Is your child showing signs of becoming a lil’ kleptomaniac?

Some of you may be in shock by that question. Others may know exactly what I’m talking about. In case you’re on the fence, we’ve compiled a few signs of what you may be experiencing.

Clues your kid is becoming a moderate to hardcore kleptomaniac

1: You start finding things around the house that don’t belong to you, and when you question the child on where they came from, they run screaming as if their head caught fire.

2: There’s a shoebox labeled “Don’t Open This Box” hidden waaaayyy in the back of his/her closet. And when you open it, there’s a bunch of half eaten candy bars that you did not buy.

3: Your kid sees a commercial on TV with a product you don’t own, but gives a very detailed analysis of why it’s not a fun toy. And when you ask if they played with it at school, or at a friend’s house, they run screaming as if their head caught fire.

These are just a few clues that might point to a tiny issue with kleptomania. The trick is to catch it early and nip it in the bud.

And if that doesn’t work, I highly recommend reading this riveting TIME magazine article about Winona Ryder’s stealing stint that took place in the early 2000s. Because if you can’t scare little children about going to prison and or hell when you steal, what good is parenting?