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Kids Ain't Cheap

But They Sure Are Worth It

6 Fun Money Games for Kids

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money games for kidsMore parents are realizing how important it is to teach kids about money. How can we teach them in a way that’s both engaging and educational? There are several money games for kids designed just for that purpose. Here are some ideas for money games.

6 Fun Money Games for Kids

Dollars and Dice

This is a simple money game that will have kids polishing their math skills without even realizing it. Using a single die and a variety of coins, kids roll the die to earn one of the following values:

1 = a penny

2 = a nickel

3 = a dime

4 = a quarter

5 = a coin of their choice

6 = lose a turn

The first person to collect exactly one dollar wins. If a player is close to hitting the dollar mark but goes over, they lose their turn.

Escape From Barter Island

This is a fun, interactive online game from the Federal Bank of Cleveland. Each player has to learn how to barter his or her way to a new sail for their boat. Navigating through the signs, they learn how to trade up using items they already own. If they trade right, they’ll eventually get their new sail so they can get home.

Play Escape from Barter Island.

Hide and Seek

Yes, your kids can play hide and seek and learn about money at the same time!

First, parents gather several coins of multiple values. If you have younger kids who are still learning to count, use pennies only. Then hide the coins in various places around the house. The kids are then set loose for a preset time period to find coins.

When the time is up (or when all coins are found – parents’ choice) kids count up their totals. The player with the highest number of coins (or the highest value total) wins!

Mad Money

The PBS Kids website has a great money game called “Mad Money”. The game starts out by giving players a choice of several items to save up for. Players are given a weekly allowance, but the allowance has to cover items on their shopping list.

Then, players go throughout the town, looking to find deals on what they need and working to earn more money.  They win if they have enough money to buy what they need and pay for what they want.

Play Mad Money.

Bonus Reading: “5 Apps That Teach Your Child a Cool Skill”

Net Worth

Similar to crazy eights, Net Worth is a card game that will help kids learn to manage money. The different cards allow players to pay off debt, collect assets, and hinder other players’ finances. Players also learn to use strategy to protect themselves from financial setbacks such as job layoffs.

This game is a quick, easy play for kids age 8 or older, and very affordable.

Save Perry’s Pennies

This game from the U.S. Treasury has three skill levels in which players catch dropping coins for their piggy banks. But there’s a catch – players have to save the targeted savings amount within the specified time period. Be careful, though; if you accidentally click on a falling hammer all of your savings could be lost!

Play Save Perry’s Pennies.

There are also several board games that can help kids learn how to save and manage money. The Game of Life, Monopoly, Payday, and Dave Ramsey’s ACT Your Wage are all games that teach players money skills. By using games to teach children healthy money skills we can help them become financially responsible adults.

For more financial fun, check out “4 Creative Money Challenges for Kids.”

Do you have any favorite money games for kids to share?

Image Credit: David Lofink (Creative Commons)

Are you a stay-at-home mom? Make sure you bookmark or pin some of these resources for later!

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Should You Wait to Travel Internationally Until Your Kids Are Older?

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Hat and camera sitting on top of a map

Our family recently returned from an 11-day trip to Japan to visit family. The trip was my third visit to Japan, but it was the first for our children — ages 19, 14, and 13. While we have traveled extensively with them throughout the United States, they have never been to a foreign country. After the trip, my husband and I discussed the best time to travel internationally with kids. We decided the answer depends on your children’s temperament and your flexibility.

Should You Wait to Travel Internationally Until Your Kids Are Older?

We wanted to make the trip to Japan for quite some time, but we couldn’t imagine such a long journey when our kids were little. We were planning a trip for February 2020, when our kids were 16, 11, and 10, which I think would have been the best ages to travel internationally with kids. However, COVID hit, and we had to cancel our trip. As soon as Japan opened back up, we made our plans.

Benefits of Traveling with Kids 10 Years Old and Older

Now that we’ve experienced taking a large international trip with our kids, we decided that kids over 10 are the best to travel abroad with for several reasons.

