Children

Boy - I just had one of those kids!! It is funny. You can tell when they hit the door that there is going to be some tense moments. It was a boy, about three years old. From the time he came in the door, he was pretty much on his own. His little face was set with purpose as he raced to the back of the store. Mom very calmly shopped the jewelry table, in the front. I can hear things hitting the floor, so I make my way toward him. Mom beats me to it and picks up puzzles. But then she leaves him on his own once again. Next he cleans off the book rack. They are gone on to terrorize someone else now. Yesterday it was a small girl, only 17 months old, and very active. She was sat by her mother on the floor with a ceramic plate and ceramic eggs to play with. These were things her mother was planning on buying and did, in fact, buy. When we opened the store we decided we were not going to put up any of those "you break it, you buy it signs". I am telling you that I am feeling less and less like that was a good idea. If it is an accident, I never would let anyone buy an item that had broken. But when people use things to distract their children with no regard for the fact that it is money from our pocket, I am going to let them pay the bill. To be fair, I have many parents who hold their children's hands and do not let them touch. I am trying to find a place in the new location for a small table to put a few toys on to keep kids busy. The really interesting thing is that the parents of the kids who are the worst offenders would never buy a book with a scarred corner or a puzzle with the shrink wrap broken. So I say, come on parents, I have raised my children - many hours of which were spent in Wal-Mart. Their father, who was manager there, would have absolutely locked them up if they ran crazy and were distructive. Wal-Mart at least has some leeway for damages, here it comes out of my pocket.