Do your kids ever see you use cash? Or do they only see plastic?I still have a lot of unused guest posts to run from my move. Since I still have a lot of cleaning and unpacking to do, I’m going to run guest posts every Thursday for a while, so I can get caught up with the house.
The following is a guest post by Candy from Deal With It, Simply! Thanks for sharing your post, Candy! I think it brings up a very good point!
Tonight, I went to the library to meet the Ultimate Cheapskate, Jeff Yeager.
He was fun and had some great ideas. In attendance was a man named Dan D. from my town.
I think Dan has frugal thinking and his priorities straight. He takes his
grandkids to our local metro-park each Saturday. Quality time that doesn’t cost anything priceless!
I hope I can tell his story as well has he did. On his typical trip out with the grandkids his grandson asked “Grandpa can I count your money? I’d
like to look at it.” Grandpa wondered why would he want to count money, but said, “Well ok,” and let the grandkids count and look at his money, even the change.
Then Dan realized the kids had never seen money up close because dad always uses plastic!
I think we all need to count our money and, like Dan, use cash. Using cash
will help us stay in our budget and see how much we are really spending. Kids
need to know how to use money and not think you can buy whatever you’d like,
just because it’s on plastic.
Seniors are an untapped resource and they can teach us so much! Thanks to Dan D. and his grandkids for a precious story.
A note from Lynnae: I totally agree with both points. Kids need to know that money is a finite thing, and cash is the best way to set that example. Also, get to know seniors in your community. You would be AMAZED at how much they can teach you!
Do your children ever see you use cash? I know I’m guilty of using my debit card for most shopping trips, so I’m going to make an effort to use cash more often, especially when the kids are around.
Photo by luismi1985.
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When my daughter was small, I only used cash because I had a ‘problem’ using debit cards….I couldn’t afford to pay her an allowance so when we went for groceries, etc. she could have the change if she figured it out before the cash register. She’s twenty-two now and can do addition and subtraction in her head like lightning.
Money is a great motivator at any age.
Actually yes, my son does know what money looks like now!
I realized it was a problem when I told him that a toy he wanted cost too much money and he told me to give the store my “blue card” (aka Commerce debit card).
I try to carry and use some cash and coins now and often let my son give it to the cashier for me so he can make the association.
:)
I remember when I was little, I would ask for something at the mall, and my mom would say we didn’t have money for that. I would say but just use your cash station card. I thought you could just get money out of the machine, I didn’t associate it with having to have money in an account!
My daughter is only 6 months old, but I will definitely have to start thinking about using cash. Right now I use my debit card for about everything. I rarely have had cash in the past, although now I watch a friends daughter and she pays me in cash, so I do have some now. I love the convienence of debit cards, but I know I probably get myself into some trouble I could avoid if I didn’t have one (or had more will power…that is probably what I should work on!)
Love your blog!
Kelly
I started out the grandkids the same way I started out my kids – with a piggy bank with some change in it. They of course made the rounds asking us to feed the piggy :)
Their gifts from Grammi sometimes include cash and a trip to the dollar store to pick out their own stuff with their own money. Also, they take their own change, which they earn doing extra chores for Grammi such as bringing in extra firewood and sweeping etc, to go to garage sales with Grammi. Trust me – they are GREAT with cash!!! Each also has a Kirby Kangaroo Klub Savings account (for kids only) at the local credit union bank – and it is their own money going into it.
PS – I just realized I would be that “senior” in their community! haha!
My problem, the only money my children have ever seen is MINE!
Having long discussions with them about saving, cutting back and the need to earn their own.
We are all tightening our belts these days!
My girls are 4, 2, and 6 weeks. The two older ones love to play with their money (mainly change) from their piggy banks. They choose money from their banks to give at church. They put the money in the envelope and give it themselves. When they receive money for their birthdays, we discuss items they might want to buy with it. Then, we go to the store for them to pick out something. The item(s) must cost the amount of money they have (I take care of tax!), and then they pay the cashier themselves.
