Mr. Jack takes being five VERY seriously. For the last two years, he has been telling us that when he turns five, we need to refer to him as Jackson.
Five came and went, and he announced that we could keep calling him Jack, but NOW when he turns 10, he will ride a horse with a bow and arrow and we need to call him Dark Hawk.
Please say that name quickly. Dark Hawk...
Did you hear it? Did it make you giggle like it makes us giggle?
Back to being serious about being five. Jack is all in. He will eat vegetables put on his plate without whining because "I've five now". Crazy. One of the "being five" things he was most looking forward to was getting an allowance. I talked about my need for help giving kids money before. I was lost on how to implement it, but Jack being the visual learner that he is, I knew would benefit from some sort of chore chart.
Uncommon Goods contacted me recently to see if I might be interested in reviewing one of their products. My aunt and uncle introduced me to this company a few months ago, by bringing a catalog to family dinner. I was struck by the variety and uniqueness of the selection, and no wonder, considering almost half of their products are homemade, most are made in the USA, and one-third are made with recycled or upcycled goods! Quirky and sustainable? Basically, right up my alley. Unique gifts for mom can be found here.
Every fiber of my being screamed "for the love of god, get the unicorn mug"! It called to me in its glitter-filled voice. The practical side of me chose their amazing chore chart shown here.
I hate that I'm always being practical, but I swear it was the best move I've made in years.
The chore chart arrived, and Jack was so freaking excited. The first part he loved was the bubble wrap. Naturally.
The part I loved was how it was organized, and basically set up how I would have, if I had talent and could make one of my own. There are two categories that crack me up whenever I walk by it:
1) Daily Deeds, so I can help my family team
2) Daily Chores, so I can live on my own one day
Jack got to select the daily deeds, and I picked out the daily chores and he got to assign them to the particular day. The daily deed for Friday made me laugh so hard that I almost peed. He wanted "set couch" since Friday is our popcorn movie night. That boy is so sharp! Well, he is five afterall.
I've decided on a total of $2.50 per week that he can earn. I'm going to pay him in quarters to that he can distribute them in the awesome money savers that are conveniently labeled. It will also help him understand the concept of tithing, because 10% is just simply a quarter.
The kit also comes with sticks where you can list chores individually, and the child can "pick" a deed for the day.
I also love the "paycheck" that came with the set. Fabulous!
Jack is enthralled with his chore chart, and checks it every day to see what he needs to do. None of the chores right now actually really reduce MY workload, but I love that I'm instilling a work ethic in my over-indulged (looking at you grandparents!) only child!
So, I didn't get the amazing unicorn mug, but I did get an early mother's day present in the form a super mature five year old who is beyond proud of his contributions to the family. After all, a self-sufficient child is the best gift of all right?
Did I mention he was super mature?
For additional Mother's Day gifts, visit Uncommon Goods for an amazing selection of unique and fabulous Mother's Day gifts, accessible via this link. If you are looking for present ideas for non-moms, Uncommon Goods has wonderful Gifts for Women which can be found here.
Note: Uncommon Goods provided me with the chore chart at no cost, but the review and thoughts expressed are entirely my own. I could have said it "sucks unicorn butt" had I truly felt that! Labels: Jack
