ROCKS & RANGE BALLS

I suppose there's a bit of a rock collector in all of us. Our 6 yr. old Rosa has more than the normal amount. No rock, stone or fossil with a sparkle is safe and if spotted it will be going in her pocket. The collection isn't in a fancy case with labels below each specimen. The gems are helter skelter, on top of the counters, in drawers, window sills and scattered on the floor of our house.

When Rosa was about 3 yrs. old, we were shopping in a store that had some sparkly rocks, which found their way into Rosa's pockets. She was like the crying kid in the grocery store line who thought the world would end if they didn't get that bag of skittles,which they brilliantly display at the one place in the store you can't just roll on past. How do you explain to a child that it's okay to pick up rocks at random from creek beds, forests, the neighbors landscaping etc. BUT you have to pay for the ones in this store?

It was a similar situation lately when we walked over to the local golf course to get a glimpse of the wild deer. There were range balls everywhere. Of course the kids starting gathering them up. Stella was okay with leaving them behind but Rosa wouldn't have it. It felt like stealing but we decided to just borrow the practice balls for a day or two and take them back.