How to catch a thief!

Today's parenting lesson is -

'How to Catch a Thief: Grocery Store Edition'.
~ Brought to you by the Bennion children and their mother~

1) Keep your eyes and ears open at all times. Sights and sounds often provide valuable clues.
2) Do not, at any time, assume that silence is golden - especially at the grocery store.
3) Check all parts of the shopping cart, as well as your child's body, before paying.
4) Thank all of the grocery store staff for not sending you and your kids to jail.

Case Study:

Today after preschool we needed to go to the grocery store to do our weekly dairy/fruit/veggie run. As I picked up Will from preschool today the teacher mentioned that he is still having problems 'listening to direction'. I told her that we are really trying to work on that and as I was doing it Walker started taking all of the toys out of the cupboards. When I told him to stop, do you think he listened? Nope, just kept pulling them out. The teacher gave me a look that said 'My point exactly'.

So...I left preschool already thinking about what we need to do at home to help them both and we went to the store. I piled them into the fun car cart and headed for our race around the store. Several people in the store commented on how cute the boys are, wanted to know if they were twins, and smiled as we passed by. I was so delighted because I knew I was pressing my luck to take them to the store so close to lunch time. We checked off our lists and headed for the check-out. Now here is problem #1 with the cute car carts:

1) Grocery stores, like all stores, have mastered the art of check-out marketing. Candy screams to kids and adults as you stare at the veggies you've just purchased. My kids are not immune to this marketing. And in the car carts they are at the right height to grab at any of the candy in their view.

As I was loading our groceries on the conveyor belts I (using skill #1) heard a rustling from the cart. I peered in and found Walker nibbling on this bag:

(yes, after the damage Walker did we bought it. The boys very disappointed that they cannot have them)

I moved the cart away from the candy and started the payment process. I was ever so grateful that the boys did not try to get out of the cart (failure to use skill #2) when I was paying. Problem #2 with car carts is that in this particular store you cannot take the car carts outside. They get you a new car but it means pushing both carts, an maneuvering both kids to the entrance. Today the ever helpful bagger loaded everything into a new cart and followed us to the entrance. (I love courtesy!)

When I bent down to get the boys out of the car cart I was immediately presented with the source of the quiet. Each boy had, stuffed in his mouth, a Hershey's Milk Chocolate with Almond bar. They were gnawing through the paper trying to get to the chocolate as is evident here (guess which one is Walker's!)



As I grabbed the stolen goods out of their grubby hands I noticed something else - not only did they each have one bar but there were six, SIX others in the car with them. That means that little sticky-fingers Walker had grabbed EIGHT bars. The bagger started to laugh as I handed each one to him. I marched the boys over to pay for the two damaged bars. They knew they were in trouble but really could not understand why.

A fellow shopper, who had not witnessed the event, commented on how I have my hands full. I remarked 'Yes, and now they are thieves' - and the bagger started to laugh again. The shopper, a obviously jovial man, laughed as said 'Those are my kind of kids'. I responded that he could take them home with him them. This got Will as he started to cry and cried the entire way home thinking I was so made that I was going to get him a 'new family'.

I'm sorely tempted sometimes to get them a 'new family' . Then again, they do make cute thieves:

(if you look close you can see the chocolate residue - oh and the lack of remorse)

(he's just really grateful I haven't shipped him overseas to a new family)

My point exactly.