My Little Thief

Last week, we, being the whole family, went shopping in Sherman. (Sherman is just across the Oklahoma/Texas border, about a 30 minute drive, if any family not from this area are reading this.) Anyway, we went to the Sherman Mall and shopped at Dillards, Bath & Body Works, and walked through a few other stores. We left there and went to Target, then to Wal-Mart. As we are getting out of the van at Wal-Mart Rich notices that Morgan has something in her pants pockets. So he asked her, "What is that?", no answer, so he pulls it out to discover that she has one lip gloss in each pocket, which she lifted from Bath & Body Works. After much chastisement, Rich and I discussed what to do about it. He suggested taking her back and making her pay for them out of the money she received from relatives for Christmas. To which I replied, "but then she still gets to keep them, therefore feeling rewarded." So I suggested that she have to take them back and apologize for taking them, mind you they weren't opened. I told him a story about when I was a kid, probably around Morgans age, I took a Snickers from a store and my dad made me take it back and apologize and I never forgot that feeling of humiliation and shame and I felt like that had taught me my lesson because I never did it again, so Rich agreed. After we finished in Wal-Mart we head back over to the mall. On the way over we tell her what she is going to have to do, needless to say she is not happy about it at all. She starts crying uncontrollably and saying she doesn't want to do it. She said that they would yell at her, which I assured her they would not, but she wasn't buying it. So Rich drops me and Morgan off at the mall and the rest of the family waits in the parking lot. Morgan and I are walking through the mall, her crying uncontrollably and telling me that her stomach hurt, she was so nervous about it. We get to the store and outside of the store I try to give her the lip gloss, I tell her that I would go with her but she was going to have to go give them to the lady that worked there and tell her she was sorry she took them. At first she would not take the gloss from me, I had to force her to take them. We walk into the store, go up to the lady, I turn to Morgan and tell her to give them to her, which she does, and I say to Morgan, "now what do you say?", to which Morgan just stands there still crying uncontrollably. So the lady says, "did you take these?", to which Morgan just nods her head and says "uh-huh". So I tell Morgan again "what do you say?", to which she very quietly replies, "sorry." The lady thanked us for being honest and we left. After which Morgan calmed down. I was hoping that was the end of the story and she had learned her lesson. However, two days later, New Years Eve, we were in Wal-Mart and when we get to the check-out she wants some gum. I tell her no because we were going home to have a ton of snack food for our little New Years Eve gathering. Of course she throws a fit, starts crying, whining, begging, etc., but I stand firm and still say no. The next thing I know, she is picking up a pack and starting toward her pocket!!!! I could not believe it! I told her don't you even think about it, so she put it back. I guess I'm really going to have to keep my eye on her, she's only 4 and I'm already tired, I hope I can stand my ground for another 14 years.