Require Less Stuff

When you travel with babies and toddlers, you must pack a lot of stuff—additional clothes, diapers, baby gear, etc. Our kids didn’t need much extra stuff. We each brought a carry-on for the five of us to use during the plane trip. We only brought three suitcases total, so we traveled light.

Can Participate in Planning

Older kids can participate more in planning the trip. Our kids all researched and decided what they wanted to see, and then we voted on the choices. We could choose from activities geared toward adults as well as activities geared toward kids because our kids could do either. When you travel with younger kids, you’re confined to activities that cater to children.

Can Better Handle a Long Flight and Jet Lag

Our travel time was 24 hours straight. During that time, we had an hour-long drive, a 1.5-hour flight, a six-hour layover, a 12.5-hour flight, and a one-hour train ride. It was grueling for us, but it would have been much more difficult with younger kids.

Can Learn More

I think traveling with kids at any age is important, but when kids are younger, they don’t remember the vacations as well. An international trip requires a great deal of planning and is costly. Because we made this trip when our kids were in their teens, they are more likely to remember than if we had taken them when they were under ten.

Final Thoughts

Plenty of people travel internationally with young children. However, for our family, my husband and I decided the best time to travel internationally with kids is when they’re ten or older.

Read More

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Why Has Fast Food Become So Expensive?

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Why Has Fast Food Become So Expensive?

Our family hadn’t had our favorite fast food, Chipotle, since the pandemic began two years ago. When my daughter asked for Chipotle for one of her birthday meals this year, we happily bought it. But boy, were we surprised by the experience! We were shocked to hear our final total for four meals–$53! We were left wondering, why has fast food become so expensive? Our order total was significantly higher than when we bought Chipotle two years ago.

Why Has Fast Food Become So Expensive?

Fast food prices are increasing due to two variables.

Higher Priced Food Items

The United States is currently experiencing high inflation not seen in 40 years. The price of everything is going up including gas and basic goods like the food supplies fast-food chains rely on. When basics like lettuce, tomatoes, and meat increase, most fast-food chains have no choice but to pass those costs onto consumers.

Labor Shortage

In addition to higher food prices, fast food chains are experiencing a labor shortage, which has a ripple effect on the restaurants.

Shorter Hours

Some fast-food restaurants have cut their business hours because they don’t have enough staff. If the restaurant is open fewer hours a day, fewer workers are needed. However, the restaurant is then bringing in less money.

Fewer Items on the Menu

Some restaurants are offering fewer items on the menu to consolidate their business. For instance, Burger King is focusing on “menu simplification, removing low-volume items” (Insider). This streamlines the number of ingredients they need to buy and store.

Higher Wages

Finally, most fast-food restaurants have no choice but to raise wages to attract employees. Many chains have had to raise wages by 10 to 15%, which affects their bottom lines and requires them to raise food prices.

How to Combat High Fast-Food Prices

In our busy society, more and more families rely on fast food. However, if you no longer can afford fast food regularly, you have some other options:

Make Slow Cooker Meals

Why Has Fast Food Become So Expensive?

If you’re too tired to cook when you come home from kids’ activities or work, put a meal in the slow cooker in the morning before you leave. When you come home, a hot meal will be waiting for you.

Have Freezer Meals Ready

Another idea is to make meals to freeze. Thaw them the night before and reheat them when you get home. If you don’t have time for that, buy ready-made, family-size freezer meals from the store. They’re much cheaper than buying the whole family fast food.

Bulk Cook on the Weekends

Or, you could make several meals on the weekend. Then, during the week, reheat and serve. For busy nights when you won’t be home to eat, pack sandwiches and chips. It’s not fast food, but it is quick and easy.

Final Thoughts

Why has fast food become so expensive? The simple answer is that inflation is hitting all aspects of our lives. If you can no longer afford fast food regularly, you can try some other strategies to get a meal on the table quickly. Remember, inflation doesn’t last forever; eventually, you’ll be able to once again afford your favorite fast-food meal without such a punch to your wallet.

