Smart Spending

Have you ever learned something and thought, “the rest of the world probably knew this for most of their lives, and I was today-years-old when I figured out about it?” We all have. Because there’s a lot to learn. Some big things are going to slip through the cracks.

For decades, debt has been a way of life for Americans. Gone are the days when a mortgage was the only sizable debt someone would take on in their life. Today, it’s not uncommon to see a car payment the size of a house payment from the ’90s.

My daughter had a heart-to-heart with me about getting a phone. She feels like she’s missing out on a lot by not having a phone. Namely, her friends’ group chat. The conversation with my daughter was interesting, but it gets even better in our household.

Kids have the largest influence in what and where your family eats, entertainment choices, family vacations, and many other aspects of your life, according to a study on homes in Canada. Advertisers not only know this, they exploit it. I’ve got some alarming facts and stats that I’ve provided in this concise little guide that only takes a few minutes to read. The goal is to spread awareness.

It costs an average of $233,610 to raise a child from birth to age 17, according to a USDA study. What all does that cost include? Is there a way to do it for less without sacrificing the important stuff? Let’s look through the different types of expenses, how to reduce the costs, and how to live differently.

It’s not uncommon for someone to start a finance blog, write some good posts, and then disappear off the face of the earth. It’s easy to spot when you go to a blog and see that their last post was right around the time internet was invented. I’ve found some really great Christian and family finance blogs, while filtering out the ones that were updated while Lincoln was in office.