This is awesome! I cannot even believe this has not been done before. I have to get one. I fully open anything in the store just to get the job done. Much better than handing my 1 year old a box of crackers!!!!

Yeah!  I’m so glad OnTray helped you and Z shop!  My main purpose in creating onTray was to help make shopping with young children more enjoyable.  It pleases me to think it did that!

That is so cool!  Who needs kids, I want to have a snack while I shop! ;-) What a clever idea!

What a great product! Perfect for when you want to keep the little one happy and actually be able to look at products without just throwing them into the cart!

This is a product I can get my head around!

I usually make a tray liner out of a produce bag because, yes, my 2.5 yr old goes out of his mind with hunger when we go to the grocery store.  I think it is the novelty of trying new foods.

Luckily, our Central Market has loads of fruit, bread, cheese and cracker samples to pile onto the tray!

@Laura, Thanks for stopping by. Honestly, the greatest distinguishing feature of your product is its overall quality. The parts fit together very nicely, the lid slides onto the tray’s bottom or top smoothly and holds with just the right amount of grip, the body snaps firmly but easily to shopping cart handles, the plastic is an appropriate thickness and is not flimsy. You clearly worked on this design and did not sacrifice quality. We love it!

This is not just awesome for little ones but for mom, too, on those few “kid-free” shopping trips. It would work great to keep a grocery list and loose coupons right in front of you while you shop! Wonderful product!!!

Funny thing is, when my kids and I go shopping, I just tell them NO when they start making a fuss for everything in the store.  I’ve never felt obligated to bring snacks to tide them over, or control behavior.

I don’t find this product necessary.

Not neccessary- I hear you! I too do not bribe or use food to control behavior, but I have to admit that with a one year old who does not understand no, or wait- sometimes it is nice to finish the job once I have loaded everyone in to a car! You know what I mean?
Useful for kids or not- love the idea for moms! I often run into the store w/ keys, credit card and list and have no where to put it! Fun!

@Shel: Most dietary experts will agree that young children do not perform at their best when constrained to the adult routine of three meals a day. In fact, the ideal diet even for adults consists of smaller, more frequent meals. If your life is such that you can have all of these dining experiences at home, to you I say wow! Our lives are not nearly so settled.

I’m not sure how this equates with “controlling behavior” through the use of food. If our four-year-old is hungry, we feed her. If we’re close to mealtime or can’t offer variety or the healthiest choices, a little; if none of those conditions apply, then as much as she wants to eat.

Best to chalk this up to a difference in parenting styles rather than a failure of discipline, don’t you think?

nicely put- I agree. Not neccessary was just what I meant- but very useful. Sometimes I actually have to feed my kids actual meals on the go. Interesting where this discussion went!

Whew!  Heated.  Who knew my OnTray could stir up such emotions in someone to want to say it’s not necessary.  I agree with Shel that I never have felt obligated to bring food as a menas to control behavior, however with having a degree in Early Childhood Development, I also believe in not setting up our children to fail and instead encouraging their independence.  The great thing about OnTray is that it is multifunctional.  My older children now use it as a tray for their small cars or trading cards.  It just keeps their hands busy and frees up mine to shop!

I actually think this is a great and necessary product.  Many times I am on the go myself and run into McD’s to grab my daughter lunch and she has to sit in the back of the cart with my boxes of cereal and other items all around her while she tries to eat her food out of a bag.  This would make my life a lot easier, as I can put her in the seat where she should be, have a nice, clean place to store her food while I can shop in peace.  It in no way to enhance any bribe, it is a solution to my problem.  Now she can eat comfortably and my bread doesn’t get smashed with her leaning all over it.  It is to me, my solution for grocery store multitasking.  It is something I can keep in my car and pull out as needed for those extra rushed days.  I say, job well done On Tray!

As an owner of OnTray I often find myself wondering-- what did I do without this?! Yes we CAN shop without it, but with a restless 22 month old WHY would we want to? It’s a lifesaver plain and simple. Keeps her busy keeps me sane!

I actually already have an OnTray and it’s a super product.  I love it for my coupons! My kids are getting too old to sit in the cart but I wish I had one of these when they were younger, anything to keep them quiet while I take my time shopping.  I can’t imagine it’s fun for kids to sit in the cart for how long it takes to get the shopping done.  A simple toy or a little snack is a great treat for your little one to keep them occupied while shopping.

I totally love my OnTrays! I have 2 lil boogers and without OnTray we would be having the same fights every time we go to the store. Having the OnTray diverts their attention enough for me to get a little shopping done instead of yelling constantly for them to “SIT DOWN!!!” And we use the OnTray for more than just snacks. Sometimes I can just put in a couple small toys and that keeps them busy.
Such a GREAT PRODUCT!

A question for Laura- most of the time I still use a cart cover for the shopping cart. It’s not very padded near the handle bar area, but do you think it might be too bulky to use this? I love the idea of it, but don’t want to sacrifice the germ coverage I get with the cover....

A place for toys is a justifiable reason to buy and have to haul around and store yet something else, but for us, working hard not to go shopping at mealtime and then selecting a banana or two for a snack has usually worked well.  It comes in it’s own (biodegradable) wrapper and most stores have a set per banana price, simply show them the peel.

