My Son ... the Klepto

Okay ... so stealing things isn't really a habit of his.

Unless of course we are talking about his sister's toys. Or Daddy's shoes.

Or his Mama's heart!

But this little boy always has a way of surprising me, and keeping me on my toes. Like the other day.

We live in a small town, in between two larger towns. So what we actually have in our area is pretty slim picking, as far as stores go. Which made it great recently when we got a Walmart Express just a mile down the road. Mostly just groceries, the store is a lifesaver when you don't want to drive 15 minutes to town.

The other day, we were on our way home from the gym when I remembered we were out of milk. We pulled in and ran inside. The kids decided they wanted a special lunch, so I grabbed a few other things and threw them in the basket.

We headed to the checkout and I set L down to load the belt up and pay.

Of course -- they *always* put things at childrens' eye level that parents don't want them to have. Including candy.

So L's eyes glazed over. I could practically see him drooling over all the chocolate-y sweetness there in front of him.

As I swiped my card to pay, I saw a blur. He ran passed me toward the automatic door. King-sized candy bar tightly clutched in his hands.

Thankfully its a small store. And L is too short to set off the sensor for the door. And thankfully I'm also a little quick on my feet in these situations.

I was able to snatch him up and get the candy out of his grip before any alarms sounded.

My face, though?! Ten shades of red. I mean, how would I explain that to people?

"Oh you know ... he just ... wanted a candy bar, and didn't have any money?! How can you say no to that face?" Or better yet, "I'll just take him home and explain to him how wrong it is to take things that aren't his...." because I don't think that would go over his head any.

Either way, the situation was handled. And now? Now I keep a tighter grip on my kid at the check out counter!!