Parenting Blog at KidsAintCheap

Prepping Your High School Grad’s Finances for College

June 18, 2013 By Catherine Leave a Comment

Within the next few weeks, high school kids around the world will be prepping to embark on one of the biggest adventures in their life. They will be leaving the comforts of what they know and preparing to attend college.

Start Early

College, is an experience that far too many kids are not prepared for. It is an exciting time full of many emotions. Graduation is not the time to start preparing your child for financial independence. With other concerns at the forefront of their teenage brains, such as prom and ironing out frosh-week plans, your child will likely not be in the best mindset to absorb all the important information you have to share. For this reason, it is important that you start financial lessons early in their life. The earlier you start, the better equipped they will be.

Start With Basics

If you accomplish nothing else, make sure you don’t send you child off until they know the financial basics. Ideally these foundations are laid throughout their upbringing but make sure the absolutely understand the basics before leaving home. The financial basics include:

Budgeting
Borrowing and implications of borrowing (loans, credit cards, lines of credit etc)
Debt and all responsibilities associated

If they don’t understand these simple basics, they will be starting their life, in a financial turmoil. A child needs to understand how to manage money before leaving home since the ”real world” will completely overwhelm them with opportunities to make bad decisions.

Opportunities

Opportunities to make bad financial decisions are everywhere. Most of these decisions are due to lack of education but totally avoidable.

It was lack of education that was the catalyst of my bad financial decision-making. I started university, knowing nothing about budgeting or borrowing money. I knew that credit cards eventually needed to be paid back but, like so many, thought as long as I was making the minimum payment I was fine. I thought a credit card was a great invention; instead of using my hard-earned paycheque to pay for gas/clothes/textbooks, I could charge it onto my credit card only be required to make a much lower minimum payment. It wasn’t until many years later that I truly understood the implications of my actions.

Smart Doesn’t Mean Knowledgable

Though I would consider myself well-educated, understanding my personal finances was totally foreign to me. I wish I had been educated prior to getting my first credit card but I didn’t, and subsequently ended up borrowing much more than I needed for university. Just because someone is smart academically, doesn’t mean they know anything about simple life basics. Too many parents assume that their bright children work hard in school, get scholarships and have life totally figured out. This is completely untrue.

Knowledge is based on a lifetime of experiences, something most young high school grads lack. Given their age, it is impossible for them to have had much opportunity to become well knowledgeable on real-world finances. It if for this reason that we as parents need to teach them from what we have learned.

What financial lessons have you learned, the hard way, which you’ll now be able to teach your children?

Filed Under: Education, Growing Up Tagged With: Finances, Financing For College, High School Grad, My Personal Finance, Personal Finances, Your High School Grad

Save on Baby Goods (and Make Money) with CouponChief

June 15, 2013 By Robert Leave a Comment

If you’re a new parent, hearing that babies are expensive is no surprise. Seriously, who knew a little newborn could go through so many diapers in 24 hours! Sometimes, you know more than change the baby and the diaper needs to be changed again.

However, diapers aren’t the only supplies babies run through. They grow so quickly that an outfit that fits great one day can literally be too tight just a few days later. My son was a big baby who went through new sizes every 6 weeks until he finally settled into 12-18 month for awhile. Keeping up with their clothing needs can be expensive. Let’s not even talk about formula and baby pictures.

If you know what I’m talking about, you’re likely looking for ways to cut corners without compromising on quality. One great way to do that, especially if you’re an avid online shopper, is CouponChief.

How CouponChief Works

You’ve likely seen that online retailers have a box for promo codes when you check out, and you likely know that there are sites online that will share online promo codes. CouponChief works the same way, with a few differences.

CouponChief shares the promo code, but then you can read other people’s comments about the code and also see how frequently the code works. Best of all, unlike some other sites, CouponChief removes the code when it’s expired, which makes your search more productive and less time consuming. (And anything that helps save time when you have an infant is welcome!)

Even better, you can create a profile and then save your favorite searches. For instance, let’s say you want to see all the promo codes related to the “baby” category. CouponChief will e-mail you every time there is a new code for anything from diapers, to baby clothes, to portrait studio packages. You don’t need to keep checking the site; they send the information to you.