I use my On-Tray all the time at the grocery store for my coupons...except tonight...I forgot it at home! Grrr!!! I went absolutely nuts trying to keep the coupons straight and in the cart at the store tonight and it was a real pain without my OnTray!  Laura, the OnTray is exactly what I have needed for years. Now I actually enjoy using coupons. Thanks for an ingenious product!

Andrea,

The people I know who use OnTray in conjunction with the cart cover, simply slide a little of the cover off to expose enough of the handlebar to attach OnTray to it.  If you go to my site, I have a picture a customer sent me of her son in a cart with the cover and his OnTray.  It really is a great addition to the cart cover.  Thanks for your question!

Overall, I really enjoy what you do on this site. Particularly your invaluable reviews on plastics and BPA.

But I have to say that product reviews of late have been heading into the realm of the gadget-y. And honestly, I find these products really unnecessary.

If my daughter (who’s 16 months and not ultra-coordinated) gets hungry in the grocery store, I buy her a banana. Or give her a dinner roll. Or open a box a crackers and sit it next to her.

If she wants a yogurt, I give her a container and spoon and let her go to town. Do I need to keep a six pack of Boon Squirts in the fridge?

I can’t quite wrap my head around the need of buying a super-specialized (usually plastic, and therefore not bio-degradable) gadget to perform even the most micro of functions.

No offense intended for those who’ve developed these products, which are probably all good quality.

It’s just that I don’t quite get the point. I would rather see product reviews for essentials, and articles that give me great ideas on on how to reuse or re-purpose what I’ve already got.

Another cause for advancement of obesity in Americans. Wait till you get home, and tell your kids they have to wait. Grocery shopping never takes more than an hour, and if it does you’re doing something wrong. Things like this make me want to cry.

I’m not sure why this product is responsible for weight gain LOL (no offense Chris). There are so many uses for it and no one is saying you have to use it for food. And if so, why not put baby carrots in the tray, nice and healthy. I love the idea of using it for keys and coupons. I often don’t want to drag a purse to the store with me and this is the ideal product. Kudos to OnTray for their unique product. Haven’t seen anything else like it out there anywhere.

hmmmm, I work fulltime, run a company and I have a 6 yr old and 4 yr old twins.  Grocery shopping is often an untimely event and my 3 ontrays make life much simpler. There are times when grocery shopping is planned and they have been fed, then the twins pack up their ontrays with lil goodies.  They love to bring treasures with them everywhere we go.  hmmm, is that bad that they bring things with them everywhere?  I wonder if I am promoting future horders and pack rats.  Oh well, our ontrays are used for more than just food.  Great job Laura!

Why would a handy product like this make someone want to cry?  The OnTray would work for a fruit salad snack and pretzels and keeps attention focused on eating a healthy snack rather than begging for junk food.  Healthy snacks have nothing to do with obesity, junk food does.  If this product really makes you want to cry, you don’t have enough other things to worry about.

If letting a child snack while grocery shopping is a bad mom thing, I guess add it to my list. Dang, not going to make Mother of the Year...again...so close.

This appears to be a useful gadget to make one of the least pleasant things I have to do with my kids in tow a little easier. That works for me.

Who would have guessed a little piece of plastic would light so many fuses? I think it looks wonderful. Can’t believe stores haven’t figured a way to add them onto carts themselves! More for “mommy use” as a coupon/list holder.
Laura,
Maybe you could have a “grow with you” option with some sort of clipboard thing to hold your grocery list while your coupons are inside or to hold any piece of paper in place while little ones doodle on it or play tic,tac,toe w/ you while you shop! Maybe something to clip a pen to as well…

Rob-glad it takes an hour for your kid to eat a banana, good for you
Soozie-why don’t you “repurpose” your banana peel into a blindfold so you don’t have to see all that plastic?
Chris-please don’t cry, that’s embarrassing. 

Seriously, this is a mom who invented a great product...probably so she could stay at home with her kids and be a good parent.  Why all the hostility?

The inventor of a product does not make a product with the intent for everyone to like it.

If The Ontray is something that one can not wrap their head around then don’t buy it. If the Ontray makes one want to cry, that’s strange, and for one to believe it contributes to obesity that’s absurd.

A mother invented The Ontray out of necessity. She wanted this useful product available to parents, who see the need for a product like this.

Obviously, many many parents see a need for The Ontray. I am so glad she kept her dream alive. Entrepreneurs/inventors keep our economy thriving and help evolve society.

My hats off to Ontray!!

OK, I have just deleted a very rude comment and am jumping in here to ask folks to please keep the conversation civil. Disagreement and debate are welcome, direct name-calling and statements like “you are a bad parent” are not.

I was initially skeptical about this product if only for the reason that I already have so much to carry with two kids.  However, there’ve been a few times where I’ve opened a pack of crackers or cheddar bunnies or the like for my daughter and before I realize it, she’s eaten far more of them than I’d like.  The idea that I can prepack snacks and/or monitor portion control is great.. 

For older kids, it’s easier to teach them to wait, but for younger toddlers and preschoolers, a drop in blood sugar from a poorly timed or long shopping trip can equal disaster.

So I found it amusing yesteday that I had intended to buy one online and happened to find it in our local Safeway.  We’re now proud owners of the green one and didn’t have to pay a cent in shipping.