This post is sponsored by Chore Check. Thank you, Chore Check!
About a year ago, Annabel started begging for an allowance. We sat down with her and figured out some chores she could do to earn money, and things went great for about…oh, maybe a week or two. After that, the chore chart I made sat untouched, and I found myself turning into Nagging Mom. “If you want an allowance, you need to do your chores! Feed the dog! Make your bed! NAAAAAAAG!” I hated it. She would always claim, “I forgot!” to which I’d reply, “You walk by the chore chart every day!”
I looked around for a better solution. We tried different charts, some with magnets, some with dry erase markers, but nothing stuck. And then I found the Chore Check app.
You guys. This app is freaking amazing and SO EASY to use. After I signed up for a (free) account, I was able to quickly input the chores I wanted Annabel to complete. I am able to not only list daily chores (like feeding the dog), but also weekly chores and one-time chores. I can also easily assign a dollar amount to each chore.
There are three things that make this app really stand out from all the other ones we’ve tried. The first is that Annabel has a version of the app on her iPod, so she can log in herself and see what she needs to do each day. Once she completes a chore, she checks it off, and after I approve it, she can see exactly how much money she’s earned. To quote Annie, “I love doing my chores and then seeing the money add up!” It also keeps track of missed chores, so she can see just how much money she’s missed out on.
I also really love that this app has digital “spend, save, give” jars. I can set up what percentage of her allowance I want to be allocated into those three categories. It’s such a good way to teach her how to be responsible and thoughtful with her money.
But perhaps the coolest feature about Chore Check is…the debit card!!! For $9/month (the first month is free), I can make electronic transfers into a virtual bank account for Annabel, and then she can access it by using a debit card that has her name on it. You should have heard the squealing when I gave her the card. “My first credit card! OMG! This is amaaaaazing!”
The debit card is by FAR the best motivator to get Annie to do her chores. In fact, she often comes up with chores I never would have made her do, like washing windows or cleaning her brother’s room. Yep. She offered to clean his room. I know.
She used her debit card for the first time this past weekend at Toys R Us. She’d been saving up her allowance all summer to buy a few toys, and she said she felt, “so old, like a teenager!” when she got to pay for her items herself.
I love that she feels like a teenager when she’s buying a stuffed animal.
When we got home, she asked if she could donate the rest of her spending money to Hurricane Harvey victims. “Because I’ve been saving money to give people! And they need it right now, a lot.”
I cannot recommend Chore Check enough, you guys. My kid is happily doing chores and also offering to do other chores and WHAT IS THIS WITCHCRAFT?!
Hit me up with your questions!
Jeanie says:
This is awesome! She looks so happy showing off her card, but just a touch apprehensive at the point-of-sale. I love that she wants to share her money to help others.
Linnae Bosma says:
My kids are 24 and 30 so I don’t need a chore chart anymore, but I will certainly be passing this on to friends with children. What a fantastic idea! And I love love love Annie’s heart and her desire to give to others in need. Good job, Mom!
Jackson says:
The very best: donating to victims of Hurricane Harvey. You are worth your weight in gold, Heather, for instilling this value in her. Bravo!
lori says:
I followed your blog for years. The ads are too much. I’m done following.
Heather says:
Okay.
Karen says:
Lol, best response ever to an entirely unnecessary ‘look at me’ moment. I have followed you for years and you can advertise anything you want, I’m not going anywhere! Watching these kids of yours grow into amazing people is just too rewarding to miss.
Katrina says:
Really? The sponsored posts bother you?
Heather, just so you know…. what I love about your sponsored posts is that they are seriously just like your normal posts. You put in your own photos and you talk about your family. They flow perfectly with your blog. In fact, I’ve done a few sponsored posts myself and whenever I get contacted by a company to do one, I always insist that I write the post myself based on our own experience with the product. Some want me to just put their post on my blog, but I say no to that, no matter what $$ they offer me. I insist on writing my own up. I got my sponsor example from you
Heather says:
Oh, thank you Katrina!! I make it a point to only write about things we actually use, and I work hard to make the sponsored posts fit. I really appreciate you noticing and complementing!
Lisa says:
Hoping I can find it for Kind too….one child has an iPhone but the other has the kindle. Love this idea
Amber says:
This is awesome!! You always find the coolest stuff!! Definitely checking this out. I would have freaked out as kid if this was available waaay back then!!
Thanks for this post! I’ve been trying to motivate my kids to get their chores done….im that annoying naggy mom. I think this is the answer!!
One question……can they use it at an ATM?
Sus says:
Couldn’t she just pay for her things with cash? Seems like this app complicates payments, charges a steep fee, and enticed kids to the magical world of consumerism and debt. Plus, cash doesn’t have a monthly fee for usage.
REK981 says:
I love this!!! We got a joint checking account with our daughter for her 13th birthday. There are so many times I don’t have cash on hand or she’s out with friends and doesn’t have cash and lots of places don’t accept Apple Pay so now she has a debit card for emergencies. We transfer her allowance weekly and she’s been charting her own savings already for a big end of 8th grade even next May! If I had known about this app 6 months ago…
Emily says:
I too felt very grown up when, at the age of 8, I purchased the first Ace of Base CD by myself. (Meaning that my mother drove me to the mall to buy it, but I handed the money over myself, much like Lilo buying Stitch.)
Nanette says:
Very cool! Going to try it!
Erin says:
Downloading this app rn. This will be a game changer for us!
Chickie says:
Wonder if I can set my husband up with this situation. ?
Katrina says:
See now, this ap is something that I (the mom of TEN) should have thought of. Lord knows I’ve been dealing with kids’ doing chores for almost a quarter of a century….you’d think I would have invented this myself. But nope, my brain just doesn’t come up with things like this. Oh well. Seriously, though…this is such a GREAT idea! I’m going to go check it out right now.