I love being a mom. I feel so blessed to be able to stay at home with these two children that God has loaned to me. Getting out and about has become a little more work these days, but I wouldn’t trade it for anything in this world.
But, as our little family navigates through the activities of life, I’ve started making a mental list of some things that would make going out with children SO…MUCH…EASIER. I thought it would be fun to share my little list with you all. And you never know, maybe some big-wig at some of these stores and restaurants will take note! 🙂
1. Provide a diaper changing station in every restroom.
Believe it or not, while Kev and I were travelling 14 hours to Mississippi for Christmas last year, we discovered that not every fast food restaurant has a diaper station {we made lots of stops for potty and food breaks}. I was shocked at first, but we learned to adapt as best we could by changing diapers on the front seat of our Toyota Corolla. We were already jam packed in that vehicle to begin with, but it had to be done and we laugh about it now. It was not fun at the time.
2. Provide a diaper changing station in every women’s and MEN’S restroom.
Life with two children is often described as “man to man.” When we are getting in and out of the car or taking care of the kids out in public, Kev and I usually each pick a child at random. Sometimes Kev needs to change Brady’s diaper while I take care of Savannah {especially now that she is potty trained} and he oftentimes comes back from the restroom and then has to hand him off to me because there was no diaper changing station in the men’s restroom. God bless the single fathers out there who don’t have easy access to them!
3. Install automatic door openers at the entrances to mall stores {a girl can dream, right?}.
I’m noticing more retailers {mostly larger department stores} are installing handicapped doors. I think this is a wonderful thing, as I’m sure it is a tremendous help to those who may need help walking or may be bound to a wheelchair. I must admit that these doors also come in handy when I’ve got the kids in the stroller. Unfortunately, it seems like these doors are mostly found at the entrance to the mall itself, but there is no automatic door into each store. As if shopping at the mall with your children isn’t challenging enough, trying to get in the store should not be a chore. And a double stroller??…forgetaboutit!
4. Offer more FULL SIZE grocery carts to fit multiple children.
I have been pleased that more stores are providing carts that will hold more than one child. It’s funny how a lot of the carts tell you not to put a child within the basket itself, yet the stores don’t always provide a cart that will hold more than one child behind the handle of the cart. Luckily, stores are wising up and providing carts with either 2 seats side by side or some sort of child-friendly cart so that one child can “drive the car” in the front while the other sits in the seat. But, I’ve also been shocked to see that many time these carts have smaller baskets! There have been times I’ve had to delay my grocery trip to the evening simply because I know I won’t be able to fit both kids and all the groceries in the cart!
5. Supply highchairs with unbroken straps/buckles.
I can’t tell you the number of times that I’ve grabbed a highchair out at a restaurant and the straps do not buckle. If there are a lot of kids in the restaurant it can be difficult to even find another highchair, much less one where the buckles are intact. Luckily, our kids are old enough now that they don’t always needs to be buckled in, but it can be a problem when they are younger and you need to make sure they are strapped in the highchair safely. No fun.
I could go on and on and on and I didn’t even mention anything for nursing mothers, but I’m sure I must already sound like a high maintenance mom. The crazy thing is that I’m sure we’ve come a long way since our parents were coming along. With all the gadgets and gizmos out now, we have it easy peasy in comparison. But, for the sake of parents everywhere, I had to get these off my chest. 🙂
Do any of you have anything to add to this list?
And in case you were wondering, we have found Chick-fil-A to be the BEST place to pit stop on road trips. But is that any surprise?
