Should we share our finances with our kids?

Always a good question, what is too much information or not enough information to give them the financial education that they won’t get in school. I want my kids financially literate so they become responsible adults that won’t rely on me to bail them out. I believe if we build the strong financial education foundation they won’t need the “bail out” later down the road, or maybe not as much….

So I was reading this article about sharing/showing your household expenses to your tweens and it made me think about how I will do it when my kids are ready for it. I think it is reasonable to show them the electric bill, phone bill, cable bill, these are things they have input on as a household member, as well as most households have them. Since you are still educating your kids it might be easier to speak about paychecks and big ticket items like Mortgage or car in percentages, you don’t need the neighborhood kids or school friends talking about how much you make or how much your mortgage is. IE, for ease of reference I will use round numbers; if you make 4k per month and mort was 1K it would be 25%, after you outline the big ticket items (house and car) and then show the percentage remaining for household expenses and show how much money is spent on those things they take for granted, they may begin to see that it isn’t realistic for you to shell out $20 every few days for their entertainment needs. As you advance these conversations, add in insurance, the importance of that, as well as an emergency funds, investments, savings, charity/tithing. This isn’t a one day conversation, it is an evolution that will happen as they grow, perhaps show a phone or cable bill to them when it comes in the mail. Or maybe a better one to start with is the electric bill. My son who is five, we now “save the polar bears” (we recently saw Arctic Tale, and there was a public service announcement regarding saving energy which will help save the polar bears). By conserving electricity, very easy to do, if you notice a light left on or standing there with the frig/outside door open, let them know that increases you electric bill, get the connection early and you will create life long conservation habits.

If you need help with this, shoot me a note, I will be happy help you outline a plan for your individual situation or concern that you are dealing with in regards to money and your children.

Fast forward 10 years….and be ready for it.

I read an article from Ramit and it was an interesting article(see link below if you want to read full article). It talks about looking at the big picture of things, great concept, he was focusing on the 20-somethings, I couldn’t relate to some stuff but the idea of talking with people that are 10 years older than you, and find out what they wish they had saved for. This can assist in your mid-term planning stages, farther than the here and now and closer than the retirement stage. He may have gotten a little more complicated by creating buckets for individual things like wedding, wedding ring (remember he is a 20-something). It is a good idea to be prepared for the 10 year window, I believe a committed emergency fund contribution , say 5% if you currently have a 10% savings plan, if no savings, shoot for 10%, and take it out of paycheck so you don’t see it. That would be a more simple strategy with a potential bumps in the road/upcoming things list that the emergency fund would cover, and no that would not include covering bills until next paycheck. If this happens, time to re-evaluate your current spending plan. Anyway, my husband are on this “plan” but instead of having an emergency fund we are paying down our equity line, throwing everything extra at it, so if the “Emergency Items” situation comes up we will be covered. If an equity line has already been cut-off or you don’t have one, commit to that emergency fund contribution, every paycheck, put money in that account until you get that 6-8 months of expenses of cushion under you, it will give you peace of mind and the confidence to move forward with your financial future. That is why it is important to sit down and know your 1-5-10 year goals, write them down, commit to them, look at them, see how you are doing against them, and change them as your situation changes, it is always good to work towards something, if you aren’t moving forward you will falling back. As always, I am here to assist you anyway I can and for $150 for a year’s worth of services, it is the best money you could spend.

http://www.iwillteachyoutoberich.com/blog/already-handled-basics-save-money-get-ahead/

It is the simple things in life….don’t forget that

It was a holiday weekend, most people having off F-S-S. People were taking off for weekend getaways, gatherings, celebrations. And we like everyone else had numerous options to choose from, but with my husband leaving this week on a business trip we decided to lay low for the weekend and just spend the time at the house. Well mission accomplished. We started off the weekend on Thursday evening, grabbing a bite to eat and heading over to the library to load up on books and videos. It was a great way to get the kids to help get the house cleaned up during the day…bribery at its best. We had an ultimately lazy weekend, a couple errands Friday morning and after that we didn’t do anything except hang out at the house, mostly by the pool, grilled out, did some landscaping and spent time with the kids. But the best part…..it was amazing. So we have a 4 and 5 year old, not real condusive to taking to a fireworks display, that time a night could cause major misery for us parents regarding children meltdowns. We decided to make a big deal out of the NYC fireworks on TV, the kids were so excited all day, another way to get help getting everything cleaned up/keeping things clean So the time came and we turned the big screen on, turned out all the lights, we could hear fireworks outside and my son says, “Are those from New York?” Very cute. Anyway, I popped some popcorn and we curl up on the couches to watch the fireworks, kids on one and my husband I on the other, half way through my daughter climbs up on me and my son climbs up on my husband and says “I love you”, of course it turned into “I love you too” fest but it was the perfect moment, I know mushy. Anyway, I believe we have started a new tradition for 4th of July, it isn’t the hustle and bustle of throwing or going to a party or getting to a park to see the display, it is simply being together, and that doesn’t cost a thing.

