Reply #37: Funny how parents will talk about sex before finances....

[AnneD]

She was still a toddler when she had chores for pay. I would put a bathing suit on her, place her in the tub and let her clean it. She would clean the bath room for some "pink gum" bubble gum. That was the cheapest I ever got the bath room cleaned (of course I would have to redo it). I would offer her an old beat up quarter or a shiny new penny-she took the penny, When she started taking the quarter-I knew she was beginning to understand.

When she was in the 4th grade and wanted something-she said that she got child support and should be able to spend it. That was when I took out the family budget and let her work it with me. She wanted to take dance lessons and she thought she could cut back to achieve it. I took her to the second hand store (which she loved) and because she saved so much, she could take lessons. She had a job and I let her spend some, save some (and matched dollar for dollar because 1% does not encourage kids), and invest some in a mutual fund. She has forgotten about the mutual fund but I have been managing it and putting in extra here and there. One day it will make a nice legacy for her.

Her proudest moment was when some folks from the Fed Reserve came in to talk about new Houston Branch of the Dallas Fed Reserve. They were giving away containers of shredded bills to the student that could answer their questions correctly. She told me she answered 8 of the 10 questions and was handing out the containers to her friends and saved one for me. The one she answered that freaked even her out was when she knew the correct number of districts in the Fed Reserve. The folks took her aside later and asked her how she knew so much. "Mom, I didn't want to tell them that I remember you cussing so much about the Federal Reserve so I told them that we listened to NPR a lot." :spray:

I think it is no accident that civics, labour history and finances are not taught in schools now days and history only goes as far as Viet Nam. As George Carlin said," They don't want well-informed, well-educated people capable of critical thinking....They want obedient workers."

I don't know about you guys but I fear sex a whole lot less than losing my rights.