Sweet Success

My kids will do anything for a penny these days, and I mean ANYTHING! They all understand enough about money to realize that a penny isn't much, however Jared and I ended up with a gumball machine after a white elephant exchange over the holidays and now a penny has an entirely different worth. I didn't want to deal with the mess of gum so I opted for jawbreakers, something my kids haven't had much of before. It was new and exciting and really, I think the thrill of the gumball machine creates a big portion of the excitement!


I told my kids they could not use their own money from their piggy banks, or any money that they found around the house. The only coins they could use in our candy machine were coins awarded to them for good behavior, chores, or whatever I decide to ask them to do. (call it a bribe.. whatever - IT WORKS!)

Sometimes the candy machine even spits out two jaw breakers for the price of one! Just look at the excitement!

Bedtime is always a hard part of the day for me, especially lately. I'm so worn out and tired and it's such a process. Tonight Jared had to leave just as we were finishing dinner. While the kids finished up their food, I started on the dishes and wished there were someway out of the whole bedtime routine, just for one night. ...PJ's, brush teeth, pick up rooms, prayers, scriptures, read books, all of which take numerous reminders and encouragement all along the way....

With a glimmer of hope, I announced to my kids "whoever gets their pajamas on, brushes their teeth and is in their bed reading a book by the time I get the kitchen cleaned up gets a penny on their dresser that they can use in the morning!"

Zoom!! - all three of my kids went running up the stairs and scrambled into their beds without another word from me. It was amazing! I finished up my cleaning and went to each of their beds to tuck them in rewarding them with their pennies. There isn't much you can get for 3 pennies these days, THIS..... was a fabulous deal.