Creat a “Not to Do” List

This caught my eye since I am such a list person, I have both a daily plan list (covers the “big things” in my life) to keep me focused on progressing in all areas of my life, if interested I can email to you, just shoot me an email. I also have another “house” list that can whip the house back into shape when I need the motivation. So yes, I am a list person. To see this, I was very interested in the “Not to Do” list. It is what it sounds like, very simple. The logic is brilliant; there are so many little things that distract us from doing the important things. Perhaps blogs are your weakness, chat rooms, TV, a good book, checking email, texting, tweeting, talking on the phone. Any of those sound familiar? Well to help you focus on what really needs to be done, you may not only need a “To Do” list but a NOT to Do List. Even if you cut out one distracting thing per day, you will carve out that much needed time that you have been running short on. And since I am such a money freak, you can apply this to your money/finances/budgeting. IE. no lattes this week, only eat out lunch once this next week, put nothing on the credit card(everything cash), no clothes shopping this week. There are lots of different ways to apply it, even related to eating right/exercise. You won’t take the elevator this week, you won’t park close to the store, and you won’t use the vending machine this week.

LOTS of ways to use this and apply it, try it, let us know how it works for you.

Texas De Brazil…an amazing experience and 1/2 off in July

We recently went to a Brazilian Restaurant where they come to your table and carve off meat for you, this experience isn’t for vegetarians. It is fun, great to do with a group of people or a date night. We took our two kids, they had a great time, well behaved and 6 and under eat free so it was great for us. We signed up for their “e-club” and got notice that July it is 1/2 off Mon-Thurs. That is a great deal for this experience. There is one in Orlando and there is a map locator on the site as well to see if there is one close to you. http://www.texasdebrazil.com/ You can go to their website and sign up. Enjoy the experience, we did!

What to do with those ink cartridges from your printer

We all have them around our computer or stuffed in a drawer or maybe I am the only weirdo that hangs onto old empty print cartridges. My Dad used to collect them from me since he lived near Staples and would take them in for a $3 credit, and then turn around and buy me some paper with the credits. Then we discovered Walgreens would refill Black for $10 and color for $15. FYI, getting refills, they don’t last quite as long and you start to have trouble with them after a couple refills, or at least I had a problem with them. I ended up taking it back and getting a refund because the quality of my prints was horrible. The guy said it had to be something wrong with the cartridge because he never had issues. Maybe I will have to try the refill process again, I am on my last cartridge of a multi-pack that I had purchased after my last go around with re-fills.

Amazing Burgers to make and eat

So I was flipping through the channels last week and came across the food network and there was a segment about the best burgers, it looked so good so I figured over the weekend we would try our hand at a “creation”. I put 1 packet of hidden valley ranch dressing dry mix with a lb of hamburger; I had 2 lbs so I used 2 packets. I had it in my pantry so that is what I used; I believe it would also be good with good season’s dry Italian dressing. So I mixed the meat up and made a flat patty, then I put some pepper jack cheese, that is what I had in the fridge, but you could use mozzarella or cheddar, whatever you have or like, then I put more meat over it, flattened it made sure the sides were sealed and put them on the grill, I added garlic salt and pepper, but I believe it wasn’t necessary because the flavor of the burger was AMAZING, now it was a sizable burger, so you won’t get that many out of the recipe but if you are ready for a step up from the normal grilled burgers, WOW, you have to try this.

The serious messages of movies, hidden beneath humor these days

I was recently reading an article about the movie industry having a tough time in this economic environment, as is everyone else, but in a different way. They are having a tough time delivering the dramas and serious movies because in this environment people want to be entertained in a happy way, life can be heavy why pay for some movie that can make it heavier. This is always been my motto so I pretty much stick to the chick flicks and light movies. But now they are taking the light movies and putting some serious messages under the surface which you aren’t aware of until you are smack dab in the middle of it. Two examples, bear with me, they are a little aged since I use Red Box instead of going to the theatre. Anyway, I watched “New In Town”, labeled a romantic comedy, Renee Z and Harry C., thought it would be nice. Well, especially in this layoff environment, it could be quite depressing, they do revive it with a entrepreneurial twist and fight for what you believe in theme and it ends up good in the end but wow, the road to get there could be rough, and the story is ringing true for so many in the Midwest right now. Then “Confessions of a Shopaholic”, I thought it would be a cute comedy, especially since I am so not the shopping type, this movie had serious undertones of addiction and debt and could really knock you in the teeth if the characters’ tendencies rang true in your life. I could not relate, since I am not a shopper, but to think if others had these issues in their lives, wow, could be some heavy stuff. So be ready, what you think you are buying in a movie, may just be on the surface and you may be in for a more serious message.