Make Money with CouponChief

Not only will CouponChief save you money, but it may also be able to make you some money. If you’re good at tracking down coupon codes, share it on CouponChief, and you’ll earn 2% of the purchase total that others make using your coupon code. You can earn up to $25 a month, per coupon.

How sweet is that?

Kids are expensive, but if you learn some tricks such as using promo codes to save money and sharing coupon codes to make money, having children becomes just a bit more affordable.

Filed Under: Coupons Tagged With: baby goods, diaper coupons, Diapers, online coupons

How to Save Money for Your Family

June 13, 2013 By Robert Leave a Comment

Are you looking to save money for your family? Many families today are just trying to tread water when it comes to paying the bills and staying out of debt. Who has extra money to actually put into the bank? Well, when you put your mind to something, you might be surprised how much you can accomplish, especially when it comes to savings money.

Two Steps to Saving Money

If you truly are committed to saving money for your family, there are just two things that you need to focus on. You must reduce your costs and you must learn to grow your money once you’ve got some stashed away in savings.

Reducing Costs

This can be a tall order because many of us already feel like we’re pinching pennies as it is. But, no matter how tight you think you are with money, there are always ways to spend less than you are now.

Second Hand Stores – When is the last time you stepped foot in a second hand store to make a purchase? If buying second hand clothing weirds you out, I understand, but there are plenty of other things that you can save money on by buying it second hand. If your chair breaks and you have nothing left to sit on, I bet you can find a perfectly reliable one at the second hand store. It might not match perfectly with your décor, but it will allow you to save money for your family.
No more restaurants – Going out to eat is fun, but man is it expensive! I just made pasta for myself at home for $1.50. Do you know what this would cost you at a family restaurant? Probably at least $8 if not more! Avoid those restaurants and buy your food from the grocery store.

Grow Your Money

After you save enough money, you might start to wonder what you should do with it. If you don’t have an emergency fund, that would be your first option. When things go wrong in life like your water heater breaking down or your vehicle needing a new transmission, it’s definitely a good idea to have the money on hand for these unknown expenses. In order to cover these costs, you need to be sure that your money is easily accessible. This means that some of it should probably go into a standard savings account, another portion of it could go into a check-writing CD, and still some more might go into an ISA which is simply an individual savings account. If you’re in the United Kingdom, you should note that ISAs are really handy in the UK, and they make a great place to put a portion of your emergency funds.

Once you have your emergency account funded, then it’s really time to start growing your money. Instead of earning a couple of percent interest here and there, you could invest your additional money into your own business or into another venture that could net you 10% or more on your investment. The riskier the investment, typically the more return you might expect. Have caution with those risky investments though. Many times they just don’t pan out.

It’s simple, but true. What do you think?

Filed Under: Money and Finances Tagged With: family money, save money

Five Father’s Day Gift Ideas

June 11, 2013 By Catherine Leave a Comment

With Father’s Day approaching this weekend, kids all over the world will be preparing to celebrate their dads in their own special ways. Growing up I remember decorating neck ties and coloring pictures in school. Though any dad would appreciate the effort behind a hand-made gift, sometimes dad also want a little pampering and gifts.

Car Detailing

I included this on my Mother’s Day gift idea as well, but think dad would love it too. Everyone loves getting into a new car but after a while of living in it, the new car luxury is taken over by dirt and crumbs. Dirt has a way of finding its way into tiny nooks and crannies within your car. A professional car detailing will restore your car to new-car condition for a fraction of a new car cost! Some professional detailing will just do the interior while others will do interior, exterior and engine. Book one you think dad will love and always check online coupon sites to see if you can score a deal.

Electronics

Some dads like computers, some are into iDevices and other like gaming systems. Whatever your dad is into, check local sales and see if you can score a deal. Remember to check refurbished products as well since they are usually available at a fraction of the price and often still with a warranty.

A Good Steak or Lobster Dinner

Sometimes a dad just wants a good feast and a good steak and/or lobster would do just that. For a dad who loves to grill, heading to a local butcher for your dad’s favorite cut is a nice gesture and won’t break the bank. Lobster may be pricier depending on where you live but another nice meal option.

