Faithful Friday: Summer Jobs

Summer break officially began this week for the kiddos.
I'm sure they had visions of lazy days sleeping in and vegging out.

But this momma had other plans...

Enter the handy chore chart.  

After a few minutes on Pinterest, I found one easy enough to tailor for growing teens.  Now, chores are nothing new for these two, as they both have a small daily set they do during the school year.  But with all the extra hours that summer provides, I thought we could bulk it up a little.

No, I'm not creating a tiny sweat shop but, after working all day, the last thing I want to do is come home to a messy house and empty frig.  And by the end of summer, I want them to feel as if it were productive and that they learned something along the way.  My hope is that within these two months we're instilling work ethics that will last a lifetime.  They are, after all, on the cusp of adulthood.

On Monday, I decided to let nature take it's course and see what I came home to.  As expected, the house was trashed, nothing had been done, and the kids weren't hungry for dinner because they slept in and snacked all afternoon.  That evening Tim and I presented my beautiful creation.

"You want us to exercise and read every day?!"

Yeah, this wasn't your average chore chart.

Aside from their normal chores, we added a few weekly needs to keep the house in order.  But in addition, I typed in things like reading a book and moving their bodies at least faster than a zombie shuffle once a day. They can read anything and do any activity they want - just use your brain and move your booty!  And I put in goals like eating more fruits and veggies, tackling their closets, and (gasp) cleaning out from under their bed!

original source: mycrazygoodlife.com

Each day/task has a small box where they can check it off as they complete.  At the end of the week, there will be incentives for how many and how enthusiastically they were accomplished.  Treats like unique fruits brought in for snacking, trips to the library, and small gift cards for their "allowance" in helping out.

We'd looked into doing prepaid credit cards so they could store up their savings, but so far I haven't found any that don't charge a monthly fee.

By the second day, I saw marked improvement just by my lunchtime visit.

Noah met me at the door, "I read for 45 minutes this morning!"

"I tried yoga today and it wasn't bad," Tina shares.

And each day this week, progress has been made.  Every time I pass the chart on the frig, I smile at the cute little checks they are marking off.

Yesterday, I came home to a surprise of Tina having thoroughly cleaned our master bathroom.  And Noah has regained his love of reading, having nearly completed a small novel this week.

Time will only tell how they'll continue but they're off to a great start.

This week's bonus treat will be a trip to the Drive-In.  Popcorn under the stars.  Barefoot in the grass. Honeysuckle drifting through the air.  Ah, sweet summertime...