Blogging Away Debt Our Journeys to a Debt-Free Life

by Ashley

Just over six months ago, I wrote a post about an interesting parenting tactic for helping teach teens how to budget.

At the time I wrote about it in a generic “what an interesting concept” type of way, but also thought my kids were still too young for that.

Smash cut to today.

I allowed my kids to get on Facebook when they entered 8th grade, and they’ve been sending me Facebook reels about this exact same concept. If you haven’t read that previous post, the idea is basically this: you figure out how much you typically spend on your child, average it out per month, give it to them, and let them learn to budget and spend it wisely.

So I already had this in the back of my head. As in, yes, I think this is a good idea (or some modified version).

And then – TRAGEDY STRUCK (a bit euphemistic here). 

As my teens were getting ready for school, one of my girls RIPPED HER JEANS and was left in a puddle of tears crying, “I HAVE NOTHING TO WEAR!” 

This was very frustrating for me, given that her drawers are overflowing with clothes, including SEVEN different pairs of jeans.

Am I the only one who has found that sometimes I’ll take my kids clothing shopping, they find something they love…and then they never wear its home? Just me?

I can’t think of much I hate more than realizing my kid has outgrown something that is still BRAND NEW WITH TAGS ON!

So with all these thoughts swirling in my mind I decided it’s time.

I’m giving the girls their own budget.

In my prior Teaching Teens to Budget blog post, the idea was to give kids money for everything kid-related (e.g., sports registration fees, entertainment and fun, school events and extra-curriculars). But that felt like too much too soon. And, honestly, none of those things are the real problem. Our problem is classic teen girl stuff: makeup and clothes.

Image source: Ron Lach/Pexels

Here’s my plan:

KIDS BUY:

Clothing & Accessories

• 100% of all clothes, including:
• Shirts, tops
• Pants, jeans, shorts, skirts, bottoms
• Bras & panties & socks
• Tennis shoes, dress shoes, flip flops, boots, sandals, crocs
• Any accessories, including belts, jewelry, hair bows, scrunchies, etc.
• Pajamas/sleepwear
• Swimsuits and cover ups
• Jackets, hoodies, sweaters
• Hats & sunglasses
• Purses/bags/wallets
• Costume or special outfits (e.g., spirit week, themed days, holiday, school dance)

Makeup & Skincare

• 100% of all makeup and skincare, including any associated items
•  primer, setting spray, makeup, clips or thing to pull hair back, etc.
• Face or lip masks
• Makeup remover wipes
• Acne patches
• Makeup brushes or sponges
• Nail polish, remover, files, etc.

Toiletries

• Fancy shampoos and conditioners
• Hair masks
• Hair dye and related items
• Fancy hand soap, lotion, or body wash
• Styling products (gel, mousse, curl cream, heat protectant)
• Dry shampoo
• perfume/body spray
• Fancy lotions
• Bath bombs, bubble bath

MOM BUYS

Clothing & Accessories

• NONE

Makeup & Skincare

• NONE

Toiletries

• Basic deodorant
• Basic hand soap, lotion, and body wash
• Razors
• Tooth brushes
• Mouthwash or floss
• Sunscreen
• Feminine hygiene products

Setting the Ground Rules

I’ve typed up a simple contract where we all agree to terms. No borrowing. No advances. When the money is gone for a month, it’s gone. 

We can check in periodically and talk through whether adjustments are needed.

How much money are we talking about

I budget pretty meticulously, but I budget at the household level. I don’t break spending out per child. It’s just “clothing” or “household,” not whose item it was.

Because of that, I wasn’t totally sure what made sense.

My initial guess was $75 per child per month. Some months we spend very little – $50 or less. Other months (hello back-to-school) are much more expensive, especially once shoes are involved.

After doing some Googling, I found USDA estimates suggest families spend closer to $100 per month per teenager on clothing – and that doesn’t even include makeup or hair products.

I am comfortable starting  with $100/month/teen.

At first that felt like a big jump. But this isn’t new money. It’s money I’m already spending – just re-allocated into a new budget line called Teen Budget.

This isn’t a raise. It’s a reshuffle.

What I think Will Happen

I absolutely expect both kids to immediately want to spend the entire $100 on a couple cute tops and a pair of jeans, and then realize they’re out of money when mascara runs out.

But I actually think that kind of small failure can be a valuable learning experience,

I’m already coaching them to think ahead about larger expenses. They’re starting in a good place (i.e., stocked up on makeup and plenty of clothes), which gives them room to save toward a solid back-to-school haul in July (school starts in August).

Final Thoughts

So…wish me luck. What do you think? Is $100 too much or too little? Is 13 too young? 

Parenting is wild. It’s the most important job,  but there’s no rule book and every kid is different! I’m cautiously optimistic for this little experiment. I’m hopeful that any missteps become learning moments. And hopefully the missteps will be few and far-between.