What do you do when your child throws a huge fit in a store? The stink eye . . . shhhing . . . a trip to the washroom . . . a simple I'm telling your father . . . ignore the action completely . . .? The last couple of times I have gone to the grocery store, I have had to bring all three of my children. I'm busy, in fact, I am so busy lately, I can't even think straight. Thus, I'm on the fly all the time and I have to bring my kids with me. For food. To feed my kids. Because they are starving. Because I forget to feed them. Because I am so busy. And there is no food in my house. No really, I am exaggerating a bit here. But, you get my point.

Anyway, my girls are great in the store. I plop the little one in the cart, my daughter hops up on the side for a ride and off we go. Oops, I forgot my son, I've been doing that a lot lately! (just kidding) The instant I tell my son he can't ride on the cart as well, the silliness ensues. He is furious at me that he has to walk and his sisters get to ride. In all fairness, I do trade off between my daughter and my son. But, those kids are heavy . . . I simply can not push them all in a shopping cart. Like, literally, the cart will not move no matter how hard I try to push. I can't even get the huge carts shaped like a car out of the cart bin! I don't think my so has forgiven me for this, like ever! So, you get the point, that I am a weakling! Wimp! No muscles! I am not strong. I can not push the total weight of my kids in a shopping cart because the three of them together weigh more than me!

Does my son care? Not in the least. Does he understand? Not even on a good day. I prep him before we even get out of the SUV to go into the store that he better not give me a hard time. he promises, I am happy with his answer and off we go. No sooner do we walk in the door and he hops up on the side of the cart. I ask him to please get down because I can't go and I am in a hurry and let's go and come on son, I don't have time for this and we just talked about this and why are you acting like this and I am starting to get angry and people are looking at us and boy oh boy you better wait until we get home and you are so grounded from the Wii and Nintendo and PSP and PS2 and I am giving you a strike and I am going to take you to daycare after school from now on.

He does not care. Stubborn boy that he is. I love that he is sticking up for himself. But not in the front of the grocery store before I can even get to the bananas! I don't know what is up with him lately. Hormones it can not be. he is only 8 years old! It can't be hormones yet, right? Attitude he has. My son is so rude to my husband and I of late. I can't even begin to explain my shock at his behavior. I don't even know where it is coming from. We created a contract for him to sign. That lasted all of two weeks. He lost so many of his toys and privileges I couldn't even keep track of all of them. We created a strike system in order for my son to be able to stay at home with me after school. If he gets 10 strikes he will have to go to after school care.

Yesterday at the grocery store I have him his 10th strike. He wanted a hand-held fan and I told him that he did not need one. He insisted that he did. It went on and on from hi send. I simply ignored him. He was stomping and giving me dirty looks and crying at the checkout counter. All the way to my SUV. On the way home I told him how disappointed I was in him. He simply told me that he didn't care. My son started to rant and rave that he didn't care if he embarrassed himself in the store or if people were staring at him. He didn't care if I was embarrassed of him. He wanted what he wanted when he wanted and he was sick of me telling him that he couldn't have anything. He informed me that he had a horrible life and I was ruining it by not buying him what he wanted when he wanted it.

Basically a full on temper tantrum. I actually got my phone out and taped his little rant session. (now if I could just figure out how to load it on my computer). Believe me, I get it. I want what I want when I want it too. But, life doesn't work that way, hugh?

Next week, after school care for my son. Can't wait for that tantrum!