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Saving for Your Child’s Future: 8 Steps to Take

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Bringing up children is a costly endeavor. Don’t let anyone lie to you about that part. However, if you can consistently save even a tiny amount for your child, you can establish a good saving habit and a growing nest egg for your family. Here are eight steps to take to save for your child’s future.

1. Create a Children’s Savings Account

Look into opening a high-yield savings account on behalf of your child. Such an account is a wonderful place to put your child’s gift money from the holidays or for birthdays, as it can accumulate and grow over time. You can also assist your child in setting up a Roth IRA account if they have a source of income.

2. Hack Housing Costs

Avoid getting into situations where you must pay for extensive and expensive repairs by taking a preventative approach. For example, plumbing issues like toilet clogs aren’t just messy.

They can be quite costly, so you must be careful about what goes down your toilet. Simply because a supermarket sells a toilet-friendly item doesn’t mean you should flush it. According to Reader’s Digest, flushable wipes are common culprits for blocked pipes and toilets. The best thing you can do is consult your local plumber.

Another way to save on housing costs is by renovating your current home instead of buying a new one when you need more space or a fresh start. According to Houzz, about 22% of homeowners will spend between $5,000 and $15,000 on remodeling projects. It’s way cheaper than purchasing or constructing from scratch.

3. Talk Saving and Budgeting With Your Kids

It’s not only parents who can benefit from learning how to save while raising a family. Regular budget conversations are a great way of including kids in the running of the home. You can discuss the fundamentals of spending and saving without delving into the specifics of your income and expenses. Ensure you make it fun so you don’t lose their attention when you say ‘budget.’

4. Adopt Good Dental Health Practices

Dental costs are quite high. With kids, trips to the dentist’s office are almost inevitable. While having insurance that covers these high costs is a good idea, it’s wise to start by instilling proper dental hygiene practices in your child while they’re still impressionable.

Swinney Dental estimates that 41% of Americans floss daily, while 20% never do. Don’t let your kids be part of those who don’t. Teach them how to floss properly at an early age.

5. Plan for Holidays

The holidays can get expensive for a family. Everything is on ‘offer,’ and the spirit of giving can make you go into a shopping frenzy. Set a spending budget for gifts, and keep a separate savings account for the funds. This way, you’ll always know how much you can afford to spend.

6. Don’t Shy Away from Secondhand

Considering how fast kids grow, you’ll realize buying new children’s shoes and clothes is a money-wasting mistake. Yes, you want to give them the best, but it doesn’t have to mean you have to spend a lot of money. Plus, kids don’t care much about the price or even the clothes themselves.

You can buy them the most expensive shoe brands new from a mall, and they’ll still play in the mud while rocking them proudly. Make yard sales, consignment shops, and thrift stores your friends. You’d be surprised at how much quality stuff you can get.

7. Focus on Food Costs

Grocery bills can quickly get out of hand when you don’t have some structure for your family’s eating habits. Make a weekly plan for breakfast, lunch, dinner, and snacks. This way, you can rely on your meal plan to ensure you only get what you need when shopping for groceries.

8. Keep Birthdays Simple

Your kids deserve to be celebrated on their birthdays. However, you don’t have to spend extravagant money to make great memories. Something as simple as spending a day at the beach with family and friends is low-cost but will mean the world to your youngster.

One of the best things you can do for your child is to secure their financial future. Doing so will give them the freedom to pursue their dreams with confidence. Use this read as a guide for steps to take to save for your child’s future.

8 Reasons Why Children Are Priceless

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Reasons Why Children Are Priceless

There seems to be a lot of discussion, constantly, about how expensive children are. While yes, you do have to be financially responsible about having a child, they do not need to be anywhere near as expensive as some ‘studies’ would have you believe. This is a topic I’ve already written about, so today we’re going to chat about the reasons why children are priceless.

I’m not trying to make it seem like having children is all sunshine and roses, because it’s not. It’s far, far from it actually, but having a child will change your life in ways you couldn’t imagine until it happens.

