Our love for online shopping seems to know no bounds. With just a couple of clicks, you’ll feel like it’s always Christmas morning. That warm and fuzzy feeling you get might be enough to convince you to treat yourself on a random Tuesday afternoon — and for a child, the temptation might be irresistible. At least, it was for six-year-old Katelyn Lunt, who took it upon herself to go on an Amazon shopping spree via her mom’s credit card.
The average U.S. customer spends around $1,800 per year on e-commerce transactions. Young Katelyn is well on her way to reaching or even exceeding that amount after her recent transaction. Her mom informed her that she could have one Barbie doll of her choosing as a prize for completing extra chores. But that wasn’t quite enough for Katelyn, who opted to order $350 worth of Barbies, ponies, toys, and games.
Her loving parents were none the wiser — that is, until the delivery truck arrived. Mom Catherine was able to cancel several orders she didn’t recognize, but two or three pages of items had already shipped by the time she realized what had happened. And while mothers are well-acquainted with the effects of naturally occurring oxytocin — which are secreted during birth and breastfeeding and create nurturing, loving feelings — most parents might not be too thrilled with their kid after realizing how much their credit card had been charged.
But Katelyn’s chose to see the positive side. The family took photos of the hilarious, box-filled scene and decided to turn the situation into something teachable and positive. British research shows that the average 10-year-old owns 238 toys, and while young Katelyn might not yet own that many, the family didn’t want her to add the ones she ordered to her collection. Instead, they chose to donate all of the toys to the Primary Children’s Hospital in Salt Lake City. Since Katelyn actually spent time in the facility when she was an infant, it felt like a wonderful way to give back to those who are struggling with health problems.
Katelyn was allowed to keep the initial Barbie she asked to order, but her internet privileges were revoked for a month. She’s also banned from using Amazon (an Associate of this site) in the future. Their one-click ordering system may be a time-saver for parents, but it seems like the feature might make it a little too easy to splurge. If you’ve got kids in the house, this might be a good time to uncheck the box that allows you to automatically save your credit card info. It might mean you’ll have to rummage through your purse every time you place an order, but that might be preferable to finding mystery charges on your card or a pile of packages on your lawn.
