One of the hardest challenges that we face in our life is raising children. Not only to feed and clothe them, but raising them to be good adults in the future by cultivating well-rounded values, and nurturing their abilities and talents.
Aside from ensuring your child’s safety, health and correct development, there are so many things to prioritize and inculcate as they grow up, and the challenges include outside factors that sometimes are too overwhelming. When you’re trying to raise a child to live a simple life and instill the value of saving, it’s not very helpful that today’s world is so focused on materialism, owning things, and pouring negative values to children’s impressionable minds.
Children can be very easily swayed, given that everywhere there’s a huge billboards, ads, posters, for toys, clothing, food, and other products. Media has barraged our children’s senses with advertising and promotions, designed to heighten materialism without our children understanding that that in itself is a bad thing. Here are several helpful tips to remember as you guide your child to the right path of money-smarts:
The most important is that you serve as a role model for your child. There’s nothing that will get a clearer message across than your own example. For example, talking to them about your savings goal, a clear explanation of the family finances, and the things you do to put more money into savings. Let them know their responsibility, without having to resort to nagging or scolding and instead use a firm but gentle tone when lecturing about money and spending.
Teach your children the practical aspects of money, where it comes from and why it is essential. Children need to realize than money doesn’t grow on trees or fall from the sky and the like, but that money is earned by working hard for it. This will help them realize that money is no little thing, but is an important tool to use for necessities like food, clothes and shelter, and as well as to get things that make life easier.
Pass down the significant values, especially to “be satisfied with what you have”. With this in mind, children will lessen their need to want more items that they see. Remind them that “the best things in life are free” and that having fun doesn’t mean to shopping or spending a cent. Teach your children to look beyond the superficial. Tell them that advertising is pretty to look at, but it is truly deceiving. Also, teach them the value that “its the thought that counts” when receiving gifts, to make them realize it’s not about the object inside the box but the thoughtfulness of the person giving it to you.
Help your child get started with saving, too! If your child is old enough to have his or her weekly allowance, start introducing savings option that lets them grow their money in a piggy bank, handing them over to you, or start up a junior savings account for them. Let them know how they can start saving no matter what the amount may be and how to grow their it! Money can be spent easily on unnecessary things, but saving them to get the things that is essential, or at least important for them (like finally getting a favorite toy or game), is more fulfilling.
Above all, provide your children your support, consistent attention, and love. Children learn more in an environment that is geared toward learning and good discipline. A strong relationship between their parents will help develop a sense of security and trust that children need during their childhood and teenage years.
Dave Stack is a huge fan of saving money and using coupons, coupon codes and promotional codes. He operates http://www.couponsaver.org which has been saving people money since 2007
I know that at this time with our economy as bad as it is, and many of us face the hardest times that we can remember. It is now, at this time of year that we need to look at all we each have to be thankful for and focus on how to make those connections stronger then ever. What are the reasons you get up each and every day and try to do your best? The answer is the family that you have around you. With a strong family bond in place, it makes even the toughest of times easier to get through. Plus you are teaching your children what is really important in life, and it will encourage them to always strive to not just do their best, but to keep them grounded and focused as they grow.
I pray that we have done that with our children, as I am sure that you do. Now that we have the right focus, our family, it is time to come up with a list of resolutions. I recommend everyone sitting down together to create this list. If everyone has input into the list then everyone is more likely to follow through on the resolutions. Besides, listening to what your kids think on how to bring the family closer may surprise you. For example, we have a 13 year old, a 10 year old and now a 1 week old. While my husband and I always include the kids in what we do (I am not kidding, the only time we have a “date” is if our children already have social engagements with friends), which to many may be obsessive on our part, but that is just the way we have always been and our children actually like it. The point I was trying to make here is that when we asked them what they wanted to see change in the next year it wasn’t that they wanted more or less time with us, they wanted alone time with each of us. So we set up “Dates with Dad” and “Dates with Mom” days.
I would like to tell you that we were great about doing this every other weekend, but we weren’t. We did do it frequently enough though that our children were happy. We also had to get a little creative with what the “dates” entailed, but it could be simply our son going with my husband to run “man errands” such as going to Home Depot or helping my husband put things together. What the kids wanted was our undivided attention for 30 minutes or an hour. It was simple, and they were happy and we were happy. It helps you know your children as people, not just as your kids, and it helps your kids to see that yes you are their parent, but you are a person that they can hang out with and talk to.
