Screaming in Walmart

YOu know, even the best kids have their days, just like us adults! They have to vent too! My 8yo GD is like that and I just try to stay calm and let her vent and get it out then we will talk about it. She does her thing to, where she'll say "I just need a break" Or "I can't stand this anymore" and stomp off to the bedroom and just lay down and cool off for awhile. Kind of like she realizes she is going off the deep end and just wants to stop and re-group. Generally I don't get mad back at her as I learned from my own kids, they have to vent to. They get mad too. They get frustrated too. And they have to vent or let it out and have their say too. So I think it is fine to ignore them as you did - they are only trying to get their way. Bet ya next time, she won't do that! They can push mom quite a ways - we moms just have to know how to handle it. I have ignored mine at times - just cause I said no and she is trying to get her way. Usually works and she'll apologize later. IT all works out. THey have to learn about us same as we learn about them.

I think all kids can have days like that. my youngest daughter did that to me in a store when she was 3, over a doll that she wanted. I didnt get it for her at that time but I bought it for her for christmas. Ignoring them when they act that way is usually the best, they really learn that they cant get what they want by throwing a fit.

i don't have a child yet at the moment... so i don't know how to handle a screaming child yet... but if i do have one in the future, i think i will do exactly the same way like what you had done to your daughter... i won't let my children to manipulate me and show that i am weak in front of them... i will ignore them as well and pretend that they are not there... take care and have a nice day...

You must have gotten quit a few stares and snide remarks. The thing that worked for me with my grandchildren was that before we entered the store that they would not be getting any candy or a toy. If they knew before hand I would have no problem. But if I forgot to tell them then I would get the whining can I have, can I have, why can't I have, and so forth. This worked pretty good for me.

When I was little, I used to do things like that to my mom every now and then, my mom would not buy me the toy, would not give me the candy or cookie and we would leave as soon as she got what she needed and then I would get sent to my room when I got home to "think" about what I had done. Then depending on the behavior on said trip I either got a whipping or I got a privilege taken away from me.

It really all goes back to parenting, I think...although all children are going to see how far they can push you, if you are firm from the get go, it shouldn't become a problem. My girls know that if they act up in the store, they will be doing extra chores, or will have a privelege taken away, therefore when they ask for something that I can't afford, I tell them no and they say, "well maybe next time then". and that is that

This is what kids do and tell me one child that has not done it :)))) My son knows that if he screams and yells. I think the way we did it was to return everything we got in the troley and walk off and went home. We did it few times and he knows now that if he does that not only will we not get the item but he wont get to play with anything or get mcdonalds and that we will go home.

Hey boo, how are you? Still deaf from all the screaming? LOL Sounds to me like your little angel has discovered the little 'devil' within and is now pushing her boundaries and your buttons. I think you handled it just right. She needs to know that that kind of behaviour isn't going to elicit a positive response from you. I used to laugh at my 'hellion' when he got like that too. Only I really laughed AT him, because he was just too inventive and funny about his tantrums. He'd get even madder of course, at which point I'd either walk away or just ignore him. Finally one day he gave me a peice of his little mind about my laughing at him and I told him "But honey, you are such a funny little brat when you act like that, I can't help it. I'd much rather you laughed with me though". He thought about that for a bit and said. "I am not a brat, but I can be funny too". Well he's still a brat at times, but at least he knows how to laugh at himself.

If it was really bad, I would have abandoned the cart and headed straight home or at least only bought the absolutely necessary things, ie cold meds and wipes. And I would have made it really clear that she wasn't getting ANYTHING while she acted like that. Fortunately I don't run into that sort of thing too much any more although my son does get out of control in a different way (running around ignoring me mostly).

For me, ignoring is the best way because in the end, they will be the ones apologizing. Once they apologize, you would then tend to listen to them so this leaves them no choice but to apologize and behave properly. My daughter also wanted something last night in the mall and she had her usual no-talk situation to catch my attention. But I never bought her tantrums and in the end, she apologized and that was the time I talked to her properly. So tough being a parent...hehehe! Have a great day!

My son is about to be two and he does this. I usually ignore it. Sometimes i will give in and get it for him. Sometimes he will play with it untill i am leaving then he will give it up. Other times i avoid areas that can trigger it.

I'm sorry but I wouldn't torture other shoppers by having my child scream like a banshee because I wouldn't buy her a toy. I'd take her to the bathroom and spank her. If she continued to cry, she'd get spanked again. I'm the mom. She's the child. I'm in charge. She's not. If she wants to act out, there will be reprocussions. Plain and simple.

My son had one temper tantrum in a public place when he was five years old. One. He is now 14. Funny enough, it was also in Walmart. It's probably our karmic backlash for shopping at the evil empire. Anyway, we were shopping for various household items, and we had also picked him up a tiny metal car. While driving past the toy section he saw something else he wanted. Something big and expensive although it eludes me what exactly it was. My son told me he wanted the large over-expensive toy. I told him he could not have it. He then proceded to pitch the mother of all fits. Screaming, pulling his hair, trying to get out of the seat in the cart - you know the drill. I told him to stop. He screamed louder. I told him if he did not stop we would take everything out of the cart, put it back and leave. He screamed louder. So, true to my word we drove around the store putting away the items. I then picked him out of the cart and left the store. He was absolutely shocked. Once in the car he told me he was sorry and asked if we could go back shopping. I accepted his apology and told him we could go back another day, but not that day. I figured if I let him go back I would be teaching him he could act however he wanted with little or no consequences as long as he apologized. I also figured since he had apologized and was being punished by not being allowed to shop further, there was no need to be mad at him anymore. I find a lot of parents over-punish, or hold-grudges once an incident is over. I taught him the rules, gave him a sense of consquences for his action, BUT we continued to have a nice day at home afterwards. I hate it when I see parents screaming at and berating their kids in public - making a big public show of discipline, and then ten minutes later they are buying their kid an icecream because they feel bad for over-reacting. Stay calm. Tell them to stop what they are doing wrong. If this doesn't work, warn them and state what will happen if they continue the behavior, and give them a chance to stop. If they keep acting badly, calmly follow through on your threat. Remember not to threaten something you can't or won't follow through on. For instance - stop, or we're going home and no televion until tomorrow - is a good threat. Stop, or I'm going to sell you to the circus, and give all your toys to an orphanage is an unreasonable threat - you get the idea. Be fair but firm.