GEORGE TOWN: Shopping with children is supposed to be a happy family outing but Chua Siew Paik can never have peace of mind in the presence of her 5-year-old son, Lee Boon Heng.

Chua had to endure tense moments to contain her son's insatiable demand as Boon Heng grabbed almost every item from the shelves of the Gama Supermarket during a shopping trip last week.

Boon Heng kept pestering his mom for this and that.

Their first stop was the baby's department as Chua needed to buy diapers for her 4-year-old daughter, Su Ling.

The boy started pestering his mother to buy him some clothes displayed in the department.
But Chua stood her ground.

"Son, we do not have enough spare cash at the moment as daddy is out of work. We have to save as much as possible."

Unimpressed, Boon Heng started stamping his feet repeatedly and demanded, "No way, no way, I must have it."

"Mummy, mummy, I want it, why can't I have the clothes now?" he sobbed.

The boy raised his voice, drawing looks from other shoppers.

When Chua ignored him, Boon Heng shook his head violently and yelled his lungs out.

The boy finally relented after several rounds of frantic persuasion by Chua.

After buying four packets of diapers for Su Ling, Chua managed to coax Boon Heng to go to the grocery department but the drama continued there.

Boon Heng picked up an ice cream tub and said, "Mum, I want to eat ice cream... Can I buy the cones as well?"

Chua refused to buy the ice cream but gave in on the cones.

Sticking to her austerity drive, Chua only bought the daily necessities by grabbing one tin of powdered milk, a box of cereal and a can of smoked meat.

The 30-minute shopping trip cost the family RM90.30.

Meanwhile, at her house in Taman Fettes, Chua's mother-in-law cooked a modest meal of stir-fried dishes and white rice.

Among the dishes were vegetables, two fried fish and leftover portion of otak otak from the previous day's lunch.

Chua's three children were not fussy about the food.

"We are not big eaters. I am happy as long as my children have enough nutrition.

"I am willing to have less so that my children will have enough to eat."