Fun at Walmart

[RedAngie]

Quite a scene at Walmart last night. There was a family with two holy terrors for kids.

I was walking down a grocery aisle when a kid about 4 had a tantrum because Mom wouldn’t buy him chocolate cake. He was riding in the back of one of those carts with a plastic seat behind.


He took off his flip flop and threw it, hitting my cart. Mom apologized but the kid continued to whine.

Then Dad came down the aisle with another whiny kid in the same type of cart.

A few aisles over I encountered Dad again. Kid was sitting on the floor and no amount of cajoling would make him stand up. Dad probably refused to get him Beef-a-roni or something.

I moved far away and continued shopping. But then I met them again at self checkout. Two shopping carts with a combined 5 gallons of milk and loaded with giant sized boxes of frozen junk foods like pizza bites, box of 48 small bags of mixed chips/cheetos, and other crap. But no chocolate cake.

Kids were running around self checkout area while Mom and Dad were scanning items, oblivious to it all.

 

[Kennywood]

Free-range parenting.....

 

[Schneewittchen37]

Some parents are a lot more permissive these days. And others can't stop doing the low helicopter hover... No matter which extreme, their children are spoilt rotten. I've met quite a few folks that struggle to be adults with that kind of upbringing. Really sad.

I spent a lot of time hearing how I should be seen and not heard.....fairly strict Catholic upbringing about how I shouldn't shame my parents, etc. etc. Don't be a disappointment, etc. I know how to lay on the guilt. And DH was raised by a salty Navy chief and the original liberated career woman, so he's strict and demands responsible behavior. So my kids didn't have the option of tantrums really. They can be pigheaded, mulish and bull-headed all a the same time though, they get it from both sides really.....

 

[Imzadi]

But then I met them again at self checkout. Two shopping carts with a combined 5 gallons of milk and loaded with giant sized boxes of frozen junk foods like pizza bites, box of 48 small bags of mixed chips/cheetos, and other crap. But no chocolate cake.

This can't have been the first time the parents took the kids shopping. You'd think they'd know seeing certain foods would trigger the kids.

It sounds like the mom was into buying pantry snacks that have a longer storage and shelf life than a chocolate cake would have. Probably also why the kid wanted the chocolate cake so much. It's not something he gets much.

Frankly, I'd have put the cake in the cart to shut the brat up. Then at self-checkout, put it off to the side of the register with other item discards. So, the cake isn't purchased and doesn't make it home. More work for a clerk to put things back. But more peace for all while shopping.

 

[mrodgers]

Frankly, I'd have put the cake in the cart to shut the brat up. Then at self-checkout, put it off to the side of the register with other item discards. So, the cake isn't purchased and doesn't make it home. More work for a clerk to put things back. But more peace for all while shopping.

Seriously?

 

[shh]

I often say the only good thing to come out of the pandemic for me was the discovery of Walmart's curbside pickup. I get all the low prices without any of that lovely walmart shopping "experience".

 

[RedAngie]

I’m guessing the family has an extra freezer at home to store all the large boxes of junk they bought. The same for at least a few of the 5 gallons of milk.

I’ve never frozen milk. Is it the same consistency once thawed?

 

[Mandy Poppins]

I love grocery pick up at Sam's Club and Kroger. I detest grocery shopping, probably because of situations like this. I'm sure all kids can be whiny at times, mine had their moments too, but I would have left the groceries and took their butts home if they acted like this. I have not set foot in a Wal-mart since the beginning of the pandemic, pre-mask and pre shut-downs when we really didn't know yet what was happening but everyone was buying toilet paper. It was such a zoo that I would have prefered fighting zoo animals for food and supplies. I almost had a panic attack from the crazy. Never again...

 

[MsT82]

Honestly being from the UK, I love a trip to Walmart! It’s like a theme park all of its own

 

[sam_gordon]

I’m guessing the family has an extra freezer at home to store all the large boxes of junk they bought. The same for at least a few of the 5 gallons of milk.

I’ve never frozen milk. Is it the same consistency once thawed?

Or they could have been buying for an event, or other people, or an organization, or some other option.

 

[shh]

I’m guessing the family has an extra freezer at home to store all the large boxes of junk they bought. The same for at least a few of the 5 gallons of milk.

I’ve never frozen milk. Is it the same consistency once thawed?

yup...we do it all the time when we can catch a gallon on sale, especially now with inflation. Just make sure to pour some out before freezing, as the container expands when frozen and may leak as it thaws. (Ask me how I know.)

 

[shh]

Honestly being from the UK, I love a trip to Walmart! It’s like a theme park all of its own

In more ways than one lol.

 

[Mysterian]

Whenever I hear/read "Walmart" and "family", my mind immediately jumps to variations of this scenario. Worse is when the parents aren't around and you pass the toy section where's kids are racing around, bouncing the large balls and/or playing catch. One of these days they're going to be chasing people with a palette jack that was left unattended.

 

[MsT82]

In more ways than one lol.

It’s a first morning tradition on our trips… always cheers us right up

 

[Smugpugmug]

Honestly being from the UK, I love a trip to Walmart! It’s like a theme park all of its own

Your comment reminded me of when my aunt, uncle and cousin came to visit my family from the Netherlands. The first thing they wanted to do was to go to a Walmart, Target and Costco LOL.

 

[MsT82]

Your comment reminded me of when my aunt, uncle and cousin came to visit my family from the Netherlands. The first thing they wanted to do was to go to a Walmart, Target and Costco LOL.

Honestly! It’s so epic compared to stores at home and there are so many things

 

[penn19]

Whenever I hear/read "Walmart" and "family", my mind immediately jumps to variations of this scenario. Worse is when the parents aren't around and you pass the toy section where's kids are racing around, bouncing the large balls and/or playing catch. One of these days they're going to be chasing people with a palette jack that was left unattended.

Or playing Marco Polo. I hear that often when I’m there.

 

[Ms.Minnie]

I’m guessing the family has an extra freezer at home to store all the large boxes of junk they bought. The same for at least a few of the 5 gallons of milk.

I’ve never frozen milk. Is it the same consistency once thawed?

One year we froze coffee cream to take down to WDW, when thawed and added to the coffee it was "lumpy" (for want of a better word) and looked as if it had curdled. The coffee cream was ok, but it wasn't very appealing to drink it that way. Needless to say, I never froze the coffee cream again, I just take my chances when we get to the resort that they will have it in stock or do a grocery store stop.

 

[amcnj]

It is not unusual that I first meet the “problem groups” in the parking lot, and correctly guess that I will be encountering them repeatedly for the duration of my store visit. And that they will cause issues (blocked aisles, register holdups, etc) each step of the way!

 

[tzolkin]

My Walmart experiences tend to be the opposite of OP's. Every time I go, I encounter several obnoxious parents who are constantly yelling at their kids. It's ear-piercing screeching of "stop doing that", a bunch of threats, "quit embarrassing me", and usually a few smacks. I sometimes just want to say, "The kid is not embarrassing you; you're embarrassing yourself." I'm sure the kid is probably doing something whiney or annoying, but they're doing it so quietly that if the parent would just shut up and stop drawing attention to them no one would have even noticed.

Free-range parenting.....

That's not what free-range parenting is. I think you're thinking of permissive parenting.

Free-range parenting is about teaching your child skills and giving them responsibilities so they can become independent adults. The entire point is that your child can be trusted to make good decisions and act appropriately when unsupervised. Having a tantrum and throwing a flip flop in the grocery store is pretty much the opposite of what a free-range parent would find acceptable. (And, they definitely wouldn't be using those shopping carts with the attached seat...)