Jean F., Norwalk, CT
“We are cutting back, like most other people. One thing I have not cut back on is our kids’ allowances because I believe it’s a great way to teach them money management. It puts the decision-making on their shoulders as to what extras are worth it. I use a prepaid spending card. My greatest success was when my daughter realized she didn’t have enough money left on her card to buy the shirt she wanted because she’d spent $3.79 for a frappuccino at Starbucks. I could have talked until I was blue in the face trying to explain that when you earn $10 every two weeks, $3.79 for a frappuccino was out of line, but it could never have had the impact of getting her card rejected. Now she doesn’t waste her money on things like frappuccinos and maybe she understands a bit better why I don’t want to waste money on fast food or designer jeans.”
Paul O., Wake Forest, IL
“My wife was just laid off from her real estate job, and there isn’t a lot out there for her. Rather than just hide it from the kids, we came right out and said that we had X amount less per month, and that meant fewer CDs, clothes, meals out, etc. But I’m not sure they really got it until my daughter came home from an economics workshop the school gave. She was kind of panicked! She was told it was virtually impossible for a middle-class family to survive on one salary unless it was very high-paying and she wanted to know if I wanted her to look for a part-time job that would pay more than baby-sitting. I think the whole scare thing is the wrong idea—we had a talk with both of our teens about what ‘poor’ means—and we just will never fit into that category. I guess, as things change over the next few months and we see what happens with the next election, we’ll have another family talk.”
Ellen P., Loma Linda, CA
“My mother left each of my kids a few stocks when she died, so we’ve been watching them decline online. I tell them this is a symptom of what’s going on in our regular financial life, so they know things are going to be tight for a while, but that doesn’t stop them from asking for whatever they want when they want it! I love them a lot, and besides, what good is it to have kids if you can’t give them the stuff they want? But my husband and I have been trying to teach two things: 1) being patient and saving allowances to get things rather than getting them immediately, and 2) prioritizing what they really want and forgetting about the things toward the bottom of their lists. My own buying has tapered off lately, and I keep pointing that out to them.”
Joleen S., Crestview, FL
“We never had much and we just learned to make it last. We don’t notice a whole lot of change right now, even though the paper says it’s a recession. My husband and I both work two jobs and our two kids have a part-time job each. They have to make do out of what they earn. My son is saving for a used car, so we’ll see how well he does.”
Alma Alvarado 03/19/08
When my husband and I decided to be diligent about paying off our debt, we enrolled in a program to help us do that. We learned that our children will mimic our spending habits, including using credit cards, buying things on impulse, etc. As we created a budget, our 14 year old has begun to help budget for things that the family needs and has also begun to work "on commission" for the chores she does. She know the more she works, the more she makes. She is EXTREMELY cautious about what she spends because she worked for every dollar and wants it to last.
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