Alcohol

If you’re dad likes to enjoy a drink, buying him a bottle of something special is always a nice idea. If he enjoys beer, maybe buying a few cans of a specialty beer would be a treat. For the hard-liquor drinker, a small bottle of something unique, or a tested favorite, would be well received. There are many options when it comes to wine, asking for a recommendation at the liquor store will point you in the right direction.

Needs

Sometimes dad would love to get something he genuinely needs. It doesn’t have to be anything extra special but would be much appreciated. If you’re stumped for what to get him asking him what he needs wouldn’t be inappropriate. If he doesn’t give you much direction, look around and see if anything needs replacing. Is his 10-year-old wallet being held together with duck tape? He may not need a new wallet, but would likely appreciate one.

Taking time out of your day to tell you dad you appreciate him, and all that he does, is the most important thing you can do for dad on Father’s day. If you can’t be with dad on Father’s day, make sure you send a card or call, I’m sure it will be appreciated.

What are you getting your dad for father’s day?

Filed Under: Holidays Tagged With: Dad Gifts, Fathers Day, Gift Ideas

356 Days…

June 4, 2013 By Catherine 1 Comment

356 days is how long I was able to breastfeed. Nine days short of baby girls first birthday. Try as I might I don’t think she’ll be able to get one more ounce out of me. With returning to work full-time just two weeks ago, I’ve noticed a big dip in my supply, combined with the fact that baby girl seems to be loosing interest in the whole thing. I will try breastfeeding one more day, but I think my breastfeeding days with this baby are over.

My Goal

I’m disappointed I didn’t make my one year goal. I know nine days isn’t a lot, but I really wanted to make that one year mark. I know I should be proud of what we accomplished but I’d be lying if I didn’t say I was a little bummed. One year was my first goal. I planned on going as long as she self-weaned which I hoped would be later but I think it’s here now.

Breastfeeding has been the single most difficult thing I’ve had to do as a mom. I’m so thankful I’m in Canada and allowed a 52 week maternity leave. I know there is no way we would have made it this long if I had to return to work in the early weeks. I commend women who are able to work full-time, raise a family and do everything required to maintain a milk supply for their baby. Given my job it would be incredibly hard so I’m thankful I was able to be home with her to nurse on demand.

My daughter went through growth spurts textbook style. I would spend what felt like days, nursing. The first grow spurt was frustrating, I was stuck inside during the beautiful summer doing nothing but nursing. By the second growth spurt I had grown to love our time together. She wanted and needed me, for that I loved our time together.

Memories

I’ll miss those sweet moments of just the two of us. The way she’d look at me and the way she’d place her hands and feet on me. I’ll miss the special cuddles only she and I shared and how calm she was. I will especially miss not having to figure out why she was upset because I had the answer to whatever it was. I enjoyed breastfeeding so much more than I could have ever imagined. The bond it helped create is beyond words.

My husband is constantly reminding me that she’s healthy, happy and growing and as parents that’s all we can ask for. As much as we’d like, we can’t keep them small forever. It’s our responsibility to help the grow and navigate life. As she continues to grow and enters her second year of life, we will figure out new ways to bond and have many new experiences together.

I knew my breastfeeding days would eventually come to and end I just didn’t know how hard it would be on me. I just need to remind myself that I am so thankful I was able to breastfeed at all since I know it’s not always possible.

Filed Under: Random Musings Tagged With: Breastfeeding, Self-Weaning, Weaning

How to Save Money on Food

May 28, 2013 By Catherine 2 Comments

Other than housing, food is probably the second largest component in a family’s budget. With food prices only rising, it is important to save as much money as possible without compromising the integrity of your family’s healthy diet.

Eating well and cheap is possible but requires effort and planning. When just starting, expect to set aside at least an hour every week if you plan on getting serious about saving money on food for your family.

