This summer, my family implemented paid allowance for the very first time and it's been AMAZING!

To be honest, I wasn't sure how it would pan out. My boys are 9 and 10 years old and while they are great with doing what they are told, they are typical boys! They leave messes, forget to pick up after themselves and sometimes grumble about household duties. I know we can all relate!

We set a price point that felt appropriate for our family and then made a list of weekly and daily chores to be completed. In order for the boys to receive their allowance on Saturday, the chores need to be completed each and every day. We are members at a community pool that has a snack shop. I explained to my kids that this summer at the pool, if they wanted a treat, they would be spending their own money. They are free to purchase nutty buddies, popcorn, candy and the list goes on and on! I did draw the line at canned soda as I just couldn't bring myself to go that far. If you know me, you won't be surprised by that. Even allowing the freedom to buy junk has been a stretch for me, but I'm doing it!

As I predicted, the first week or two of their summer at the pool, they spent money on treats galore! They were in concession heaven. I knew this would fizzle out and it surely did. Rather than try to persuade them to save their money for a nice lego set or fidget toy, I sat back and kept quiet. As the days progressed, they realized that saving their money may be more beneficial to them than a sweet treat that's gone in a flash. 

Now and then, they still buy a treat but mostly we have gotten into a great routine of packing snacks from home and saving allowance money for truly important things they want. This has been completely their decision. 

What chores do your kiddos take responsibility for? At 9 and 10, my two boys take care of emptying the dishwasher, making their beds, loading the washing machine and starting it with products needed, switching laundry to the dryer and starting it, folding laundry and putting it away, vacuuming, dusting wood surfaces with spray and a wash rag, cleaning bathroom mirrors, sinks and faucets, picking up after themselves, setting the table, clearing the table, changing their bathroom trash and maybe a few others that I'm forgetting. 

There are some days that these things do not get completed simply because it wasn't needed and that is completely fine! That just means they have done their due diligence in previous days and can take a day off! When chores are completed, we head over to the pool each and every day the weather allows. There are some "chores" that are simply part of living in our home as a family. Things like making a bed and picking up a mess is just expected, but when it comes to bigger chores, we felt it was time for a weekly reward. I'm so glad we gave our boys this new responsibility. They have both risen to the occasion and shown me they were beyond ready. They have been helping with ALL of the mentioned chores long before getting an allowance, it just wasn't required consistently. The difference now is consistency and known expectation/reward. 

What you pay your children is totally up to you! I've heard of some children receiving ten dollars a week and some who get one dollar a week. We tend to fall somewhere in the middle and feel comfortable with that. Whether or not we will continue the allowance throughout the school year is yet to be determined. 

I've included a chore list that I found online that you may find helpful:

Of course chores are subjective to YOUR child, your home and your life situation. Feel free to share how you handle daily household chores within your home, in the comments section below!

Blessings,