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Author Archive for admin

Single Moms and Money

Posted by admin 
· October 22, 2018 
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Let’s talk about single moms and money. Everywhere you look you see the statistics on single moms and money. They are on welfare, raising children alone and the pay disparity between men and women has been well documented.

Today’s economy is characterized by underemployment and low wage work. The plight of the single mom, single parent household is not getting any easier.

Who are the Single Parents

According to KidsCount.org, more than 1/3 of today’s children are being raised by a single parent. In addition, research shows 32% of the single-parent households are living in poverty versus 7% of two-parent families.

The literature documenting the detrimental effects of growing up poor is sweeping and strong. Some of the many challenges identified include: academic deficits, reduced access to safe communities and quality enrichment activities, and a heightened risk of physical, behavioral and emotional issues.

According to the Census Bureau, 4 out of 5 of these single parent households are single moms. Approximately, 50% of single parent households only have one child.

Emma at WealthySingleMommy.com has compiled a comprehensive list of statistics on single moms. Historically, single moms began in committed relationship and it was only as those relationships failed that they became single moms. Whereas today’s Millenials are choosing single motherhood from the beginning.

Single Moms Income

The disparity in the income and debt load carried by single moms in the United States is not necessarily tied to a higher rate of unemployment. According to a Bureau of Labor Statistics report released in April of this year, in 2017 only 9.0 percent of families maintained by women had an unemployed member. Single moms are working!

However, when you consider families with two parents, 61.9% of those families are supported by two incomes (both parents working.)

VeryWellFamily.com also points out that the media victimizes single moms. But the reality is that the majority of single moms are doing it without government assistance. They are working, supporting their children through gainful employment.

Single Moms get Child Support

According to this 2015 United States Census Bureau report, only 7 out of 10 single parents received some sort of child support. Less than half of these recipients received all of the court ordered support.

Even more concerning is that the average amount received by the custodial parent per year was only $3,447. When I consider the cost of raising a children in a year…$3,447 isn’t even a drop in the bucket!

Now this number does not take into account, provision of health benefits for children or other types of support (non-monetary.) But, in general, single mom’s are not getting financial assistance in the form of child support to help support their children.

What Can a Single Mom Do

Emma at Wealthy Single Mom suggests these 14 steps for a single mom to get out to debt. This step by step list provides an easy to follow plan to get started on getting out of debt.

The Single Mothers Guide has compiled a list of grants available specifically for single moms. Many of the assistance is comprised of federal grants in the for of government assistance or grants for going back to school.

Then most importantly, use the resources on hand wisely. And isn’t that the point of this site. Guiding parents to make wise use of their resources. To provide materialistically and otherwise for their children as frugally as possible or maybe just more wisely.

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Categories : Mompreneur

Making the Most of Your Time – Busy Mom Edition

Posted by admin 
· September 10, 2018 
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Across the country, the kids are all back in school. While we started in early August, I know many of our friends in VA didn’t start until after Labor Day. And life has returned to a much more predictable schedule.

  • Parents wake before the kids and enjoy just a few minutes of solitude before the crazy of the day begins.
  • Kids alarms start going off and fights over bathroom time erupt all across the country.
  • Breakfast is guzzled down or grabbed as everyone runs out the door.
  • Car lines and bus rides.
  • Moms everywhere wipe down the kitchen counters or run past it making a note to do it later.
  • Work, school, house cleaning, running errands and keeping up with life in general takes all day.
  • Car lines and bus rides, after school activities and homework.
  • Dinner time, hopefully as a family but maybe on the run nor picked up at a drive thru.
  • Night time routines and every one falls into bed to repeat the next day.

I’m exhausted just writing all that. How about you?

Tips for Making the Most of Your Limited Time

I love the regular schedule, but I hate the limitations on my free time. I hate the inflexibility of it all. And frankly, during the craziness of school days, I could really use a couple of extra hours each day. Really!

But I have found a few tips that help make me more productive and seem to give me that extra cushion I need each day so I don’t feel like I’m just flying from obligation to obligation and not enjoying a thing.

  1. Whatever time your morning routine starts, get up 1-2 hours earlier. Don’t shower, don’t eat, just knock something off your to do list. Clean the bathroom, tackle a work project, organize a closet, get laundry going or even put dinner in the crockpot. Be productive. Then when your day is supposed to start, you are relaxed and ahead of the game. You might even can take a few extra minutes to enjoy your morning coffee.
  2. Plan out your meals. Pull your calendar out once a week or once a month, whichever works for you and plan your meals and your grocery list. Even better assign some of those meals to your kids to prepare and clean up. But having a plan and a stocked pantry makes all the difference in the world when you are crunched for time. You might even consider doing meal prep once a week or month to save additional time and headache.
  3. Choose your outfit. Yes, this is for adults and children alike. Set out your clothes the night before. It is crazy how long it can take to get dressed when being indecisive. Do the clothes fashion show the night before, lay everything you need out and you are ready for a quick morning before the busy starts. If you are like me, this might allow you to brush your hair too rather than your standard wash and wear.
  4. Prioritize. We all have things we MUST get done, and then we have the NEED to get done, followed by the SHOULD get done and then finally, the WOULD LIKE to get done. Write your lists down, or use a To Do list app on your phone. This will help keep you focused and accomplished as you check things off your list.

With just these few tricks, you will find yourself being able to breathe a little easier. You can take the time to chat with your child without thinking about the list of things you must get done before you can go to bed. And best of all, your kids will notice a difference in your demeanor. The constant rush will soon be replaced by the grin of accomplishment.

Do you have any other tips or tricks you use for making the most of your time?

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Categories : Uncategorized

Four Things You Can Do to Help Your Child Succeed at School

Posted by admin 
· August 8, 2018 
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With school beginning across the country within the next month, the back to school ads and excitement are rampant. And I find that most kids and parents are ready for the return of a regular schedule after the fun and crazy of the summer. Although, many will lament the loss of sleep due to early wake times, missing their pool time and general tiredness for the first couple of days or weeks.

Whether your child is starting their first day of kindergarten or their last year as a senior, there are things that we as parents can do to help them succeed.

Four Ways to Help Your Child Succeed

Feed your children at home.

Studies are very clear, children who eat home cooked meals are less likely to be overweight, have better mental health and are generally happier. And if money is a concern, cooking homemade meals is significantly cheaper than eating out all the time – just ask your wallet!

Set boundaries.

As easy as it is to check in with them when they get home, feed them dinner and then let them loose, it is important that you set boundaries for their down time. Limit their screen time. Encourage outside time. Give them responsibilities. On average, a child has 5 hours of free time between the time they arrive home and bed time. While some of that will be taken with activities, dinner and homework, help teach them to manage their time wisely by giving them responsibilities and set expectations.

Remember, bright screens can adversely affect sleep, no matter their age. Scientific American has a great piece on this back in 2013. Here is the relevant bit for you parents:

Mariana Figueiro of the Lighting Research Center at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and her team showed that two hours of iPad use at maximum brightness was enough to suppress people’s normal nighttime release of melatonin, a key hormone in the body’s clock, or circadian system.

Source: Scientific American, 2013

So, this means not letting them spend too much time on their cell phone or and, if necessary getting a tracker to be sure they aren’t getting exposed to harmful content on their phone. A free phone tracker can help.

Talk to your children.

Let’s face it, this can be one of the hardest things to do, especially when your child gets into those teenage years where they know everything and you know nothing. But there are lots of resources to guide us as parents in being effective communicators specifically with our children:

  • Don’t talk to much, learn to listen more. (Psychology Today)
  • Guide versus direct. (Dr. Sears)
  • Ask open ended questions rather than settling for yes and no responses. (Huffington Post)

Spend time with your child.

Between work and school and activities and life. The school year is when you have the least quality time with your child. And no, sitting at the table with your phone out or watching a TV show together does not quality as quality time. Schedule a one-on-one date at least once a month with each of your children. Block it out, talk about the special time, make it a priority. Put your phone away, tell everyone else you will be back and take your child out alone. Just he/her and you. It doesn’t have to cost money. Just your time and attention. Make it count by:

  • Look at your child. Make eye contact, let them know that you are present and right there with them.
  • Listen. Whatever they want to talk about, just listen. Don’t advise, don’t offer your two cents, just listen.
  • Share. Tell them about what is going on your life. The parent child relationship is not a one way street. Be open with them (in an age appropriate manner.)
  • Tell them how much you value you them. Praise the good you see.

Our children are our first priority. Whether that means working several jobs to support them or staying home to raise them, the requirements are the same, they need YOU, not your money, not more stuff. They need your time and attention.

Have you come up with any unique ways to spend time with your children during the busy school year? What about traditions that they will remember for the rest of their lives?

 

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Categories : Uncategorized

Why Your Child Should Get a Job

Posted by admin 
· July 30, 2018 
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At the beginning of the summer, I challenged my two youngest children, then ages 12 & 13 to make some money this summer. Then life happened and our lazy, boring summer grew quite busy and my plans flew out the window.

Now before you jump down my throat, there are lots of odd jobs a 12 & 13 year old can do to make some spending money. Cut grass, babysit and help with random chores around the house and so on. That is what I had in mind.

And while my 12 year old son did do odd jobs for his grandparents during his month long visit, it wasn’t quite what I had in mind.

I Can’t Get a Job because…

As we sat down this week to discuss the upcoming school year, I again charged my 13 & 14 year olds to get a job.

My 13 year old son immediately chirps up that he is not old enough to get a job. And he is right. Legally, you cannot work until you are 14 and that’s with a special permit.

Then my 14 year old says, what about my sports? She has practice every school day until 5:30pm and games a couple nights a week. I reminded her that her Saturdays are completely free and the perfect time for a high school student to work.

Why Children should Work Part Time

Now I’m now asking my young teenagers to get a job to pay any bills. Although they have been challenged with paying for their summer camp next year if they choose to attend.

There are numerous studies that indicate a child working part time hours excel in numerous areas:

  • Time management.
  • Dealing with people and emotions.
  • Get better grades.
  • Are more self-confident.
  • Real work experience is valuable when they enter the workforce, especially if they do not plan to pursue a higher education or trade school.

You can join the debate and cast your vote here.

Even if they Don’t Actually Get a Job

My 13 year old has already locked in some neighbors for mowing their lawn for the rest of the season. And I’m confident that if he does a good job, they will call him when the leaves start falling or they need help with other manual labor.

He’s already excited about the money he knows he can early over the next couple of months with just a couple hours of work each week.

My 14 year old has not begun her job search yet. She’s waiting to get through the first week of school before hitting the streets.

And even if neither of them actually makes any money, they will have both learning some valuable lessons:

  • How to apply for a job. Filling out applications can be a beast. And knowing what information you need on those applications is a lesson they will use forever.
  • How to handle rejection. We all face it. Learning to hear “No” and not take it personally is an important lesson.
  • How to be assertive. Just getting out and asking for work or for an application takes some character. Not everyone is outgoing, it takes some courage.
  • How to search for a job. While most professionals do their searching online. There is still some value to getting out and “pouding the pavement.” Going door to door can teach lots of lessons, including knowing you do not want to have to search for jobs all the time. There is value in keeping a job.

There are several things you can do as a parent to prepare your child for the job search.

When They do Earn their Own Money

When they do earn their own money, they will learn several additional lesson.

First and foremost, they will learn the value of money. Every parent wants their child to value the hard work they put in to provide for them. Working for minimum wage, and seeing part of their pay go to taxes and social security is just a small dose of reality.

They will also see just how far their money can go, or not go in many cases. They quickly learn to be grateful for what mom and dad provide when they try to reproduce it on their own.

Second, hello money management! As they have more “wants” they learn how to save their money. And saving their money means they must do without sometimes.

Finally, the beginning of independence. Making their own money, managing their own money are the first steps to true adult independence.

There are many more reasons a teenager should work, you can find another list here.

Doing it under the watching eye and guiding hand of responsible parents gives them a leg up on the rest of the world. The key is that we as parents must let them fall at times too. If we correct every mistake and save them when they get in a bind, are they really learning?

Related Articles

  • Should High School Students have Part Time Jobs?
  • Should Children be Expected to Work?
  • Should that Child really be Working?
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Categories : Uncategorized

Four Ways to Deal with Unwanted Behavior

Posted by admin 
· July 2, 2018 
· No Comments

Whether you are facing back to school shopping or the holiday season, we have all heard a child with the “give mes.” I have found that the best way to deal with unwanted behavior is the same way we should deal with other negative behavior.