Here are some tips for how to save money on food and still eat well:

Meal plan. This is the easiest way to save money on food. With a meal plan, you can shop for the items you need for the whole week ensuring not only that you have all required ingredients, but also that you don’t end up back in the grocery store. When you make multiple trips to the store unnecessary costs will likely occur.
Shop with a list! If you don’t have a list you’ll navigate the store aimlessly and put more things in your cart than required, as well miss items you may need.
Always shop the parameter first. Grocery stores are designed to have all the fresh and frozen items on the exterior of the store. Non-perishables are found on the interior. Fill you cart with the health items first then move to the interior aisles.
Shop late at night. Shopping late at night may mean you score daily mark-downs. At the end of a normal day (usually around 7-8pm) a lot of grocery stores will start marking down things like their meats in preparation for the next day. They need to make room for the fresh product and will start marking down older or near expired items. I have found this to be particularly true for meat and bread.
Coupon. I don’t have a lot of advice to offer on couponing since there are many restrictions on coupon use here in Canada, but I know if done correctly, you’ll be able to save a lot of money and even score free product.
Keep a price book. For items that you frequently buy, keep a log of the different grocery store prices. Compare frequently and watch for sales. This will help establish a budget for your weekly spending.
Freezer cook. Freezer cooking involves preparing multiple meals at once, freezing them and using them as required. I recently partook in a ”Big Cook” where we prepared over 30 meals at once, froze them and had dinners for over a month. Most freezer cooking meals can adapted for crock pot or oven. Thaw the night before, put in slow cooker in the morning and have dinner cooked!
Take advantage of your farmer’s market. Utilizing your local farmer’s market is an easy way to save money on food and get a great product.
Buy seasonally and freeze. We have a large blueberry season where I live so in the summer we’ll go to a local u-pick lot and pick berries to freeze. We eat some fresh then freeze them to use throughout the year for things like baking and smoothies. This is much cheaper than buying them frozen throughout the year.

With a little planning and preparation you’ll be able to save money on groceries for your family and still eat well. It will soon become a routine and take no time at all.

How do you save money on food for your family?

Filed Under: Healthy Living & Eating Tagged With: Cooking, Easy Way To Save Money, Food, Groceries, How To Save Money On Food, money, Way To Save Money

Summertime Fun on the Cheap!

May 21, 2013 By Catherine 1 Comment

Though some areas of the world may have a hard time believing it, summer is just around the corner! Summer is full of temptations to spend money. From new clothes, to summer activities and family outings, the summer season seems to be looking for money everywhere.

Children’s Summertime Wardrobe

With growing children and drastic weather change from winter to summer, children often need new clothes. Before ever buying new clothes, I always check my local thrift stores. At the rate children grow, you can get barely worn or even new clothes at a fraction of the department store prices.

The other thing to check for if buying from a department store is to see if the children’s clothes comes with any guarantee. Some store brands will promise that the clothes last until the child outgrows them offering replacement or money back guarantee. Given how hard kids can be on their clothes, it may be worth the investment!

Summer Sports

I grew up on a soccer field. I know how expensive sporting events can be. Sure soccer isn’t necessarily an expensive summer sport to play, but when you start factoring tournaments and team outings, costs add up fast!

To keep costs down for tournaments, the family would camp for the weekend away rather than spending money on a hotel room. We saved money on food as well since we would eat campground meals rather than restaurants for the weekend. I loved this since it combined camping and soccer in one weekend. My two favorite summer activities. I never felt like it was a ”money saving trip” or that we were doing it because we ”couldn’t” afford the hotel.

Summer Vacation Alternatives

A summer vacation that your kids can’t wait to tell their friends about doesn’t have to include a lavish trip away. Capitalize on your city and all that it has to offer! A staycation can be just as fun. Exploring your city with the mindset of a tourist this summer will open your eyes to many new opportunities. Check out that event/restaurant/museum that you’ve been meaning to get to, but haven’t yet. We often take advantage of places within our hometowns since we live there. Don’t delay anymore and explore! Even checking out a local hotel for a family night away will be cheaper than burning gas or airfare to leave town.

Picnics are another fun summer activity. Have everyone pack their favorite foods and drive to a favorite family spot for the day. Spending time together and eating the foods everyone loves is sure to please. A picnic beach day is always fun too!

