It could be the recipe for disaster: climbing temps and the end of school. Suddenly, you have hot and cranky kids. Home. All day. I think it's fair to say that for some of us, summer could use an adjustment period while moms and kids get into the groove of being around each other more. Before the combo of soaring mercury and sweaty kids has you seeing red, take a few minutes now to put your I'm-staying-cool-no-matter-what plan into place.

Establish a Schedule

We find ourselves more than halfway finished with 2011, and now may be a great time to assess our financial goals for the year. Many of these goals fall into joint finance goals, so as we continue our Money and Relationships series, let’s take a look at our goals for the year and how we can get back on track.

What Was My Goal Again?

Investing can seem overwhelming, but finding the investment type best suited to your personality is possible. Let's look at three common sayings to help identify what types of investments are the best fits for you.

Hindsight is 20/20

Parades. Fireworks. Bomb pops. Barbeque. On this July 4th, I’m taking in all four, and I feel pretty patriotic…but at the same time not as red-white-and-blue as I could be. This leaves me wondering how I can invest in our U.S. of A.

Short of enlisting in our fabulous Armed Forces (which, in my case, is unfortunately impossible), what can you or I do to invest in our great country? Let’s look at a few of my ideas, and then please add your own in the comments section below!

Support Our Troops

Here in the good old U.S. of A., we’re celebrating the Fourth of July weekend. My mind is on sunscreen and insect repellent. It’s also on sports and recreation.

My husband is starting up a new business out here, and I have to tell you that it’s a bit scary. With my own business, there was not a lot of overhead, so I was able to bootstrap it from the ground up. His, on the other hand, requires quite a bit of equipment, so we’ve really put a huge chunk of change onto the books already.

I must admit that I was intrigued. When I read all of Melinda’s posts in her super-couponing series, I jumped right on the wagon. Newspaper subscription: check. Good pair of scissors: check. Read store policies: check. I was ready to super-coupon my way to super-savings…

My daughter has recently started a love affair with a yellow plastic kazoo. At just about any time during her waking hours, one can find her little lips glued around the noisemaker as she happily hums out any tune that pops into her head.

My husband and I got married on a whim. We lived across the country from our families, and we had put off our wedding for three years. Planning a wedding from 2,000 miles away just wasn’t happening. So one day, on a beach in South Carolina, we eloped to the tune of seagulls, whispering waves…and $300.

As women, we tend to invest ourselves fully and completely in nearly all facets of our lives. We are often as equally invested in our commitment to money as we are in our relationships. Yet we tend to talk and read more about the latter, too often ignoring our financial educations. Well I say, "No more!" We shall conquer our financial educations here and now, beginning with an understanding of why we women are perfect investor candidates.

Men and Investments

Even the most seasoned investor will tell you that knowing when to hold ‘em and when to fold ‘em can be a bit stressful. If the stock seems to be cruising its way into stardom or if it seems to be dragging its feet into the red a little bit further each day, choosing when to bail out can be tricky.

A Little Planning Goes a Long Way

One of the best ways you can stave off this adrenaline rush is to plan the dreams (and the nightmares) you have for your stock as far in advance as possible. This will help you maintain a level of objectivity.