Reasons Why Children Are Priceless

They Inspire Deep Love

You may think you knew what love was before you had a child; trust me I did. I love my husband, my family and my friends but the love you have for your child is something you will have never experienced. The love you have for this tiny little human is indescribable. It changes and shapes every other relationship in your life.

The love you have for your child grows. Though I instinctively wanted to love and protect my child as soon as he was born, the love I have for him and my other two children, is so much different, and intense, than it was on the days they were born.

This idea is best epitomized by Elizabeth Stone’s statement, “Making the decision to have a child is momentous.  It is to decide forever to have your heart go walking around outside your body.”

They Spread Happiness

I am truly happy when I am with my children and they are in good moods. You simply cannot be in a bad mood when your happy toddler smiles up at you or when your tweens tell you silly jokes. Their emotions are raw, and you can’t help but feel it with them.

They Teach You Patience

You may be an impatient person, but once you have a child, that has to change.  If you show impatience and anger with your children, they will likely shut down or cry.  Instead, you must gently encourage them so that they can succeed.  (This can be extremely trying when you have to wait by the door for your toddler to slowly put on his shoes by himself because he’s refused your help or when he unbuckles his car seat for the fifth time in one car trip.)

Children will, by their very nature, teach you to be patient.

They Give You a Second Chance at Childhood Joy

Reasons Why Children Are Priceless

Photo by Thomas Park on Unsplash

By the time you’re in your twenties and thirties, you likely have lost much of your childhood joy.  You may no longer take joy in driving around the neighborhood looking at Christmas lights or the first snowfall of the season.  Once you have a child, all of that changes.

As you watch your young children grow excited for Christmas, you do, too.  When your child gleefully opens the presents under the Christmas tree, you will likely feel a spark of excitement again.  When you bundle your child up to go out in the first snowfall, you will suddenly delight in building a snowman and making snow angels.  Children give you a second chance at childhood joy.

They Are Brutally Honest

Kids are honest. Kids force you to be honest. Honest about yourself and about your life. When your child is born you are suddenly hyper aware of every detail in your life. From your financial life to the mess on your bedside table. Children inadvertently have a way of forcing us to be honest about our lives.

It was having a child that forced us to finally get serious about getting out of debt rather than living with it in limbo.

They Are Humbling

Becoming a parent is one of, if not the most, humbling experience in the world. No amount of research, parenting book reading or doctors appointments can ever prepare you for your child and the experiences  you will go through as a parent. I think being humbled is an important trait for people and if you’ve yet to experience it, having a kid will do it for sure.

They Make You Less Self-Centered

Before you have children, you may not realize you’re self-centered, but you are.  You likely have your own routine, your own rituals, that give you joy.  Yet, when you have a child, all of that discipline and focus on yourself and what makes you feel good is upended.  You get much less sleep in the baby stage, and your life and schedule suddenly revolve around the baby’s.

Reasons Why Children Are Priceless

Photo by Adrià Crehuet Cano on Unsplash

When your kids get older, your life still centers around your children and their education and their activities.  Sure, as kids get older and become more independent, you will be able to do more things for, and spend more time on, yourself.  However, you don’t get your life back as truly your own until your kids move out.  By then, you won’t want to go back to the self-centered years before you had kids.

They Give You Perspective

Having a child puts your life in a whole new perspective. Suddenly everything else in life is so much less important. You wonder what you did with your time before, and you wonder how you possibly lived your life without this person in it.

For the rest of your life, your children will shape and change your world, and that’s a beautiful thing.

Final Thoughts

Having a child is the hardest, yet most rewarding thing you can ever possibly do in your life.  Yes, they are expensive, but don’t believe that kids are as expensive to raise as the experts would have you believe.  Besides, what they give back in their love and the way they make you grow as a person are some of the reasons why children are priceless.

Read More

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Editors Note: If you’re interested in checking out an up and coming new personal finance blog, consider reading kidwealth.com.  Its got several articles similar to this one.

