Money & Expenses
With back-to-school shopping soon to be underway, added along with summer expenses like camp and vacations and the (regular list of food, clothes, toys, and gifts, your kids may notice the spending ask you questions related to money. Living in Miami doesn’t help. With such an abundance of goodies available, at all price ranges, and such stark contrasts between what social circles can afford, it’s no wonder our kids bombarded with the twinkling fantasy of having so much, just as much as we are as adults.
Questions like this may have you wondering how to talk to your kids about money:
- Why can’t I have two sneakers of the XYZ brand instead of one?
- How come you say that you can pay for this camp, but not the other one?
- Why do I need to use these old school supplies instead of buying new ones?
- How come we go to private school when so-and-so goes to public school?
- Why do people ask for money on the street?
- How much money do you make?
- How much does our house cost?
- Are we rich/poor?
The list of questions goes on. And really, our kids can ask about money at any given point – so, it’s best that we have some idea of how we wish to respond instead of answering like:
- That’s none of your business.
- Why are you being nosy?
- Talking about money is bad manners.
- Because we can’t afford it. (True or not!)
Ignore or Attack?
Or, saying nothing, changing the subject or ignoring the child’s question altogether. Sometimes, you might take these questions personally, like our children are attacking or questioning our ability to provide for them. Many parents feel like their children are questioning our ability to be “good parents.”
You might find yourself feeling or thinking:
- How dare she complain about how many shoes I buy her! Doesn’t she realize how hard I work?
- Is he that ungrateful that he is jealous of his friends?
- I need to work harder. Maybe she feels lesser than because we can’t afford the same things as her friends. I don’t want her to feel left out. I can just put it on the credit card and pay for it later.
- I should have become an accountant. This job pays #