Mo Money Mo Problems: The First Six Months of Allowance

As a parent I have a severe hate on for marketing tricks meant to inspire a mean case of the "I want its". Whether it's candy bars at the front of a grocery store, perfectly timed ads for toys during children's television programming, or whatever addictive compound is present in Shopkins; it's good behaviour cryptonite for children.  

Last spring we hit a time period while running errands where the kids, especially Molly, assumed that there was some sort of prize at the end of each trip out of the house. We realized we needed to nip this in the bud and were already thinking about how we'd teach the kids about money, responsibility, and savings. 

We began giving a weekly allowance the week following their fifth birthday. They earn five dollars week because they're 5 and routinely perform chores in order to gain access to their funds. 

The most coveted Lego series

I know there is a lot of debate as to whether or not allowance should be connected with chores, but from our perspective it's been a good motivator and the kids (Molly in particular) are really proud of the contributions they're making. 

The minions are allotted their full allowance each week as long as they complete the following tasks without too many reminders or assists 

- Bring lunch bag and water bottle into kitchen each day after school 

- Put away coats and boots in proper places every day

- Complete tidy of bedroom once each week (toys in toy box, laundry in baskets, books on shelves)

- Complete tidy of basement once per week or on parental demand (toys away, dress-up clothes away etc.)

- Help sort recycling and garbage each week before garbage day

- One to three other age appropriate chores depending on parental demand (cleaning windows, setting the table, sorting laundry, clearing dishes etc.)

Molly has never missed out on her allowance and Jack only has twice. 

We predicted Molly would be the one blowing through her allowance and Jack would be the saver. 

This fall when it was "Toonie for Terry Fox" day at school, they wanted to contribute some of their hard earned allowance to the cause. (To read more about it click here)

For the most part Molly spends her allowance on clothes and Jack up until a few weeks ago saved his allowance, except  for splurging on a monster lunch bag.

In recent months Jack has fallen in love with the world of Lego. He particularly likes the action figures (mini figs) leaning towards anything Batman Lego, Star Wars Lego, or Knight (complete with robotic Lego suits). He's ripped through $50 in savings in the past month and can't wait for his funds to build up. 

Just a small portion of recent favs 

Molly surprised me. Most of her clothes purchases come from second hand stores; she loves working her budget. The other afternoon she came home from school upset because she no longer had any purple dresses that fit her. We went online together searching and she found a purple dress she liked at Old Navy and asked me to pick it up for her.  I asked her if she was sure and explained how the dress would cost her five weeks worth of allowance. She paused, thought for a moment, then told me that it wasn't worth it to her. She'd try her luck at Value Village instead.  I told her how proud I am of her for making such grown up choices. 

In the meantime Jack is all about the chores since he's grown to realizes that money (and Lego Knights) don't grow on trees. 

To read 10 reasons why chores can make kids more successful click here

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Heroes - Celebrating Terry Fox

I don't know whether or not this is a normal phase, but both of my kids (Jack in particular) have a very strong and active curiosity surrounding death.  This started when they were 3-years-old, following the death of our beloved cat Pan.  We have been fortunate enough that most of the death the minions have experienced has been elderly people and pets who lived long, and for the most part healthy lives.  Our honesty with the kids has led to a lot of questions surrounding death.

Jack is a huge music fan and likes to collect statistics on his favourite artists.  In 2016, this means he's seen a lot of musicians he listens to pass away (Bowie, and Prince).  He has so much curiosity surrounding death, cremation, and legacy in music and family.  We have tried to teach both children how people can live on through their art, family, and contributions to the world.

Death for the elderly and sick has been easier to explain to the kids, although it's been hard to convince Jack that growing to become an old man is a good thing, not a bad thing.  Explaining things like cancer, and why some people are unlucky enough to get sick at a young age is something we struggle with.

