1. Try not to bring the cart to a stand-still. I'll count it as a given that you should have Abby in the cart - if you let her roam free you might as well give up. She does fit in the front of the cart still (as we found out today), but she will insist on using the seatbelt, and those can get a bit snug. No matter where she ends up, front or back, if you bring the cart to a full stop she will want to trade places - and she doesn't just request a change, she starts to move, so you'd better be ready.
2. Steer slow enough for her to say, "Hi!", but too fast for her to elaborate. Abby has to say, "Hi!" to everyone we pass. The responses that we get are anywhere from a surprised and bashful, "Oh! Hello," to a big smile and a chuckle as they return her greeting. Today one man even said, "Well, if you have to be at the grocery store, you might as well be happy." Yup. I'm always fearful though that if we go too slowly she'll start sharing embarrassing information, or say embarrassing things. Today after greeting a little girl with, "Hi, it's me...Abby!" she continued by pointing to her and yelling at me, "Hey Mom, did you see that? It's a girl!" I got going before she started to elaborate.
3. Abby has sticky fingers, so don't get too close to the shelves. Today, as I was trying to decide on something, I noticed that Abby had quickly (and expertly) pulled something off the shelf. Since she choose a bag of chocolate covered cashews I didn't fight her too hard to put them back.
4. Keep her busy. Usually when we are about half way through she starts to get antsy. The best thing to do is to give her a job, or to talk about what we are going to do when we get home. Today she had the job of holding onto the ream of paper we were getting and handing me the groceries so that I could scan them at the end. We also talked about how she could help me make a cake for a party at Jason's work tomorrow. Keeping her occupied and focused is generally a good idea.
5. Keep your sense of humor. A good rule of thumb with Abby on any given day is to not take things too seriously. Teasing her and laughing with her may have her calling you a "Goofball" for all to hear, but she'll also tell you that you are, "so funny" and laugh loud enough to make the people that are sharing the frozen food section with you smile.
So, now that you have the tips I will be happy to fit you into an open time-slot. Abby is available most afternoons from 4-6 for any takers.
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| Today Abby needed to come to child care for a bit while I went to a staff meeting. She ended up in the office with the principal's wife. When I went to get her she told me she was Mr. E/Abby and that I was in trouble. From her look I believed her. |
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| She was "writing notes" and "typing" to show how busy and important she was. Did you notice that she is wearing a Pirate wench's dress? Hmmm... |
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| I finally finished up the sweater I made for Abby tonight. I got a nice picture of her looking sweet, and then she started mugging for the camera - this one just screams "Abby"! |
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| I love this one. She was so hard at work writing that her tongue was poking out - like Michael Jordan. |
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