Not only will these behavior adjustments help save your wallet, but also your sanity.

  1. Catch them doing good.
    I don’t know a person alive who doesn’t thrive under positive attention. Rather than focusing on the things your child does that drive you crazy, catch them doing good, and praise them. Give them the attention they seek then.
    It is awfully hard to ignore the trials, but it proven that just that will cause those types of behaviors to lose their value and eventually cease.
  2. Expose them to reality – those with limited resources and living in poverty.
    There are many ways you can expose your child in an age appropriate manner to those less fortunate. In addition to seeing the homeless on the street and beggars at the side of the road, you can talk about the differences they see at birthday parties and when visiting friends and family.
    Talk to them about the impoverished holding signs at the side of the intersection. Drive through those “other” neighborhoods.
  3. Learn to Say No (and stick with it.)
    Do not start the precedent of backing away from your “No.” When you say it, mean it. Stick to it, even if it is as tough for your as it is for your child.
    Believe me, your child will quickly learn where your soft spots are and how to change your mind. This does not mean there is no room for compromise. But it does mean, your child must learn that “No means No!” And the earlier they learn it, the better.
  4. Make giving a tradition.
    In addition to giving your time and volunteering to serve others, you can model giving all year long. Whether it’s writing a check, or buying gifts for an Angel Tree child, teach your child to give.
    I have always encouraged my children to give of themselves. I even built it into our school curriculum when I was homeschooling. My daughter has volunteered at the local animal shelter since she was old enough to go with me.
    My eldest son has voluntarily cut neighbors yards who couldn’t take care of themselves. And my youngest son visits shut ins with his great-grandmother, and then he started visiting and calling them on his own as well.

 

 

 

 

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Categories : Uncategorized

Teaching Kids Math: Middle School

Posted by admin 
· June 22, 2018 
· No Comments

I am so, so grateful that we are coming to the end of our middle school years. Finally! The hormonal changes, body changes and introduction of some semblance of adult responsibilities can wreak havoc in your home. And I had two going through it at the same time!

Needless to say, despite the teenage angst and random outbursts of “feelings”, education is still at the top of the priority list. What they do in middle school sets them up for high school, which as we all know is when it counts.

Tackling Middle School Math

Children typically enter middle school with the basic math concepts in tact. They know addition, subtraction, multiplication and division. They are familiar with fractions and decimals, and even know how to apply them in some real world situation such as cooking and shopping.

Middle school math is where they start putting it all together. Algebraic concepts are introduced. Word problems become more complex. They have to start weeding out the needed data from the extraneous information that is not needed.

It can be hard, especially if math is not their super power! While many researchers now admit that the theory of Left Brain vs Right Brain is an over-generalized assessment, there are certainly some merits to understanding the way your child thinks and processes information. This is especially true when tackling middle school math!

Find Out How Your Child Learns

I highly recommend you educate yourself on how your child learns. While you probably have a pretty good idea after 12 or so years with them, it doesn’t hurt to get some additional feedback. Ask their teachers. Visit the school counselor. Do some research online.

There are several online resources and quizzes that can guide you:

  • Parenting.com offers What is the Best Way for Your Child to Learn?
  • CNN.com spelled out the 3 most basic learning styles back in 2006 in How Your Child Learns.
  • WebMD.com assures parents that children develop different in Understand Your Child’s Learning Style.
  • MusicTogether.com highlights how different learning styles translate into different behavior in the classroom in Tuning In to How Your Child Learns, and that’s okay!

The bottom line is the best way you can support your child in middle school, math or otherwise, is to understand them. And help them understand themselves.

Once they understand why and how they work, they can begin to work to their strengths, ask for what they need (and be able to explain why) and establish more self control. All of which are crucial for their future success.

Supporting their Math Skills

While most kids will continue with the preset public school curriculum and end up mastering the advanced math with some effort. There are certainly circumstances and times when us as parents need to help out.

