kids having their own money

[Disneyforus]

For our last trip I printed off play money and each kid had their own envelope full of money for Disney spending...We thought seeing the "cash value" would help them understand the concept vs. swiping a gift card.....and it DID!! They would decide on a purchase and pay us their play money and we would buy it. I also didn't have to worry about someone losing their cash etc...
It was the most hastle free trip as far as souvies that we have ever had. Our dughter even had left over.

 

[DisneyATlast]

My stepdad used to give me 25 cents for making his coffee each morning before school. That was because you could buy an ice cream cup for 25 cents after lunch! Other than that, I had no allowance. I didn't have to do any chores either though. If I had the option to do chores and get paid, I definitely would have because I never had any money!

That all changed the day I turned 16 though. I was sooo ready to work! I got a job immediately and my parents even made me walk to work and back (boo!!) while I saved money for a car. I even had to start buying my own groceries at 16. Their method wasn't typical, but it definitely worked! Talk about learning fast. The way I grew up probably has a lot to do with how I treat my own kids now....which is the polar opposite!

My aunt took my daughter out for the day awhile back and when she brought her home she told me that they went to Wal Mart and told her she could pick out a toy. My daughter said, "I don't need one. I have all kinds of toys at home." WHOA! Then, after Christmas, there were UNOPENED toys sitting in my living room in January. They unwrapped the paper, but didn't actually take the toys out of the boxes. SERIOUSLY?! Houston, we have a problem! A spoiled to death children problem! I know I need to do something...I just haven't devised a plan yet.

I do know that I'm going to buy them visa prepaid gift cards when we go to Disney. I'm thinking $100 each since we'll be paying for all the food, snacks, etc. with a deluxe dining plan. $100 should be plenty per child for souveniers. If they don't learn to budget in the near future then they'll at least learn when they are 16 because I totally intend to make them get a job just like I did! Then, when they complain about going to work to pay for car insurance or clothes, I can say, "Hey! Be glad I'm not making you walk to work! Up hill! Both ways!"

 

[lisaross]

I have two boys 12 and 10 now. When we go on vacation i give them a certain amount to spend however they want - no questions asked - depending on where we go i usually buy them something extra!

At home we tried the allowance thing for chores etc. never really lasted! they are still young and don't spend much $.

In the summer they go do day camp and they go on a couple of trips a week and they can get costly. I would give them a certain amount for each trip - this past summer i gave them a certain amount for the entire summer to use how they wanted on each trip. They both had extra at the end of the summer so this summer they will have a bit extra to spend or save as they wish.

I think kids need to learn how to budget money etc - parents must speak/teach kids about credit cards - coupons - saving etc!

 

[elittleton]

On our last trip to WDW I gave my 4 DD a $50 gift card and told her when it was gone she couldn't get anything else. She would ask 'do I have enough for this' and I would tell her yes or no depending on the cost. When she spent the last of her money she did not ask for anything else. When we got home she took money out of her piggy bank and put it in my purse. She knows there are things I will not pay for but she can take her money out of my purse and pay for it. The money in her piggy bank is change she has found or others have given her for Christmas and birthday.

 

[snarlingcoyote]

I know several people whose kids get Disney gift cards or cash before a trip to WDW as their birthday and Christmas presents. That money is money the kids can spend on whatever they want - even if their parents think it's absolute junk.

In one family, they've got it down to a science - the parents will buy the kids 1 tshirt and 1 other item of clothing during the week and the kids' money is their own to spend. Why the "1 other item of clothing?" Because it never fails that someone gets blisters from her sneakers, or sits in an ice cream cone, or something similar. Soooo mom and dad will foot the first "emergency" clothing change, plus a t-shirt whether it is emergency or no!

In my family, I saved my money from any and every source for our vacations - it never even occurred to me that my folks should or would buy me anything! I held onto and I carried my own money from the age of 5 on. Right before vacation, my folks would take me to the bank where I could change all my coins for bills. Then I put it in my wallet inside my purse and was paranoid about it until we came home and the remains of my money went into my bank in my drawer. Of course, my DB used to say I was the only kid he knew who could go on vacation with $40 and come home with $50 AND a t-shirt. I was a skinflint when it was my money!

 

[pocomom]

Can I ask you how much they had? I'm thinking seriously about doing this with DS on our upcoming trip. It's something that has *sort of* being practiced/done in the past, though not with regularity. He's 8 and WANTS to spend his OWN money, but since we fund DH and my souvenir budgets, we want to help fund his souvenir budget. But I can't come to a conclusion about the amount. He's an "only" and we LIKE buying him stuff! Especially Legos; they are a whole-family project when he gets a big set.



My kids had $50 in gift cards , and $80 each in cash. My oldest also had a $25 gift card that she accidentally left home. But they were on the road for over 3 weeks. Our last trip we were in the disney area for 2 weeks and they had $85 total each, but I didn't have a hands off approach with what they got as much....Funny they had more money this time but I think they spent less , and I know I did!

