How do you take a baby to a supermarket?

[Carolina24]

I know this is a stupid question - be gentle with me.

My baby is three months old and to date I haven’t had to take him to a supermarket, but this afternoon I do. What’s the best way to manage this? I can’t push a pram and a trolley. Do I use the sling and reach around him to push the trolley? What is the preferred method for other parents?
Help a sleep deprived and clearly somewhat stupid mother out 😬

No more advice to add but just wanted to say you've got this 💪

Depends how big a shop you need to do. If it was small I'd use the pram and carry a basket.

Car seat in the car seat trolleys are a nightmare. To heavy and can't see over them so steer and see where your going.

Trolley with the plastic moulded baby seats do the trick though. Take a blanket to keep them warm

I use a sling but on the two occasions DH has gone into the supermarket with DS (11 weeks) he has put the car seat inside the trolley

The other good thing about slings is that the freezer aisles can be really cold for babies.

Depends if you are driving or walking.

If walking, I used to take a sling and use the pram to push my shopping home - I'd put 2 baskets on the pram and push that round the supermarket.

If I was driving, I'd put baby in the baby seat of the trolley, but I don't like young (below 6 months) babies in carseat for longer than necessary.

At 3 months I used the sling as I knew he wouldn't get upset about being in it, but could be in his car basket sometimes. Made it a bit difficult to bend down and pick things up from lower shelves but worked ok.

I never did a big shop, I’d either do a small shop with pram (massive basket) or sling with small trolley. I found a big full trolley too hard to
managed with sling as couldn’t lift the bags in. But I am short!
Once DD was a bit bigger 4/5 months we used the trolleys with a plastic baby seat. And from 12 months she sat in the normal trolley seats.

You’re not stupid, just probably exhausted; I know I was at that stage.

Easiest thing if the supermarket is walkable and you don’t need a huge shop is to walk to the supermarket with baby in the pram and stow the food in the storage compartment at the bottom.

Get a wheelie basket which you can pull with one hand while pushing the pram, or a normal basket which you can hang off the pram if it has a handle.

My DH would put DS in a trolley seat having driven him to the supermarket, but that’s only for older babies. Some supermarkets have the lay flat type seats for putting younger babies in, but again only works if you carry or drive the baby there, as you’d have no spare hands for the pram.

Take a thickish blanket with you and lay this onto the plastic baby seat compartment most supermarkets have trolleys that come with - just so babies head isn’t resting against the hard plastic of the seat. But it works totally fine OP, you’ll love the freedom if it & babies happy to be pushed around staring at you

I hated sling. Completely unpractical and it gets heavy to carry a baby, and be careful!, and carry the shopping, and the changing bag!

I usually used a sling as it was much easier, but if sleeping or if the weather was bad, the trolley with the car seat attachment.

I put baby in pushchair, heavier/bigger items go in the pushchair basket then I hang a big bag for life on the pushchair handlebars using bag clips and put most the stuff in there then unload at the checkout. Then at the checkout I load anything that needs to go into the fridge or frezzer into the bag for life plus whatever else I can fit in the bag and the rest then goes into the pushchair bottom. Then when I'm home all I have to do is take baby and that 1 bag inside then the rest gets left in the car untill partner gets home, we live in a flat so the car isn't parked right next to front door. I only do a big shop if I dont have baby with me so when I do a big shop I do like 2 weeks worth then all I have to do is a little top up for fresh stuff which is doable with a baby

I always use the sling and time it for DD's nap. Definitely the easiest option I've tried!

I think I used to put Dc1 in her car seat into the car seat space (where an infant seat would be) if they had one or in the car seat into the trolley. Or alternatively put her into the baby seat of the trolley if this was what they had - with a blanket - but usually I’d put the car seat in as she would stay asleep!

This is when you want the larger p and c spaces at the supermarket.

By the time of dc2 I think it was almost all online shopping that I did - I don’t remember ever taking him to the supermarket as a baby, but I went back to work much sooner.

I’ve probably done a whole

Sorry - I’ve probably done some shopping with Ds in a sling (maybe not a big shop) but can’t remember it in a food shop. I remember “wearing” him in a sling in clothes shops and this being fine.

Dd wouldn’t go in a sling though, she hated it, we had a small old fashioned back carrier which she was ok with from about 5 months I think.

@ArosGartref

Baby in pushchair, convince yourself you don't need a trolley or basket, pick up your fifth item and realise your hands are full now, stick potato salad in between baby's legs as she's asleep as won't notice, pick up more items and arrange strategically around the baby until that's full, stuff things under your arms, drop things, start putting them under the pushchair, get to checkout, make sure to check under the pushchair/in your pockets/under baby's bum otherwise you will steal something, stuff everything back under pushchair and voila, shopping completed.

This is exactly how I used to shop! As soon as she was big enough to hold things she enjoyed doing that too. I would stuff things around her body in the pram even if needed to (no car). I'm glad I'm not the only one as never seen anyone else do this before haha.

Agree goodbyelenin! Such a sling obsession here. There are 2 types of supermarket trolleys, widely available for babies. One with the car seat shelf and one with an actual baby seat in it. Why over complicate it with all this sling talk?! Just put baby in of the trolleys specifically designed for babies and enjoy!

It’s up to individuals what they do but most babies would prefer being close to mum. Those seats are hard.

Sling here

Trolleys with baby seats don’t exist where I live, and his car seat is a rear facing swivel type that doesn’t come out car.

It’s really easy with sling, and they can nap easier. Now Ds is a bit older he can sit in normal shopping toddler style seat but I still use sling if it’s his nap time

In a sling or you push pushchair around the supermarket. If you’ve got the set up where you can self scan, you take a big bag hook it over the handlebars and put stuff in as you go around. Or hook basket onto handlebars. They have trolleys with baby chairs in. You need the reclining one. Or take out the baby in it’s car seat and put the whole of the car seat inside the biggest trolley you can find. Stack stuff around the car seat.

@Iknewyouwerewaitingforme - those trolleys for car seats or infants do not exist here. Just because you have them, doesn’t mean everyone in the world does.

I’m not sling obsessed either, but also here many places are still not pram/ disabled access. Many shops are up steps, with small doorways, or different departments on different floors with no lifts. So a pram just isn’t practical shopping here. For general going for a walk it’s fine.

The uk is far ahead in making things accessible in that regard. Ie tomorrow Ds has his baby vaccinations. It’s at a paediatrician so all ‘clients’ are children. Yet it’s based on the third floor, no lift. So you use arms, carry car seat up several floors or lift.

If you drive, put baby in a trolley seat or car seat in the trolley. If you don’t, strategically place items round baby and in basket being really careful to get everything out when paying.

Just to add, OP - you're definitely not stupid and as this thread shows, there isn't a 'right way' so don't worry if something someone else has said is a doddle is hard for you, there'll be another way you find easier. We're all different in what we find easy or hard - I absolutely love slings and got and get endless use out of them, but I knew other people who found them totally useless. My car seat never, ever left my car because I found it so cumbersome and awkward to lug around (and it was a standard one) but I knew other people who used it as the to-go default to transport their baby anywhere. It doesn't make you incompetent if the way someone else finds easiest isn't good for you, just different!

It's much easier at that age to take them to the supermarket than when they get bigger. The second my DS could walk the supermarket became off-limits!

I used to put DS in the sling and it was fine to reach around to the trolley. You'll find a way that works for you. Our car seat was far too heavy and too much of a faff to be unstrapping and lifting out of the car so a sling was my best option.