Loan Modification Process, it can work!

Okay so you hear about the elusive Loan Modification process, but does it actually really happen to people and is it worth the hassle? Well I have been working with a client on getting her loan modified…..it took from approx April 6 through June 22 to make it happen. She went from $1391 payment to $836. The interest rate was changed from over 12% to 5.375%, they kept the same amount of years 28. So we have a success story. Granted I assisted my client with getting all the paperwork together, I called in on her behalf to make sure there wasn’t anything else needed. We made sure she continued the outragous payments until they could fix but all in all it went fairly smooth, it took longer than we wanted but it worked out in the end and she is now a very happy, much more relaxed lady who can make her payments. My $150 charge for a year of my services was well worth her while since she still has me as a resource, for another 9 months, as she moves forward. Now that she has her mortgage under control, there is no stopping her continued progress.

So we know it works, be ready for some work, but it can happen. Her loan was through ASC (Wells Fargo).

PotLuck your way through the summer

Hey we know everyone’s belt is tightening but that shouldn’t stop our enjoyment or entertainment. Have those gatherings, you know people are always asking, “what can I bring?” Take them up on it. Either request people to bring their “specialty” or assign things to make sure everything is covered. It really is fun to have a mix of things. But make sure you don’t end up with snacks and dessert. Bust out the catagories.

Snacks/Apps
Main (for cookout, meat/buns)
Sides
Dessert

What I usually do is offer up what is missing after everyone else picks. I take a look in the freezer, from brats/sausage that I bought on sale. An economic way to do fruit is to buy red grapes and add to canned tropical fruit salad, looks great and probably less than 1/2 the price of a fresh fruit salad, or seasonal fruit, ie melons. Deviled eggs are always fairly easy to make, cheap and always a winner. I know I always go for the deviled eggs at a potluck and that is one dish that goes fast. Also, I always have brownies in the pantry and can whip up a batch.

Recipe for homemade Playdough

I was reading an article on ways to keep the kids entertained this summer, one was for making your own playdough, since I have the ingredients I will give it a shot.

2 cups Flour
1/2 cup salt
1/2 cup water

use more water as needed. It suggested using scented oils and food coloring to add even more spark. They also suggested using baby food jars to store the remaining, I don’t have any of those so I will use the small ziploc containers.

Have fun and if you have any other child entertaining things for us, please chime in.

Is the 60% cut in available credit by 2010 coming true?

I had blogged back a few months ago about reading an article that cited that that “industry experts” were saying that 60% of available credit was going to be cut by 2010. At the time I did not see anything on my personal accounts. I have been letting my credit cards “cool” since no one is offering good balance transfers deals that can compete with the Equity line prime rate so I have not been carrying any CC balances except for one, Capital One who offered a deal that made sense for me after I did the breakeven analysis.

Anyway, I got new ATT(Citigroup) cards in the mail yesterday, I thought I would jump on and see if there were any offers, well they cut my line by 60% (rounded up,59.78%). AND there are no balance transfer deals being offered at this time. So I guess Citigroup is getting the idea of deleveraging and cutting risk in this environment. So being curious I jumped on Chase to see if it happened there as well. The credit limits there have not changed and they are still offering balance transfer deals, the deals don’t make sense for my situation but they are still offering them.

So beware, if you are counting on credit cards to fill gaps or perhaps looking to tap them in case of emergency, be checking them, I would say monthly, to make sure what your credit limit is and to make sure the “cushion” you are looking for is still there.

A Tally of the 700B of Bailout Money

With the news that banks are starting to give back money and “supposedly” the economy is pulling out of the ditch(I am not completely convinced of this, but would be ecstatic if it was true). People are wondering where did all the money go and are we now getting it all back. Well I was reading the Motley Fool and pulled up the following article, I have added the web address so you can read the article in full.

http://www.fool.com/investing/general/2009/06/19/where-did-all-the-bailout-money-go.aspx

Here is the table used in the article to tell you where the money went, the “source being from the Treasury’s official bailout website — financialstability.gov — here are the latest figures:”

Money Still Held by Banks $172.6 billion
Homeowners (mortgage modifications) $18.3 billion
AIG $69.8 billion
Auto Industry $85 billion
TALF ( Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan Facility) $20 billion
Already Repaid $70 billion
Uncommitted/Not Yet Spent $264.3 billion
Total: $700 billion

Consider yourself more informed for the day, I do.

