Tris TV - $100
This is the TV that Alexarc got off Craigslist for Grandpa Harold. I was going to put it in the bedroom for him, but then things went from bad to worse, and he never came home again.
Its been sitting here on my dining table for three weeks. I didn't know what to do with it.
Tristan uses a TV in his bedroom, but it's my old TV from high school. It's a 12 inch screen and only gets 11 channels and it's that old fashioned kind where you have to open a panel and dial them in. Needless to say, I did not dial in Cartoon Network. He pretty much just watches History, Discovery, and Food Network. On this TV though, he could get everything and have a remote control.
Yesterday I had a flash of inspiration. Tris has been really, really awful about doing his "Tris List." I'm only gone for a few hours a day but every day I give him a wake up time, and tape a Tris List of to-do's to the TV before I leave. While I'm gone, I call every hour to see where he's at on the list. Generally, he doesn't give a shit and doesn't bother to get up until just before I get home. It's been a huge source of anxiety for me. It's not that I want him to do a bunch of chores (but that's a plus), it's that I DO NOT want him to learn to be lazy! I'm trying to teach him good habits that will serve him well in 7th grade, and I know that he generally thrives with a routine.
Last week he messed up SO BAD on the Tris List that I grounded him from video games and TV for a week.
Yesterday while I was puttering around the house I passed that damn TV on my dining table about a million times. And it hit me: duh, Tristan can EARN the TV. So this is how I'm doing it - in addition to his normal chores (such as taking out the trash and feeding the cats, which I consider to be part of participating in a family) I have priced tasks that frequently surface on the Tris List, and some dream tasks that I hope he will take the initiative to complete since they are "high dollar."
Here's the fee sheet:
Mow Front Lawn - $2.50
Mow Back Lawn - $2.50
-must be perfect-
Trim edge of lawn
front - $2.50
back - $2.50
-must be perfect-
Work with Mom:
crap effort $0
some effort $2.00
good effort $5.00
Change Alexarc's cat box - $7.50
-must be perfect-
Clean bathrooms $3.00 per bathroom
-must be perfect-
Sweep floors
downstairs - $1.50
upstairs - $1.00
-must be perfect-
Folding and putting away towels
some effort - $0.50
great effort - $2.50
I figure that if he kicks butt and does everything every week (or more), he can get this TV in just three weeks. I really, really, REALLY hope this works.