Resisting Temptation

The problem with January is that all the stores have huge markdowns.  It's so tempting to stop into a store like Old Navy to pick up some things for the boys.  And while I'm there a few for me as well.  Now all of these things: socks, jeans, sweaters and t-shirts will get worn.  But does the fact that they are things that will get used justify buying them?  Does that make them a need instead of a want?  They aren't out of those things and goodness knows that I don't need anything else in my closet.  The problem with a want is that when you want it bad and long enough you can justify turning it into a need, at least in your own mind.  Normally I am really very good at resisting temptation but after getting into the habit of spending over Christmas it has been hard for me to get back to my old thrifty ways.  This blog will help me I think.  I'm happy to report that I did not buy anything yesterday.  I did walk down to Community Natural Foods to wander over lunch but came back to eat my leftovers lunch at my desk. 
Useless spending to date for 2012 is still $240.20.

No Spend Challenge: Day 2

Happy New Year! Yesterday I looked at my bank account and realized that I had already spent $240.20 in non-essentials (read: crap) in 2012 and it was only the 3rd I freaked.  I consider the essentials as mortgage, taxes, insurance, utilities, regular vehicle and home expenses and the regularly budgeted food amount which for our family of three is $180/week.  Now in my budget I give myself $20 per week for my allowance which I won't have to account for.  I have challenged myself to see how many days I can go without spending on non-essentials and I will also make myself  "come clean" by listing every non-essential dollar I spend and keeping a running total.  I'll also be posting my budget so you can see what I have allocated for regular expenses.

So, here goes.  Today is January 4th, 2012.  Wish me luck and maybe join me in this challenge.

18 & Already a Snob

Visiting us right now is an 18 year old family member from Toronto.  It's been 2 days and I'm ready to put him on a plane home tonight.  I have an son the same age and if my son behaved the way this young man does I would kick his butt.  I get that Toronto is a big city with lots of nice things but Calgary is a beautiful city too and we certainly have enough here to appreciate if you want to.  The first thing I heard as we drove into the city limits was that it wasn't very green.  Remember that we've had one of the rainiest springs in a long while.  Then the houses were to close together....seriously?  The row houses in his neighborhood of TO are either attached or close enough to touch both if you spread your arms.  We took him to Banff and Lake Louise yesterday.  When I asked him what he though of the mountains he said they were "alright" but that he thought they'd be taller.  The weather is too cold (it's 25 plus degrees Celsius and sunny) and he constantly talks about how it's plus 33 or more in Toronto.  Let's remember that the rest of the East is begging for a break in the heat wave.  The first night he informed me that he is used to eating organic food.  I took him to our neighborhood Sobey's which has a small organic produce section but that was not satisfactory.  The store was too small and the selection too limited.  I told him "no offense, but it's easy to eat organic when someone else is paying for your groceries".   In my opinion, if all you are going to do is compare Calgary to Toronto to our disadvantage while you are visiting in my city and staying at my home you really should have stayed in TO. 

Students & Credit Cards

A few weeks ago I met with my account manager at my bank to discuss the mechanics of withdrawing money from my son’s RESP. He’s graduating at the end of the month and heading off to SAIT in the fall. During our discussion she suggested we set him up with a credit card. She insisted that he would need one once he was in college, though I can’t imagine why he would. I found the discussion both disturbing and fascinating. What is most disturbing is that the banks appear more than happy, eager actually, to give a young person, one who does not have a regular income, credit. The Globe & Mail recently reported that “Household debt in Canada reached a record $1.41-trillion in December” http://bit.ly/bm4qS0.


Why are banks so willing to start children off on this path. I told my account manager that he didn’t need a credit card. A debit card is sufficient for pretty much anything he could need and if he wants to travel he can use a pre-paid “credit” card. I think she was shocked at my response. I admit that I can see why the banks would want to get young people hooked early. If you give a kid a card but no education on how interest rates and compound interest work then you have a customer (read: sucker) for life. I have worked hard to teach my children how compound interest can work for them when investing and against them with credit card debt. Unfortunately, most schools do not devote nearly enough time to financial education and, let’s face it, many parents are in such a financial mess that they either can’t teach their children successful strategies or are too embarrassed to admit their personal financial status.

I left that day without applying for a credit card for my son. I suppose once he’s 18 he can apply for one without my approval. I hope, however, that I’ve given him enough information to make an informed and intelligent decision. I’d love to hear your opinions on the topic of youth and credit.

Start Your Own "Tips Jar"

I was on Twitter when I came across this post from DivorcedDadFrugalDad.com, @dvrcddadfrgldad: Your Spare Change "Tips" Jar - http://ow.ly/4MNCQ. 

I love the idea of giving yourself tips.  One of my little savings tricks is to not use the change in my wallet.  When I go to pay I make myself break a bill.  I hate breaking a bill, especially for something small.  Often I would rather skip the purchase than break a $5, $10 or $20.  If I do then any coins that I get back are off limits.  Once a week I put that change into my "Tip Jar".  I am always amazed at how much I can collect, often between $5 and $10 dollars.  This is my fun money.  When I had consumer debt I would use this to make an extra payment at the end of the month. 

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.

Adelina

What I Know Now

Teenagers are exhausting, exhilarating, frustrating and lots of other things ending in "ing".  I'm also reminded almost daily that they are also fascinating.  Tonight I went for a long walk with my 16 year old.  This past week has been a real challenge for me.  It seems that no matter what I ask him to do it becomes a debate.  KD is normally the most loving and accommodating kid a mother could ever ask for.  We usually make fun of the teenagers that are all moody and emo.  I even bought him a t-shirt for Christmas with "Shakespeare hates your emo poems" on it which he loves.  But every once in a while he goes angsty on me.  This was one of those weeks.  So we went for a walk and I told him that I missed his ready smile, sunny attitude and weird sense of humor.  Really, I told him, I just like the old KD better.  What I love about our relationship is that he will actually have an intelligent conversation with me about stuff.  He's exhausted and not feeling 100%.  With getting up early to bike to our church where he has been volunteering for the summer kids camp, not eating properly and getting to bed really late he admitted to being a bear around the house.  I asked him to tell me what he needed from me to make things better.  He said that instead of describing the things he was doing that were bugging me I should just tell him to stop doing them.  "Give me an order and I'll just do it".  So here I am spending all this time trying to describe his behavior and how it's making life crazy and all he really wants me to do is call him on it and tell him to stop.  Male children! So surprisingly uncomplicated.  What I know now is that boys are the best.  You always know where you stand and when it's done it's done.

Rain Man

So my 10 year old SM is a smart little nut.  I admit that I'm a bit biased because I birthed him but it's true.  I call him my little Rain Man because he is such a fact guy.  His brotther who is 16 and I don't even bother to argue with him when he starts spouting facts, we just assume he's right and save ourselves the trouble of looking it up on-line.  At the end of June we were in Toronto visiting my family and took a trip to the Ontario Science Centre.  What a great place for kids and adults alike.  They have an interactive animal exhibit where they lay out items such as wale skin, wolf fur, walrus tusks and bat skeletons, and other really cool stuff and the staff member gets kids to guess what things are and then tells them all sorts of interesting facts.  In his case that poor girl didn't get a chance to do much talking.  SM not only guessed what each item was he then proceeded to tell her some interesting facts about each animal.  It was so funny, as we walked away I looked back and she was pointing at him and telling the other staffers about him. 

Do you ever wonder if your kids are smarter than you?