Back to the grocery store today. Even in the US, taking 3 kids to the grocery store is busy. Perfectly manageable, but busy. Here in Germany, it's become a full-contact sport in the summer with the older two out of school for a few more weeks.
My previous blog about grocery shopping included details about getting a shopping cart. We have entered the stage in which the toddler pretty much refuses to sit in the shopping cart for the trip, which frankly is fine with me. We're trying to get her used to walking more and more, so we have now entered the days of the toddler cart.
Have you seen these at Whole Foods? That's the only place I've seen them in the US, but here they are at nearly every grocery store. Small cart for little toddler hands with long handle for mom to guide and steer while toddler insists on doing things herself while rolling cart into an unassuming customer at full speed.
Here we go.
This is my plan.
Send #2 child with #3 child and 1 Euro piece to release the toddler cart. #2 child's job is to help #3 child, but only if #2 child actually ASKS for help. Normally this works fine. #1 child's job is to read and check items off the shopping list, which I have successfully made about 50% of the time.
Uh oh. Problem.
Toddler cart only carries a very small amount of groceries. Think a few liters of milk and some bananas.
We need a regular shopping cart.
Danger ahead.
Three children. Two shopping carts. Small aisles. Hmmm.
Breathe. #2 and #3 child drive toddler cart. I drive the regular cart. #1 child clearly wants a part of the cart action. He is, however, not the most attentive to the size of the cart in relation to the people in the aisles. For now, I steer or guide #1.
At this point, I should mention that after living in Germany for a total of 4 years, I have yet to see another woman in a German grocery store like me. In other words, a mother shopping with three children in tow.
We stick out. For several reasons.
1. We're 3 children with 1 parent. Usually the ratio of adults to children is much higher with the locals.
2. We're audible. Americans are known for being loud, but even trying to practice using our quieter voices, we're still...loud. Grocery store is still teaching time for me, from language to math to keeping fingers off the glass, I'm always talking with the kids.
3. We're speaking English. We stick out.
I finally made my peace with it. I work really hard to be polite with my kids in public here, and nearly always, people may stare at us, but there's a smile, too.
Sometimes I wish I could have a camera on me to see what we look like going through the store, me scurrying from child to child, correcting a toddler, or keeping the shopping cart from running into the elderly woman with her schnitzel.
Here, I see quiet shoppers. Not sure how that happens. We just...aren't. Quiet. Ever.
I wonder sometimes if I'm supposed to strike up a conversation with my baker or butcher. I wonder if they wonder about me, clearly the American living in their country with children who LOVE their Butterkaese. Maybe there are so many Americans here that I'm just another one to them. My limited German seems to help, and I appreciate learning a new word from them when I can.
It's really important to me that we try our best to be polite here as guests in their country. I should be patient. We have only been in Stuttgart since February. It may take some time.
