"The talk"

It started innocently enough. Steven walked by just out of the shower tonight smacking gum. I made him spit it out, scolded him for chewing gum in the shower, and asked him to bring me his gum. He reached into the pocket of the jeans he was carrying and produced a nearly full pack of gum that just yesterday I told him he didn't need to buy.....when I asked him where he got it, he told me he "stopped at the store after school".....um WHAT? He takes the city bus home from school and is to come straight home always unless prior arrangements have been made!

So I asked him why the felt the need to stop there (especially since it's the store I work at and someone would have told me they saw him!) to buy a pack of gum I had previously told him he couldn't have. He confessed that he stopped in to buy a teddy bear for "Jessica". Apparently she told him she will be away the rest of the week and wanted her Valentines day present tomorrow....

Just to clarify: this girl is NOT his girlfriend. In fact, earlier this year she turned him down when he asked her out, stating he was "too short" This girl is so spoiled...her parents hired a limo for her and 15 friends for her birthday for a 2 hr drive, then a movie for everyone, then another hour drive around in the limo...for her THIRTEENTH BIRTHDAY!!??

I've explained to him that any girl that won't date him but demands gifts is a user and will continue to use him as long as he lets her. About how next time he should just laugh at her and tell her to get him something first. How bad he would feel if she took it tomorrow and laughed at him. This led to an hour long talk between him and I about how to tell who your true friends are. As in, if Jessica was going to jump off a bridge, and you wanted to too, think first: Would Jessica jump because you were? If not, she's not your friend! He of course think's we're full of S$*T like all teenage boys think of their parents, but I was sure I got through to him about it....and when he came to give me a hug before he went to bed he said "So....should I still give it to her?" Arrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrg!!!!!!!!

Parents, what do YOU do in a situation like this?