Recession time: Family vacation planning and what to tell the kids

Tara Talnenetz’s 5-year-old son, Dilon, is like a lot of boys his age when he gets in a store. His face lights up at the sight of toys or candy, and he turns puppy dog eyes up to his mother.

Talnenetz used to indulge him more, but as the nation teeters on the brink of recession, she finds herself relenting less.

These days when Dilon starts whimpering, “I just tell him no,” Talnenetz said as she loaded her son into her car along with purchases from a northeast Bakersfield 99-Cent Store. “He takes no for an answer, usually. He’s pretty good about that.”

As food and gasoline prices soar, many families are seeing their discretionary income shrink or vanish. There may no longer be room in the family budget for extravagant birthday parties, dance and music lessons or big-ticket electronic toys.

Most parents would like to shield their children from money woes, but children — especially older ones — often sense their parents’ stress, or at the very least notice there’s no vacation this year. It’s not a good idea to lie to children about financial duress, but what you say and how you say it should be adapted to the age of the child, said Dr. Caron Goode of the Academy for Coaching Parents International, a Fort Worth, Texas, organization that certifies parenting experts.

Very young children, and even tweens, have a propensity for melodrama and are easily frightened, Goode said, so you don’t want to use scare tactics that could alarm them unduly.

“Be honest but reassuring,” Goode said. “Just kindly say, ‘Money’s tight right now, but we’ll be OK.’”

Teenagers, on the other hand, are old enough to understand more, and should be approached as allies who can help problem solve.

“Explain that this is what we’re doing together, as a family, to deal with this, and this is how you can help,” Goode said. ‘We don’t really need those $80 jeans or those $200 sneakers. Isn’t there something else you could be happy with?’ Or, ‘You know, if you got a summer job, you’d have more say over how we spend discretionary income because you’d be earning it, yourself.’”

Each family needs to decide how much detail to provide children based on their age and the general comfort level of the parents, but it’s OK to have a general discussion with children about the household budget, said Laura Levine, executive director of Jumpstart Coalition for Personal Financial Literacy, a national nonprofit organization that advocates for financial education in schools.

“The general idea is to discuss how much the family earns each month versus how much they have to spend on bills, groceries and other needs, including a set amount for savings, not just what’s left over,” Levine said. “The budget doesn’t need to be complicated and the math part is usually pretty simple. This column needs to be less than that column. So even most elementary school children will be able to understand.”

It’s never too early to start teaching children the value of money, said Cal State Bakersfield economist Abbas Grammy, who used to run an educational program for elementary school students that covered saving, debt and other personal finance issues.

Young people earned money for showing up and participating in class discussions, and the money was held in a classroom bank. Students could withdraw funds to pay for things such as rent for their chairs, toys and candy. Or they could invest in, for instance, car wash supplies they could use to raise even more money washing cars.

“Learning about consumption and savings, and why putting money to work for you in the long run is better than instant gratification, those are lessons they can use all their lives,” Grammy said.
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Fancy thrills versus cheapskate alternatives

Looking for an outing?

Fancy thrill: Disneyland

Anaheim, CA

www.disneyland.com

(714) 781-4565

Tickets: $56 age 3-9, $66 age 10-59, $64 age 60 and up

Parking: $11 cars; vans, campers and RVs $13

Gas: 278 miles round-trip from downtown Bakersfield at $3.85 per gallon=$53

Saturday: Lunch, snack and dinner: $192

One night’s stay at Disneyland Hotel: $300

Sunday: Breakfast: $40

Estimated total for a family of four: $840

Cheapskate: California Living Museum

10500 Alfred Harrell Highway, Bakersfield.

www.calmzoo

(661) 872-2256

Tickets: $7 adults, $5 seniors, $4 students with ID, $4 children age 3-17, Free children under age 3.

Parking: free

Gas: 26 miles round-trip from downtown Bakersfield at $3.85 per gallon=$5

Sack lunches: $20

Estimated total for a family of four: $47

Looking for water?

Fancy thrill: Six Flags Hurricane Harbor

26101 Magic Mountain Parkway, Valencia.

www.sixflags.com/hurricaneHarborLA

(661) 255-4527

Tickets: $24.99 adults, $20.99 children under 48 inches tall.

