Thursday, February 5, 2015

Thursday Thoughts...Allowance or No Allowance

Happy Thursday Ladies!  You know we are excited over here because tomorrow is FRIDAY!!!!
I am not sure why but I saw this and just started laughing out loud!


 The topic of allowance has been spoken about a lot lately over here from Jack and AJ!  Jack is about to turn 13 next month and AJ just turned 11 and they are really looking to make some money these days.  I am pretty torn when it comes to allowance!  I have tried in the past, especially with my older two to get one of those "chore charts" and hang it on the fridge and mark off all that they did during the week and then give them some money on Friday, but I found after about a week or so they majorly slacked on their chores and still expected to get paid!

Million dollar question over here!!

The boys will constantly say things like, "hey mom if we keep our room clean can we get paid?", or "if I clear the table can I get paid?"......Where I am torn, is that a part of me does want to reward them for doing things around the house, but the other part of me feels that I should not have to pay or reward them for merely picking up after themselves or helping out around the house!  Any other moms out there feel my pain??? 

Not just my boys, but all the kids, are not super quick to help each other out.  Any of them can see something laying on the ground that needs to be picked up, simply because it is not theirs, or they didn't put it there, they will walk over or past it a million times.  That is probably the one thing that drives me the most crazy...I mean seriously, I wash dishes that I didn't use, clean clothes I didn't wear, pick up toys that I didn't play with...get my drift here!!!  I understand that I am the mom and it is part of my "job", but I feel they are plenty old enough to at the very least make darn sure they are picking up after themselves!!!  There is nothing more annoying than me asking someone to do something, and listening to them sit and bicker for an hour (that's how long it feels like:) 10 minutes "it's not mine, so you do it"!!  It's at that point I lose my cool just a bit and do it myself! 

On the other hand, I do want to teach them some responsibility, especially when it comes to money. 
They are getting to that age where they are going to do more things with their friends, like going for pizza, ice cream, movies, etc...and I certainly don't want them thinking I will just be handing them over $20 every time they ask!  Obviously they are young, so we do support the bulk of their social life, but I don't think it is such a bad idea to teach them to save some of their money and use it for things like this either.  Jack is pretty good and very responsible, AJ on the other hand, if he has money it is burning a hole in his pocket, the second he gets $1 he wants to run to Walgreens and buy candy!  Ha!!! (he is SO my son!)

I would love to hear from you guys about what you do...do you give allowance?  Do you use a chore chart?  Do you reward for doing certain things around the house?  I know I need to implement some type of system with the 3 littles, just not sure what yet...so any advice, tips, or tricks is much appreciated!

And I found these ecards and thought they were hilarious and so spot on...so sorry in advance for the ecard overload you are about to experience!









Thanks so much for stopping by today!  Be sure to check back tomorrow for Friday Favorites!
Have the BEST day!


14 comments:

  1. Those ecards are hysterical!!! and since my kiddos are little I am not dealing with this yet, but I have read several articles on the subject! I am totally on board with you about giving allowance on things that they should do anyway!! I don't want my kids to think they should get rewarded for EVERYTHING because that's not life! I want them to do it because its the right thing! When I was growing up I did get allowance, but it was for extras! I had the normal stuff I needed to do, but if I wanted to make money mom would come up with things for me to do!! :)

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    1. Hi Megan! That's what I am thinking...givin an allowance for doing "extras" not just the day to day stuff! Thanks for reading today! Have a great Thursday!

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  2. Those ecards are great! I enjoyed your post and also struggle with whether or not to do it. A friend of mine started a small allowance early on with her kids. But with the allowance she always made them put $1 into savings $1 into the offering plate at church and then they could spend the rest. We are still discussing things in our house! Good luck!

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    1. Hey Cory! Seriously who would have thought allowance could be such a difficult subject! Lol. Thanks for stopping by today. Have a great day!

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  3. Love those cards!!!!! LOL! That is such a tough question. I completely see both sides and don't really know what we'll do yet either!!

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    1. I think we are leaning towards NOT paying them for the day to day stuff, but making a list of "extras" they can do to earn some cash! And girl I love me some ecards!!!! Thanks for stopping by today!!!

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  4. I remember from our Dave Ramsey days that his suggestion was to give kids allowances for things that WEREN'T expected from them. Things like keeping their rooms clean and taking out the trash were not things that he paid his children for. We're almost to this stage, but not quite. We've tried off and on to give Alise an allowance, but eventually she quit doing her chores and we quit paying. Although she's not a kid that wants for very much. She's never been one to want alot of toys or buy things, but she is a "do-er" so money for movies and things like that are coming soon, I'm sure.

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    1. Hi Laura! That's what we are thinking also,,,not paying them for the normal stuff but extra things around the house, yard, etc. I totally think it's so important to teach them early about money and learning to save and to work for things you want! Thanks for your input! Have a great day!

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  5. I totally say tell my kids the same thing all the time...I didn't make the mess but I'm cleaning it up! We don't do allowance for every day chores. When my kids ask about it I tell them I let them live at home and feed them for free. If we have a special chore like bagging leaves or washing the car or something like that I will offer some money but honestly the majority of the time those little boogers turn it down!

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    1. Girl I hear ya! Thanks for stopping by today! Happy Thursday!!!!

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  6. Hey Kimm... I'm not a mom (except to my golden retriever) so I have no point of reference regarding allowance. I do believe that kids should do their "dailies" without being paid. This post brought back memories of my then 2 or 3 year old nephew (now he's almost 16) - he got $1-2 per week for picking up the paper in front of the house - his dad paid him - and he replied with a straight face "that's all I get?!" He's like your Jack - carefully saves, budgets, and spends $ wisely. He even framed his first dollar, earned by setting up a hot dog/hamburger stand at elementary school (class project)!

    Have a good day!

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    1. Hey Laurie! Love that he framed his first dollar!! Thanks for stopping by! Have a great Thursday!!!

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  7. I just read a great book called Cleaning House, A moms 12 month experiment to rid her house of youth entitlement. Highly recommended! We are a work in progress with chores and helping out around the house also:)

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    1. Hi Sarah! I'll definitely have to read that book! I'm thinking it's always going to be a work in progress !!!! Ha! Have a great Thursday!

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