Give - Save - Spend

GIVE - SAVE - SPEND

This is something that we have started for DJ. Each week she is given a $6 allowance. $3 from myself and $3 from Brad. She has 3 jars decorated (Give by Kristin, Save by DJ, & Spend by Me) that she puts - on most weeks - $2 dollars in each jar.

By most weeks, I mean that the $2 that DJ earns for her SPEND bucket are for being good and getting good grades ($1 each). In the event that she gets in trouble or brings home a bad grade, instead of punishing her by taking her entire allowance, we still allow her to have the GIVE and SAVE but not the $1 that she lost for a bad grade or getting into trouble (this has only happened once anyway - at least since we started this). If a dollar is lost for one of these reasons, it then goes to the GIVE jar.

SPEND: At any point and time DJ can take this money out of the jar at any amount. She can take $1 or everything in the jar - this jar is completely hers to do with whatever she chooses.

SAVE: This jar is for something DJ wants that is more expensive - something she must save for. I must admit that DJ is actually very good at this - she saved $120 earlier this year for something special that she wanted. She is not allowed to retrieve any money in this jar until she has at least $50 in it. If she wants to save more than $50 she can - but she can never take less than $50. Obviously the object of this is to teach her the importance of saving money. Because we grew up generally poor (not hungry or homeless type of poor - but poor as in our family struggled and rarely ever got anything extra as in we didn't need it it) I give to DJ probably a little more than I should, but also try to teach her the importance of saving, and that you must work for your money - it doesn't grow on trees ya know!

GIVE: This jar must also reach $50 before retrieving any money from it - however this money will be given to someone or something of DJ's choice. A Charity, Church, or Family in Need. She already has her first Family in Need picked out and I was very proud of her for choosing this particular family.

I hope that this project really teaches DJ a lot! I will keep you all posted when she reaches her goals and starts again!