How do you bring up your children as DFW?

petetidball

There is a lot of sense in what people have said. From my very first job (delivering papers when I was 12 for £15 a week) my parents took a third of my wage as board. I got it back in other ways, but it made me think that I had to pay for the roof over my head first and what I wanted rather than needed last. Still the same today. I've never missed a payment on rent or mortgage and never will (fingers crossed!). We also only got pocket money for doing extras, like washing dishes, gardening, ironing, etc. And we had to cook once a week as well.

When I left home, I could cook decent meals from scratch, look after myself, and knew how to buy cheap food from Kwik Save and make it taste good! I fully intend to treat my children in the same way (they're a bit little at the moment) as it made me self sufficient, even if my money saving did go a bit downhill through uni.

BTW, Barbie has had a reprieve and we've agreed 5p token payments!!

Mozette

Good point Storm, I'm always amazed at how many people don't have a clue how to cook. So cheap compared to eating out, takeaways or ready meals.

jetcat

when i was at school - many moons ago and living in a childrens home with a measley (i thought so!) £2.50 per week pocket money, i was so jealous of my friend who got £20 per month. however, her parents' rule was that everything she wanted/needed had to come out of this £20 - including clothes. after the first 3 month when she thought it was great buying magazines and general junk she realised that maybe she needed to save when she didnt have any decent underwear that fitted and no money to buy any!!!! as she was going on a date, this was a big problem. i felt not so hard done by then!!!!!

i think this is what i am going to do with my daughter when she starts high school. we'll see how well she has listened to my stories!!

spud30

When I left school and started work, I had a choice.

I could either pay my mum board, and buy everything I needed out of what's left, or give my mum my wages, get an allowance each month and my mum pay for my clothes etc

I chose to pay board, allbeit a pittance.

It wasnt till I got married and bought a house of my own that the money problems started :rolleyes:

System

Do you know I don't know, but what a question. How to teach kids the value of anything is hard enough, never mind money. When I was 7 (1978!) I used to get 5p a week pocket money, which I think was enough for a Mars Bar. I didnt want for anyhthing, but I didnt have much but I didnt have nothing. I was brought up under the premise 'children should be seen and not heard'. Is that the way? I don't think so, but I think it is a value as a society maybe we could reintroduce maybe?!?!? Anyway that doesn't answer your question does it. I suppose it would have to be some kind of earn/spend incentive.

spud30

Lenny we're a similar age, and I'm sure I remember bags of crisps being 2p on my way home from junior school.

I'm teaching my children that if we want something big, we have to save for it. It's a bit of a shock for them, I can tell you because they've been used to having whatever they want.

This week, I've given them a choice.

We have some Tesco clubcard vouchers that we were saving for days out in the summer holidays, theme parks and the like. Just recently, they've been asking for a Nintendo Wii, so they have a choice, we can get one from Tesco with the vouchers or have days out in the summer, we cant do both.

The debate in the Spud family goes on

System

spud30 wrote: »

Lenny we're a similar age, and I'm sure I remember bags of crisps being 2p on my way home from junior school.

I'm teaching my children that if we want something big, we have to save for it. It's a bit of a shock for them, I can tell you because they've been used to having whatever they want.

This week, I've given them a choice.

We have some Tesco clubcard vouchers that we were saving for days out in the summer holidays, theme parks and the like. Just recently, they've been asking for a Nintendo Wii, so they have a choice, we can get one from Tesco with the vouchers or have days out in the summer, we cant do both.

The debate in the Spud family goes on

Nintendo wii for me!

spud30

lennymfo wrote: »

Nintendo wii for me!

And me

We can always have cheap days out - picnics in the park ehh.

southern_chick

What a great question!!

my DD (Aged 6) gets £2 a week, £1 goes straight into her school bank account, the other £1 goes into her money box. when she's got £20 she puts half in the bank, half goes into a "holiday purse" and the other half she can spend on what she wants. she's learning to save for things she wants, put some away for short term saving and some away for long term saving. she is so proud of herself when she looks in her bank book and sees over £100in there and she uses her own money when we go on holiday.

apart from that i am always toally honest with her is she wants to go anywhere or do anyhting that I can't afford i always tell her i haven't got the money.

no idea if it will work but i can only hope!!

SC XX

scaredy_cat_2

my dd1 aged 4 asked me last week if she could have some bath crayons after looking through a toy mag. I said they were too much (she has a reward thing going on at mo for bedtimes but nothing over £1.50) so she asked if she could do jobs to earn enough money!! They are £4 - so we are plugging away - stuff like tidy room, pick up stuff and she likes dusting!! she is nearly there!

i also tell her (dd2 is only 2) that no its too much we can't have that today and she accepts it

When i was younger (i am 1 of 4) when we were going on holiday we had to save ourselves -and the deal was what we saved my parents would match it - it might have been £5 or £10 and then on holiday extras we wanted we bought - like something from the gift shop, an ice cream, crisps etc it was a good incentive and if one of us had't saved as much it was never made up so we had the same - you just had less!

this is a good thread