This week at school Molly and Jack will be participating in Terry Fox events to raise money for cancer research.  They have learned all about "working together to outrun cancer".  They know about his attempt to run across the country to spread awareness and earn money for an important cause, and that he is considered a Canadian Hero.  Next came the questions about what cancer is and why someone so young could die.  These are all questions I don't really have answers to that will help calm the minds of inquisitive 5-year-olds.

I chose to focus on the good that Terry did in his life, the lives he's saved through his foundation, and the ways that Molly and Jack could also help.  We read testimonies and quotes together on how Terry is a hero, and what that means.  This week parents at the minions school were asked to provide students with a "Toonie for Terry" to help raise money for cancer.

Both R2D2 and Wonder Woman are ready to give back!

A couple of months ago when we began giving Molly and Jack allowance we made an active decision that part of the allowance practice had to do with teaching them about finance, savings, and philanthropy.  Last night, before bed, I told them both how I had put a Toonie (for Terry) into their backpacks.  Next I asked them if they'd like to each provide a Toonie for donation out of their piggy banks, and that if they decided to do this that their dad and I would match their donation again with six dollars each being donated.  Molly started jumping up and down and happily agreed.  Jack calmly instructed me to take a toonie out of his piggy bank.

This morning Jack asked me why his entire piggy bank wasn't in his backpack...Apparently he very graciously wanted to "make it rain" toonies for Terry.  It feels like a pretty good day in the world of parenting lessons at our house.

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Whistle While You Work

We'd been spending a while discussing the best approach for teaching the minions about both money and responsibilities.  When the end of the year report card came home with a particular suggestion for one of the kids suggesting how well they'd do with added household responsibilities to we decided that their fifth birthdays would be the perfect time to begin some structured chores and allowance.

The kids each earn five dollars a week provided they complete all of their assigned chores during the week.  When I saw an article in Business Insider about tried and true ways parents have set their children up for success I was smugly pleased that one of the ways was through regular chores.

Dinner for 2 with Multigrain Cheerios prepared by Chef Jacques a few years ago

10 reasons why our new chore routine is setting our kids up to be successful

1. It makes everyone more aware of their messes
I strongly believe that the minions recognized that happy little elves don't clean up after them, but added cleaning responsibilities really drives the point home.

2. It teaches cause and effect
When they leave the caps off of their markers and are the ones physically throwing them into the garbage because they no longer work, it should hopefully ring home that markers don't go on trees.  This will be even more apparent when they're replacing these markers using their allowance.

3. It teaches accountability
The minions will remind each other if one is cleaning a room while the other is playing. So far these gentle reminders come more often from one child in particular.  The same thing goes for when they can't find a toy that they didn't put away or a sock that didn't make it to the hamper.

4. It builds confidence
The other day we had a guest over and Molly wanted to show them the room that she and Jack had just tidied.  It was adorable.

This tiny chef knows how to multi-task circa 2013

5. It teaches real life skills
College is not the time to be learning how to do laundry, cook, or make a bed.  Start them while they're young!

6. It forces us as parents to let them become more independent
Often Chris and I are guilty of doing things for the minions because we're pressed for time.  By getting them to do more and more things on their own, they improve their own logic, gross and fine motor skills on a daily basis and things will get easier for everyone.

7. It slows down the "can I have that" mentality whenever we're out at a store
Toys now get saved up for, and anything bought on impulse gets paid for out of the piggy bank when they get home.

8. It solidifies our family as a team
We all contribute to this household and making it run smoothly, whether it's paying bills, cleaning, cooking, or caring for each other.  The minions are increasingly proud of the part they play in making the machine that is our family run smoothly.

9. It teaches them about money
Counting coins as they go into piggy banks teaches counting and math.  They're learning about saving, spending and charity each and every week.

10. It lightens the parental load
Lunches make their way out of backpacks onto the counter by someone other than Chris and I, garbages and recycling gets gathered weekly, and the kids are eager to take on more.  My favourite thing is when it's tidy time and Molly proudly comes back to me saying, "EASY!!!! What's next?"

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