accida

musicmom

Oh wow. I haven't even though that far. I guess I'll just get the home phone shut off if it gets that bad. I am teaching mine the value of a dollar now because right now is when they are learning about money.
But you are very right, times have changed and these kids are spoiled because of us. It's our fault and we now have to undo what we created.
Giving them everything when they were little only made them spoiled brats. I'm guilty.
One lesson at a time is all you can do. But I'd start young for sure.
Good post.

Trina

We have been basically following the advice given in this article.
http://www.bankrate.com/brm/news/pf/...ild_age_a1.asp

So for it has worked very nicely for DS (11). He is a saver and does not like to spend his money. If/when he does it is well researched and thought out. He now has over $400 in his wallet. Definitely time to open up a savings account for him. He has informed us that he would like to start saving for a car now, so that by the time he's old enough to drive he'll be able to afford one. LOL!

DD (9) is a different story. She's learning, but it's taking longer with her. She tends to spend her money almost as soon as she gets it, but is now starting to save for special things.

Generally we don't buy things for our kids, other than clothes and necessities, unless for their birthday or Christmas. We were guilty of buying them stuff they wanted just for the heck of it when they were younger, but quickly realized the downfalls and changed our ways. If they ask for a video game, for example, we'll say, "Put it on your birthday/Christmas wish list or save your allowance for it." End of story. They really do appreciate and care for their things MUCH better if they use their own money to buy them.

Amber

Cameron is very good at saving his money. He's currently saving for some game he wants. He's got $21, so far.

__________________
Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail

TammyZed

That's a great link. I wish I knew some of that information when my kids were a lot younger!

My daughter is the more conservative one when it comes to money. She saves her allowance and when she does spend, she spends wisely. We tried early on to show her the value of a dollar by giving her a reasonable allowance and encouraging her to save for bigger items instead of buying things she's only going to enjoy for a short while.

My son, on the other hand, thinks nothing of spending over a hundred dollars on a single pair of jeans. Or, on one occasion, $130 for a tee shirt that didn't even cover his chest. Ugh.

Shari Nielsen

Thanks for that link!!! I recently implemented a chore/allowance/savings program/etc. w/ my 7 and 6 yr olds. How differently they handle it is VERY interesting to watch!

The link confirmed some of what I already thought and gave me some new ideas and things to think about.

einzweibel

AnKsMommy

Hmmm, I hope that I can get myself in shape with finance stuff before my daughters get older. We're not too bad off, but we could do better too.

My parents were pretty good with me in showing me how to save, but sometimes I would just blow it because they were so hard core on me saving and it seemed to never amount to anything that seemed important to me (when I was 12 of course). So I think that while we should teach our kids to save, we should show them that they can still buy things within limits and still have money left over to put towards something better.

__________________
Ali - Mommy to Alenya and Kaitlyn

Trina

I agree, Ali. I think it's important to allow kids to spend their own money as they choose. Within reason, of course. Making poor financial decisions as a child results in small consequences, as opposed to doing so as an adult. As a child I remember blowing all my money on candy, and then regretting it when the candy was gone. It was a light bulb moment. "Oh, I could have bought a new radio or a pair of rollerskates instead! " I thought twice about how I spent money from then on.

DH was brought up differently in this department. He got an allowance, but was not allowed to keep it or spend it as he chose. When he began working as a teen he was required to turn all his paychecks over to his parents. They strictly managed his money. When he finally left the nest and went away to college he went nuts with spending and got into trouble with credit card debt. Thankfully, he had learned his lesson and got back on track by the time we got married, but he wishes he never got into that rut in the first place. I think if he was allowed to manage his money and make foolish decisions and learn from those mistakes as child, he wouldn't have.

Amber

I thought about this thread a bit last night. That, and Cameron was after me about how much he's saved up.

My parents didn't teach us much about saving. They told us we should, but they never really stressed how important it is to budget your money. So, for the 2 years I was out of the house before I got married, I ran up debt.

I think this is huge in our world. I think this is why so many people are in debt, because parents dont take the time out to stress how important it really is.

__________________
Do not go where the path may lead, go instead where there is no path and leave a trail