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Are your kids frugal, too?

October 23rd, 2008 at 04:28 pm

My daughter loves American Girl (AG) products. She is 10 years old. If you aren't familiar with AG, their stuff is good quality but very expensive. My daughter gets paid $10 from our neighbor to vacuum her home most weeks. She saves her money and when she gets $30-40, what does she do? Spend it on AG.

Okay, the dolls cost $90. Thank God her grandma gave it to her for a birthday gift last year. However, my daughter brought her doll a tennis outfit that came with a visor and tennis racket. It cost $48. I told my daughter I wouldn't pay $48 for an outfit for her, let alone for a piece of plastic.

Anyway, obviously our daughter is a great saver. But once she saves her money, it all goes to this pretty plastic non-human thing. I've started to take 50% of her earnings to go towards her savings account.

Funny, my husband and I are so frugal, and our daughter loves saving for pricey frivolous things. Hopefully she'll grow out of it.

Have your kids picked up your frugal ways?

Posted in Money Management | 4 Comments »

4 Responses to “Are your kids frugal, too?”

  1. princessperky Says:
    October 23rd, 2008 at 04:40 pm 1224780024
    1224780024

    well kids don't often have non frivolous things to buy.

    no bills, no gifts for others in general, no food costs, often not even needing to buy clothes for themselves.

    So it is hard for them to see why not spend that 40 on doll clothes.

    I insist that my kids save a portion for 'the future'. (20%, some to charity as well, plus dues to scouts) and we talk about why not to buy certain items, but in general, they can waste the rest.

    To each their own wasting? (After all I would never spend a dime on hair coloring, but I don't knock those who do)

  2. scfr Says:
    October 23rd, 2008 at 11:32 pm 1224804755
    1224804755

    Have no kids of my own, but my sister has a pretty neat system. My 6yo niece gets $3 weekly allowance ... $1 gets donated to a charity of my niece's choice (tho the options are narrowed down by my sister), $1 goes to college savings, and $1 is for anything my niece cares to spend it on (such as saving up for a toy). My niece actually likes watching her savings grow! My sister is trying to teach her to balance wants and needs, short-term and long-term goals, helping others and helping herself, etc.

    My sister has also requested that gifts to the kids be in the form of donations to the college fund. I do that (send a check), and "grandma" buys the AG dolls ... In my niece's case, Josefina! I think there is a place for both (in kid-speak: toys & college savings / in adult-speak: enjoying the moment & retirement savings) in our lives, and the challenge we all face is to find the right balance. It's a never-ending process.

  3. reginaastralis Says:
    October 24th, 2008 at 03:09 pm 1224860974
    1224860974

    I have a three year old .. so no.

    However, she's pretty "frugal" in her own right. Getting a piece of candy for going on the potty wasn't cutting it anymore ... so when I offered her a quarter for doing the deed ... well, let's just say, she's gotten a lot of quarters. I guess I should make her start spending them, instead of using my pocket, but she LOVES to put those shiny quarters in her bank.

  4. alianora Says:
    November 4th, 2008 at 01:13 pm 1225804380
    1225804380

    In my opinion, she IS being frugal. She is saving up all of her money, giving up smaller things she would like now, for something more expensive she wants more. To me, finding ways to save up enough money for something you want or need is the definition of being frugal.

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