Allowance

When I was growing up, we never got an allowance. Devin didn't either. It was this entity that I didn't know or understand about. You got money for doing your jobs?? Weird.

I remember all the different things my mom did to try to get us to do our jobs. We had job charts, job wheels, tickets, prizes... I remember one of the last attempts at bribery when she had this drawer full of stuff and each one was marked with a certain 'price'--you had to earn tickets (or something...what was it mom? I was about 11 or 12 at the time. Oh gosh, that was 20 years ago. I'm OLD!) and then you could go to the drawer and pick out something (or things) with what you had earned. It lasted for, what? 2 weeks or so? It was a really good idea. I tried to do something like it with my kids, but, just as it did for my mom, it fizzled out pretty quickly.

Well, after much thought and consideration on our part, Devin and I have decided to institute the allowance in our home. It's been an interesting endeavor. We've been doing it now for a month, and I must say that I LIKE it! The kids have a nice long list of jobs that they do every day (clear/set the table, make beds, get dressed, brush teeth, be respectful, do homework, put away toys...) and when it gets done they put a happy face by it. Each day, they earn a certain amount of 'money' by the number of happy faces they have (there is a cap, of course, and the amount is fairly minimal since they're all pretty little--Andrew, for example, gets about half of what the other kids do, but he doesn't know that).

So far, it's worked like a charm! The kids are happier because they're doing things that are constructive and helpful. Work does make people better!! I'm happy because they're learning to do useful things. They do a whole lot more than what is up on the chart, too! It's great! My favorite is at night when they're doing the last chores of the day (clearing the table and putting away the toys) and Andrew will come puffing in and say, "What can I do for ya?" so I'll tell him to bring me some cups from the table. He'll run in, grab a cup, run back, hand it to me, then say, "What can I do for ya?" It's SO cute! He's learning about how to help in the family. So are the others. And they know, too, that if someone else does their job for them, then they have to do extra somewhere else to earn their allowance for the day. They're doing quite a bit around here already, and it's great training for Finland where I won't have any help anymore. Then, I'll add to the list of chores (like vacuuming and doing dishes and dusting and cleaning windows...) and they'll learn even more things!

Every other Saturday, we sit down with the kids and I hand them what they've earned thus far. They count it out. Then, we talk about tithing. They each pay their tithing (10%) before anything. Then we discuss about savings. They each already have savings accounts thanks to grandparents, and now they can consciously add to their own savings accounts, saving for big things like college and missions, etc. We ask that they put in at least 10% into their savings every month--more if they'd like to. (Josh put in almost 50%, Andrew just handed over all his money--we gave some back to him so he could 'buy' a book with it--, and Claire very reluctantly gave barely her 'required' 10%! Ha!! What personalities these guys have!) With what's left, the kids can get whatever they want--but they actually pay full price for it. It's a good learning thing for them. Claire has earned a Barbie, and plans to buy a bag of marbles, another princess movie, a princess book, a princess dress and another Barbie. Josh wants Little Einsteins and Veggie Tales movies, and Andrew just wants books and cars. What funny guys.

I discovered another benefit for the allowance yesterday. Josh has this set of, well, kind of tinker toys. They made this super huge complex car-type thing. It took him and Devin about 3 days to make it. I've had it up on top of a book shelf for quite a long time to keep it safe from the littlies. Yesterday, Claire and Drew were outside playing, and Josh asked to play with his 'car'. I let him. Then, he ran outside to eat his snack, and left the car on the floor. Well, awhile later, I had him helping me peel carrots for lunch. He left for a moment to tell Drew and Claire that it was time to eat, and I heard him yell in anguish. I ran out of the kitchen to see that Claire and Drew had meticulously pulled apart his car--piece by piece--and strewn it about the floor. It was pretty devastating and made me somewhat sick to my stomach, thinking about all the work that Josh and Dev had put into it. What to do to punish them? It wasn't worth a severe punishment, but needed to fit what they'd done. They'd taken away something special that Josh had worked really hard to build and create. He couldn't do it again, as I'd thrown away the instructions (I hate having loose papers floating around everywhere). Then it hit me--they needed to give him some of their allowance money! I handed the money to Andrew and Claire and told them that they needed to pay Josh because they'd ruined something special of his. Andrew promptly handed all of his money to Josh (we use play money from an old Family Feud game, by the way. It's not real...) Josh started to giggle and handed back most of it to Andrew. I thought that was very sweet and responsible on Josh's part, and sweet and innocent on Andrew's. Claire glared (in the way that only Claire can) and handed Josh just one 'dollar'. Then she proceeded to count her money to see what she had left. Ha! She was upset. Good. I hope she learns. But I think it was a good lesson--at least for Claire and Josh. It all turned out ok, though, because now that the car is in pieces, they use it to build lots of different things--and Josh is using his own imagination to build new and creative cars with it, then he tells us all of its specs.

All's well that ends well, I suppose. Anyone for a snack?