When our children were very young they each signed a 'contract for their future' vowing not to smoke, use drugs, or consume alcohol. My husband and I decided to add the incentive that if the commitment was followed through until his or her 19th birthday (legal drinking age in Ontario, Canada) we would offer a bonus of $500 cash to be used in any way they wish. While many people poo-pooed our idea and said it would never 'stick', we held firm in our belief that the contract offered 'an excuse' for the kids to use in their decision making, an expectation of behaviour, and 500 darn good reasons to be strong and make it to the end! I skimmed off a small amount from every pay cheque for YEARS and put the money in a Quicken savings goal for each child. Now, after all these years of saving, the time arrived to actually pay out to the eldest child who just turned 19! We are so proud of her and the lifestyle she has chosen to live throughout her teen years. She has achieved the goal and, although it was really hard to withdraw such a large amount of cash, she totally deserves the money! Time has flown by and I can't believe she is a grown woman now! Yet the milestone has also made me realize how long it's been since she signed the pledge in her little girl hand-writing...how much saving we've done to realize this long-term commitment and how determined she was to fulfill it!
Above is the simple card I made to present the money and tell her how proud we both are. Inside I added play money...but the real cash was handed over too! She has decided to save the money to use for a university graduation trip with her friends...no, not Cancun...Disney World! :) Happy momma!
What an awesome, awesome parenting tool! I am not naîve enough to think that my girls are too young to be tempted, but how young were your kids when they signed the contract? Mine are 6 1/2 and almost 9. Is it too early? Too late?
Posted by: Chellie B | September 07, 2011 at 09:02 PM