Great Thread!!!
We took 2 nieces 4 & 8 and a nephew 7 on our first trip earlier this year. Each child had their own fanny pack with a flashlight, autograph book and wallet. Every morning I gave each child $10 to spend on whatever they wanted. I also liked using cash (or disney dollars) rather than a gift card because it gave them a visual of how much money they had.
I plan on doing the same thing, only DS (who will be turning six while there) will not be holding on to it - else it is gone. I plan on makeing decorative themed envelopes for each day we are there plus some extra's for specific items I know he will want to buy in DTD with his Birthday money. I will probably give him $10 per park. And then for DTD I will make shop/item specific envelopes. For instance I know he wants to buy The Mr. Potato Head (fill a box of goodies) at Once upon a Toy. So for that I will make a seperate envelope and put $20 in it. At Mickey's Mart (where everything is $10 or less) He will get a Mickey's mart specific envelope with $10 in it. I can just see him buying a grab bag. Here is an example of an envelope I designed for the Potato Head
Where exactly can you buy Disney Dollars and what if and that's a BIG what if there are UNUSED Disney Dollars? Can you get your CASH back?
You can get them at a
Disney Store or at the parks. If you don't have a store nearby and want them before you leave you can order them here
http://www.disneydollars.net. The down side is there is a $10 delivery charge.
What we do for our vacations - including Disney - is that over the summer, the kids earn money by reading books - the more they read, the more they earn. the money goes into their vacation fund - so when vacation comes, it is theirs to spend.
I LOVE this idea of reading to earn!!! I am going to have to adopt that idea.
We've had a vacation fund going for several years now where all our change goes in a jar. That will go towards MY spending money. Early this year I started a seperate one for DS. It's a piggy bank/ jar that says chore fund on it. I cut a piece of cardboard out and hot glued it over the bottom to cover access to the stopper, this way there is no temptation to take any money out prematurely. He asked me how we will ever get the money out now, so I said I guess we will have to smash it open once it is so full that we can't fit anymore into it. He loves that idea! Thats a boy for you
. There are two ways he is earning money for the jar. #1. He is collecting cans to return - His dad takes him once a week with a huge bag and a milk crate for him to stand on while he puts the cans in the Crunching Macine as he calls it (again a boy thing) then he likes to go to the cashier and hand in the reciept for cash. And he never fails to tell them that he is "saving money for Disney, he is puttyng it in the Disney fund, and then when its full he is going to smash it with a hammer, and then he is going to take it to Commerce bank money machine to make paper dollars, and then he is going to the Disney store to get disney Dollars to buy whatever he wants at Disney World". (imagine that sentence spit out all in one breath)
It has gotten to the point were he asks random people (our neighbor walking by for instance) if they are done with that yet (the can). I can't walk past a disgarded can without him wanting to retrieve it. #2 is not so much him earning money for the jar as it is him asking anyone who walks in our house if they would like to put money in the jar so he can SMASH it when its full. i kinda get the feeling that he is more excited about smashing the jar than he is getting the money
We have a 10 year old and a 6 year old (his birthday is today). What we started doing a year ago was the "Disney
Point Chart". Here is how it works:
We have a sheet of paper on one of the cabinets in the kitchen it shows each child's name, and two boxes after their name. One of the boxes is labeled "good points" and one "bad points". When our kids come home with good grades, they get so many good points, when they come home with bad grades.. you get the idea.
Our kids get good point for:
1. Good grades.
2. Helping around the house, clothes, trash, dishes, etc.
3. Exception behavior.
Bad points for:
1. Bad grades
2. Bad behavior
Before we go to Disney the points are transformed into Dollars for Disney which they can spend anyway they like. It has worked very well for us.
Ooh I am adopting this idea too!!
I am going to add practice standing in line patiently (that means without whinning that it's taking too long, or his feet hurt) to get ready for Disney. And taking long walks for excersize (also practice for Disney)
I love reading these tips! We have a trip coming up in October and we put out a HUGE change jar a little over a year ago. We have put every bit of change we find around the house and get from being out in the day into that jar.
We do the same... our rule is "no using coins for anything!"
If something costs $1.10 then we pay with 2 dollar bills even if we have a dime on us, so we can save the 90 cents for Disney.
We bought
this jar that keeps a count of how much has been deposited.
Also both of my boys are members of
www.kidzeyes.com They fill out survey for cash. It works wonderfully and they get 2 - 3 $$ for each survey they complete. I also get surveys and when I complete one both of the boys get $$. Right now my oldest has $59 in his account. He last cashed it out a year ago.. so that is not too bad for us to use for Vacation $$.
thanks for posting that - we'll have to try that!
