Yep, I'm going there. I'm doing a New Year's post.
I actually hesitated to write a post like this because I know social media is going to be full of these types of posts already.
Everyone is going to want to pay off debt, save some money, travel more, workout more, eat better, etc.
And some of those are on my list, too, but as I was sitting here with my son I realized that I have a much bigger resolution for 2018.
So what is it?
To let my children be children.
This probably sounds odd. If you know me, you know that I love to let my children play and explore. They do many things on their own already, but I needed a quick reminder that they are still children and still need mom and dad to set good examples for them as well.
A couple weeks ago, my son and I were grocery shopping. He picked up a toy and I told him to put it back because it wasn't on the list. He looked at me and said "is it because we don't have the money to pay for it?" I realized then how much my husband and I (okay probably mostly me) had been talking about money in front of the kids. Holidays are hard on finances and I am sure that I said something about limiting our spending. I don't know exactly what this made my son think, but I can only imagine that he started to worry. And that response in the grocery store showed me just that.
The truth of the matter is we had the money to pay for the small car that he wanted, but I didn't want to add on to the clutter of the house, especially when he was receiving a couple cars in his stocking already.
But I don't know that I changed his mind at all when I told him that we just weren't getting it because it wasn't on the list.
So my goal this year is to keep adult topics (like politics, finances, etc) from happening in front of the children as much as possible. I know that they are exposed to adult topics all the time, but limiting my own talk about this can help prevent the worry I saw in my son's eyes in the grocery store.
And to be honest, I thought I was doing so good keeping the conversations in front of my children happy. I make it a point not to talk about things like weight or medical issues in front of them. And when we talk about working out, I make sure that the emphasis is on keeping our body healthy, stretching, and doing something that I enjoy.
I just never thought about finances in the same way.
I'm honestly so glad that my eyes were opened to this, though, because I can start making changes and keep these conversations happy in front of my children. They can have a positive experience with money without me stressing them out about budgets, cutting expenses, and all that.
So as you are thinking about your goals for 2018, please remember your children. They are always watching and as they begin to understand what you are saying more, the conversations you have in front of them may start to worry them.
I hope that everyone enjoys the last day of 2017 to the fullest and I am looking forward to an amazing 2018 for all of us.
I actually hesitated to write a post like this because I know social media is going to be full of these types of posts already.
Everyone is going to want to pay off debt, save some money, travel more, workout more, eat better, etc.
And some of those are on my list, too, but as I was sitting here with my son I realized that I have a much bigger resolution for 2018.
So what is it?
To let my children be children.
This probably sounds odd. If you know me, you know that I love to let my children play and explore. They do many things on their own already, but I needed a quick reminder that they are still children and still need mom and dad to set good examples for them as well.
A couple weeks ago, my son and I were grocery shopping. He picked up a toy and I told him to put it back because it wasn't on the list. He looked at me and said "is it because we don't have the money to pay for it?" I realized then how much my husband and I (okay probably mostly me) had been talking about money in front of the kids. Holidays are hard on finances and I am sure that I said something about limiting our spending. I don't know exactly what this made my son think, but I can only imagine that he started to worry. And that response in the grocery store showed me just that.
The truth of the matter is we had the money to pay for the small car that he wanted, but I didn't want to add on to the clutter of the house, especially when he was receiving a couple cars in his stocking already.
But I don't know that I changed his mind at all when I told him that we just weren't getting it because it wasn't on the list.
So my goal this year is to keep adult topics (like politics, finances, etc) from happening in front of the children as much as possible. I know that they are exposed to adult topics all the time, but limiting my own talk about this can help prevent the worry I saw in my son's eyes in the grocery store.
And to be honest, I thought I was doing so good keeping the conversations in front of my children happy. I make it a point not to talk about things like weight or medical issues in front of them. And when we talk about working out, I make sure that the emphasis is on keeping our body healthy, stretching, and doing something that I enjoy.
I just never thought about finances in the same way.
I'm honestly so glad that my eyes were opened to this, though, because I can start making changes and keep these conversations happy in front of my children. They can have a positive experience with money without me stressing them out about budgets, cutting expenses, and all that.
So as you are thinking about your goals for 2018, please remember your children. They are always watching and as they begin to understand what you are saying more, the conversations you have in front of them may start to worry them.
I hope that everyone enjoys the last day of 2017 to the fullest and I am looking forward to an amazing 2018 for all of us.
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