Hmmm I think I am guilty of doing this. If he sees one of his treats being placed in the cart, he usually wants it. So I give it to him. It doesn’t bother me one bit, just as long as it’s nothing that needs washing. Sometimes I distract him by letting him help me push the cart. For some reason he LOVES doing that.
Maybe my husband is the spoiled one. He is very guilty of eating candy, shakes, and juices while shopping. LOL. So Lil Man is always munching along too. Hehe.

If Moo wants a snack while I shop, I usually head to self checkout, pay for the item, keep the receipts in my pocket and return to shopping. Sometimes, she’s genuinely hungry because we’ve been out too long since her last meal. I seeing it as a case of spoiling. Kids eat a lot.

And the case the pregnant lady who got arrested, I think she honestly just forgot about the sandwiches. After, she did pay for the rest of her groceries. I think the manager was being a jerk! He could have come to the register and reminded her about the sandwiches.

Sometimes by the time I get to the checkout I’m so thirsty and if I’m somewhere like Walmart where I have to wait forever in line, I’ll pop open a bottle of water. It’s not a habit I want to keep though. When my daughter is old enough to do the same, I won’t let her open up groceries to eat before they’re paid for. (Unless of course she’s thirsty and I don’t have anything to drink for her. I would most definitely “hydrate” my baby and not feel bad about it for a second lol)

I didn’t know you were still using cloth diapers. I just started and am having trouble rinsing all the soap out of them. What kind and how much detergent do you use?

I am guilty! As long as you seriously are going to pay for it, I don’t see the problem.

I just read a news story out of Hawaii I think or Oregon or California – mom brain memory loss, sorry – where a pregnant mom ate a sandwich while shopping with her family at the grocery store and after ringing up and paying for all her groceries remembered on the way out the sandwich wrapper and then a security guard came up to them – husband and wife – and they were arrested for shoplifting. They took their toddler daughter away from them and put her in State custody for a day until they posted bail. Yep, all that happened. Now I don’t think I will ever do it again. I can’t even remember in what state this story happened, how do I expect to remember to pay for stuff after I ate it? Or why go through the hassle of paying, eating, but still getting into something because someone doesn’t believe that I paid for it? Oy!

My best, Lynn
*don’t you just love my block paragraph of an answer? ;o)

Growing up our Mom only let us do that with drinks. Never food though. When our daughter gets older I will probably adapt the same idea.

I agree with previous comment about not doing that with weighed food. I worked in a grocery store that had a lot of theft growing up and saw someone get arrested – not for eating weighed food but for carrying out giftcards. Anyway, I get annoyed when I see people eat fruit especially grapes while selecting their bunch or just walking up taking some and walking away. Ughhhh! First off it’s disgusting since the fruit’s not washed and second it’s stealing.

With my now 14 month old depending on the level of meltdown I let her eat packaged food. Recently I did this with a fruit pouch. It kept us sane in Target and yes, I remembered to pay for it at checkout.

Hilarious preface btw of you explaining her outfit. Dad’s are too funny!

Thanks for the link mamas! Added! That’s just nuts, but one reason why I don’t do it… In case I forget. I do bring emergency snacks incase of a meltdown but I try not to depend on food. I do let her play with a toy or ball though while we walk around.

I am guilty of this! And my momma would have NEVER ever let us do this. I ate a grape one time and she turned me into the store manager. Geesh…

But daddy is SOOOOO against this. We kinda argue at the store when I do it. I AM going to pay for it….calm down.

If I’m buying baby food (we use the squeeze pouches like happy tot or plum organics) I will let her have one to eat while we shop because she gets upset if she sees them, especially near lunch time. I always throw it in the cart when she’s done, and the cashiers ring it like normal. Sometimes they offer to throw it away, sometimes they don’t even notice and throw it in the bag. Honestly, I’m always a little afraid to “bring my own” because what if someone thinks I stole it? Honestly, how would they ever know if I pulled it out of my diaper bag? So I just feed her one from the shelves and pay for it when we check out. 😀

I think that you should do what feels “right” not necessarily what is easiest, what ever that is. For me, I have taught my kids that it isn’t ours until we pay for it and so they have to wait until it’s paid for but no one can tell you what is best for your family only you and your DH and God can do that. I’m sure whatever you decide to do will be perfect for your family.

My husband stays eating pre-purchased grocery food. I always yell at him lol…

To me, it’s not much different than getting food at a restaurant and eating it before paying your check. I don’t see how eating food before paying for it at a grocery store (with produce and other items that require getting weighed, of course) IF YOU HAVE EVERY INTENTION OF PAYING is any more dishonest than eating your meal at Chili’s before paying the check.

That being said, it’s still not something I make a habit of doing, not only because it helps my children learn patience but also because I’m so afraid that I’d do what that woman in the story did and forrget to pay.

i think giving in on a kid’s demands is really spoiling the child..it’s teaching the child that he/she can get whatever he/she wants, as long as he/she throws a fit..and it doesn’t work like that in life…i think sometimes we forget that children are little people.w.e are molding them for the very soon future