Family Budgeting & Money-Smart Kids

Hi mamas-

It seems that everywhere we turn, someone is on a budget these days. (Hello, pricey eggs! 🥚) But for many, budgeting is harder than they’d like to admit.

And that’s OK! Because unfortunately, a lot of people our age were not taught financial literacy by our parents when we were younger. We’re here this week to not only help you get an easy budget in place for your family, but also to give you some resources to talk to your own kids about money. Let’s raise an entire generation of money-smart kids, shall we?

If you’ve got any budgeting hacks or recommendations, be sure to share them with all the mamas in the comments at the bottom of the newsletter. 👇🏻

🎉 P.S. Congrats to Kelsey Davis Hunt, Tiffany Adams and Chelsea Morrison for winning the FAIRPLAY cards in last week’s newsletter. Ladies, reply to this email with your mailing address so we can get them in the mail to you.

Enjoy!

This week in The CARRY™ ALL, we’re talking about:

• 🤑 Raising Money-Smart Kids

• 💰 Easy Budgeting for Families

• 🖼️ Save Your Children’s Art

THE BIG 1️⃣ 2️⃣ 3️⃣

1️⃣  🤑 Raising Money-Smart Kids

How do you teach your kids to actually handle money (and not just spend it?) Recently, our founder Paula sat down with personal finance expert Rachel Cruze on her podcast The Paula Faris Show.  Rachel shared why it’s important for kids to earn their own money early through chores, learn to divide it between three bucket (saving, giving, and spending) and even open their own checking accounts before they leave home. (She also explained why a little struggle is healthy, and how letting kids make small financial mistakes now can save them from major ones later.) Give it a listen if you want your kids to grow up with real-world money smarts.

2️⃣ 💰 Easy Budgeting for Families

The B word can be a real pain…we’re talking about budgeting. What did you think we meant? 😜 It’s something a lot of us busy working families struggle with and for so many, money is extra tight these days. Rachel Cruze came back on Paula’s show this week for part 2 of their conversation, tackling all things budgeting. If you struggle with sticking to a budget (especially when it comes to family expenses), you’ll definitely benefit from this episode. Rachel explains that budgeting isn’t about limiting fun, but about creating freedom and giving every dollar a purpose. Here are some key takeaways:

• How to take control of your finances.

• Why budgeting doesn’t have to be complicated

• Practical tips for saving on food (and managing other family expenses)

• How to break free from the cycle of credit card debt with simple strategies.

Give it a listen for tips you won’t want to miss.

3️⃣ 🖼️ Save Your Children’s Art

There’s never a simultaneous moment of joy and dread as when your kid brings home (more) artwork and 3D “art” from school. On the one hand, you LOVE seeing their little creations. On the other hand, where will you keep them? (And how many of them do you save? And are you the worst parent in the world if you throw out that picture of a dinosaur in a garden??) Enter Plum Print, which digitizes your children’s art and puts it neatly into a book that you can (easily) keep forever. And in line with this week’s focus on budgeting, we’ve got a 50% off code you can use! Enter code CARRY at checkout.

📰 IN THE NEWS

Taking the CAKE on childcare, Plus More Parents at Home

➡️ You probably saw the news that CAKES BODY is offering PAID childcare for its employees. The company, owned by twin sisters Taylor and Casey, said they wanted to build a workplace that supported a mothers ambition and commitment to her family. Now, they’re asking other companies to match their pledge.

➡️ This NYT article is making the rounds and ruffling some feathers. In the midst of Child Care Funding Cuts, Republicans are backing policies that will allow more parents to scale back at work.

BEEN THERE, DONE THAT 🤎

for working moms with older children

• If your teens don’t want to listen to you, maybe they’ll listen to a podcast? We love Teen Money Matters, where hosts interview fellow teens (as well as finance experts), discussing how to save, budget, and understand the importance (and responsibility) of managing money for the future.

• Because we’re talking about money, money, money…there’s no reason your teens can’t begin to learn some important lessons that can lead to a lifetime of financial health. Start conversations now about tracking income and expenses (and putting money aside for savings), setting financial goals, and even investing and understanding their credit score (and how to build credit). Helping them now will save a lot of headaches (and potential issues) later. Here’s some helpful info to get you started.