FIREKIDS: Week One

Week one has passed and the kids filled up their chore chart!  I have never seen them clean the table and sweep the floor with such zeal and passion!  Man, this is fun ☺  We are still reminding them to put their stuff away, but we aren’t getting any backtalk from them.  

Pre FIREkids:
Daddy: Myka, put away your dishes!
Myka: OK Daddy, I will
Daddy (30 Minutes Later): MYKA! You still haven’t put away your dishes.  Please clear your area.
Myka: OK Daddy, I will.
Daddy (10 Minutes Later): MYKA BRIGHT! CLEAR YOUR AREA, DO YOU WANT A TIME OUT?!?
Myka: FINE! (Finally clears the area after both of us are annoyed with each other)

With FIREkids:
Daddy: Myka, put away your dishes.
Myka: OK, Daddy! (Puts away dishes and then checks chore chart, smiles and puts an X on put away dishes)
Daddy: Thanks Love, have fun playing!
Myka: Thanks Daddy! I love you too ☺ 

I LOVE FIREkids. 

So each kid did all their chores and would get a full hundred bucks.  Sweet.  Going to the bank and withdrawing a $300 in one dollar bills made me feel a little funny.  I promise I am not going to the strip club, it’s for my kid’s financial education. The banker laughed and handed me the giant stack of ones.  I’m going to be honest, having a giant wad of cash in my pocket made ME feel awesome.  No doubt the kids will feel the same way. When I got home, and give the kids their money they were pumped.  They divided the money the way I taught them, and after they had removed $50 for their future I matched each of my kids $50, with another $50!  Now they are getting a weekly retirement contribution of $100.  Think about how that will grow as they get older.  Oh the math is just BEAUTIFUL! After one year, they will have $5,200 in their retirement account, and after 10 years that balloons up to $52,000!  And that isn’t including any compounding interest or investment growth. WOWZERS!

So how did they handle the $40?  

Myka: Spent $6 on eating out one night, and saved the rest.

Zeke: Zeke is growing like a weed!  His ankles were showing on his school slacks, and he had worn out his socks and undies.  So, we went shopping for clothes.  We first went to Kohl’s and saw a 4 pack of Adidas undies for $20, yeesh.  We went to another store and found a four pack for $12, Zeke just found out what comparative shopping is.  All of a sudden, it didn’t matter what brand of undies he had.  They’re just undies!  So Zeke saved $8 by learning to be frugal.  Good Job, Kid!  Then we bought some slacks and socks and he spent in total: $32.  He also ate out and spent $6.  So after the week ended, he had $2.  He was upset that Myka still had money and he only had $2, but I reminded him that he now had clothes that he needed and wouldn’t have to buy them again next week.

Week one is in the books and the FIREkids did awesome.  I will keep you posted!  Hit the message board and let me know about your process and progress! Go team FIREkids!