This weekend I decided to do a little shopping and take my girls to see what kind of July 4th sales we could find. My girls don't wear uniforms to school, so I usually try to stock up on some back to school clothes mid summer so it doesnt hit me all at once. I hang them in the back of the closet so the first few weeks of school my girls have some nice looking new clothes to wear. You know, first impressions and all.
I am one of those moms who thinks that the way my girls dress for school is a direct reflection of me, so I try to frugally find the cute little clothes that I like to see them wear. Now, with that said, in our school district it is not just about cute clothes, it's a lot about brand names even by 4th grade. That is an unfortuante truth. I mean, if Sally has the Justice shorts then, by golly, fit or not, we all better have Justice shorts.
This weekend I realized that with 2 girls I am just never going to be able to keep up with this situation and I better think of a plan fast. I realized that for every " Yes, let's get that" that I say, there are 15 " No we don't need those". It's so frustrating. I will leave a store with a bag full of sale items that the girls love and that "fit the bill" , but somehow it seems like my girls are still leaving the store disappointed about what we left behind? The things that we just don't need. Is ANYONE getting me here? ANYONE with older kids????
SO, Chad being the financial planner he is, has decided that the girls are going on a budget. He sat the girls down and told them he's giving them each $40 a month to spend on whatever they like, but first they must give 10% and save $8. They are welcome to spend the remainder on extra school clothes, a swimsuit, a movie outing with a friend, junk food, flip flops, makeup, earrings, cds, dvds, pjs, you name it...All the Mommy NOs everytime we go out. His expectation is that they buy their own stuff... Of course, this doesn't mean I won't buy their necessities. Don't start calling CPS or anything. It's just hopefully going to teach the girls how fast money runs out and how to understand the value of the almighty dollar. The real question will be.. will I be able to do it without a guilty conscience? I'll let you know how it goes!
Sunday, July 6, 2008
The Almighty Dollar and the Budget!!
Posted by Kesleigh Castle at 8:41 PM
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3 comments:
That is a great idea! I want to hear how this goes, tat had been my tentative, this is what we will do with Colin, plan. But do you make them work for the money? Or is it a given? No pun intended :)I would love to hear more!
Yes, I'd like to know, too, if the girls are earning the $40 or if they just receive it without reciprocal work.
Part of it, too, Kesleigh is becoming comfortable with saying "no" without guilt. It's hard to learn, but once you do--it becomes very easy to say it! My girls think I'm cruel (they also think we're dirt poor because I'm always telling them "we can't afford that".)
For those that have asked, the girls must "earn" the monthly allotment. They must pick up, clean up, put away, etc. just like Kes does. They are even required to help with the things that they didn't wreck. No freebies around here! Chad
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