Sweet summertime. The long days of school-free fun beg you to ditch the house in favor of heading outdoors. Yet even as we strive to keep cool and stay entertained, we also endeavor to maintain a budget. So, fellow MomVesting reader, what do you do with your family in the summer to fill the days with maximum fun without completely draining your wallet? Give us your local hang outs that are perfect for your family of two, four or more.

When I finally decided to invest in stocks, I was a little intimidated by the whole process. I envisioned a Hollywood version of Wall Street portrayed in “Boiler Room”: you know, where Vin Diesel pressures a doctor to buy 2000 shares of a crappy stock through some trickery. I didn’t want to be in the same boat (of the trickery, not of speaking with Vin Diesel…), so I did a little research first, beginning with what an order on the stock market actually is and how it works. Join me for my findings!

Order

Melinda and Christa have been doing such an amazing job, you may or may not have noticed my sudden disappearing act here on MomVesting. Fortunately, I have a really great reason for being MIA. I’m pregnant!

Needless to say, between the nausea and the extreme exhaustion (nobody warned me of the latter taking over my life), I’m way behind on my reading! The little person who’s causing all of this mischief is more than a welcomed addition, but I wish he or she would let me stay awake long enough to live a little.

I’m sure everyone has received bad financial news: your stock plummeted; a forgotten bill resurfaced months or years later; or you lost twenty dollars while trolling around town. Whatever the case, money troubles can send you reeling..and feeling like you want to curl into a ball and cry your eyes out.

Who knew those national drug store chains could save you money? Before trying my hand at super couponing (the art of matching sales with coupons for maximum savings), I rarely popped into a drug store. In my mind, they were totally overpriced and good for making an emergency medicine run or picking up that last minute card.

A while back, I shared my grandparents' financial story. Long story short, Grandpa liked to gamble while Grandma wanted to feed the seven children who, for some strange reason, always seemed to want to eat. When money kept running short, my grandma finally took over the finances and put Grandpa’s gambling on a strict budget.

I don't know that I'm what you'd call a true work-at-home mom (WAHM); I do dabble in freelance writing from home, but I also hold a part-time office job. Plus I'm still kind of a newbie at this whole "I'll write, you pay" thing. But I have learned a thing or two about managing a home, an outside job, two preschoolers, a hubby and freelancing all at the same time.

As we continue our finance definitions series, we come across the term “Global Stock Market.” Although the basic definition may be a little obvious (it means the stock market on a worldwide scale), the actual ins and outs of trading on the global market are a little different. Let’s look at everything that makes up the global market.

The Global Market in a Nutshell

Overwhelmed. Frazzled. Feeling like a chicken with its head cut off. Call it what you will, we've all been there. You know the feeling: like you're being pulled in a hundred different directions at a hundred miles per hour when all you really want is five minutes of calm. The good news is: 1) this season in life is usually brief yet furious (think: hurricane) and 2) there are steps you can take to help minimize the stress of being overwhelmed and get back on track. Let's take a look at some of these steps.

Call In Reinforcements

We here at MomVesting are continuing our closer look at this great nation's 529 college savings plans. Today's menu? Some of our southernmost neighbors: New Mexico and Texas.

New Mexico

The Land of Enchantment offers up two 529 savings plans: The Education Plan's College Savings Program and New Mexico's Scholar'sEdge. Both are remarkably similar, with the main distinction between the two being that the Scholar’sEdge program is adviser-sold (aka broker-sold) and the Education Plan’s is not. With that being said, here is the rest of these two plan’s nitty gritty details: