The “Stop & Go” game is a simple game I made up to help when running errands with kids. There are a few challenges when being out with kids. One of them is that they move quickly and might be hard to keep wrangled. The opposing problem is the slow speed of children. I think the phrase, “Stop and smell the roses,” was intended for moms. It is a phrase invented just to comfort us as our kids drag their feet while we are doing ANYTHING. Slow kids have been a very big frustration for me lately. Maybe I am in too much of a hurry. I recently found out a few of my friends hire a babysitter or have dad watch the kids so they can go run errands or head to the grocery store. I never really considered that an option. It’s not that my husband wouldn’t do it for me, but I guess I wouldn’t want to take off in the evening right after he came home at night. By then, I’m just ready to hunker down. So, kids have always come on errands with me. It does slow things down and can be frustrating, but it is also a great learning experience. I have a couple more tips when you are out with kids entitled “Waiting” and “Hand on the Cart.” I hope those are helpful, and I hope this idea really helps as well. This game keeps kids both close and moving…at least that’s my experience. It’s a simple game. We are going from store to store, and they may be dragging their feet or they may seem to be cutting their own path. We also may be on a walk. Sometimes we’ll even play this game while in the grocery store and have open aisles. All you do is tell the kids to get close and then say, “Go.” They can run as far as they can in a straight line until you say, “Stop.” They then need to freeze. I catch up to their stopping point and then say “go.” We continue in this fashion as we travel along. It really helps give them the feeling of some freedom to move and yet keeps them in bounds that make me comfortable. It really does help when they are moving slow. It’s a game so it’s fun, and they suddenly are interested in moving a bit quicker. It’s been a total win for us, and I hope this mommy tip helps you as you are out and about with your little ones.
Clever ideas! I admit I usually wait until I can run errands without my daughter. I’ll have to try these out the next time I do have Molly along!
You’ll have to let me know how it goes. 🙂 Thanks for stopping by!