T(w)een money

Our kids have had an allowance for many years, but they have never carried cash. First of all, they pretty much didn’t carry anything but school stuff, and second of all, who carries cash anymore? Not me. We kept track of their allowance in an app, which had no connection to any actual money such as a bank – it was only an accounting system. When they wanted to buy something, we’d check the app to see how much they had, and if funds were sufficient, we’d buy the thing and deduct that amount from the app. This worked well for us for a decade.

These days, though, (1) the kids go places without us where they would like to buy things; (2) they carry phones; and (3) they have these brand-new debit cards that I got them when they flew across the country. So we have begun a new era! They carry their debit cards with their phones, and they spend at will. (Believe it or not, this is Aaron's phone case.)

Jordan uses his frequently – at the school vending machine, for bubble tea at the mall, and so on. Aaron has a Starbucks habit. They have the for-real bank app on their phone, showing them how much is in their for-real bank account, so they know if they’re running low. This running-low phenomenon definitely happens to Aaron. Jordan has a substantial income from his job as an instructional assistant at the religious school, so he is in good shape.

The other way that they both spend money is with their Amazon teen accounts. These are accounts with their own login (through the amazon app on their phone) where they can shop at will, but when they hit “purchase,” the system sends me a message and I have to approve it before it’s actually bought. This is a wonderful arrangement: they buy clothes, jewelry, bluetooth speakers, you name it, and I either pay for it myself (if I so choose), or transfer money from their bank account to reimburse me for purchasing it for them. I recommend it!