Counting Change

I recently sat on the stairs, just out of sight, listening to the cutest thing. The kids had all brought their piggy banks down to the basement with Rob, after wildy running around the house collecting pennies here and quarters there. Madeline ran out to the driveway for a dime she saw earlier in the day.

At last, they dumped all the coins on the floor. Rob patiently taught them the value of each coin. They practiced addition and subtraction, and sorted change into piles. John happily moved the coins from container to container. 

On Rob's last business trip to Peoria, he took all the change to our home bank, which counts it for free. He came home with $110 and change -- the kids were so excited! We brainstormed the different types of fun family activities we could do together; the kids choose to save the money for adventures like horseback riding when we're on vacation this August in a rented cabin on a lake!