Kids and Money

How I Got My Kids Excited About Saving and Investing

December 9, 2012

I credit a great deal of my financial and career success in life to the way I was brought up and the lessons I learned early in life.  When I look around at adults my age that make very poor financial decisions and have their finances in tatters, I also see a pattern where their [...]

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Can You Leave Your Kids Too Much Money?

October 21, 2012

Whitney Houston’s unexpected death has put a new subject into common financial discourse. She planned to leave her 19 year old daughter with $20 million. Houston’s mother and sister-in-law say that amount is simply too much; it won’t keep up with Houston’s “intent to provide long-term financial security and protection for her child.” At first, [...]

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$15 a Week for Allowance is US Average? Seems High to Me

August 24, 2012

A recent survey at CNN highlighted that American kids are getting $15 a week for allowance. I thought that sounded a little high and was curious what you’re doing for your kids’ allowances. My wife and I haven’t totally been on the ball with respect to allowance with our kids. Our oldest is 8, and [...]

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Does a Bad Economy Dictate Whether You’ll Have Children or Not?

August 19, 2012

I followed the path of (what I thought was) the traditional American life.  I went to college, got a job, got a house, got married and started having kids in my twenties.  This is what my parents did and their parents before them, and what’s always been portrayed in pop culture as a typical American [...]

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Financial Musings on my Vasectomy

April 28, 2012

The time has come for one of us to do something permanent.  We’ve now got 3 kids, we’re mid-30s, and we’re done.  I failed miserably at trying to convince my wife she should have it done.  I found some new lacroscopic procedure that was supposed to be pretty painless and cut out the article, but [...]

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At What Age Should a Kid Get an iPod Touch?

April 11, 2012

My son’s 8th birthday is coming up.  Aside from the usual Legos and nerf gun toys which last a few minutes and then they’re archived to the toy pile, we have the annual “large gift” where the grandparents want to chip in and buy something for him.  So, this year my wife suggested an iPod [...]

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My Kid Flooded Our Home. What’s the Worst (Most Expensive) Mistake Your Kids Have Made?

October 4, 2011

I love being a dad, I really do.  But sometimes my kids do things that, well, test me.  Last night I received a frantic call from my wife that water was pouring through the ceiling, soaking multiple rooms going all the way down to the basement.  By the time I got home, I found pools [...]

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Is Cord Blood Worth It? How Parents Should Weigh Blood Banking Costs

July 24, 2011

My wife and I were first confronted with the cord blood banking question leading up to delivery of our first son.  We were the first couple in our group of friends and family to have a child, so it wasn’t a topic we’d heard discussed in other circles.  As I recall, I don’t even think [...]

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If We Pay For our Daughter’s Wedding, What About Our Son?

July 18, 2011

My wife and I have interesting financial debates now and then and since we’re at a standstill I figured I’d pose it to all my friends at Darwin’s Money.  So, a little background: My wife and I paid for our own wedding. We received generous gifts from friends and family but our wedding wasn’t planned [...]

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My Kid Set The Thermostat to 90 Degrees – in 20 Degree Weather!!

January 26, 2011

I love my kids, I really do.  But sometimes they do really strange – and frustrating things – like the other night waking me up screaming “I want to ride the monkey! Let me ride the monkey!” (we never figured out if that was a nightmare of some bizarre fantasy or what). Anyway, this weekend, [...]

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