If you do travel, remember our tips for travelling with children on vacation.

Summer goes too fast every year. Don’t stress about money, try to enjoy it or it will be over before you know it!

What are your favorite ways to save money while not compromising on summertime fun?

Filed Under: Family Time Tagged With: Summer Fun, Summertime Activites, Summertime Fun

The Importance of Unplugging

May 14, 2013 By Catherine 4 Comments

As I sit here and write this post sitting beside my husband, half paying attending to him and half trying to get work done, I am reminded once again of the importance to unplug once in a while.

Today is Mother’s Day, my first, and we spent the weekend with our whole family. Hanging out last night and waking up to the men and children in the family preparing brunch for all the moms. It was a nice treat to sit back and be waited on for the morning. When the whole family gets together no one pays much attention to their phones, computers or iDevices. It’s nice. We play games, hang out, eat and drink but most of all, unplug.

Life Goes On

In today’s technology-littered world it is too easy to let moments, big and small, pass you by. We spend so much of our time with eyes on a screen we sometimes forget to just stop and look up.

This past Christmas, being my daughters first, I vowed to not spend any time on my phone or computer while she was awake for the whole week my husband was off. I wanted to enjoy our family time together and soak up all that the season brings. See family, watch my daughters expression when she saw the Christmas tree light up, just enjoy every. single. moment. I admit that I thought this may be difficult. What if I missed an e-mail that needed attention? What if something happened on my blog that I needed to take care of? Would my readers forget about me if I disappeared for a week? I came back in January and everything was fine. Life went on even though I had a full inbox, comments to get caught up on and blog posts to edit.

I’m bad for constantly checking my phone, twitter, e-mail and blog stuff. Admittedly, even when my daughter is in my presence. It breaks my heart when I’m in the middle of catching up on e-mails only to look up at my daughter playing and her staring at me looking for my reaction and excitement when she’s accomplished something.

Like many, my husbands cell phone is a lifeline for his job. He’s constantly getting e-mails for work, phone calls from different people and calendar reminders to get tasks done. This continues to happen after 4pm when his work day is ‘done’.

A Blessing and a Curse

Technology is a great thing, we couldn’t live without it, but it’s just too much sometimes. I miss the simple times of not having that nagging feeling of needing to check my phone for notifications every five minutes. I miss eating supper with no phone, email or work interruptions. I miss being able to physically leave work and that be the end of a workday. Today’s technology allows someone to connect with you in so many ways there is no ignoring people anymore.

I love how far technology has come in the last twenty years. It amazes me what has been accomplished but it’s also too easy to let it rule your life. This past weekend was another reminder that unplugging once in a while is a good thing and certain things in life can just wait. I don’t ever get a first Mothers Day again, I wasn’t about to allow a Blackberry take away from any special moment.

Do you unplug on a regular basis?

Filed Under: Family Time Tagged With: The Importance, Unplugging, Whole Family

A Look at Baby Carriers

May 8, 2013 By Catherine 1 Comment

This weekend I finally bought myself a good baby carrier. I like to take walks with baby when the weather is nice and we’re big on camping in the summer, sometimes a stroller isn’t always a great option. A stroller is not ideal in some situations (campground) but for me, most of the time it just bothers my wrists. I suffered from sever carpal tunnel in my pregnancy and still feel some of the effects today, pushing the stroller can be a pain, quite literally.

Ring Sling

When baby was a newborn I used my ring-sling religiously. Though I still like the ring-sling, it was never a great option for any real movement like hiking. I still throw it in my bag when we’re out and about in case baby girl gets fussy and just wants to be held. The ring sling can do multiple positions but again isn’t an option if you plan on breaking a good sweat.

Infant Carrier

Aside from my ring sling I had an infant carrier that accommodated babies up to 18 pounds. Though my daughter is only 17 pounds, she is much too heavy for me to use this carrier comfortably. This was nice option though in her early days when we would go for our hour-long walks around the neighborhood but as she started gaining weight the carrier wasn’t offering enough support for the front carry position. After a few minutes I would begin to feel the discomfort in my back from lack of support and the straps digging into my shoulders. I knew I needed to look into a better quality carrier that offered more support if I wanted to continue to carry her while we walked.

