Aaric and I went to the Shoppette (Army-ese for "convenience store") this evening to pick up a few things. As I set my basket on the counter, he grabbed a Hershey bar and tossed it on the counter. I put it back. He attempted another, and I blocked him. He grabbed a third and was trying to sneak it onto the counter. I started to reach toward it to slide it over and then I'd pick it up and put it back. But the cashier got to it first. She picked it up and said, "Oh, I'll get it!"
Now, at first, I thought she meant she'd pay for it and give it to him. I was debating on how to respond to that. I do have the money to pay for a candy bar, I just didn't think he needed one. But no, she was slick and stuck it under the counter.
If she'd left it at that, we would have been fine. But of course she didn't. As she continued to scan my stuff, she kept saying things like "Don't worry, I got it in there!" and then toward the end "I put it in, but you can't eat it until you get home, okay!" I glared.
Why must people feel the need to lie to kids like that? I'm sure she thought she was being helpful by getting him to quit trying to sneak the candy bars. But I'd rather he keep trying than quit just because he thinks he won. And I'd prefer not to lie to him! Not to mention that if I hadn't had a little chat with him in the car to let him know that the mean lady lied, I would have had a major battle once he excitedly dug through the bags and realized he'd been tricked. Helped me? She totally set me up for a bigger issue to deal with later. I'm just glad I thought to go ahead and discuss it with him first. And, knowing that he was likely to throw a tantrum, I'm glad I waited until he was buckled in to tell him. He handled it well though. He wants to know if we should call the police. Lying is wrong, you know.
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