My new calling in our ward is Activity Day Leader.  It has been so much fun.  For the activity on Tuesday I decided to teach them a little about money and budgeting or at least as much as 10 and 11 year old girls understand.  I was so excited about it because I had, what I thought, was a good idea.  Hailey and Mallory helped me get ready and they were so excited it made me more excited so we went a little overboard.  When the girls first got there I explained to them that we have to be wise with our money and not just buy anything and everything we want.  We have to pay our tithing, save for the future and sometimes save for a goal.  I told them that they each got $10.00 a month in allowance.  And that in June when school got out they wanted to go to Lagoon with their friends, but their parents would only pay for half of it.  So that gave them a goal to focus on.  Then we went around to different stations to make some choices. One station they were at the store with their mom and she said they could buy a treat.  I bought mini candy bars and gum and Sprite and gave them price tags.  The girls asked “if they could really buy real stuff” and I told them they had to make their own choice with their money.  I have never seen such big eyes! Most bought a treat.  I set up different stations some they could buy stuff and some gave them money, like they got babysitting jobs and they also got “chance cards” with unexpected expences like a library fine or they broke their sisters earrings.  It was so much fun to watch the girls learn and guard their money. I was impressed when they turned down the overprice popcorn at the movie.  After we went to all the stations I talked to them about what choices they had to make and that nothing they had to choose was a bad choice they just had to remember that they were trying to get to Lagoon.  Well they all had enough money to go so I took then to “my” lagoon (good thing it was April Fool’s).  At “my” lagoon we play don’t eat pete.  They had so much fun playing and I let them eat the popcorn that no one bought and we drank the Sprite and candy bars that no one bought.  So when the moms came to pick the girls up they all said “oh mom, today we just had a party with popcorn and pop and candy”.  So two weeks of planning and cutting out money and sewing each girl a wallet, 1/2 hour of setting up the gym to look “cool”, 45 minutes making choices with our own money and after playing don’t eat pete for 15 minutes it was all forgotten!!! I sure hope they remember when the sugar rush wears off!

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