Wow! This thread is "all the news that's fit to print." I'll add my own two cents worth.
Both my older and brother and I had mowing and VERY light housekeeping chores With an allowance. It worked well for me because I had a purpose for my money, first renting a horse to ride 1 hour/week and then riding lessons. That motivated me.
We didn't really give our daughters specific chores, BUT, we let them "campaign" for their Christmas presents, which were usually the latest Nintendo game.
We were frugel, but still gave our daughters many things. However, we drew the line at paying for our daughter's driver's insurance, so they all started working at 16yo--youngest DD worked for our Vet at 15yo. UNfortunately, they earned more than they needed...and spent it. HOWEVER, all three DD's learned a work ethic that many of their peers didn't. They all worked through college and our youngest DD was miffed that her Law School wouldn't let her work during her first year. Since she had worked at a local JoAnne's fabric, she found a part time job at the store in the same town as her Law School. Both her sisters worked part time. Middle DD was the only one who lived on campus, and she had a part time job there in her dorm, which, btw, was the only all female dorm on campus--good choice.
Eldest DD managed a Game Stop. Her opinion about lower level management is that it is slave labor. She now works full time hourly at the best employer in our county and has great benefits, including dental, which fully paid for her wisdom teeth removal a few weeks ago.
I kept a better house when my daughters were younger. Now that everyone (finally) is out of the house, I'm getting it AND my yard back under control.
I am very good at keeping dishes clean. I am very bad at putting clean dishes away from the dishwasher and the sink's dry rack.
My parents never involved me in either their small garden or in cooking. BIG mistake, and I taught MY DD's how to do everything that I had learned to do. Eldest DD is fascinated now with recipes. I can't make as good a meat loaf as she can. (The secret ingredient is using a blender for the eggs, onions and garlic AND adding a full sweet pepper, then you mix with the meat.)
Middle DD keeps a tidy and Spartan house.
I am watching our Attorney Associate make some big mistakes with her kids. She has successfully trained all three to have excellent manners. But, she and her DH shower them with toys. Their kids don't even ask twice and they all have a better phone than me. She even bought a new laptop, supposedly for herself, legitimately for work, then gave it to her son. She has replaced smartphones for them, and you know how easy they break. I pretty much stay out of it, but with her eldest, her son now in HS I'm not sure that he is prepared to manage on his own. Only her middle DD does any chores, and it sounds like she, at 11yo, is starting to resent her lazy siblings.
Garden chores and house chores are SO IMPORTANT!!! None of us understand their importance when we are children. But we know now that nobody is going to follow us around and clean up our messes. I certainly do NOT resent anybody who makes a great amount of money and pays for such services. They provide jobs for people who prefer to do such work, and we need more jobs right now.
For the rest of us, the dirty dishes will stare at us unless we do something about it. At MY house, in the summer, I get ants from dirty dishes left in the sink. That motivates me to clean them up. I have discovered that I can use Dawn on a sponge, and let leave the soapy water on the counter to clean up the ant trails. You can always wipe that up later on, and it isn't toxic.
) After that I was a built-in baby sitter, albeit an unwilling one.
