Reply to I suspect my kid stole money form my purse

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[quote=Anonymous]OP, I have thought about this for five days.  I am a reformed thief. I stole rarely from stores, and often from people - family and friends, at school, home, relatives' homes, friends' homes.

When my DD was 7, we were house-sitting and on our way out, DD was complaining her backpack hurt and was poking her in the back, but didn't want me to rearrange the stuff to make it hurt less. I urged, and she broke down crying, almost screaming, begging, that I not open her backpack. My heart sank as I wondered if she'd taken something and I was so hesitant to ask. "Did you take something you shouldn't have from the house and stick it in your backpack? If you did, now is the time to say something so we can go put it back." She seemed confused by my question and said no, so I let it go, feeling terrible for thinking she might steal, yet also wondering if she did. Later in the day, I had DH ask her what happened in the morning. All she could say was that she was tired, she didn't know. He looked through her backpack carefully. She hadn't stolen anything. Her American Girl Doll had been poking her in the back. I felt terrible for suspecting she might have stolen.

I think accusing someone of something so big without proof is a very big deal. You're not sure, and he denies. So you have to let it go, IMO. However, I think you should keep better track of your money (not that you don't keep good track of it now, but in light of your son's potential thieving ways), and keep your wallet on your person or hidden in your bedroom/office when home. If you catch him, understand that it is kind of age-appropriate, but still something to address and punish for. More important than punishing is talking. Talking about violating someone's space, about them being able to trust him, what happens to adults who steal, what he'll do when he's a father and his child steals from him, etc. Multiple, long talks where he contributes. [/quote]

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