Wwyd - fil just giving cash to 4yo

[Anonymous]

Kid keeps $10 and the rest goes in 529. Explain how generous grandpa is to be saving for their college.

[Anonymous]

Why is this an issue? Put it in a piggy bank. Let kid know we budget, we have $10 to spend, the rest we save.
What’s the big deal?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:It's fine. Kid will compartmentalize the $10 vs. quarters. Buy kid a cute piggy bank to put his tens in. Take him to open a bank account and deposit the money from his bank.

Great teaching opportunity, OP. Personal finance, math skills, delayed gratification. Never too early. My mom started taking me to the library as an infant.

+1

This!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:At least you recognize you’re controlling.

LOLOL!

[Anonymous]

How about grandpa gives the kid $10 and you some lexapro!

[Anonymous]

I can think of worst things in life.

Keep getting those math questions correct kid and you can treat us all to dinner at Expensive Steakhouse tonight.

[Anonymous]

My 4-5 yr old doesn’t understand the difference between $1 and $10. Instead of a piggy bank, we gave our kids petty cash boxes with a lock.

At $40-60 per visit, let your kid buy a nice bike in a year. My 7yr old wants for nothing and his allowance and gift money just piles up. Now that school is back in person, he spent a bunch of money at the book fair.

[Anonymous]

Let it go. Everyone will be happier. I just lost my MIL and regret these stupid control issues I had as young mom.

[Anonymous]

I encouraged my mother to stop with the toys and other random stuff and send cash instead. I opened UMTA accounts for the $ years ago and they now have a very nice nest egg.

[Anonymous]

Put it in a college account

[Anonymous]

I put it in their piggy banks. My kids are still little, but at Christmas and birthday times, I let them pick out gifts for their siblings, grandparents and parents at Dollar Tree. I think thinking about others is a good habit to get into and they spend less than $10 total.

At the end of the year, I take 3/4 of the piggy bank money left and put it in their 529 accounts. It's usually just about $200 or so. I'm sure when they're tweens or teens I won't do this and will let them spend it as petty cash, but my toddlers pretty much have all their needs fulfilled now.

[Anonymous]

Op here - ok thanks for the feedback. They drive me nuts bc they alone bring over 70 toy gifts a year into our house and I’m left dealing with it all. FIL literally said he wanted more excitement out of 4yo “so let’s see what money will do!!” And started doing this on the last day. 4yo is very good with math and does actually appreciate how much this is (because he saves up quarters to buy things like new sticker books and literally the first words out of his mouth were “wow now I don’t have to do my chore chart!!!”). FIL framed it to 4yo as “money do you can just buy all the things you want” so appreciate all the input that I don’t actually have to leave $100s for my kid to blow at the toy store every visit and can allocate most of it to savings for DS instead. I’ll drop trying to stop it

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Op here - ok thanks for the feedback. They drive me nuts bc they alone bring over 70 toy gifts a year into our house and I’m left dealing with it all. FIL literally said he wanted more excitement out of 4yo “so let’s see what money will do!!” And started doing this on the last day. 4yo is very good with math and does actually appreciate how much this is (because he saves up quarters to buy things like new sticker books and literally the first words out of his mouth were “wow now I don’t have to do my chore chart!!!”). FIL framed it to 4yo as “money do you can just buy all the things you want” so appreciate all the input that I don’t actually have to leave $100s for my kid to blow at the toy store every visit and can allocate most of it to savings for DS instead. I’ll drop trying to stop it

I think the problem is that you're rewarding him money for chores. My kids do chores and also get an allowance. They're separate. Chores are what you do as part of this family and allowance is to thank you for being a good member of the family.

[Anonymous]

Unclench, OP.

[Anonymous]

I have made thousands by swapping out the money ILs gave to our children with chocolate coins.

I see no downside to getting money in the house.