Best Travel Crib for Twins? Hands Down It’s The Joovy Room²

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Best Travel Crib for Twins

Traveling with babies and toddlers is always interesting.  First, you have to plan the actual trip.  How will the baby do?  What can you do as a parent to make your baby more comfortable and able to pass the time while you’re traveling?  But then there are other considerations, namely, all the gear that you have to pack so you can travel with the baby.  Think playpens, strollers, portable changing tables, etc.  If you have twins, the planning is likely to double.  However, if you choose the best travel crib for twins, you get a lot of your travel gear in one purchase.

Best Travel Crib for Twins

Now that more people are having twins, the market has exploded.  Lucky for us as buyers, that means there are many choices available, but you really only need one that is superior to the rest.

Joovy Room²

Hands down, the best travel crib for twins is the Joovy Room².

This product comes with a thick pad for the bottom as well as a soft, fitted, waterproof sheet.  This playpen can accommodate children from newborns to those 35 inches tall, which means you’ll be able to use it for several years.  (The manufacturer asks that you discontinue use when the child can climb out.)

Pros

There are many pros with the Joovy Room².

Spacious

This portable playpen is bigger than standard pack n plays, which makes it ideal for twins.  In fact, it’s nearly 10 square feet in size and can easily accommodate two children.

Additional Features

The Joovy Room² has wide mesh on all sides, so you can more easily see your children.

It also comes with a storage bag that you can use when traveling with the Joovy.

Finally, it has two wheels on the bottom to allow you to easily move the Joovy Room².

Twin Nursery Center Bassinet Playpen Accessory

For newborns and infants, you can purchase the Joovy Twin Nursery Center Bassinet Playpen Accessory.

Best Travel Crib for Twins

This handy accessory turns your playpen into the perfect portable crib for twin babies.  It includes:

  • Bassinet,
  • Bassinet divider (so each baby has their own separate space to sleep in), and
  • Changing table (which sits on top of the bassinet area)

For convenience, the changing table flips to the side when not in use.

The bassinet holds up to 30 pounds, which means the twins can use it until they weigh 15 pounds each.

Cons

Although twin parents love the Joovy Room², it does have some drawbacks.

Heavy

Because it is large and comes with a high-quality, thick mattress, some parents say that it’s heavy.  A few even say it’s too heavy to travel with.  However, that is a minority of parents.

Bunching Sheet

Other parents complain that after the sheet has been washed a few times, it has the tendency to bunch and not fit as snugly as when it was new.

Why the Joovy Room² Is the Only Twin Travel Crib To Consider

There are many twin travel cribs on the market, but since the Joovy Room² is superior to the rest, it’s the only one you need to consider. It beats the competitors in several aspects:

Affordable

The Joovy Room² is $179.99 no matter which retailer you buy from. The Joovy twin nursery center bassinet playpen insert is an additional $99.99. For the price, you get a twin travel crib that is approximately 50 percent bigger than others on the market. In addition, the shape is square rather than the typical rectangular shape, giving your children more room.

Flexible Buying Options

Some other twin travel cribs on the market include the twin bassinet as part of your purchase. You can save money if you need the bassinets because the set is about $50 cheaper than buying the Joovy Room² playpen and bassinet accessory. But not everyone needs the bassinet accessory. If you simply need a travel playpen, the Joovy Room² is cheaper and bigger than the competitors.

Excellent Reviews

Read reviews on Amazon, and you’ll see that customers give the Joovy Room² 4.7 out of 5 stars. Specifically, 85 percent of customers give it 5 out of 5 stars.

Where To Buy The Joovy Room²?

The Joovy Room² is available on Joovy’s website, Amazon.com, and Walmart.  As of the writing of this posting, all three are selling the Joovy² for the same price: $179.99.  Also, shipping times are comparable between the three retailers.   Joovy’s website says they ship in 2 to 5 business days.  Amazon also ships in 2 to 5 days and Walmart offers a similar shipping time.

So, where to get it is up to you.  Here are three main options, click on the price in each table cell to buy the crib.