 

[tigger51276]

Since DD9 was 4 she has traveled to WDW with her own money. It's money she gets for birthdays and holidays and then I always had small chores for her to do where she could earn a buck or two a week to add to the pot. It really is true what folks say, kids really do treat the money a whole different way. My DD's, depending on the year go down with anywhere between $80 and $400 (that was an extreme year due to my mom). The normal amount is about $200 each. My DD's love to shop and want everything and it's amazing to see my oldest really think about, if I get this $30 item I'll only have XXX left. I also don't let her impulse shop. She can buy whatever she wants with her money, but not on impulse. I know the merchandise at Disney and what is unique to a park so if it's something like that I'll let her get it right away, otherwise I make her think about it for a couple of days so that she has an opportunity to see everything and doesn't hopefully regret it later. This has worked out wonderfully for us as we usually go to DTD and do a big shopping spree and get just about everything at once. We also have annual passes so we are able to save 10% at World of Disney which gives them a little extra money. Some of their money is on Disney Gift cards and then some is cash, I prefer the cash as I think it makes more sense to them to actually SEE the money exhange hands and not just the swipe of the card which means nothing to them.

 

[LadyTrampScamp&Angel]

Great ideas and OP! Glad it worked for you!

We've done something similar for several years. I got so tired of "can I have this" when we went to the store that we started allowance and it's not exactly based on chores but they have chores they are expected to do. I have two kids, now teens. Our bank, USAA, offers free prepaid debit cards so they've had them for years, their allowance goes on them automatically, paid every two weeks. That's their spending money and when it's gone, too bad. It's worked really, really well - I don't have to listen to begging anymore and they've learned to pay their own way. DS has an Xbox and a hulu subscription and he pays those bills himself from his debit card. Right now my daughter is saving hers for the next Disney trip - yay! She's got about $100 and still 3 months to go. One of the best things I ever did!

 

[Darcy03231]

We did this for school clothes. I got tired of fighting with the kids over brand names. Each kid got a set amount and that was it.

The girls did pretty well with their money. DS #1 had been begging for a pair of $150 boots for quite some time, which we refused to buy. When he got his money he bought his boots and a pair of jeans. That was it. No underwear, no socks, no other clothes. Within a month he was looking to us for more money for clothes. Our response "wear your boots." He was doing laundry every couple of days so he'd have clean clothes. We told him he better ask for money/mall gift cards for Christmas so he could buy some more clothes. It was hard, but we stood firm.

He got money and gift cards for Christmas and supplemented his wardrobe. He was a much more savvy shopper that time around.

I have to say that we never had that problem again!

 

[MomToOne]

DD12 gets $40/month allowance, which I dole out the first weekend of the month. I consider that her "pay" for being a child, which is her job right now I don't pay for chores - those are expected because she is part of the family, and all members have to participate in making the household work. She does lose part or all of her allowance occassionally as a punishment for serious infractions of the rules. In that situation, she still has to do her chores.

She has to cover just about all of her wants out of her allowance.

I cover needs such as school supplies, what I consider a reasonable amount of clothing, medicines/health supplies incl. things like acne medicine (yes, to me that is a need because it helps her self-esteem, and a good self-esteem to me is a need), etc.

I also cover a very few wants that I just feel it's a parents job to cover - things like her school yearbook. I can't explain it any better than that - it's just a gut feel for me that "I should cover that one". I also cover $10/month of usage on her cell phone (pay as you go plan) - if she goes over that, she has to cough up the cash or live with a dead cell phone until I reload it again.

It's working for us. But it does require me to say to her A LOT "that's a want, not a need - if you want it, you have to pay for it". She is pretty good at this point though in deciding "it's not worth it" when she has to pay for something herself. It's amazing how much stuff they suddenly don't want anymore when they have to spend their own money on it But we are already discussing our next Disney trip in August, and even a possible trip to Paris next summer, and the fact that she better make a plan to save enough spending money for those trips because I won't be providing any.

 

[aliceindisneyland]

We did this for school clothes. I got tired of fighting with the kids over brand names. Each kid got a set amount and that was it.

The girls did pretty well with their money. DS #1 had been begging for a pair of $150 boots for quite some time, which we refused to buy. When he got his money he bought his boots and a pair of jeans. That was it. No underwear, no socks, no other clothes. Within a month he was looking to us for more money for clothes. Our response "wear your boots." He was doing laundry every couple of days so he'd have clean clothes. We told him he better ask for money/mall gift cards for Christmas so he could buy some more clothes. It was hard, but we stood firm.

He got money and gift cards for Christmas and supplemented his wardrobe. He was a much more savvy shopper that time around.

I have to say that we never had that problem again!

That is a fantastic example, thanks for sharing! There is no teacher like experience.