The money tree
In the minds of my children, the concept of money is not understood. They seem to think it just grows on trees. A broken toy should simply be replaced. Every toy they desire, should be gifted to them. Like I said, that’s their world. Not mine.
I’m not a parent who gives unnecessary crap to my kids. When at a store with enticing items at the checkout, I rarely give in to buy “stuff” as I see no reason to waste money or feed into the delusion that money grows on trees. I know they’re young and don’t understand, but I think it’s an important lesson to share at any age.
I don’t mean to be a party pooper, but it seems that too many parents have a hard time saying no, so their children never learn the value of money and end up gaining a sense of entitlement and a false sense of reality (unless of course, you are a millionaire, then maybe you can feed into your child’s every whim…but even then, I suspect it would not be healthy).
So what can you do to provide your children with a dose of reality and teach them skills they can use throughout their lifetime? Talk to them about how much things cost, about budgeting, and about the value of hard work and dedication. Give a modest weekly allowance earned for accomplishing real chores that can actually contribute to the household. When they want something, have them write it down -keep a list, with amounts. Also, have them check a register of their money, like a check book. So they can see what they have, when they earned it, and what’s left when they spend.
A few month’s back I read an article where the author gave her daughter a budget for her birthday party and had her daughter plan the party (with mom’s input). I thought it was a good idea. She gave her children $100 to plan their birthday party. They had to come up with a lit of items to buy, their costs, sometimes they had to cut out or replace one thing with another. In the end it taught them control, compromise, and and that money is not limitless.