JoovyAmazonWalmart
Price: $179.99Price: $179.99Price: $179.99

Joovy is not available on costco.com.

Don’t forget to use a cash-back credit card – but keep the balance paid off.

Final Thoughts

If you’re looking for the best travel crib for twins, consider adding the Joovy Room² to your baby registry or buying it.  This product will continue to serve your family for several years.

Read More

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Costco LEGOs Q & A: The Best Deal In Town or Not Worth the Trip?

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Costco LEGOs

Costco can be so beneficial for families. You can often find quality products at a great price. Their various organic food selection is an example. But, what about something like toys? More specifically, what about Costco LEGOs?

Worth the trip to find a deal or keep on looking?

LEGOs have been one of the most popular toys for boys and girls since their start in 1932. The colorful, interlocking bricks give kids a chance to put down their screens, engage their minds, and unleash their imaginations.

The problem is, buying new LEGOs can get expensive quickly. Sets that follow a certain theme, like Star Wars or Harry Potter, charge more than normal for the affiliation. If Costco is known for its competitive prices, then are Costco LEGOs the best deal?

Let’s do some Q & A and find out:

Costco LEGOs Q & A: Best Deal In Town or Not Worth the Trip?

Q: Does Costco sell LEGOs?

A. Yes. There is often an assortment of LEGO products available at Costco, although it does vary. You can also shop online at Costco.com. Overall, you will see considerably less variety than a place like Walmart, Target or Amazon.

Q: Why does Costco have less selection than other stores?

A: According to Costco’s Wholesale Disclosure:

Costco operates membership warehouses based on the concept that offering members very low prices on a limited selection of products will produce high sales volumes and rapid inventory turnover. This rapid inventory turnover, when combined with the operating efficiencies achieved by volume purchasing and reduced handling of merchandise enables Costco to operate profitably at significantly lower gross margins than traditional wholesalers.

Translation: Costco sells hand-picked, quality brands faster and with fewer employees than supermarkets.

After speaking with an administrative representative at my local Costco who declined being named for this interview, he explained that Costco doesn’t carry any particular product year-round. Their mission is to find the trend, buy it early, mark down the price considerably, and sell it at the peak season.

Q: How can I save the most money on LEGOs at Costco?

A: Knowledge is key. Costco’s LEGO selection is very limited during the first two-thirds of the year. Your best bet during those months is to glance at the selection online and keep in mind other options like Amazon or Walmart.

The best ways to save money in general at Costco are:

  1. Browse your monthly Costco flier. It’ll come to you in the mail right before the beginning of a new month and includes every sale, including toys.
  2. Sign up for email offers. You’ll receive exclusive coupons and deal alerts from Costco via email.
  3. Follow deal hunting blogs like Krazy Coupon Lady to receive the most up-to-date information about Costco products. For example, KCL created this detailed post on every LEGO toy available during the Christmas shopping season of 2016. Many of the LEGO products were discounted significantly!
  4. Sign up for an Executive membership.  If you don’t have a Costco members, definitely get one. By doing so, you’ll receive 2% cash back on every qualified purchase. At the end of year, you receive a check in the mail – redeemable only at Costco – for all the money you earned back.  Costco also has a ton of deals on travel, food and kids furniture.  You can get a Costco membership here, or you can click on the button below:

Get Your Costco Membership Here

In Conclusion

Is Costco the best place to buy LEGOs? Not until the holidays, and not if you’re looking for a wide variety.

If you just want to buy some new LEGOs within your price range, then I suggest using some of the money-saving techniques mentioned above.   The great thing about Costco is that you can’t loose, their return policy is outstanding. If you find a better price on LEGOs, and want to return them at Costco, they’ll probably take them.  So, keep your eyes open for a deal, follow a blogger who’s going to do the leg work to keep you informed during the holidays, and go find yourself a great deal.

What’s your favorite thing to shop for at Costco?

Image Credit: Roger Ahlbrand (Creative Common)

Are you a stay-at-home mom? Make sure you bookmark or pin some of these resources for later!

