Since we have moved to our new area, we run into families that are what I would consider affluent. The kids live in large, new homes and are surrounded with plenty of the latest toys, clothes, vacations and possessions. Each home has an expensive outdoor play systems, trampolines, pools, a number of current video game systems, etc.
With our frugal budget, we can’t quite compete with all of that. But what we can do is create a rich environment for our kids. I think we have managed to do that, since our house is the current “hang out house” for the kids in our neighborhood.
We do provide our kids with toys, usually second-hand, but we try to choose ones based not on the latest trend but on their ability to foster creativity and interaction. Kids are incredible at putting things together in new ways. Some simple sidewalk chalk and a couple of bikes or ride on toys can become everything from a race track to a space station. And most of the times, these types of toys are inexpensive and can be found pre-loved.
We encourage exploration of the outside world. Our yard may not be professionally maintained, but it is filled with sticks to make fairy houses, seed pods for “golfing,” trees to climb, worms and toads to meet, dirt to grow things such as popcorn, a creek to explore, even logs, stumps and vines to build with.
We make sure to provide our kids with lots of time spent with us. We have family dinners (and usually have between one and three extra kids joining us), during which we chat and sing songs together. With our smaller house, I can hear what is going on no matter where the kids are. We work on family projects and chores together. And when inspiration strikes the kids, such as the invention of a new game or a request to build the “world’s longest tunnel,” we try to be available to facilitate whenever possible with materials, advice or help.
None of these things require much money. The kids current favorite possessions? A big wheel picked up for a dollar at a yard sale, an inexpensive ball, a bike, a special lamp. Recently, one little boy was bragging about his latest Wii game that he was going to go play. “Oh yeah?” Said my oldest son. “Well, we are going to make homemade pizza!” “Cool,” said the other boy. “Can I have dinner at your house?”
Click here for more articles by Mary Ann Romans.
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