We’ve been preaching the use of cash and the envelope system for quite some time. It’s a great budgeting tool, but there’s another perk to using cash: the loose change.
Because we have put every penny we have to good use, we throw all of our change into a jug. We save it for at least 6 months or longer until we decide as a family how to put the money to use.
This year decided to surprise our son and give it to him to use as spending money on our road trip out west.
He’s the kind of kid who is always looking to help around the house, with the yard, etc. So it was a “bonus” for helping when we didn’t ask for help.
But of course, it came with a stipulation –
He had to take it all out of the jug and count it.
He’s eight, so he had some knowledge of how to count change. From sorting to grouping, it was a great experience for him. And it took several hours!
He ended up with $107 for the trip, which is quite a stack of cash for an eight-year-old.
Because he wanted to ride in style, the first thing he did was purchase a pair of sunglasses before we left on the trip. You have to look cool for the trip, right?
On our two-week vacation, he ended up spending a good portion of it but still came home with around $30, which he is now using to save up for something else he’s been wanting.
Will we gift him this again next year? Maybe, maybe not.
But I want you to take a minute and think about what can be done with a jug of change, all from using a cash system once you have created a budget.
It may not seem like a big deal but when it’s time for that gift, treat, or vacation, you’ll be thankful for this “change” in perspective.