There are several ways we can do that:

  • Help them with their homework. Even if it’s beyond you, there are free resources to help out. Look at Khan Academy, ask Google or check out a book from the library.
  • Purchase a full set of curriculum. Math U See has upper level math sets just like they have Preschool and Elementary math options.
  • If your child is all about independence and loves online classes, check out ALEKS.com. It is a mastery based curriculum that goes all the way through college and professional levels, and it lets parents monitor what their child is doing. This is my absolute favorite math option for upper level math!

You can support your child through middle school math. I’m not saying it will be easy. In fact, just getting through middle school may take everything you’ve got. But I promise there is a light at the end of the tunnel. And with your support, your child will come out confident and ready for what is next…high school!

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Categories : Crafts & Science

Benefits of Summer Camp

Posted by admin 
· June 21, 2018 
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I attended a sleep away summer camp one summer when I was growing up. I was going into first grade. And the memory of that camp has driven me to seek out summer camps for all of my children every summer.

Summer Camp Reviews

All in all, my children have attended three different camps. They have all provided wonderful experiences, fantastic memories and have all been Christ-centered.

WCRC

At first I looked for camps that were close geographically. Williamsburg Christian Retreat Centers Kaleidoscope camp came highly recommended and was just a town over.

Run by Mennonites, this camp experience is teeming with God centered lessons and dedicated Christian staff. Daily activities include Biblical lessons, songs and quiet times.

While the activities are limited in comparison to other larger camps, they are competitive and well run. Tree climbing, archery, canoeing, ropes course and crafts are some of the highlights.

But hands down, all four of my kids say the food is the number one thing about WCRC.

Miracle Mountain Ranch

As the little kids got older, they longed for a different experience. We decided to try Miracle Mountain Ranch. It is also a Christ centered camp, but located much further away in the mountains of Pennsylvania.

The entire camp is themed as a western town. The cabins are rustic and not air conditioned. The community bathrooms are in the center of town.

Paintball competitions, horseback riding and team sports are added to the standard camp activities. They also offer several add on options, at an additional cost, such as overnight camping trips.

The kids enjoyed their time at MMR. If we had not moved, the younger two would have returned.

Strong Rock Camp

After we moved to Georgia suddenly, I was scrambling for activities for the kids. Strong Rock Camp was recommended by a cousin whose daughter attended.

The first year was a no-brainer. It was only an hour from our new home. They offer two week sessions, which was perfect for my younger two on the cusp of becoming teenagers and first time camp attenders fees were half off.

Finally, I found a camp that brought my kids the joy that my one week at camp did for me. With a plethora of activities including gymnastics, riflery, cooking, flag football as well as all of those offered by both WCRC and MMR, each camper gets to choose their preferred activities.

With weekly Church, daily devotionals and team membership, the kids are engaged and quickly bond with their cabin mates. So much so that my typically stand-offish daughter requested to attend every session after her first year there. And has already said she would like to work there when she is old enough.

Conclusion

If at all possible, I highly recommend sending your kids to summer camp. I know it’s been a life changing event for my kids and myself. One that they will never forget!

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Categories : Count it as Joy
Tags : christian summer camps, kaleidoscope camp, miracle mountain ranch, mmr, recommended summer camp, strong rock camp, strongrock camp, summer camp, wcrc, williamsburg christian retreat center

Teaching Kids Math: Preschool and Early Elementary

Posted by admin 
· June 16, 2018 
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Before you can teach your child about money, they must know some basic math. And even the most advanced mathematician can be intimidated when it comes to teaching kids math.

We’ve all seen a parent ask a child how old they are, and some random number of fingers show up. Or heard a child count and skip half the numbers. It’s so cute.

As a homeschool and foster/adoptive parent to older kids, I have had to teach math from a variety of stages and in a variety of methods. No one method works for every child.

Starting Young

Math for my two biological children started very young and in two places: the kitchen and the grocery store!

In the Kitchen

Every parent knows that your child wants to be where you are. Instead of banging on pots and pans or pulling everything out of the cabinets, I invited my children to do what I did.

They measured and stirred, chopped (with a butter knife at this age) and poured. It was messy. There were lots of “oops” moments. But my kids understood the concept of fractions before they could count to one hundred.

And they loved decorating and delivering their baked goods to neighbors and family.