Cheap Costco Desserts That Kids Love

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Cheap Costco Desserts That Kids Love

For some kids, a trip to the grocery store with mom or dad is B-O-R-I-N-G.  Yet, for many of those same kids, a trip to Costco is fun.  Why?  My guess is the free samples.  If you can get free, tasty food while you’re shopping, going to the grocery store is suddenly a lot more fun.  Even better, kids can try to convince their parents to buy those cheap Costco desserts that kids love (and grown ups, too!).

Cheap Costco Desserts That Kids Love

There are so many delicious desserts at Costco, almost all of which are reasonably priced.  Kids, in particular, tend to gravitate to these desserts:

Churro From the Food Court

Don’t buy your kids these unless you plan to buy them every visit.  The churros are that good!  Costco churros are a full 18 inches long and are fried and coated with cinnamon and sugar.  Best of all, they’re only $1!

Delizza Patisserie Belgian Mini Cream Puffs

Found in the freezer section, Delizza Patisserie Belgian Mini Cream Puffs can’t be beat.  There are 120 mini cream puffs in the container, making them perfect for parties or to just snack on after school.

These feature a light, flaky pastry filled with a decadent cream filling.  You should let them thaw for 30 minutes to one hour, but some people can’t wait and eat them right from the freezer.

They’re mini size make them the perfect kid-friendly dessert.

Costco Danishes

Who needs donuts for breakfast when you can have a Costco danish?  Found at the bakery, you can choose from several different flavors such as cinnamon, cheese, apple, and cherry.  Serve these for a delicious weekend breakfast or gently heat one up in the microwave for an after-school snack.  Cinnamon danishes used to be my favorite flavor when I was a kid.

Ice Cream Sundae

If you decide against the churro at the food court, you and your kids may want to opt for the ice cream sundaes.  These are $2.49, and you can choose between two different toppings—strawberry or chocolate.  These are the perfect treat after a summer shopping trip to Costco.  Even better, Costco is very generous with the toppings, which helps to elevate this dessert to a whole new level.

David’s Cookies 9-Inch Rainbow Cake

Cheap Costco Desserts That Kids Love

Photo by Sharon McCutcheon on Unsplash

What’s better than bright, rainbow colors and sugar?  For a kid, the answer is nothing!  David’s Cookies 9 Inch Rainbow Cake will delight your kids.  Inside, you’ll find five thin layers, with white cream frosting in between each layer.  The layers form the color of a rainbow with red, then orange, then yellow, then green, and finally blue.  Your kids will likely be delighted when you serve this yummy, fun cake.

Final Thoughts

Your kids likely enjoy going to Costco with you because they can get free samples.  They’ll likely beg to go with you every time if you give them one of these five cheap Costco desserts that kids love.

Which Costco dessert do your kids enjoy most?

Read More

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Editors Note: If you don’t want to go to Costco, there are plenty of great dessert recipes available on the web.  For example here is very nice collection of recipes for Puerto Rican desserts – far better than the Churros at the Costco food court.

7 Free Summer Activities We’ve Enjoyed This Year

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Beautiful, empty beach

Now that our kids are teens, they are less satisfied with having a low-spend summer, unfortunately. While we have spent money doing fun things with their friends, we try to even out the spending with activities that cost nothing (or close to nothing). We have a list of free summer activities we’ve enjoyed this year and plan to continue next summer.

7 Free Summer Activities We’ve Enjoyed This Year

We find our free summer activities through Facebook and Google searches. Sometimes friends will also tell us about free events.

Shakespeare in the Park

A local park hosts two different Shakespeare plays. Each play runs for three weeks and is free. Bring your lawn chair or a blanket and enjoy the play. We went to watch Measure for Measure last week, and in a few weeks, we’ll return to watch Romeo and Juliet.

Patrons ranged from young children to retirees. People brought snacks, and one older couple even enjoyed the wine they brought while watching the play.