There are other things that you can do to help bring your family closer. As a matter of fact, there is a game company that has made a great commercial about “Family Game Night.” One day a week all the televisions are turned off, the video games are put away, you pick out your favorite tunes to play in the background and you all sit down together and play a game, start to finish. Our family game nights are usually either Yahtzee or rummy. We have our own set of rules for Rummy, which makes it a bit more of a challenge, but it is always fun because the kids are constantly trying to go out before their dad who usually beats us all point wise.
If games aren’t your thing and you prefer a movie, don’t go out to the movies, rent or buy one and watch it together as a family at home. Make homemade popcorn, get a couple boxes of movie candy from the store, everyone’s favorite soda and curl up on the sofa together and watch a good movie. The options are endless really. Pick the things you like to do as a family and commit to doing them more often.
Now, you should also focus on ways that you as a family can not only spend time together but make the community around you better. So one resolution that you can make is one weekend a month your family is going to have a “Treat your neighbor day,” pick a neighbor in your neighborhood and do something nice for them. This could be the elderly couple down the road who needs help taking out the trash or doing yard work or perhaps they would just like to come over for dinner. This could also be the family across the street that you know is having a hard time, so as a family you invite them to dinner and a movie at your place. For this one, it isn’t important that your children know another family is struggling, you are doing it simply to be neighborly. If you don’t want to have people over, spend a weekend baking, cooking or creating something to hand out to everyone that lives on your street. Cookies are inexpensive, homemade cards that say “I am glad we are neighbors” are also wonderful.
Finally, a great recommendation for the New Years is taking your kids and spending one day a month at the homeless shelter serving food or volunteering. When you do this as a family it accomplishes a multitude of things. First, it will make each of you appreciate each other a little more. Second, when your kids see you putting the needs of others first it encourages them to do the same. Third, it will instill gratitude for whatever you have in your lives.
The best resolutions are those your family can do together, whether it is more exercise by going on family hikes, or going to museums, art shows, or just about anything you can think of your family can do together. The best part of these types of resolutions is that they are a lot easier to keep because of family peer pressure. Just site down with your family and make a list of activities the whole family can enjoy or help with. This will help your family be accountable to each other.
Don’t forget to share your personal resolutions. Make it a point (or a resolution), that everyone in the family must help and encourage each other to achieve these goals. Ahh, family peer pressure, its a pretty powerful thing.
Make this New Year, the best year for you and your family. Strengthen your family bonds with a family New Year’s Resolution list.
I hope 2010 will be great for everyone! Happy New Year!
If you are looking for more information on parenting and raising children, please consider visiting More4kids.
More4kids is a resource for families and their children
Mr. Heath is a writer and the chief editor at More4kids.info, a website devoted to parenting and families. Copyright 2010 More4kids Inc.
Fatherhood can really put a strain on your finances. To begin with, there is an additional mouth to feed. Second, you have probably just received a huge pay cut (in yours and your wife’s combined income) and then there are all the other new expenses which continue to come up. Nursery furniture, nappies, toys, safety devices, baby clothes, medical expenses. The future does not look too bright on the financial front either, when you consider things like school fees, pocket money and the inexhaustible list of expenses which children create.
From my recent experiences, I thought I’d put together a Fatherhood Finance Cheat Sheet. So here it is. 4 ways you can finesse your way through the financial challenges of fatherhood.
1. Check Through Your Subsciptions
I found that I had subscribed to a bunch of services I was not using anymore. So I did some house-cleaning and cancelled all those which were frivolous or not being used. This alone saved me about $100 per month.
2. Check Your Service Providers
Do you have services such as telephone, internet or pay TV that are out of contract? If so, do some shopping. Look for a better deal. You will probably find an offer out there that will give you more for less. In my case, I found a mobile phone deal which provided me with more free monthly phone calls for half the price. I saved $30 per month. They also gave me a free iPhone as part of the deal.
3. Check Your Debts
This is a tough one, many people find it difficult to manage debt. Review your debt portfolio, do you have debt from many sources? This includes credit cards.
3a) Eliminate Debt If Possible
Look at the smallest debt. Can you completely pay it off without too much hardship? If so, do it. Then look at the next smallest one and repeat. The problem with multiple debts is they all have their minimum payment requirements. If you can eliminate your small ones, you can quickly free up cash (by removing these minimum payments) which can be used for family.