Thank You Online Classifieds

The carrier that I had my eye on was the Beco Butterfly. The price range was anywhere between $150-$180, not cheap, but after much research I had decided it was the one I wanted. Knowing I would use it often, I started saving my pennies to buy one.

This past week one popped up on our online classifieds listed for $80, only a year old. The pictures looked great. I emailed and asked if she would accept $65. She did and I picked it up on Friday. I am so happy with it. It has totally lived up to my expectations.

I did a 5k trail hike today and the carrier was perfect. With this carrier, you have the option of doing a front or back carry depending on what you and baby are feeling. Today baby girl is suffering from a bit of a sinus infection so I put her on a front carry so I could watch her, attached the hood that comes with it to protect her from the wind and sun, and let her nap our hike away. She sleeps while I hike, winning for both of us!

The Beco can accommodate infants as small as five pounds (using an insert) and toddlers as heavy as 45 pounds. The shoulder straps are very well padded and wide to help distribute the load. There is also a thick padding around the waist/back depending on what position you carry. I also like that there is a small pocket that I can stick my keys in.

If you’re in the market for a good baby carrier I highly recommend this carrier. The Beco Butterfly design was re-branded in December 2012 and replaced by the Beco Soliel on the Beco website but you can still buy the Butterfly (new) from stores like Amazon.

I’m very happy with my purchase, more excited that I stole it for $65 and looking froward to many more years with it!

Have you ever used a baby carrier? What’s your favorite?

Filed Under: Baby Stuff Tagged With: baby carrier, Beco Butterfly, ring sling

Mothers Day Gift Ideas: Traditional or Non-Traditional?

April 30, 2013 By Catherine 2 Comments

In a few short weeks children around the world will be celebrating all that their moms do for them. This will be my first Mother’s day and I’m quite excited to see what my husband has in store for me! While I have no experience on the receiving end yet, I have many years behind me in the gift-giving side of things. I have made many crafts and purchased many flowers in my years. It didn’t matter if I gave my mom a handmade card with scribbles or a $50 bouquet, she appreciated it all.

Traditional Ideas

I don’t know a mom out there that wouldn’t love to get a hand-made gift of any kind from their child. The fact that a child put thought and effort into making something from their hearts will always be well received. If the child is still too young to make something unassisted, Dad or another caregiver could help make something simple like a hand or foot print artwork.

Another gift that is always well received by moms is flowers. Mom or not I’ve never given or received flowers that weren’t appreciated. Though you can get beautiful pre-made bouquets at a florist, a picked wildflower bouquet is just as beautiful.

My personal favorite traditional gift idea (and I hope my husband is reading this) is a cooked meal, followed by full cleanup! I think I can speak for all moms world-wide when I say all we really want is a short break. Take on some of our normal duties for just one day, I dare you Without asking, take care of everything that needs to be done. Help with cleaning, cooking and childcare. Gifts are always nice but a little family time without worrying about keeping house is probably the best gift of all.

Non-Traditional Ideas

Speaking of cleaning, how about a full car detailing? Cars get down right grimy. It seems no matter how well one cleans their car, children especially, have a way of making a car dirty on a whole new level. Why not take moms car to a professional for a full car detailing? They can remove dirt you thought would be there forever.

Though a little more expensive, plan a Mothers day weekend away for the family. Go somewhere special to the family or somewhere new you know mom would like to visit. As long as it’s relaxing for mom consider it a success.

With new blooms and weather on the upturn, spring is a great time for outdoor pictures. Book a photographer and have a family picture done. If hiring a professional photographer isn’t in the budget, ask a family member or friend to help out. The importance is in capturing the memory, not the type of camera lens or quality of picture frame.

Mothers day isn’t about how much money you spend. Whatever you choose, just take time out of your day to tell mom how much you appreciate her, even in the simple form of words.

What are your Mother’s Day plans?

Filed Under: Holidays Tagged With: Mother's Day Gift Ideas, Mother's Day Gifts, Mothers Day