I Didn't Get My Allowance

I carry a piece of paper from a trip Daddy and I took before our girls arrived. It says that I had enough money to pay for ice cream while we were in Williamsburg, Virginia. I pulled it out recently and showed him that I still had it. We both fondly remembered the trip and the moment.
What made it memorable was the idea that I had any cash in my wallet. For our entire marriage I have always turned to Daddy when I needed cash. I just never carry very much cash. I have a debit card and credit cards. It's rare that I need much cash.
This weekend I went to the bank to get some cash. I left it in my wallet. It didn't take long before Daddy turned this into a running joke. More than once we needed to pay for something and he said, "I can't pay for it. I didn't get my allowance yet." He laughed when he said it. I rolled my eyes. The girls took in every word.
"Do you really get an allowance?" the girls asked. Daddy, of course, said in his most dramatic voice, "Sometimes, but Mommy hasn't given me my allowance yet." The girls immediately turned around and told me that I should give Daddy his allowance. The girls worried that Daddy wouldn't have enough money to buy his lunch at work next week. After all, I hadn't given him his allowance. He laughed. I rolled my eyes at him
When I told him the girls talked to me about giving him his allowance, I reminded him that this was one of the rare occasions in our marriage that I had more money in my pocket than he had in his. The last time it happened we marked the occasion with a note. This time it was seared into our girls' memories, even if they didn't really understand why Daddy laughed every time he talked about his allowance.