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sorry, mommy

we had our first petty theft {since p was little} in the fam this last week...bath and body works was way too much of a temptation for brooke, when these rubber duckies batted their eyes and {in her words} said, "please take me home to play with me".
i can see why she loved them so much...they are sweet and pink and well, you do just want to play with them.

the duck bandit asked if she could buy one for her and jada at the store...when i said no, well, the open old navy bag was too much for her to handle, and wazaam...the thievery began.
when i got home and was looking thru the old navy bag {once the kiddos were in bed} i see the ducks...and i laughed out loud, knowing there was a story that she would have...and i sank, thinking that temptations are so hard to overcome, even when you are 5.

i had the "lecture" session...she cried and cried. she said she was sorry. i held out on the "you will die story" and just told her about forgiveness.
so we head to BBW with the infamous pinky ducks in hand and find the nearest bubbly lady working. b just starts crying...i say, "can you explain why we are here brooke?"
b just starts crying, and buries her head.
i look up and see the bubbly sales lady starting to cry. now what?! she mouths to me, "i'm sorry, i am really bad at this. poor thing."
brooke jumps into my arms {which is seriously, not much higher than before} and turns to the sales lady and says, "i am sorry."

we walk out of the store. b is crying. the sales lady is crying. i am wondering what just happened. i ask b, "do you understand what just happened? you were forgiven. you asked for forgiveness and she gave it to you."
b says, "i know. i'm done talking about it now. can we go look at some stuffed animals in another store."

hmmmm...well, not what i was wanting, but maybe she got it anyway.
{and in case you were wondering, no shopping for stuffed animals either}

so here's my tribute to forgiveness and repentance and well, a nice {crying} sales lady too!
thanks bath and body works...and could you please put the ducks a little higher up on the displays?
please?!

Tuesday's Tribute

Comments

Thank goodness for forgiveness and repentance. Especially by store owners/clerks. My twins used to steal constantly, although technically they were too young to know what they were doing, but I'd leave a story and constantly find store merchandize in their hands. They never got thrown in jail. Not once. :)
Radical Selfie said…
WOW! I LOVED this post. Gobbled it up like a slice of pie! What a beautifully endearing story!! I'm almost in tears at the thoughts running through Brooke's mind at the fact that it wasn't actually okay to take home the shiny pink temptresses, especially since she was thoughtful enough to take one home for Jada! I loved how you chose to handle it too! Three cheers for forgiveness, repentance, and higher shelving; Hip, hip...!!
Samantha said…
Oh... now I'M crying! Poor thing... What a great lesson though...
what a good little girl you have. and it was nice to meet such an understanding employee. =)
AWWW!!!!!! Your response was WAY better than my mom's when I was little and got busted stealing gum... she put that pack of gum on top of the refrigerator and triple dog dared me to touch it. Yeah, um, I think it's still there. LOL!

Those rubber duckies ARE adorable... Lila just tried to convince me that she should spend her allowance on one... I didn't let her. Maybe I should have.

Good for Brooke, and good for you!
~pen~ said…
poor thing. I had to do that before with all my kids at some point when they were younger. mostly candy from the check out lines though. Good for you to do what you did though. Many would give in and say keep ir or not care. There is always a lesson in life thats for sure.

by the way lolo is watching me read and type and she said lolo wants the ducky...i'm guessing BBW had an idea in mind for the ducks and it wasn't for the ladies...good marketing on their part though.

have a great day.
GypsiAdventure said…
Awe - so sad. I completely understand, those pink duckies are pretty tempting...
~K
Cate O'Malley said…
Oh poor thing, but bravo for handling it so well. My 17-month-old has an obsession with ducks that nearly rivals her love for monkeys. Might just have to stop by and pick one up.
Anonymous said…
Now you know I am loving this post. I wanted to cry, because you are an awesome mom and handled that beautifully. If I were the sales lady you know I'd be crying to right?
Fantastic post.

Do you know how many parents wouldn't have talked to their child about that? Or make them go back to the store to return the item and apologize??

You are such an amazing role model to other parents. I hope that if one of my kids decides to take something from a store, I handle it the way you did.
The Blonde Duck said…
I've actually got that duck somewhere!

Kudos to you for making her take responsibility!
Kacey said…
Oh sweet girl. I'm sorry for all the crying but I do think it was sensitive of Brooke to actually HEAR the ducks begging to be taken home. I'm just sayin'. It's a gift. ;D {Hugs to you both.}
Oh I totally remember my mother taking me back to Some craft store because I had picked up one of those lonely flowers off the floor in the fake flower section.
so sad.
poor se\sweet girl , I hope she has learned. ...
Unknown said…
I totaly just cried reading this, so three cheers for the sales lady. Life is full of hard lessons, that is a great one to learn early.

And I agree, it is batting it's eyes saying take me home and play wiht me!
And now, I'm crying too! A powerful lesson for all of us! Those duckies would tempt even the strongest of us!
ThaDon said…
This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.
Sounds like she learned a good lesson. She is lucky to have a good mom to show her the right path!
Lindsay said…
You are such a good mommy making her go back and give the duckies back! My daughter grabbed a sucker that was her level (she wasn't even THREE yet) in the mall and was just carrying it around with her, blissfully unaware that you had to PAY for things. DH did the same thing - took her back to the store and made HER say sorry and give it back. Let me tell you, even at 2, she understood the lesson and bawled the whole time....embarrased. Teach'em young and you're doing wonders for them!!
Casey's trio said…
Ahhh...I bet the sales lady will never forget your crying repenter either!
Unknown said…
So very sweet! What a wonderful lesson of repentance and forgiveness.
Unknown said…
this was awesome brooke style forgiveness!
Carrie said…
I stole Pez from KMart when I was about her age. My stupid little brother ratted me out when I wouldn't share with him.

My mother marched me right back to the store and made me give back what hadn't been eaten and money for what had been. I had to apologize to the store manager, who had to have been about nine feet tall and quite stern looking (that's what I thought at the time).

I was scared to death and embarrassed beyond belief.

It was a lesson I have never ever forgotten.

Good for you D!!!!
Megan said…
I bet Brooke will never forget this little life lesson that you were able to teach her. Job well done, Mom! =)

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