My wife and I are on a crusade.
No, not like the Crusades from the Middle Ages.
A crusade to change our family tree. A crusade to leave a legacy of financial freedom (and a lot of other freedoms that come with that).
Dave Ramsey and his daughter, Rachel Cruze, co-authored a book called “Smart Money, Smart Kids.” It’s about training your children how to properly deal with money, no matter what age they are.
On April 27, Dave and Rachel were in Dallas for a book signing. My wife and I decided to take our kids there (we took my mother-in-law, too).
They were able to sign our book. They were also able to sign our “Buy That House” board.
That board will become a family legacy for sure.
Changing a Family Tree
On the trip, we were able to listen to the first seven chapters of the book. It was great to listen to Dave and Rachel reading it.
What was even better was that our kids were listening. And mostly paying attention. Our even son requested to listen to it several times.
While we were standing in line, I gave the book to our son to hold. He opened it up and started reading it. By the way, he’s only 7 years old.
My son is also excited about saving for a car and having something similar to a 401-Dave plan.
This is Only the Beginning
Our kids are 7 and 5. They have their whole lives ahead of them. They are receiving a solid financial foundation to build on. Our kids are already learning the three basic principles:
- Give
- Save
- Spend (they’re really good at this one!)
Our son has grown in the “save” area. He’s going to summer camp and we told him that he could take 20% of his savings with him to spend. A couple months ago, he won $100 from a school fundraiser and deposited $75 into his savings account. I think he’s starting to get it. What’s your legacy going to be?
iTunes
It’s amazing that you are starting your kids out young to teach them about finances. Some parents think their children need to be older to learn (and it’s like that always – “they are too young to learn”). Thank you for your great example!
Thanks, Luba. Unfortunately, many people that young kids are too young to learn/do many things. I have to retrain myself as I realize that they are capable of so much more.
Great story and a great way to get your kids off on the right foot! We are going down a similar path, we have also purchased the Financial Peace program designed specifically for kids.
That’s great, Wade! My kids have listened to and read the Adventures with Junior series many times. They love them. We’ll probably get the FP Jr. material sometime as well.