The boys went to visit family yesterday and today, which allowed me some much needed time to decompress, catch up on reading and clean house. I even bought and put together a new computer desk and rearranged some furniture, so that counts as weight-lifting exercise, right?? 😉

As I was moving dressers and bracing myself for what I might discover behind and beneath the furniture, the thought occurred to me that the boys need a visual aid to help them take their belongings more seriously. I happened to have cash on hand (because everyone’s fundraisers are due all at the same time — go figure), so, when I got the call that they were about a half hour away, I scattered dollars all around the house — in the hallway, bedrooms, study and tv room. Then, I started fixing dinner.

When they walked in the back door, of course the first thing someone asked was why there was money on the floor. Without looking up from what I was doing, I said, “Oh, never mind that — it isn’t yours, so don’t bother picking it up. Just pretend like you don’t see it and walk right over it.”

A couple of the boys started picking up the money and bringing it to me, and then the others followed suit. I said calmly, “I don’t know why you are bothering cleaning it up. Why don’t you just step on the bills or put your dirty clothes on them? Or, better yet, why don’t you just shove it between the couch cushions or under your bed?”

When everyone sat down for dinner, I asked them how I am able to buy things from the store. Of course, everyone knew the answer was money. I said that when I see a video game sitting on the floor, I don’t see Mario Kart; I see $60. When I see Pokemon cards on the couch, I see another $10. When I see Beyblades in the hallway, there’s another $20 bill just laying around on the ground, waiting to get stepped on and ruined. When a school shirt is on the closet floor, there’s another $20.

I’ve already been confiscating toys that I find out of place around the house, but hopefully today’s visual aid will help them understand that their belongings cost MONEY. I reminded them that they were very eager to pick up the dollars off the floor, but they just as quickly walk over other things and pretend like they don’t see them. Here’s hoping that they get it now.