Are We Our Children's Best Role Models When It Comes To Money?

Today, everything from Gameboys to Sony Playstation to Xbox machines are now common in most homes. Though affordable, should our children be able to buy anything they want? This is a question I get from most parents. But what parents fail to understand is, when they try to keep up with what their neighbors have, it puts a major strain on the family's finances. Our children are now copying our ways by trying to keep up with us!

We need to be sure to keep our finances in order and show our children good fiscal responsibility. Money is a precious resource that we work hard for and should not be taken lightly. The average person has a revolving credit debt of over $8500 and bankruptcies are on the rise. What we do as family money managers goes a long way in teaching our children how to manage their own money matters.

Financial mismanagement inside families is a growing problem that can be devastating to children. Losing a home to foreclosure, having to move because of bad debts, learning to do without many of the luxuries they had before can lead to depression, lack of self-confidence, and unresolved feelings toward their parents for putting them into that position.

What is even more painful for children, is how parents isolate them from the reasons why things happened. Children need to understand that it is not their fault and that the parents made the mistakes. Parents must sit their children down and explain how mismanaging finances can put families in financial peril. If children are left to wonder, they will experience the same mistakes when they become adults.

This can be avoided at all costs if parents take the time to learn basic financial management skills. Here are some things you should be doing right now to keep your children from having to go out into life without an understanding of what it takes to financially succeed in this world.

1- Get kids involved in your life!

Show them what you are buying, what things cost in real value terms, and why you need them. Explain the differences between wants and needs and how to manage their money the right way.

2-Get your children involved in making small financial decisions.

This is a good way to show them what can happen if they make the wrong choices in life and what the consequences will be.

3- Make them aware of what money can and cannot do.

Money can make people do strange things. It has been written that it is the root of all evil but it can help those in need. A good example of this is the work that charities do. Money in itself is not bad. Only what people do with it that can turn bad.

4- Get your children involved with your shopping.

Have your children start cutting out coupons and filing them away for you. Use this as a time to teach math and language skills (especially if they are young), and allow them to help you shop by retrieving items on your list. Giving children responsibilities teaches them discipline, which is sorely lackingin our youth.

5- Don't just say no when they ask for something.

Explain to them the reasons behind why they cannot have the item, whether for financial, or other reasons, and show them alternatives that will give them confidence to make proper decisions later in life.

Children are a lot smarter than we give them credit for and they understand things better if you involve them. Don't talk down to them. Let them have a say in their lives. You will see that, we as parents, can change our destructive financial habits, and give our children something they need right now... the financial wisdom to carry throughout their lives.

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Spring Cleaning: New Twist on an Old Tradition

When I was growing up in the 1940s spring cleaning was an annual event. Housewives prepared for spring cleaning with military precision. Because Monday was wash day, housewives usually started their spring cleaning on that day. But spring cleaning could last days or even weeks.

My mother took down all of the curtains in our house and washed them by hand or in the washing machine. I thought the washing machine was a metal beast, and actually, it could be dangerous. One day I heard my mother call me from the basement. Though her voice sounded calm, I sensed an urgency in it, and ran down the basement stairs.

My mother's hand and upper arm were caught between two rubber rollers. This wringer mechanism squeezed excess misture from clothes and you had to "feed" the clothes into the wringer one by one. Fortunately, I was able to reverse the rollers quickly and my mother wasn't injuired.

Like the other housewives on the block, my mother laid our scatter rugs on the front porch to freshen them in the sunshine. Larger rugs were hung on the clotheline and mother beat them with a rug beater. But the "star" of my mother's cleaning equipment was her vacuum cleaner.

A traveling salesman managed to sweet-talk my mother and gain entry into the house. The salesman spotted my father's ash tray (he didn't know about the dangers of smoking) and dumped its contents in the middle of the rug. My mother gasped in alarm. "Don't worry," the salesman said. "This vacuum will pick it all up." And it did.

My mother was so dazzled by the demo and sales pitch that she bought a vacuum cleaner. To say my father wasn't pleased is an understatement. Young as I was, I picked up on the fact that this was an expensive vacuum cleaner. Howwever, it was efficient, just as the salesman said, and we used it for years.

The electric vacuum and washing machine were invented in 1903. Most families had these appliances, and a few had a mangle, an electric appliance that ironed flat items. Commercial laundries had dryers, but they weren't avaiable to the home market yet. Housewives dried their laundry on outdoor or indoor clotheslines.

Our pully-type clothesline went from the kitchen window to the garage. This was a simpler time, a time when nobody locked their doors and when modesty was alive and well. My mother hung underwear inside a pillow case so nobody could see "unmentionables." In my mind I still see sheets flapping in the wind and smell the wonderful outdoorsy smell of those sun-dried sheets.

The concept of spring cleaning is also etched in my mind.

After I married I felt guilty because I wasn't doing my spring cleaning. What was wrong with me? Nothing was wrong. I lived in a time of electric or gas dryers, dishwashers, dusbusters, and powerful detergents. Cleaning equipment had improved so drastically that I did a little spring cleaning all the time.

Spring cleaning is an old idea, but it's still a good idea. Today, spring cleaning may include home inspection, trying new products, identifying and removing mold, and maintaining your home.

INSPECT YOUR HOME. Cleaning gives you the chance to look at things close up. I didn't know we had a cracked window until I looked behind a blind. Apparently the neighborhood boy who mows our lawn had hit a stone and the stone cracked the pane. So check your windows, look for cracks, peeling weather stripping, and other signs of wear.

CHECK FOR MOLD. Though molds are a natural part of your environment, some molds cause health problems. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, mold can cause allergic reactions and asthma. Mold grows in damp places so look for moisture as you clean. Fix a moisture problem right away because mold can get worse.

TRY NEW PRODUCTS. A vast array of cleaning products are available to us. I think the new static-charged dust mops and dust cloths are one of the best inventions yet. Stovetop cleaner is another time-saving invention. I use it to clean my stovetop, my oven window and toaster oven window. Stovetop cleaner also removes spots from counters.

MAINTAIN YOUR HOME. I've moved so many times I've lost count, but I learned a lot from realtors. One thing I learned is that clean places sell faster than dirty ones. Good cleaning practices also protect your home. "I don't know why, but empty houses get dirty," a realtor explained. "Dirt builds up and the property starts to deteriorate." Cleaning may be boring, but think of it as a way to maintain your home.

So I guess our grandmothers and mothers were right about spring cleaning. Thank goodness we have an array of appliances and products to help us. Spring cleaning is an old idea with a new twist. Put on your gloves and get to it!

Copyright 2006 by Harriet Hodgson

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