Bed, Bath and Beyond Coupons, something new I learned.

You know those BBB coupons, the one’s for 20% off one item. Somehow I got signed up for them; I get the flyer and coupon in the mail. I assume you can request them on their website, if you don’t get them. Well I recently learned that they will take expired coupons as well as multiple coupons at one time (one coupon for each item), at least locally they do, I have been talking with others and they said yes that they have been told the same, so you may want to check with your local store but it may make sense to shop around keeping in mind that 20% off coupon.

How to email a text message to a phone

This is so funny since I was just asking someone if that was possible for me to email someone a text message from my computer to their phone, well I got my answer. Only catch, you have to know what company they are with. For those listed below, this is how you would do it. Pretty cool.

For Verizon Wireless customers, the address is the number@vtext.com; for AT&T, number@txt.att.net; for T-Mobile, number@tmomail.net; for Sprint, number@messaging.sprintpcs.com.

BAM.gov for tweens….

BAM stands for Body and Mind. I was reading an article about resources on the computer for kids. This one came up, I jumped on, and some of the links didn’t work for me. Also they said it was for Tweens, maybe a for a little younger, talks about peer pressure, nutrition things like that, your child may or may not be able to relate to the website, but I guess if they are surfing the web, can’t hurt to throw this address at them and ask them to check it out and give it a “grade”, who knows the reverse psychology of the thing may actually help them learn something while they are evaluating it for you.

What to do with all of those broken crayons

Okay so I am completely in Mommy mode with my son out of school for the summer. I read an article where you can take all the crayon scraps, take off the labels, pre-heat oven at 350 degrees, use a muffin pan, they suggested different shapes, but I will be using normal boring circles, but I believe they will still make cool new crayons. Anyway, put the scraps into the bottom of pans, put in pre-heated oven for 3 to 5 minutes until scraps are mostly liquid, few chunks in middle will be okay, that will prevent burning. Then remove from oven, cool for 25 minutes, room temperature, then you can freeze, still in pan, to completely cool, pop them out of the pan.

Suggestion, be careful of the colors you are blending, you don’t want 6 brown/black blob crayons

Conserve water if you don’t have a low-flow toilet

By setting a gallon, 1/2 gallon, quart or even a 20oz bottle of water inside your toilet tank, it will raise the water level in your tank and “trick” your toilet into thinking it is full without having to use as much water. I have heard this one before but sometimes we forget the easy steps that we can take to help with our conservation efforts. The next question comes up how much is enough water? Can you do this same thing in a low-flow toilet to get even better results? I am not sure on that one, anyone know?

Tennis Ball Dryer Tip…..Does it work?

Okay so I read in a “green” article to use clean tennis balls in your dryer to speed drying and fluff up items, does anyone know if this works? I believe I have heard this before but I don’t know the concept behind it actually is able to speed up drying.

Please enlighten me if you know, hey maybe I will take my own advice and google it

Prescription Drugs-be an informed consumer

I have to share this experience with you so you can learn from it and hopefully do the same thing, if everyone became more aware of what was happening and asked the right questions, we may see some of the crazy deductibles and co-pays go down, I know wishful thinking but I figured I would do my part and help you become an informed consumer.

So here is what happened. My daughter got a rash; we had to get this topical cream to put on it so it would go away. Well my husband picked it up and it was a $30 co-pay, regular medicine is the $30 while generic is $10. Because we are a fairly healthy family and don’t go to the Dr. often nor have prescriptions, he was not familiar with the co-pays. Well the lotion that was to be used on the “fairly common” skin condition, according to the Dr., was $344, yes I said that right. Well immediately I called the Dr., she was not aware that it was that expensive. She said she would call in a generic; found out that particular lotion did not have a generic, so I said there had to be something else that could be used. After several calls and trips to the pharmacy we got it straightened out. We went from a $344 cream to a $27 cream. Now the real test I guess is to see if it works, the Dr. said she was fairly sure that it would work just fine.

Lesson learned, the Dr. may not realize the price of the drugs they are prescribing, so you need to ask those questions, when you go into fill it or pick it up, ask the questions. Is this the generic form? If there isn’t a generic form is there a reasonable substitute? Get the Dr. and the pharmacy involved; make yourself an active participant in this process.

You are probably saying, why is she worrying about it, she only has to pay the co-pay…..ah that is what they are counting on, the belief that someone else will be picking up that huge price tag, but truly it is hurting everyone if we take that attitude through higher premiums, deductibles and co-pays. And this is not an isolated incident, I did this after my Dad’s surgery and my Mom has had to do it recently as well, but in their case it is complete out of pocket…ouch.