The only thing I have to watch when paying with cash is to go to the ATM when they are not with me!
@Kelly – I always told my mom to write a check, when she said she didn’t have any money. LOL
Oooh. And the ATM. That’s a good point, @Amy. I certainly don’t want my kids to think I can just go to a machine that spits out all the money I’ll need. LOL
I only have a check card and I use it very little because I always have cash on hand. In my line of work (bartending) my paychecks make up 10% of my income so I only use my account for bill paying. Her father of course is a credit card junkie so once when she wanted something out shopping and I said I didn’t have enough money, she said “Just use your card”
I explained that my money just doesn’t appear out of nowhere on a card. My card actually has cash linked to it and that cash is to be used for bills alone. “Don’t spend money if you don’t have it”
We have no credit cards & only use our debit cards to pay for gas & emergencies. My son, at 3yo, does know what money looks like. He doesn’t yet understand what each coin or dollar represents, but we’ll get there. He sees us using cash to pay for groceries & the few other things we purchase. When I was a kid I used to always count my grandfather’s change. I guess it helped me to learn how to keep more of it in my pocket. Plus, my grandfather was quite frugal. I plan to pass this on to my children.
Mom sat me down at the age of six and explained the concept of bank accounts, checks, and credit cards. I also had some teachers who gave less detailed lessons. glad i got those conversations.
Some of the suggestions in the comments are really great for young kids, but sooner or later, the most important lesson we all have to learn is that all money, whether cash, a bank account, a credit account, an investment, etc., is a symbol of stored-up (or in the case of credit, future) productivity.
About three months ago, my 14-year old teenager started working for me a minimum of 3 hours every weekend at a fixed wage. He can work more if he wants to, which he usually doesn’t. He clocks (signs) in and out, is required to report to work punctually and ready to work (shoes on, fed, appropriate clothes for the task, etc.). Half of his wage goes to help pay for his private school tuition (of course, it only pays about 5% of the cost) and the rest he can use as he chooses. He’s done yard clean-up, scraping, sanding, priming and painting outdoor trim work, gutter cleaning, and other household maintenance tasks.
The effect has been amazing. All of the sudden, he comes home from spending the afternoon at the mall with his friends with pride that he DIDN’T buy anything! He’s learning the importance of demostrating a positive attitude as an employee, checking his own work and accepting criticism from others, punctuality, focus on the task, pride in his work, as well as how hard it can be to earn a buck.
He now realizes that when he spends $18 on a T-shirt, that represents three hours of his time spent working.
He’s also learned a lot about using gardening tools, the difference between weeds and landscape plants, how to prep for painting so that paint doesn’t peel, why caulking is important, the importance of having the right tools for the job and taking care of them, and much more.
And to my surprise, he’s also taking more responsibility for his homework and doing better in school.
Honestly, I wish I had started this about five years ago; by now I would have had an all-around handyman who could be earning $25+ an hour as soon as he’s of legal work age, and he could be learning about business accounting, managing employees and payroll taxes by now instead of how to clean paint brushes!
I think talking to your kids about money is really important. My little guy is two and he is actively involved in saving his money! Whenever he finds money or gets a quarter we put it in the piggy bank. He also goes with me to deposite money he recieves as a gift in his bank account.
I also let him pay for things with my cash. I try and only use cash becasue it makes me a smarter shopper (I pay more attention to where Im spending my money) but I like the idea that it teaches kids to associate spending with actual money! As well as the gal taht had her daughetr do the math so she could keep the change! LOve it!
Going the next step about money I have been thinking of ways to change our Christmas habits from spending to tradition and giving. Though my son is still small its something that will become an issue in the next few years. I wrote a post about frugal holiday spending at http://current.pic.tv/. To me the biggest thing is talking to your kids about money and how it relates to the holidays!
Again thanks for all the great ideas!