Shopping Right
It was a long time ago that Charlie was able to sit in the front of a shopping cart; it has also been sometime since I was able to lift him into the front seat and maneuver his long legs around the metal bar. Grocery shopping was a simpler matter in those days when Charlie (who also did not talk much, or seem to notice too much—he was still 3 and under) was stuck in his perch on the cart. Now he can help himself to ice cream, or sushi, and he is tall enough to reach for the kind of relish he wants. I don’t have time to shop when he is in school as I’m at work and there is too much to learn at the grocery store: Identifying foods and household items; navigating the crowded space of the supermarket while pushing a cart or carrying a basket; “staying by mom”; waiting in line; bagging the groceries and carrying them to the car; waiting to eat the food. Charlie has started to learn the value of each type of coin. Some therapists who have worked for a long time with autistic persons—with older children and adults in particular—have noted that they are starting to teach their students to use ATM cards more and more, or cards that have a set value of funds on them.
But imagine where we could go in this mega shopping cart—-it would certainly not be hard to lose sight of.
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POSTED IN: Charlisms, Education, Family, Food and Diet, Money, Technology








2 opinions for Shopping Right
Leanne
Oct 23, 2007 at 10:15 am
Patrick and I had our first shopping expedition without him in the cart (he’s 5…I’ve been smooshing him in there till now). It went ok. At least I didn’t come home a complete nervous wreck. I felt like we both learned from the experience and we’re gonna do it again.
Daisy
Oct 24, 2007 at 2:08 pm
One of our local groceries has a mega-cart like that. They use it in their promotions and it drives in parades, etc. Pretty cool set of wheels, it is!
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