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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to wonder why the whole family go supermarket shopping?

506 replies

turnipfarmers · 01/04/2018 17:00

I tend to shop without my children as it's easier; I get that lone parents have to take their children with them but what I can't make sense of is why you see two adults with several children in tow at the supermarket?

Shopping with children for the weekly shop doesn't seem to be much of a pleasurable experience to me and it's probably not that fun for the children so why do people do it?

OP posts:
PasstheStarmix · 02/04/2018 08:58

I used to love going to the supermarkets with my family when I was a kid. We’d eat in the cafe or get some nice snacks to eat on the way back and I’d be allowed to choose acouple of things I wanted for the week. It was also nice to spend time together as most families have little enough time together without being separated.

PasstheStarmix · 02/04/2018 09:00

I also think it helps dc learn how to budget and behave in public as well general everyday mundane life.

PasstheStarmix · 02/04/2018 09:00

as well as*

yippeekiyay2 · 02/04/2018 09:02

Both me and dh like food shopping. I like shopping in general - apart from diy! When dd1 was little (9 now!) I used to live near family and I would go with my mum as she didn’t have a car during the day, I had PND and needed the support and company and it got me out the house. Dd1 was hard work (asd) and going shopping and to indoor centres in the early morning was one of few things I could do without it being a massive challenge and overload. Now we also have dd2 (19mths) and get more online because we both work full time but still try and go at weekends. There are lots of reasons why but frankly what does it matter to anybody else?! I get annoyed by old people at shops dithering in the aisles but that doesn’t mean they shouldn’t go. Even before I had kids I accepted people with children will be out, doing normal everyday activities with their children. I don’t enjoy parks etc and dd1 struggles with them but we would go for dd2 as she gets older but I prefer the shops!! Grin

TeachesOfPeaches · 02/04/2018 09:03

Didn't realise family shopping on a Saturday was a source of fun for so many MN families.

PasstheStarmix · 02/04/2018 09:03

Supermarkets also have a lot more than just food now such as clothes, toys and electricals that the whole family like to look at.

PasstheStarmix · 02/04/2018 09:04

I didn’t realise that going as a family to a the supermarket would offend so many people Confused

PasstheStarmix · 02/04/2018 09:04

to the*

PasstheStarmix · 02/04/2018 09:05

I thought these people would be far too busy singularly blitzing their shop online and then having too much fun to notice...

Guavaf1sh · 02/04/2018 09:08

It was almost a road to Damascus moment for me when I realised I could go shopping alone. Suddenly the horror of dragging kids around Tesco was gone. They hated it and I hated it. And by the looks of other people I think that’s the natural state of things

bonnyshide · 02/04/2018 09:11

I find it amusing that family shopping is seen as a recreation.

Binkybix · 02/04/2018 09:11

Nobody actually likes food shopping

I LOVE food shopping. Used to go with my dad when I was little and we sometimes go as a family now.

Once our neighbors, also with children, decided to come with us too! MN would have gone wild.

zzzzz · 02/04/2018 09:13

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

Timtims · 02/04/2018 09:20

A lot of couple-involvement in mundane things like shopping is either a 'share the pain' thing, or a FOMO thing.

Either way, I'd rather divide and rule. We have a busy enough life as it is, without duplicating effort!

longestlurkerever · 02/04/2018 09:24

Weirdly I thought that doing mundane stuff together was how you grew close. I've been with my dh since we were teens, and we've always done the shopping together.

StylishMummy · 02/04/2018 09:26

We take DD1 who's 18m, she's quite happy to toddle around the store and we talk to her and entertain her. Why shouldn't she understand the day to day rituals of life? We don't let her get in anyone's way and don't let her eat on the way around the shop so I don't see the issue

mrspicklepants27 · 02/04/2018 09:28

Get off your precious high horse. Some people don't have a choice! I'd love nothing more than to not drag my family around the dreadful supermarket.

formerbabe · 02/04/2018 09:28

It's perfectly normal to take children to the supermarket. On the rare occasion I have childcare options, I'm certainly not going to waste that time doing supermarket shopping. I prefer to spend my childfree time doing things I can't do with them around...meals in restaurants, gym etc.

BrieAndChilli · 02/04/2018 09:31

I do big shops online and then often pop to local supermarket between finishing work and picking kids up from school.
But there are times I have to take all 3 kids to the supermarket with me and then there’s other times we are all out somewhere (DH included) and we then pop into a supermarket on the way home for some bits.
Kids like to come as they then get to choose thier favourite cereal/biscuits/fruit etc rather than be choosing and get to slip blue cheese/olives/chocolate into the trolley.

skippykips · 02/04/2018 10:04

We do it just to annoy people, obviously!

No Im joking! We do a shopping trip as a family as we go to numerous shops and my 3 DDs enjoy walking around shops spending their pocket money!

My children are well behaved in public (not so much at home). I suppose I am lucky as it is never really stressful.

CannaeBeErsed · 02/04/2018 10:22

Lots of different reasons. DH Likes to look round the shop with me and pick things to try. I don't like being on my own, stuck lugging a family of 5's monthly shop. DH likes driving more than me. It teaches children how to act when shopping (DSIS's kids never went shopping and on the odd occasion where they had to, they were a fucking nightmare!), mine know full well what's expected of them In Asda.
And of course the most important bit: cos we want to.

daisypond · 02/04/2018 10:38

I think having your children around as you do daily chores is important. Life isn't all about "fun" and "recreation". There's other stuff that has to be done in order for the fun and recreation to happen and children need to learn this. We didn't always go as a family. In fact, we probably did it separately more often. Mine are older teens now, and are good at being able to compare prices, look for the cheapest product, know why the more expensive products are within your sightline, look at the branding of stuff to see why it appeals to you more, talk about how we are influenced by advertising, comparing offers like BOGOF, etc, best before dates, eat by dates, multibuy or bulk buying.

FrangipaniBlue · 02/04/2018 10:44

Well I guess it depends how well you've taught your DC to behave in public really doesn't it?

Mind certainly doesn't moan that he's bored or run around or get in mine or other shoppers way.

BertieBotts · 02/04/2018 10:50

I do most of the cooking so if something isn't available I know what I can substitute for it whereas DH would pick something random. I'm not writing little notes for every thing. In Germany you end up with 5-10% unavailable items per shop not 1-2% like in Britain.

I can't drive so he has to come too. There is no acceptable online shopping.

DS sometimes stays at home but when younger had to be with us.

Addictedtohavingbabies · 02/04/2018 10:52

Well we do because we don't drive, so we do it on a weekend and carry it home, stow some under the buggy. If I get a lift off someone then I'll do it on my own but otherwise there isn't much choice.

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