The Game: 10 lei a week (it’s not about the monetary value). Pay taxes, tithe, utilities, rent, see about some savings and how much money will be left over for spending. Usually barely enough for a croissant.
On the chores chart: reading daily, homework, cleaning their room, their bathroom, set the table, clear the table, empty dishwasher, wash dinner cooking pots, vacuum, and there is an extra 1 leu for initiative. And a whole 5 lei for book reports.
We’ll do this for 30 days.
What worked and what didn’t.
The first week both girls showed some initiative. Very encouraging. Putting dishes away. Cleaning their room. Vacuuming. Doing homework. Moping the floor and stairs. Without grumbling cleaning the bathroom, doing stretches.
But the payday was stressful for conrad though the girls found it funny. Math and percentages were involved. Learning to count slippery money was a different story. There are many ways of doing it.
After the third week they lost interest. Not sure why. They still did what they needed to do – homework, stretches, making their bed. The bare minimum. But the motivation lost its luster.
It was a game. As we pull back into normal routine, I want to instill the importance of noticing. That is the heat weight of adulthood. Not waiting for someone to tell you what to do. Maybe it’s my desire to install some leadership skills. I say I hated to be told what to do and I always assumed that everyone feels the same. To my shocking surprise, as I asked them point blank, they said they like being told what to do. I guess it takes the pressure off of the mental load.
They delegated to us to put the tithe money in the box next Sunday. Conrad said no. It is part of the activity. They saved the money, it’s not a big deal to put it in the box. They don’t need to say anything about it to anyone.
Oh, being lazy is so tempting, to comfortable. If we can let someone else do and think and talk – why bother?
Anyway, I apreciate the initiative they showed and took. The willingness to play along. The conversations we had about home economics. But I can see how them taking a step back and enjoy the carefree childhood knowing that there is a weight some is actually pulling – maybe they appreciate the present more as well as the parents.