Sports seem to thrive in the summer months.  Between baseball, swimming, soccer, cheerleading and football, you can get worn out physically and financially. 

• Try limiting each child to one sport at a time.  This will not only help keep their sanity, but yours as well. 
• See about getting your uniforms second hand or passing them down from one child to the next. 
• You do not, necessarily, need to buy new shoes for each sport.  We bought football cleats for my oldest son last year for football…funny, they worked perfectly fine for baseball the following spring (as long as they still fit okay).  Obviously that is not always going to be the case, but keep it in mind if the budget is tight. 
• To save on gas, find out if other children in the neighborhood are on the same teams and set up a carpool. 

This may seem like very basic advice, but sometimes people are so set in their ways, they don’t seem to realize the little things they can do that will make a big difference.

Summertime childcare…This is a tough one.  There are several things you need to take into account when looking into summertime childcare.  Things like:

• Your families budget
• Your personal preferences
• Child care availability
• Hours available
• Parents intuition

Yes, I do have your intuition on there.  You talk to any mom (and maybe dad’s too, but I can only really speak from a mom’s perspective), they will tell you they know almost immediately if they are comfortable leaving their child somewhere. 

I have had more than one mom tell me they left a child care facility without leaving their child there because it just did not feel right.  So do not underestimate the power of a parent’s intuition. 

Taking all these factors into account, it is important to take my fourth step into account.

Start Researching Summer Child Care Options Early – As the mother of school aged children, I know the summer can be a difficult time.  You have to make the decision of where your children will spend their summer. 

Some people are lucky enough to work from home and can have their children home with them.  If you fall into this bracket, you should probably take into account that you might not be quite as productive with the children home. 

Also, don’t forget those meetings outside the office, those hourly daycare centers are fabulous for that situation; just don’t forget to factor that into your budget. 

Other people do not have the option of working from home, so then what?  There are city run facilities that have great field trips and activities, but they tend to be expensive.  You can also look into some in-home daycare options or look into a nanny. 

Each option is a very personal decision for each family, not only financially, but only you know what is right for your children.  If you start researching early, you will not feel forced to make decisions under pressure.

Have you ever thought about how your childhood has affected you financially as an adult?  When it comes to your finances, there is an enormous connection.  One issue that I am starting to see in children nowadays is a sense of entitlement.  It makes sense, especially if you read my article yesterday.  Over the last few years, we have turned in that direction.  However, with this recession, one of the silver linings is that we are starting to make a shift away from that.  We are starting to be thankful for what we do have and realizing that material possessions do not define who we are. 

Every generation wants their children to have more than they did.  As the mother of three boys, I respect that.  Who would not want their children to have more than they did?  However, you have to be careful what you are teaching your children.  If you find you have a habit of spending more than you should and buying yourself, or your family, things you really can’t afford, ask yourself a couple of questions:

• Do you feel entitled?
• Did your parents buy you everything you ever wanted?
• Did you get an allowance and have to budget?
• If so, was it enough for you to buy what you really wanted?
• Did you sometimes feel that your parents gave you money instead of love?
• Were the things your parents bought you out of guilt for not spending quality time with you?
• Are you passing this on to your children now?
• Are you buying your children everything they want because you are going through a divorce?

If you can take the time to reflect on your childhood, you may be able stop the pattern now.  You want to be careful about what you are passing on to your children.  Some of the things you want to pass on to your children are:

• Give them an allowance; let them learn how to budget money.
• Let them make some bad decisions with their money, you would rather them learn this now than when they are in college, or later.
• Discuss their purchases with them; make sure they know they can talk to you about money.  Keep an open dialogue.
• Don’t buy them everything they want, they need to learn about wants versus needs.
• If they want something real bad, teach them to save up their allowance for it.  This will teach them the value of money and patience.
• Immediate gratification can be very bad when they are young, but even worse when they reach their teens and early adult years.  This is how they get themselves into credit card debt.

Communication is key.  Keeping an open dialogue sets the stage for your kids.  You want them to know they can always come to you and talk about money.  Get them involved with the family budget when they get a little older.  You do not want money to be this big mysterious beast.  Shine the light on it!  Your children will thank you later…

If you have any questions about how your childhood is linked to your financial health now, check out the products page on my web site.  You can download my free personal finance assessments and get your questions answered.

It’s the age old question…  “How much allowance should I give my child?” 

I probably should not tell you this now, but I do not have an answer for you.  But, before you give up on me, I have a couple different options for you as well as some sage advice on what most experts do agree on.

First things first, I am pretty sure almost every expert agrees that all children should be given an allowance.  If you saw my clip on Good Day Sacramento on May 21st, you know that I am one of them.  An allowance teaches children several things, including, how to budget, how to make financial decisions and much more.  So, if you are debating whether or not you should give your child an allowance, the answer is a resounding…YES! MORE

You have applied for every scholarship you feel will be a good fit. Now what? Start looking into Federal Student Aid. The Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA) is the form used by the U.S. Department of Education to determine your Expected Family Contribution (EFC) by conducting a “need analysis”. 

Have you ever noticed that your children seem to think that money grows on trees?  Wouldn’t that be nice!  I am here to help you put your children on the road to handling money responsibly now and for years to come.  Remember, when it comes to teaching children about money, sooner is definitely better. 

At a very young age, children love to collect and save pennies.  I remember my six year old would love to go into my husband’s closet and pick up all the loose change on the floor.  With this in mind, families can talk about the family’s budget together.  MORE