Imagine this… no stress ways to use your vacation to teach your kids about money?  Whaaat? You know, you’re getting ready for your families summer vacation and the kids are already hounding you about all the things they want to do and want to buy on the trip!? How can you use these nags to teach your kids about money?

You feel so worn out already, stressing with  “NO” or “WE’LL SEE” and you haven’t even left yet!

Wait, what!? YIKES!

We all know how kids get excited because we were kids once…remember?

2 questions:

How do we get the asking, begging, and pleading to stop – really stop?

How can we turn it around so our vacay actually teaches them something about money? You ready?

Let’s go!

Tip #1 – Be Proactive

Before the trip tell them what you get to do together to get ready for it….

Set up 5 chores before your trip, so they can each earn $150 for all the extras. What are extras? You know those stops at the 7 Eleven, souvenirs – all of them.  Imagine them having to budget out whether or not they have enough, or what they want to spend money on. It is a hoot to watch.

Here’s the fun part: Put their earnings in a clear jar somewhere they see everyday. Talk about encouragement? They will see the money they are going to have to spend.

Tip #2 Their earned Money for all souvenirs and pit stops.

We mentioned this in tip #1 but it is worth repeating.

Every kid loves souvenirs, maybe it’s a souvenir of their favorite Disney character or their favorite superhero or even a hermit crab…guilty 🙂 Let them work out the details of which souvenirs to buy or which one they want but that is their budget and all that they will get on the trip. Also, remind them that there will be plenty of stops to buy souvenirs…Oh and make sure you lead by example…hehe.

No more… “Hey, I’ll just spend my money in one place cause mom and dad will just give me more.” Teach your kids to budget and let them make money decisions…see how this will teach them this this super important life skill?

Tip #3 Model good money talk

There are 50 million money decisions to make on a trip. I (Megan) remember all the money fights my parents had on our vacations, growing up.  Sometimes, it even ruined the whole day. Use your vacation as a moment to show your kids how to talk through money decisions.

Be ready for some spur of the moment adventure – kids need to see this modeled, too. So be sure to leave some wiggle room in your budget for the last minute ideas!

So ladies and gents…plan, give them a say in it and don’t forget…stick to your guns. It will pay off – we promise.

One last thought about “sticking to your guns”,

When you stick to your guns about what they get to spend, they learn the importance of thinking carefully when making a decision.

We know what you’re thinking, “they’re just kids, and they still have a long time before they will have to make any “MAJOR” money decisions on their own!”

Here’s the thing.. if you start teaching them the importance of budgeting their money while they are young, then the chances are, they will be more intentional with their money when they are out of your house.

It’s a “win-win” scenario – really!

One last tip – consider it a bonus!

Discover your 2 Money Personalities

Know your honey’s 2 Money Personalities

Understand your kids Money Personalities

If you talk to each other, If you lead, guide, and direct each other knowing your Money Personalities and not shaming each other into submission.

Whew! It works wonders.

Happy vacationing!

P.S. We thought you might like this article too – How your vacation can teach your kids about money.

As always, Taylor and Megan