3b) Consolidate Debt If Possible
Look at your cheapest debt. (the one with the lowest interest rate) Can you approach the provider and ask them to take more of your business, by buying out your other debts. If so, do it. This will give you two benefits. By consolidating many small debts into one large debt, you will reduce your minimum monthly payments, freeing up cash for family. If you do it in a way that reduces your average (across your debts) interest rate, you will save money over the life of the debts.
4. Use Ebay Where Possible
You do not have to buy new baby things all the time. Babies grow so fast, they rarely wear anything out, be it toys, clothes or furniture. There is a massive market for second hand baby gear on eBay. You will save a fortune.
I hope that gives you a few ideas on how you can improve your quality of life as a father. Children really are a blessing, you do not want to waste this time due to financial related stress.
Damian Papworth loves being a father. To help other fathers, he recently researched baby high chairs and high chair covers. He hopes you find the information useful.
All new parents experience the price panic when they purchase their first package of diapers. The minute you realize how much those diapers cost, the last thing on your mind is saving for school or the cost of daycare! Seriously, who would of thought that those little poop-catchers could be so expensive? But, don’t worry there are plenty of option to stretch your dollar and make purchasing diapers as painless as possible.
1.) Consider cloth. A lot of young mothers tend to shy away from cloth diapers because of the mess, but if you’re in a bind this is by far the cheapest option out there. You basically buy them and then wash them, but sometimes the hassle outweighs the price cut. bumGenius 3.0 One-Size Cloth Diaper
2.) Ask for diapers at your baby shower. Another sure-fire way to eliminate some of cost is to have a diaper shower, or tell friends and family that is what you really need when they ask. Most people will want to buy you what you truly need, instead of stuff you’ll hardly use. Plus, you can front the cost of bottles, baby monitor, and car seat when you figure that cost up next to the cost of almost two years worth of diapers!
3.) Don’t be too nit-picky. Store brands are not evil, in fact, there are a lot of store brands out there that are just as effective as name brands, and may even work better than name brands. Absorbency claim and promises of a better fit are not always true, so you’ll need to do your research before you assume that name brand is always best. The real key is to pick one brand of diapers and stick with it, because like with anything, baby’s skin is extremely sensitive and it can be hard on it to constantly expose it to different brands.
4.) Look in your local paper for coupons or sales on diapers. The best time to buy diapers is when they are on sale. You can also subscribe to different diaper brands websites and they will in turn send you coupons, which can be very helpful.
5.) Buy them in bulk. You can usually buy larger boxes of diapers online for a reasonable price. But you need to be careful that you don’t buy too many, because in the early days, your child may change diaper sizes every month! So, be careful when you buy a huge box that you are confident that your child will be in that size for a while. Pampers Swaddlers
The trick is to commit to hunting down those coupons and deals and go with it. If you have to many of one size, be generous and pass them on to someone else who could use the help with their diaper bill. Don’t be afraid to also try and exchange a package of diapers if you child outgrows them before you get to use them. These are all fabulous tips that are guaranteed to save you some cash when it comes to buying diapers, and will make your transition into parenthood that much easier.
Jack “the clipper” (coupon clipper that is) is an expert bargain hunter and founder of JacksCouponCodes.com which offers money saving promo codes and coupons to use when shopping online. Everything they never told you about discount codes revealed! For more insider tips and information be sure and check out coupon codes
1. Use cloth diapers instead of disposables
2. Breast feed
3. Make your own baby food and freeze them into an ice cube tray. Once they are frozen pop them out and store in a freezer bag.
4. Shop yard sales for baby clothes and onsies… always buy bigger sizes if you find good deals and store them until the baby grows into them.
5. Sign up on websites to get freebies and coupons. Formula places always send out free full size samples and money saving checks.
6. Use generic formula (Wal-Mart’s and Target brands have the Good Housekeeping seal and are recommended by most pediatricians (if you ask them) (all formula is regulated by the FDA so they have to abide by certain standards) When you use the more expensive formula you are paying for the advertising.
7. Be sure to check to see if you qualify for WIC, if you do, it will pay for much of your babies food needs in the first year.
8. Make your own baby wipes or even forget them all together and use torn up towels or wet paper towels. You can make your own baby wipe solution by using equal parts baby shampoo and baby oil, add 2 cups of water, mixing and pour over paper towels or soft rags in a container.
