Should you give your kids an allowance for chores?

“NOOOOO!” … that was our first response.

But years later we reconsidered this decision because we discovered the 5 / 50 / 500 money rule.

There are rules that govern our lives, our world, and the universe. There are also rules that govern the earning, saving, and spending of money. Knowing how to operate within the rules usually means success and a more peaceful existence. Violating the rules has the opposite effect.

Preparing your child to live a financially independent life may not be on the top of your to-do list. But if … Read more »

Does your family work together as a team? We raised five kids and found that family teamwork helped us accomplish things faster. It also helped build our kids’ work-ethic and confidence.

Teaching kids the value of Family Teamwork has far-reaching effects. It translates into club activities, sports, jobs, church and eventually into their own families. 

In this article, we’ll share some tools and strategies that we used for more than 25 years as we raised and released our kids.

By the way, we didn’t do it perfectly. We had some stumbles, we had some failures, but overall, our kids learned that when we work … Read more »

Is it possible that our good intentions and generosity could end up entitling our kids? No parent intentionally sets out to create dependent children who expect to be given everything they desire.

If you want to raise kids who aren’t entitled but are empowered – keep reading. We have 7 ways we helped our kids to become Financially strong, fit and independent.

Kids are kind of funny. If we offer to pay for something, they’ll gladly let us do it . . . forever and ever. If we don’t pay, they’ll carry on about how “mean” and out of touch with reality … Read more »

If you think that Kids are Expensive …. You’re right. Have you heard the government statistics about the cost of raising a child?

We raised 5 kids and spent less than 60% of what the government experts estimated. Learn how.

Kerri’s story: How one reader grew up and was taught to manage money.

Question About the Cost of Having Kids: When I graduated from high school, I paid for my own auto insurance, graduation gown, and class ring.

My grandmother paid for my class picture. My graduation gift from my parents was a cell phone with a very limited plan because it was … Read more »

Is your teen looking for a summer job? There are companies hiring AND lots of out of the box earning opportunities. 

We’ll give you tons of practical ideas to help your teenager find work this summer, and into the rest of the year. 

1. Paying Summer Jobs for Teens

There are lots of jobs for teens in the restaurant industry and others. Here’s a short list of the types of jobs a young person can get near home.

Courtesy Clerk at a Grocery Store

Our son Joe did this and worked his way up into helping promote his store’s weekly $5 Friday Deals. Many grocery … Read more »

If you’re having a baby and want to save money we’ll show you how to raise a baby on a budget.

To us they’re cuddly, snuggly and sometimes slobbery — and to marketers, they’re a gold mine. We’re talking about babies and what it costs to diaper, feed, clothe and entertain them in their first years.

Some experts predict — and hope — that you’ll spend somewhere between $8,000 and $10,000 before Junior’s first birthday.

Believe it or not, in these situations, when marketers push a multitude of expensive products, you may find the greatest savings.

Yes, you can beautifully outfit your baby … Read more »

Some kids just want to be grown up and have a knack for making money. Entrepreneurship for kids is a hot topic – how can a parent help channel that energy in the right direction?

What’s on the mind of your average 15-year-old?

Most likely it’s a combination of prom dates, SATs and driver’s education classes. Well, that’s not the case for Maddie Bradshaw (watch her on Shark Tank).

At the age of 15, Maddie pitched her first business idea on Shark Tank, convincing Mark Cuban, Robert Herjavec, and Lori Greiner to invest $300k for 30 percent of her … Read more »