Kids Bowl Free

Okay, this one isn’t completely free. My kids can bowl for free through the Kids Bowl Free program, but I paid $16 for them to get bowling shoe passes. Our total expenditure was $32, and so far, we’ve bowled six times, with many more bowling days in our future before summer ends.

If we bowl ten times before the end of summer, each trip for two games of bowling for two kids plus shoes for each will cost us $3.20 per visit, which makes this a cheap outing.

Niagara Falls

Since Niagara Falls is in our backyard, we visited the sights. Seeing the Falls was free; we only had to pay $5 for parking.

Park Days

My kids meet with some friends at the park to chat, play, create chalk drawings, etc. We’ve done this at least four times this summer. My kids are happy anytime they can meet their friends to hang out and talk.

Art Gallery

Our local art gallery had a free day when they reopened after significant renovations. We met up with friends and spent a few hours touring the new gallery. I’m not going to lie; we stopped at some paintings, trying to figure out the images! But other paintings were gorgeous, and we saw quite a few by artists like Picasso, Rembrandt, and Kahlo.

Beach Days

We’ve had several beach days with other families with teens. The kids swim, metal detect, and bury themselves in the sand. They enjoy their time at the beach and hanging out with friends. We, parents, love that it’s a free, memorable summer activity.

Home Movie Nights

One family in our group enjoys hosting events. Their favorite activity is having everyone over to watch a movie they project onto their garage. People come a few hours before dusk, talk, hang out, and roast marshmallows. Then, we all watch the movie together at sunset.

Final Thoughts

Entertaining teens is more expensive than entertaining younger children. However, we’ve found many free summer activities to enjoy this summer, which helps offset the price of the expensive activities that the kids want to do.

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How to Get Teens Excited About an International Trip

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Picture of a shoreline with rocky beaches

My husband and I have traveled internationally, but never with our kids. Now, our children are 19, 14, and 13, and the time has come to take a trip to Asia to visit my husband’s family. Our kids are a bit nervous and reticent, so here’s how we’re trying to get teens excited about an international trip. After all, this is an expensive visit for our family, so we want to make it as enjoyable as possible for the kids.

A Little Background

Admittedly, this trip would have been easier to take when our kids were younger. Now that they’re teens, several factors are leading to their worry and discomfort:

They’re Leaving Behind Friends

For teenagers, their friends are their most important priority, and leaving them, even for two weeks, is difficult. Our kids worry that they’ll miss something fun with friends when they’re gone and that they’ll miss their friends.

They Don’t Know the Language

Knowing that they’ll be immersed in a culture where they don’t know how to communicate is difficult. Their grandparents don’t speak English, so my husband must serve as a translator, which is challenging for him.

They’re Worried About Being Immersed in a Complete Foreign Environment

Along with the language barrier, they’re also worried about not understanding the new environment and being overwhelmed because it’s so different from the United States.

How to Get Teens Excited about an International Trip

We recognize why they’re nervous, so we’re trying our best to help ease their discomfort before we go. Here are the strategies we’re trying.

Find Activities They Want to Do

We combed through activities to do and made a list of the ones we thought most people would enjoy and fit our schedule and budget. Then, we sent the list to the kids so they could look through it.

Get Their Opinion

We had a family meeting, and every child got to pick one activity they wanted to do. Then, as a family, we chose the rest of the activities. This required some negotiation, but ultimately, we agreed on the sites we planned to visit. Getting the kids’ input helped them feel more excited and invested in the trip.

Practice the Language

We also have been practicing the language. My husband has been talking to us in Japanese, and we’re working on learning the 300 most commonly used words so we can communicate at an elementary level.

Try the Food

We’ve always eaten some Japanese food, but now we’re eating more types of Japanese food, so we’re familiar with them before we get there.

Final Thoughts

Taking an international vacation is expensive, but it can also be a great way to build memories as a family. We’re doing all we can to help get our teens excited about the trip. Otherwise, if they’re grumpy and miserable, we’ve wasted a lot of money rather than spent an enjoyable two weeks abroad.

Read More

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Vacation Before Your Kids No Longer Want to Hang with You

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