How to survive clothes shopping with a 4 year old?

My 4 year old is a nightmare when i take him clothes shopping..running around the shop etc, and getting very impatient. I know that this is probably normal for his age (he has only just turned 4), but what can i do to control him while we go shopping, or is it just a case of not taking him?|||leave him at home love, he's 4. from his point of view this is a boring activity. not all children are like this but most boys are. if he wants to come to the shop with you then explain to him what you will be doing and the punishment if he misbehaves. it will be his choice whether he goes or not. you will have more fun without him.|||Bonjour madam





My sisters little boys where like that, she used to use a harness i think you call it that yoiu tie to yourself, but it didnt work, so i one day took them out and she was shocked, all i did was explain to him he wouldnt get any sweeties and other stuff if he didnt behave, and talked to him. I mean at 4 they start understanding allot you know.





My daughter on teh other hand was much mor emature and used to start converstaiosn more than annoy, girls are better!





lol





no boys will be boys, you hav eto give him incentives and rewards!





thats all!





good luck





give him 2 kisses and be nice and tacful liek i said!





he will cry once twice or thrice then he will get his sweeties





you have to tecah him now! or else it gets worse as tehy grow older!





all teh best





aurevoir|||I'd bring small toys and snacks with me when I took my (then toddlers) now they're 12 and 8, much easier to shop with now. Altho my youngest is almost 16 months, I'll be dreading shopping again soon lol!





But, try taking small toys and a few snacks with you to keep them occupied. Also never shop when they're tired or too energized, that's just asking for trouble!





Another thing that often works, is an allowance. 4 is a good age to start that. A dollar per year old they are is a good start for that age, so $4 a week would be his allowance if you did it that way. Explain to your 4 year old, here's 4dollars. you've been very good this week, helped clean your room etc. We're going shopping, if you behave while mommy shops, when I'm done, it'll be your turn to spend your 4dollars.


It's pretty effective, your lil one's behavior just might surprise you! good luck!!|||Take a babysitter with you while you shop. With the babysitter there, you will get your shopping done and have your 4 year old taken care of.|||Shop locally and go alone. That way if it doesn't fit properly you can easily return.|||My son is exactly the same way. I find it easier to leave him with my parents.|||Take advantage of late night shopping and leave him home with Daddy.|||When children are being unruly while out shopping you need to try bribery! I used to do that with my son, so if he didn't behave we didn't go to the park or swimming, even for a walk, so that used to do it. I would just ask him, if he wanted to go for the treat, then he should behave or he was going straight home and to his bed!! It used to work. I found the carrot and stick approach used to work for me, but I was pretty strict with my kids when they were young. They are now 28 and 25 and still come to me for advice and help, so it didn't do the any harm and they don't seem to feel I am the mother from hell. I hope this helps?|||A good idea is to have a book that your son likes and take it with you, if he sits down and looks at it instead of running around praise him and tell him you are proud of him for reading his book.|||clothes shopping for you or for him? if for you, try not to take him. you can enjoy it more, and he won't be bored. if for him, make it as quick as poss, and have a treat @ the end as a bribe! works for my son...|||Lol, Hun it is probably just a case of not taking him if he is that bad. It also depends on if you are clothes shopping for him or for yourself? For you, definitely leave him home, but if you need to buy him clothes then maybe try some bribery and keep it short, write a list and get what you can with his help.


Good luck, it is a brave woman who takes their kids clothes shopping at any time!! lol.|||i had 3 kids and have found the best option is to try and leave then with babysitters, not only are they happier but you are too and less stressed to try on clothes and shop at your leisure, and your 4yr old will be pleased to see you when you return, its a win win situation|||You could try getting him to help you pick out clothes, either for you or for him. This will make him feel more involved with the activity. Also, try to have something on hand to amuse him if he loses interest in the clothes, like a book, or favourite toy.


Let him know that the shopping isn't punishment, or to make him bored, it's just something that needs to be done sometimes :)


good luck|||If you are going to bribe him, and there is no alternative if you take him with you; then be careful how you phrase the bribe. If you simply tell him that he can have or do something if he is good then he will start demanding it within five minutes of reaching the first shop and will never understand that he has not been good for long enough! maybe you could get him a child's wrist watch and set the alarm on it for a given time, then tell him if he is good until his watch beeps... and if you start off with not too great a length of time you should be able to extend it every shopping trip.Make sure that the reward is something he will think worthwhile..which need not cost much, it just has to be the right sort of thing..and if he is not quite good enough, or not good for quite long enough..but tries, have a secondary reward in mind because failure to benefit at all by the effort he makes will only make him defiant next time.You can try to bribe a defiant four year old with a pet elephant but if he has decided that the effort is too great and that failure is too complete then he will simply decide not to want a pet elephant.


In the meantime, it could be worse. My mother used to take my baby brother shopping , which he hated, until the day when, barely able to walk, he staggered over the a rack of dresses, grabbed at the skirt of one and carefully blew his nose for the first time. That was more than thirty years ago and she has not been shopping with him since.|||Hi,





I know it must be so hard - I have tried taking my 4 year old nephew shopping AND being pregnant too has been nightmares at times.





You need to remember is that in big stores there are a lot of colours and things that stimulate children and so they are keen to go off and explore!





They also get tired very easily so although it great for us women to be in the 6th clothes shop of that day it just too hard for little ones!





You can take him and maybe get a buggy and let him know that if he stays close to buggy he can walk around but if he tries to run off, he will be put in buggy until Mummy feels he being a good boy.


You can also give him a treat - tell him if he good in shops, he can go somewhere nice for his dinner ect.





Ask him to help you find something - all children love helping and gives him a goal.





If you going shopping for him then allow him to choose a top or trousers ect.





Put him in buggy with a book or his favourite toy.





If he still too bad then ask someone to mind him and go alone but chances are being in buggy with his toys he will be good as gold!





Lx