We have a lot of sweet gum trees in our yard, which means we have nothing short of one million sweet gum balls, or what we more affectionately refer to as "spiky balls," in our yard. So if we want to have any hope of seeing our grass, we spend quite a bit of time raking and scooping up these little spiky friends.
This year, my husband decided that his excitement of being on the spiky ball cleanup crew had deminished since we first discovered the existence of these odd little balls upon moving to Georgia almost three years ago. His solution? Pay our six-year-old son for each 5-gallon bucket filled to the brim with our yard nemesis.
The task was met with enthusiasm at first, but as I mentioned, we have A LOT of spiky balls and it's taking a while to get the yard in tip-top shape. So, we've had to resort to other tactics to keep up the motivation.
First, I took my son to pick out a toy he wanted to buy with his earnings, but was met with tears when we left the toy store without his pick. (He picked out a fairly expensive toy which will take about 20 buckets of balls to earn!) What now?
Luckily, the book we are currently reading with our son has been an amazing example of hard work, and a great reference when we get any push-back when it comes to helping out around the house. The book is "Farmer Boy," the third book in the Little House series written by Laura Ingalls Wilder, and so far my favorite in the series.
The story tells about 8-9-year-old Almanzo Wilder (Laura Ingalls' future husband) and his life growing up on a large farm in New York State in the mid 1800s. His day consisted of morning and evening chores, and often working entire days in the farm planting, hoeing, and tending the crop, taking care of the animals, and all in frigid winter temperatures, and blazing summer heat.
His chores were performed with enthusiasm as he knew his father would give him even more responsibility if he proved his abilities. There was no huffing or whining, just eagerness to please. Now, my 6-year-old is a good kid and usually pretty willing to help....when asked. But, we do get the occasional grumpiness when we suggest that he go conquer another bucket of spiky balls.....even if it means making more money and getting closer to that prized toy!
But since we began reading "Farmer Boy," we've been able to talk to him about really hard work and for what Almanzo was responsible at such a young age. I think our son is finally starting to get it. He's got it pretty good, and well, these spiky balls don't stand a chance.
We picked up our copy of "Farmer Boy" at a local consignment sale for just a couple of dollars, but you can grab it off of Amazon HERE for less than $7, or I'm sure at a local book store. I'd recommend grabbing a copy. It doesn't tie into the first two books in the series, so you won't be missing anything if you start with this one.
Just my two cents for the week! Have a great one!
Erin
PS - Will you pass this newsletter on and help me spread the word about Macaroni Kid, please?
