How to Avoid Discount Seduction

We have two small children so my wife likes to get a cart and put the youngest in it because he's a handful . This gives her too much carrying capacity for what is supposed to be a short trip -- it also leads to the temptation to"accomplish more now" and "save time because I won't need to go shopping again as soon " (good thinking - but she goes to the store about every other day no matter what anyhow ) . What works better for me is to get the little guy( now 5 yrs old ) to walk with me or at worst carry him from point a to b while the other( a 7 yr old ) follows close behind . This tends to not only make me more focused on getting what I came for, I also don't curiosity shop for things I don't need just because they are there --- he's too heavy to carry for long periods and after 5 minutes begins squirming like he has fire-ants in his pants anyway ( he loves any form of shopping). This method gets the 7 year old happy to because he knows the quicker Dad is done, the more time there is for playing .

CM Davis of FL 1:59AM October 26, 2010