Parking: $15

Gas: 156 miles round-trip at $3.85 per gallon=$30

Estimated total for a family of four: $136.96

Cheapskate: City of Bakersfield Recreation and Parks Department

The city of Bakersfield has 47 parks, and many of them have a swimming pool, water spray area or both. Call the city for the location of the nearest park and its amenities.

(661) 326-3866 (FUNN)

City map of parks

Admission: Spray areas are free. Swimming pool admission varies by park, but is typically about $2.

Parking: free

Gas: nominal, or free if you walk or ride a bike.

Estimated total for a family of four: free to $8

Planning a birthday party?

Fancy thrill: John’s Incredible Pizza Co.

3709 Rosedale Highway., Bakersfield

www.johnspizza.com

(661) 859-1111

Speedway Party Package: $15.99 per child age 12 or younger

Includes buffet, unlimited soft drinks, 32 Fun World game card credits, 25 redemption tickets and one ride on an indoor go-cart track.

Total for eight guests: $127.92

Cheapskate: Birthday party at home

Your place

Create a free Web site on MySpace, Facebook or eVite

Your phone number

Disposable plates, cups, napkins, forks: $7

Party favors: $10

Goody bags to put them in: $3

Invitations: $4

Birthday cake: $15.99 at Costco, serves 48.

Decorations: $10

Games and prizes: $20

Total for eight guests: $69.99

Sources: California Living Museum, City of Bakersfield Recreation and Parks Department, Disneyland, John’s Incredible Pizza Co., Six Flags Hurricane Harbor. Gas prices from Energy Information Administration, www.eia.doe.gov. Mileage from Mapquest, www.mapquest.com. Party product costs from Party City, www.partycity.com. Cake price from Costco, www.costco.com.
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Source: The Bakersfield Californian, May 10, 2008

The ABCs of finances: Teaching children the value of money

Andrew is a first-grader, and it’s great to be a part of his education. We read children’s books together, and his mom and I enjoy guiding him through his homework each night.

Whenever I get a chance, I love to speak with him about topics that aren’t really taught in school, like finances and economics. Kids are so smart today! I find myself constantly amazed by how advanced they are and how much they understand already.

However, while we teach our children to look both ways before crossing the street, we can easily overlook other principles that are just as basic.

Learning the value of money is something the entire family can benefit from, including our children.

Here are two ways to improve your children’s knowledge in finances:

Make financial concepts seem more real
Make financial concepts come to life by showing them different principles.

For example, at your local Kern County Library branch, locate old newspapers and compare today’s prices with prices 25 to 50 years ago.

Children may be surprised to know that because of general price inflation, a child’s fishing pole that would have cost $5 in 1973 would cost $23.35 today.

Or while you’re at the grocery store, teach your child how to determine the best price per ounce. This is a simple but effective way to show your child the value per unit of something you normally buy, like chicken, fish, beef, tortillas, vegetables or anything else. When you are eating out, teach them how to calculate a tip.

You can also try a new twist on playing house with your children. Give them play money to make payments for the electricity, gas, phone and water as if they are homeowners. Vary the cost of the utilities according to the season and add property taxes and homeowner’s insurance during the appropriate months. Offer the chance to buy privileges with the extra play money left at each month’s end. With the money they’ve “saved” at the end of the month, they can buy the privilege of deciding which movie to rent or choosing family meals for a week.

Set mutual goals
Establish joint goals for your children to strive for, like a special vacation or that video game they’ve been wanting.

Create reasonable amounts for your child to contribute toward the goal.

Your child will feel a sense of accomplishment when the goal is reached, and understand what it takes financially to make such things possible.

And you may be teaching your child the most important lesson of all:

By setting a goal and following through, “I can succeed!”

Teaching your children the basics is important.

So when you’re educating them on the importance of not playing with matches, don’t forget to include the ABCs of finances.

— Martin Reynoso is a financial advisor with The Principal Financial Group.

Originally posted at http://www.masbakersfield.com/home/ViewPost/49161 on Thursday, February 21, 2008.

Finances and Money: Raising Bakersfield

Recession time: Family vacation planning and what to tell the kids

The ABCs of finances: Teaching children the value of money