Tuesday, February 22, 2011

Mommy, is there something I can do?

That is, for money?

All three of the big kids in the house are in a frantic race to get out of bed so they can be the first to empty the dishwasher ($.50), fold laundry ($.25), or vacuum the carpet ($.50). Will is saving money for an extra week at Boy Scout camp, Mary is hording hers for no particular reason, and Maggie needs to earn an additional $4.50 for a Jessie doll from Toy Story 3. "It was the only thing on my Christmas list that I didn't get," she has been lamenting for the last month. I'm perfectly happy doling out the extra cash in exchange for not working my fingers to the bone trying to keep up with the clutter that just naturally accumulates in a household of 8.

Since the kids don't receive an allowance, they must work to buy any extras such as the pellet gun that Will was allowed to purchase last week. He had to earn the right to do so by finishing his work in a timely manner and not giving me any grief for a week. Of course the gun needs ammunition replenishment that I can hold over his head in the future. For once in the last 12 years I feel like I could theoretically put my feet up and nosh on a few bon-bons, that is if I had any chocolate in the house.

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

You are really weird and you are not doing justice by your kids. All kids should have to do chores it builds workethic

kat said...

And perhaps you should learn proper sentence structure. It should have been written, "...chores, because it builds a proper work ethic."

My children do chores. They bring in the groceries, put them away, babysit, make meals, clean the house, fold laundry, make the beds, take out the trash, mow the lawn... Some of the more tedious chores are typically paid such as mowing and vacuuming out the van.

This past week I incentivized more chores for pay so Will could earn money for camp and Maggie could earn her doll (she worked $5 worth of chores and gave me $5 from her piggy bank).

So, they have a fine work ethic and I already know I'm weird, but I'm saving that rant for a different post.

Thanks sooooo much for your concern.