Dear Dr. Tightwad - I recently started giving my 6-year-old daughter an allowance of 50 cents a week and told her she'd be responsible for buying chewing gum and other small treats.
What I hadn't reckoned on was her 4-year-old brother. When he sees his sister with a treat he wants one, too.I figured he was too young for an allowance, so I end up buying things for him - and his big sister is miffed because she has to spend her own money!
How do I get myself out of this one?
Answer - What a tangled web we weave when siblings an allowance do receive. But Dr. T thinks you can get yourself out of this one with a few smooth moves and some fast talking.
First, raise your daughter's allowance to $1 a week. That's still a reasonable amount for a 6-year-old.
Second, give your son 50 cents a week. He won't really understand how much that is, so you might even be able to get away with a quarter.
The point is, give him a token amount to make him feel that he isn't being left out. ( You probably wouldn't have given your daughter an allowance when she was 4, but with sibs it's a whole new ball game.)
Third, tell both children that they can spend their money on small treats or save it to use later.
Your children get such a small allowance that chances are you'll still be buying bigger items - movie tickets, for instance - for both of them, so that should reduce friction.
Explain to your daughter that as the older child she gets the larger allowance, which gives her a chance to make extra purchases.
If your son complains, steer him toward cheaper items.
Don't feel obliged to give them both the same amount. Because your kids are so close in age, however, you may want to even out their allowances as they get older (that's what Dr. T does with her 9- and 11-year-olds).