppers who are starting at us. This time though, Jim and I just laughed….I mean really cracked up and couldn’t stop. It sounds strange but it was actually a good bonding moment! We just shook our heads and pretty soon Grant stopped because he was trying to figure out WHAT was so funny?! As we were leaving; I saw a woman in a similar situation with a little girl who was red-faced and screaming. The mom looked so embarrassed, dropped her items, and left the store. So how do you handle those moments? What is the “right” thing to do? I’ve read so many different expert opinions and none of them have seemed to really cure or prevent the situation. The one thing I do know though is I am going to stop caring so much about what other people might think. I am a constant people-pleaser and it upsets me if someone would get the wrong impression, and I always end up feeling guilty and upset if one of the kids has a tantrum in public. Why should I care what other people think though? I mean really, 100 different people could have 100 different opinions of how I handled one situation and at the end of the day, all that matters is that I did what I felt was in the best interest of my child. So from now on I am choosing not to care if someone shakes their head at me after seeing my kid have a tantrum. Kids are KIDS and if people can’t accept that mine have mood swings every now and then; well…it’s not my problem. Anyway, I feel better to get that off my chest. 🙂 Don’t forget to turn your clocks up an hour and spring ahead!!
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In my opinion, I would worry less about a tantrum in a family-friendly place (especially a kid’s store) than a fancy restaurant or church or some place like that. If your child isn’t infringing on someone else’s rights (like enjoying an expensive dinner or watching a movie), then treat it like you would at home. I think it’s usually best to ignore a tantrum, because negative attention is still attention! Also, since kids aren’t generally thrilled about shopping, taking them out of the store is like rewarding them. A better option (if they’re old enough to understand) is to offer a small reward if they behave or, if the situation warrants, threatening a minor punishment (like a time-out) if they don’t stop. And I’m not one of those people that take time-outs to the extreme of making sure the child is in a room by themselves for a time-out. My godson just has to sit on a chair anywhere for 3-4 minutes and it’s still an effective discipline tool. I think the purpose of a time-out should be to calm the child down, not isolate him from the rest of the world.