Father-Son Bonding
Recently, we had quite a few coins laying around the house, so we decided to put them in the boy's piggy bank. He thought it was fascinating, and he wanted to help. So we had fun taking turns putting coins in the bank.
(Now that I write it out, I realize that it might not actually sound all that fun. But it was. Hey, did I think I'd ever regularly talk about the consistency of someone else's poop? No, but I did just that. It's a side-effect of parenting. Having kids changes your perspective on a lot of things, like poop, money, and sleep. Those were not listed in any particular order, btw.)
The boy was really into it. And while I'd like to think he enjoyed the family time, or maybe the idea of saving money that will one day go towards his Playstation 5, I'm pretty sure he just liked the noise the coins made when they fell in. In any case, when we ran out of coins, he made it known that he was not ready for it to be over. He put on his mad-face, and loudly stated: "I WAN MONEY! I WAN MORE MONEY!"
On one hand, I felt like we were bonding, because dammit, I also want more money! Having the money supply run out is not OK with me, either! We were finally on the same page. Solidarity, brother!
But on the other hand, I thought I had at least a few more years to wait before I had to deny his requests for money.
Comments
Radioactive Jam said:
What is this 'deny' you speak of?
cadiz12 said:
yes and unfortunately, until quite a bit later, him getting money almost surely means you'll be losing it.
but at least you're instilling the joys of saving early on.
Lia said:
At least right now, peanuts work almost as well as actual money. How well depends on the size of the slot in the piggy bank. I suppose you could you checkers pieces. But that won't work anymore in, say, ten or fifteen years.
Cate said:
So young to already be corrupted by rampant materialism. ;-)
Jon the Mr. 5000 said:
I picture him in the back of the classroom, around 7th grade or so, still giggling and clapping with delight as he drops loose change into his piggy bank. You know, the one he carries with him everywhere he goes… The teacher stares back, pursing her lips in disapproval…
elasticwaistbandlady said:
My son kept asking for money to put in the "juicebox." I thought that was a weird way to start a savings account but I guess no stranger than people who stuff their mattress with it. Turns out, he wanted money for the jukebox. Yes, the spender gene passed down from me is strong within him.
elasticwaistbandlady said:
But you know how everyone says that "money is the root of all evil?" You turned it into a father-son bonding experience, so how bad can it be?
I said:
For the record, I used a trick suggested by the wife to resolve the situation. I moved the piggy bank so he couldn't see it, popped the bottom off, took out half the coins, and voila.
I don't expect this trick to work for very long, though.
demosthenes said:
Aha! I finally got it. For some reason, I always picture you as the RL version of Christopher Turk. Posts like these simply reinforce that.
That's been bugging me for so long. Don't ask me why.
Jonathan said:
"I moved the piggy bank so he couldn't see it, popped the bottom off, took out half the coins, and voila."
Great, so now he will have a false sense of financial self worth.
He is probably telling all the kids at day care – “Guys, you will never believe how much scratch I have in my piggie bank at home. It must be almost full by now. My dad and I spend hours dropping coins into it.”
Won’t he be surprised when he goes to buy that perfect fathers day present this year
:)
Rhonda said:
Just when I thought I was ready for my little one to start talking...
Syar said:
Oh, TURK! Definitely.
Yeah, use Lia's suggestion. Get him interested in fake money. I remember being absolutely delighted by these scaled down versions of American money we got ages back, even if I couldn't do much with them.
Although...this could lead to criminal intentions. So you should either groom him to be a master thief or be prepared to be shanghaied out of all your money.
And not in the "Dad, I need money for the movies" slow, soul-sucking type Shanghai.