"I am NEVER going shopping with you again!"This from my loving mother and loving grandmother to her, at that time, 3 grandchildren. I did feel her pain, I really did, she probably thought that she had left all that behind only to find the whole circle start again when she became the owner of grandchildren!
I, on the other hand, felt like some company with someone who could speak properly and hold a knife and fork. This was going to be a fun mother/grandmother/granddaughters day out. What FUN!! No, it wasn't my imagination, my dear mom DID change colour there for a moment.!
SO...(mothers are patient and long suffering you know, so if I ever doubted it, it was at moments like these that all doubt was put aside, she knew what was coming, I was only a rookie).
We loaded all the kids up in the car. Kerry and Shirley in car seats - the seats of the day simply clipped over the back of the seat, Lisa in the pram, a large highly sprung pram, very grand but not very practical.
Kerry always tried to reach down with her legs to see if she would be able to stamp on Lisa. I would put the hood up and all the way to town Kerry would rhythmically bump her feet up and down on the pram hood, but at least Lisa would stay in once piece.
Trying to have a conversation with mom was nigh impossible as children have this antenai that hears what they shouldn't and does not hear what they should. When adults are on the phone for example, they are all counting teeth as we try and concentrate on our conversation and chase them away at the same time. In this case the moment I drew breath to speak, that was the signal to do whatever they could to be heard over us. It is the signal to kick the hood harder, someone would drop a bottle and shriek for its retrieval and the one in the pram to schreech in fear for this abominably noisy and disorganised world she has been born into. The performance is worthy of an Oscar nomination. No wonder Lisa copes so well with turmoil today!
We then find a parking lot, no parkades, those only came later when I was not in great need of them anymore. Alighting from a vehicle parked in a parking space is hazadous as children run blindly into the road, never for the pavement.
We get Shirley into her harness - yes, I know, dogs also use them, I was told often enough, with disapproving looks. Tied her to the pram, harnessed Kerry in the pushchair (don't say anything), my mom pushed them and I pushed Lisa in her huge hughly sprung pram once I had eased it out of the back seat without tearing the upholstery. It was a good quality pram because Kerry never did manage to mangle the hood and Lisa remained unscathed.
Mom and I looked at one another with loaded looks that said "whose idea was this". We go from shop to shop with our loud and demanding little enterage until the whole fun expedition becomes too much for all of us, we cut the shopping short (a common practice in those days) unloaded the car, put our little hells angels to sleep and sat down for a much needed cup of tea and, yes, a proper visit!.
A few days later, mom arrived at the door, she had with her a present for me. "I am never going shopping with you again - not ever, but this will make it easier for you!" It was a twin pushchair, seen above - she never had to come shopping with me again after that and we visited in the comfort of home, the best place to be with toddlers where they are happier anyway. They only enjoyed shopping many years later with me and my purse in tow!
I used the twin pram for 4 years. I became expert at pushing both prams an once without them colliding. In the photo Lisa (left) was 18 months and Kerry (right) was 2 and a half.
I gave the pram to a mother of 10 month old twin boys when we left the country, so it was put to very very good use.
To moms who have been there!
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