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Emily Parnell
on May 25 2013 - 06:00 AM
Do you want something great to happen? You better start doing something.
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Christi Diggs
on May 23 2013 - 06:00 AM
A drop of spin, a cup of deception and tsp. politics=Apathy
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Lindsay Metcalf
on May 22 2013 - 06:00 AM
When that tornado siren sounds, I'm in the basement
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mara williams
on May 21 2013 - 06:00 AM
Summer break has this mom on a house upkeep war path.
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This question came from oldest.
Youngest, well, his questions of late have to do with why his body parts don’t seem to doing what they need to do when he sits on the potty.
"Not working. It's not working," toddler cries from the potty when nothing will come out.
But oldest, he has other concerns. The economy. Layoffs. Worried that everyone around him will run out of money, mainly his parents.
(Man, they do a great job of current affairs at his school, don’t you think?)
During the latest layoff scare at work, the welfare question came up. I said I didn't think we’d have to go that route, and then explained our plan of action in case times did get rough.
He listened better than he has in years and walked away satisfied. I think.
A few weeks ago he wanted to know what would happen if the country sank into another Depression.“Will I have to quit school and go to work like they did in the ‘30s?”
Uh, no. (At least I don't think so.) And why was the mere thought causing him to smile so wide?
His new thing is cost cutting and food rationing. The other day he actually wanted a snack but decided against it at the last minute, saying we should save it for later. I’m thinking my new teenager has read or watched a tad too much about the Great Depression.
So at that point I basically force fed him some chips. With dip. And cookies. I wanted to show him that it was OK to eat, and that no, we weren’t going to run out of food. Poor kid, I’m just waiting to find a pile of canned goods stashed in his closet.
On the cost-cutting front, he’s been running around the house turning off lights, trying to save on the electric bill. And those 20-minute, steaming hot showers he takes every morning have been whittled to 10 or 15 minutes.
Oh my little frugal mind.
I think it’s great he’s aware of the need to save and in tune to what the country is facing (Thank you CNN for kids). But I'm thinking it's healthy to bring him in off the ledge a bit. He still hasn’t spent any of his birthday money, and I’m just sure it’s because he thinks we may need it if things get too bad.
So, today, I’m planning a trip to Best Buy. Maybe some ice cream on the way home. He can buy the video game with birthday money, or a gift card he saved from Christmas.
I’ll pick up the ice cream, making sure I have plenty of cash to thumb through so he doesn’t try to pick up the tab.
I took Rosie to see Kit Kittredge last year. It was good for her to see the depression live on screen, but it made it difficult to explain the difference between what happened in the 20's and wha't's happening now. Took me a while to explain why we wouldn't be taking in any boarders.Man, the kids have the weight of the world on their shoulders these days, don't they? At least you know your kiddo's gonna have a level head financially when he grows up and moves out. That's got to be comforting.I almost wish my kids would ask questions like that, and be more in tune to financial difficulties. Especially now that DH is out of work.Once again, your oldest is awesome (as is youngest--hilarious!) I have to admit, while I like the idea of making sure your child feels secure, I'm not sure I would go the route you are. Maybe the ice cream, but I think it's good to learn to live on less. Let him see what he could do if he spent 1/2 his birthday money and saved 1/2. I'd keep talking about planning for the rainy day and how we are doing just that. And if something really rare happens (ie: Great Depression,) we'd be just fine not having "stuff." I don't want to send a message to my kids that they are secure because of their "stuff," you know?
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