Payday!

Yesterday was payday at our house! Well, for everyone except me. My paycheck is in hugs, kisses, and sweet memories...more than any career could ever pay me!

Anyway, we don't give our kids an allowance. They earn a commission. They have a chart with a list of chores. If they do the chores, they get paid a specified amount of money, if they don't complete the chore, they don't get paid. Pretty simple. My five and six year old are learning a life-long lesson. If you want to get paid, you have to work.

To clarify the chores, it is not things like cleaning their room, setting/clearing the dinner table, or picking up after themselves. Those things are done because they are a member of this family. They live in a house, not a hotel. However, I have not unloaded the disher washer one time this week, I also have folded very little laundry! And I have even made a little money, you see, everytime I pick up a piece of clothing, a sock or a shoe..it costs them. They have to pay me out of their commissions after they get paid. Amazing how few clothes I have found lying around this week!

Anyway, we tallied the charts yesterday and I paid them. We took 10% of the top for tithes. Which is teaching another important lesson, the Bible teaches that we give a tithe (the word literally means 10% and it is always off the firstfruits or in our day-off the top). God owns-we manage. After all, the Lord only asks for 10%, leaving 90% for us to spend, save, and give away. Speaking of "giving away"...

All is good, until Katherine entered the room. She saw the money and immediately began requesting some for herself. When told no, she began demanding money-full-blown tantrum with tears and jumping up and down, and even trying to take Joshua and Lydia's money right out of their hands. That's when it hit me like a ton of bricks. We have a future congresswoman on our hands!!! She thinks that I should take money from those who have worked hard for it and just hand it to her! I think it is called "redistribution of wealth" ...I call it socialism. More teaching opportunities.

I asked Joshua if it would be "right" for me to take the money he had earned and give it to Katherine. He said, "no" of course, because even a 6 year old knows that is not right. I explained that due to her circumstances she could not earn the money. She is only three, she can't really do any chores yet, and would not understand the concept of commission. So now, is it right to take some of your money and give it to her? He said no. Interesting. At about this time, Lydia, being the compassionate heart that she is says, "but it would be nice!" I agreed, and we had a great discussion about generosity, compassion, and giving to those in need.

Next, following the recommendations of Dave Ramsey's Financial Peace Jr. we divide the money into spending and saving. Teaching two more life-long lessons. Spend only what you make...the borrower is slave to the lender. The majority of Americans spend more in a month than they bring home! Craziness. Number two, the value of saving...for something real special. We live in a world of instant gratification...oh the value of learning to wait and save for something.

Most importantly, we have to keep all this in perspective, I don't want a bunch of greedy, money obsessed kids. We talk about giving. For example, last week they each gave $1.30 to buy a Bible for a child in Costa Rica. Teaching them yet another lesson...though your riches increase, do not set your heart on them.

Wow, all this cost me and Steve a total of $3.15 (okay, maybe our wages are a little low). The lessons our children are learning, the discussions we are having, the character traits we are encouraging-priceless!

Our baby girl

Initially, I was going to post some of the photos that I have taken over the previous years that best reflect Katherine's personality. I soon realized that it would not only be a record-breaking long post, but that there would actually be only about two people interested in reading it...Steve and myself. In that case, we might as well just look through my photo albums together.

So what we have are just some pictures. No real theme, which is driving the obsessive-compulsive part of me crazy. I don't even think the photos are in chronological order...not that I did not try, but my computer will not let me move them around for some reason.

It is amazing how different each of our children are! I actually thought that since Katherine was the youngest of three very young children that she would be passive, patient, and flexible-because of her environment. Because her mom would be busy with meeting the needs of a then 3 and 2 year old, that she would know somehow that the world did not revolve around her. What I totally forgot...was that nuture was only a piece of the puzzle. What I failed to consider is nature!!! Katherine is the polor opposite of my flawed assumptions! She is fiesty, deteremined, independent, brave, extemely extroverted; and when allowing me to steer her in the right direction-a total blast! She has never met a stranger...not the man on the tractor at the gas station, the checker at the grocery store, the young man working at the jewelry store, or the guy at the Verizon store (who by the time we left was showing her pictures of his cat and dogs).


Katherine loves playing with her baby dolls or anything that she can feed and dress and hold and push in a stroller.

Her first birthday.

She has no fear...and dives into life headfirst...literally sometimes.

She is always cold... just like me. She is hugging our space heater and yes it is on and blowing hot air!

She is determined to keep up with Joshua and Lydia...no matter where that takes her!

Although extremely independent, she is learning that sometimes she just needs a little help!

Already Five and Almost Three

Our weekend was full with Easter celebrations, egg hunts, and birthday parties!! Lydia is now five years old and Katherine is almost three. I so much enjoy my girls. They are as different as night and day but best friends. I often tell them that the Lord blessed them with a best friend who gets to live in the same house!! The girls celebrate birthdays like their mom...parties on three days!

On Saturday, we had their party. It was a good time with family and friends. It was fun getting to introduce "old" friends to "new" friends. We had a pink pig/yellow kitty cat party. I'm having trouble tonight with posting, so I will only select a few pictures.

On Thursday, we had a pink pig "friend party"

On Friday, which was Lydia's actual birthday, Steve took the day off. We had a picnic in the park, went to a local candy store, and played in the creek.