Growing up I heard my parents fight about money. I can’t remember any specific fights, but I knew money was always a stressor in my family. My mom had a calendar with all of our paper bills in it and she would write the bill that was due on each date. I never knew what my parents financial situation was like really. In high school my parents filed for bankruptcy in 2009, the beginning of my senior year.

I went to a 4 year university right after high school and thanks to my grandparents, I didn’t have to take out any student loans the one year I went. But guess what, I filled out a FAFSA and got approved for a subsidized loan. Only, I didn’t realize it was a student loan until it was too late. Thank the good Lord above it was only $5,000!

It is so very important to set your children up for success early in life! As parents, I understand that you want to shield your children from any problems you may have, but if treated properly, they can be a powerful tool to help your children to learn from your mistakes. As an adult I have realized that I didn’t truly know how to handle money. When I got my first job in high school, my dad took me to open a bank account. He told me to just save as much as I could. As a high school student, it was pretty easy since I didn’t have any expenses. I was never taught how to budget, how to make sure I had enough money to pay all my monthly bills, to live below my means. I was never taught to save up for large purchases. I didn’t know that you should have 3-6 months worth of expenses in savings. I didn’t know it would save me money to pay my insurance premiums semi annually.

I look back and wish my parents had opened up to me more about what it actually meant to be an adult. I was lucky enough to not get myself into too much trouble. I am still paying off things I bought over 5 years ago, but I know there are people in much worse situations. My mindset about money has changed a lot during my adult life. I went from only thinking about the weekend ahead of me to worrying about how I was going to buy groceries. Now I think about our future, I think about my kids college and my retirement.

I am determined to not let my kids see me in the same situation my parents were in. I will teach them what it truly means to manage money responsibly. I will help pay for their college, should they choose to go that route. My children will know how to budget, how to spend responsibly and that debt is not a tool. As a parent it is up to us to prepare our children for the real world, prepare them for being adults. The best way to do that is to show them. I don’t know where I heard it, but “there is more caught than taught” is a saying that I try to remember everyday with my kids. They watch everything you do, that’s why it is so important to be on the right track yourself when teaching your children about anything including money and finances.