In the Grocery Store

We were blessed with a FANTASTIC Kroger near us when my children were small. The staff quickly became accustomed to our weekly “math” lessons/grocery shopping trips.

Because I worked from home and had flexible hours, we went during their least busy times. And the kids quickly became confident and independent in their tasks. (Safety was always considered, but the staff were great and quickly understood what we were doing and supported that.)

We started with shapes and colors. They couldn’t read at this age (think 2 and 3) but on any given aisle I would assign them each to find a certain shape or color. This exercise not only gave me a chance to grab what I needed unencumbered by “can I have” or whines, but kept them active and engaged.

As we got started, I would show them an example and discuss characteristics…

  • A square has 4 equal sides while a rectangle has two sides that are equal and then another two sides are equal, but not all four.
  • Or a circle is flat while a cylinder has a circle on the top and a circle on the base, like this Pringles container.

Elementary Age Math

Because I knew I would homeschool, I never considered school standards or the order I taught things. We really followed a Montessori method and most learning was child led.

If they expressed an interest we went with it. There were no experiences that I couldn’t and didn’t make a lesson out of.

As they got more advanced, those grocery descriptions became more advanced and their tasks got more complex. By the time they were in early elementary, they would each have a small measuring tape and have to find items with a certain perimeter or tell me the area or volume of a box. Geometry at it’s finest.

Introducing Math Curriculum

Even in elementary children are more apt to learn by play and movement, but I understand the need ingrained in us from our own education to use worksheets and curriculum.

One math curriculum that understands and does a good job of meeting both needs is Math-U-See. They offer a mastery based, student paced curriculum that encourages, even demand the use of manipulatives even through their upper level classes.

And don’t worry if the thought of teaching your child math intimidates you, they offer a full video curriculum as well!

Teaching your young child math can be so much fun! More play than teaching really. And it can take you anywhere and does not require any special skills, tools or forethought most of the time.

Ask your child what the volume is of the drink they are drinking, show them how to read the label. Then turn that into a science lesson by talking about the path it will follow…at elementary age that’s super simple. You can even add a health lesson by talking about the affects of whatever they are drinking on their teeth or general health.

In the end, your child will learn more from you through these short engagements then in any classroom. So put down your phone, turn off the TV and lets do a scavenger hunt for “blue” things! Have fun!

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Categories : Uncategorized
chosen family sign

What does your Family Look Like?

Posted by admin 
· June 13, 2018 
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This is what I thought my family would look like.  I got married.  I had a girl, I had a boy.  And voila, this was supposed to be us . . . We would live in a house with a picket fence, visit family on the holidays and be completely content with one another and our children.  He would take care of the yard, take out the trash and I would take care of the house and the children.

We would take family vacations, snuggle at night and talk about our days and spend weekends doing family activities.  Isn’t this what you pictured when you started out?  Isn’t this just an extension of “every little girl’s dream?”  Ok, I never played wedding or really dress up, so maybe I’m not like every girl, but I have a strong suspicion that these dreams are not that far off from most people’s or at least most women’s when they were younger.

But now reality has set in and it’s nothing like a I pictured.  In fact, very little if any of those “dreams” listed above even became a part of my reality.

My Reality

Instead our family looks like this . . .
chosen family
There’s way more kids than I ever planned. There’s kids with no attachments, whole other families completely integrated with ours and then those just on the outskirts. Can you relate to this?

On our way home from VBS today, my son and I had an interesting conversation that got me thinking along this line.  Cade asked “Who lives with J?”  Umm, Mr. J, Mrs. M, R and M, of course.  “No, Mom, at his other home.  Does Mr. J or Mrs. M live with him there?”  You see, J lives in Spain with his mom, but he comes here and stays with his dad in the summers.  His dad has remarried and has two step children.  A true example of a blended family.  Boy, that’s hard to explain to a 6 year old.  I mean, we are certainly not a traditional family any more since their dad and I split, but so far, there are no step parents, half siblings or step siblings.

My brother’s son also causes them confusion as my brother and his “baby” momma for lack of a better term never married, and had him.  Now his mom is remarried and therefore my kids are convinced that my brother is no longer his dad, the mom’s new husband is his dad.  But he, calls the new husband his best friend . . . OMG, this just confuses them more.  (And even me a little.)  Now there’s a new baby in the family and they want to know if she is their cousin too.  How do I even begin to explain this?!?

