It's the thought that counts - or is it?

There was a crisis in our home last night!  Jed was going for a shower, he had handed his watch to Murray who had put it on the cabinet in the bathroom.  After his shower we heard a minor meltdown coming form upstairs, it was Jed and he couldn't find his watch.  Thus followed a conversation which became a little heated where one party explained where they had put it and the other saying they it must have been moved.  Jed wouldn't even let me flush the toilet because he was a little concerned it had fallen in!  he really had no idea where it had gone.

By this point Imogen had been in bed for about half an hour, we had people in our living room waiting to start a meeting, a pre teen feeling very stressed and no idea where the watch had gone.  We left our visitors downstairs and were all looking around everywhere we could think of upstairs until suddenly, Murray burst out of the bathroom and into Imogen's room, turning the light on as he flew in.
I thought she had been asleep but oh no!  We found her sitting in her bed with the sellotape and paper, wrapping Jed's watch up to give to him as a present!!  I have to admit I had to squash down a laugh and try very hard not to send mixed messages as I told her it wasn't acceptable to take other people's things even if you were going to give them back!!

It was then we realised this is something we need to address as this is not the first time.  A couple of weekends ago we had a weekend when we went away as a whole church, it was a great time of fun and time together and we had an excellent speaker who is also an author.  He brought some of his books with him incase anyone wanted to buy them.  It was also the weekend of Father's Day and on Father's day morning unbeknown to me, Murray was presented with a messily wrapped up bundle which contained the two of the books.  Later it was revealed to me that Imogen had taken the books and went to one of our friends (also a Mum!) and asked her to help wrap them.  She had been asked where she got them from, if Mummy knew and if she had paid.  Imogen happily answered, off the table, no, she hadn't paid and Mummy and Daddy weren't to know - it was a secret!!  My friend asked her if she should pay for them, Imogen shrugged her shoulders and replied 'If you want to!'  We of course rectified the payment situation after receiving the gift!  I think there is a bit of irony in the name of one of the books....

We definitely have a bit of work to do here!!  They say it is the thought that counts - hmmm not sure the outworking of that is meant to be quite so literal!