Children

Rainy days, cold and snowy days, too-hot days.  If you have kids, finding ways to keep them amused on such days that doesn't involve a slew of Barney videos or the Wii can be a bit challenging at times.  Why not take an indoor kind of day and turn it into an opportunity to have fun and learn a bit about money?  Here's an idea for a game that most kids will like and will also sneak in a bit of financial education to boot.

What You Need

I am exceedingly glad parenting does not require a degree in spaceship engineering, especially when it comes to kids and finances.  With support from your spouse, extended family and good friends as well as the vastness that it is the world wide web, teaching kids about money and savings takes little more than the two C's: common sense and consistency. 

Teaching your children to invest is a very noble goal, and it can be as hard and serious or as fun and easy as you want to make it. Financial planning is a life-long process, and the sooner they get a grip on it, the better. So, what can you do to help prepare you children to invest properly? I suggest doing a little gardening project at home.

Oh, the days of getting an allowance when Mom or Dad gave you money pretty regularly.  Maybe it was tied to chores, and maybe it wasn't, but an allowance - your allowance - was money that took the trip to the candy store from dream to reality.  Pretty sweet, wasn't it?  Now as parents, we might find ourselves in the proverbial boat as our 'rents were.  When is a good time for Junior to start receiving his own money?  If you have children and are pondering when to start giving them a regular allowance, here are some very general guidelines that might help you gather if your child is re

Future Homemakers of America.  Future Business Leaders of America.  Future Farmers of America.  You've probably heard of these groups, and maybe even participated in them in high school (for me, it was the FHA and FBLA).  How about Future Moneymakers?  I'm pretty sure they didn't have this when I was in school, but your local middle and high school could have its own variation of a kids' investment club. 

Thinking about saving money for the future these days is a bit like getting your child to eat veggies after they turn two.  Both scenarios can be difficult for parents, despite the fact that both really are in the best interest of all parties involved.  Eventually, though, Junior will eat something of solid nutritional value on his own without your prompting, hair pulling, or begging.  Saving some of your income can also be painless, easy, and certainly beneficial.  In our ongoing series of great accounts for your money, we bring you a bit on College Savings Accounts. 

Making time for yourself.  It's a lovely thought, right?  On this site, we've established that it's healthy and needed in any mom's life.  We've even thrown out some ideas on how to carve out an inexpensive hour for yourself while the kids are entertained.  Now, it's time to reclaim some at-home, after-the-sun-goes-down, adult-only time (for yourself or even to share with that special someone).  If bedtime at your

Making time for yourself.  That really did sound good when you read it in an earlier post on this site.  With the new year upon us, what better time is there to put this idea into practice?  If you're shaking your head at your screen and saying: "Melinda's nuts!  I have no time, next to no money and what time and money I do have is eaten by the kids!"  Take heart, moms.  I have a few ideas that will give you some super cheap ways for both you and your kids to get a break.

You've heard of those recipes that hide veggies in typical kid fare?  The kids (in theory) enjoy their mac and cheese, never knowing they're getting a dose of cauliflower along with the cheese and noodles.  Maybe, just maybe, those creative moms are on to something. 

If you're a mom - working, single or stay at home - you're busy.  Period.  Your to-do list is full and growing, you're on call 24/7, and all you'd really like is to sit down for five minutes without someone pulling you in ten different directions.  Needless to say, finance is probably not at the forefront of your mind.  However, finances can (and probably already do) have a place in your life.  Below, we've listed some reasons why today's busy mom can -- and should -- be fearlessly informed and savvy about finances.