New Way of Viewing Family

I have decided to stop trying and choose a new way of thinking of family (and it’s been a long time coming,) and here it is:

chosen family sign
I was never the one with lots of friends growing up.  We moved every couple of years and I had/have a really hard time attaching to people, and am often told I am cold because of how easy it is for me to walk away sometimes.  But things have changed for me now.  I am one of 4 siblings who are not all that close.  My extended family lives states away.  And my parents are busy with their own lives.  My ex lives one town over, but well, you know how that goes.  So it’s me and the kids, and that seemed to be okay for a while.  Okay and even really good for a while, I might say.

But things have changed.  And changed intentionally for the most part, no one has forced this change but us.  Here’s how our family has grown and finally has started to feel complete and whole and healthy even though it is not traditional at all and there is really no way to explain to anyone (although I am obviously trying here:)

  1. We went through the training, background checks and home visits to become a foster family.  We have since met and established relationships with several foster kids locally.  My kids call them their pretend brothers and sisters . . . and I love that.  Hope to eventually have a couple that will stay long term.  So our kid count has grown.
  2. I have met and bonded with a core group of women, mostly all married, mothers and non-mothers.  Professionals and SAHMs.  And because of this bond we now have constant play dates, dinner invites and even adult time when it’s just us girls hanging out and being girls . . . ok, maybe we still only talk kids, men and work, but it’s still a lot of fun!  So we’ve completely integrated 4 other families with our own and really feel like they are our family.
  3. We moved into this wonderful neighborhood where I feel confident and safe in letting the kids have some freedoms outside and roam around with the other 1,000,000 kids who live on our street (ok, maybe a little exaggeration there.) Now these people are mostly on the outskirts of our family . . . but more often than not, one or two or a dozen are hanging around, eating a snack or just goofing of with us.
  4. Our latest addition has been to apply to host a FAF child for the summer and hope to get two next year and every year afterwards.  My hope is that this child(ren) will become more “pretend” brothers and sisters to the kids and they will grow up with a close bond despite the distance most of the year.

So what does your family look like?  Does it look like the old fashioned family trees with the generic parents, children and extended family?  Or does it look more like ours where the family tree limbs twist in all sorts of directions, hold hands with other trees and just make your life complete like perhaps you never thought it would be??

I LOVE MY CHOSEN FAMILY and am SO HAPPY to have them in my life!

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Categories : Count it as Joy
Tags : adopted family, birth family, chosen family, family, it takes a village

Games for Teaching Kids about Money

Posted by admin 
· June 4, 2018 
· No Comments

If you are not ready for your children to have access to real money, there are lots of “pretend” options with games and printable money for you to use to teach your kids about money.

The Balance posted a great article on a variety of ways you can teach your children about money.

Printable Play Money

  • There are an assortment of Money Envelope Templates and Guidelines at Template.net for free.
  • Money Templates and Games available for a nominal fee at Teachers Pay Teachers. These are games and tools teachers have used in their classrooms made available for sale.
  • Printable Play Money offers a wide variety of free printable play money to use when playing with your children.

Rewarding Your Child

In addition to games and allowance, many families use money (real or play) to reward their children for a job well done.

  • Pinterest boards offers hundreds of ideas for family charts and reward options.
  • Reward Charts 4 Kids has sticker charts, potty charts, chore charts and more.

Games that Teach about Money

There are lots of options for teaching your child about money with fun games. You can download them on your phone, use printed money and even enjoy board games together during family night.

  • Education.com offers a variety of downloadable games. From identifying coins to preparing to shop with a budget and decimals, there is something for all ages.
  • VirtualFamilies.com is a PC game that simulates family life and all the financial obligations that come with it. It takes into consideration decorating a home, pets and shopping. They offer a variety of games with the same type of themes and lessons.
  • Money Crashers reviewed the Top 5 Board Games for teaching kids about money. Many of these are oldies but goodies when it comes to life lessons: Monopoly, Life and even Payday.

There is no shortage of unique and creative ways to teach your children about money. Have you found a tried and true method not listed here? Share it in the comments below.

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Categories : Crafts & Science
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