All In A Week's Work

A couple of weeks ago I was talking on the phone with my friend, Kellie.  Her son, Big Ben (that is what Cole calls him), is 2 months older than Cole.  We were talking about how they are at that age where they ask for everything they see on TV or in the store.  It is frustrating and we both were discussing how we don't want them to grow up being handed every little thing.  What topped it off for Rhonald and I was when I took Cole to buy a birthday gift for a friend and he happily picked one out and then asked what we were going to buy him as a gift.  Well, Kellie gave me a great idea...something she and her husband were doing with Ben.  A chore chart to earn money to buy something they would like to have.  Not only to buy something but to learn to save a portion of what is earned and to give a potion to church.  Cole was all about it.  We came up with 8 chores that he is very capable of doing.  He gets a check mark for each chore he does and at the end of the week we add up the checks and pay him.  Then we have him put some in the offering at church, some in his piggy bank and he can save or spend the rest.  I told him I would pay him 25 cents for every check.  Well, this is week 2 and we quickly learned we needed to adjust our pay.  The first week Cole earned $13.00!  He was so excited to get paid and put his money in his wallet - he carried it everywhere!  I was proud of him...he never complained about giving or saving.  Actually he was thrilled beyond measure to give at church, although he did ask, "so, who is the one chosen to hand the money to Jesus?"  Good question :)  Rhonald took him to Target on Sunday afternoon where he spent literally 1 1/2 hours picking out a toy.  He came home with a new Transformer and $3.00 left in his wallet for next time.  He is really proud of himself.  He even used his own money to buy food to feed the animals at the petting zoo - even after we told him several times he did not have to do that.  I wondered if he would lose the love of earning money this week but he has continued to work hard. He counts his checks every night and asks "how many days until pay day?"  I hope he is getting it....I hope he sees that hard work pays off and that it feels so much better to earn something than to be given everything.  I think he gets it...in his own, 4 year old way, I think he is getting it....and I pray he holds on to it.