The Money TRAP

As parents we want to do the best for our children, we buy them the best clothes, the newest toys and spend a lot of money on these things and of course, our kids usually ask for the new Barbie they saw in the toy store or the plasma car that all their friends have in the club. But what happens is when they have too many toys there is no more space in their room, they have so many clothes that could be enough for 5 kids not one, what happens when it becomes too much?

Now, this article is not about education, health or any sort of important aspects that affect your child's future, it's about the other nonessentials, things we buy but aren't really that important.

What happens after that is they usually play with these things for some time and either break them or lose interest and want something else... this also happens with the expensive designer t- shirt that he got Ketchup spilled on.

So how can parents balance between giving their children all these things and not overdoing it? The question we have to ask ourselves is ‘why am I buying all these things? Do they really need it or am I buying it to show them that I love them? or am I buying it so they have what all the children have?’

I find that many mothers buy things out of love for their children, it's a way to express the love we have for them and the same goes for the parents who don't want their children to feel less than their friends.

An important parenting rule for parents to remember and live by is, ' the most precious gift you can give your child is time'. If you think about your childhood and the happy memories from that time you will probably remember playing with your parents somewhere or taking a trip with them. Laughing with your brothers and sisters, going to visit grandparents. You probably will not remember all the toys and clothes but the memories and time they spent with you doing fun things.

Children need for us to invest our time just as much as our money. Create happy memories with your children, get down on the floor and play with them, take them to new places and have fun together and start family traditions that your family will always value and remember.

Money is a tool that we can use to provide for our children, to help them and secure their future. The important areas we should focus on are education, health and development. Education can be sending the kids to the best school we can afford so they get a good education, health is also very important, investing in a good diet for the kids, making sure they take their vitamins, regular exercise. The development is what will set them apart from the rest of the kids, buying them books from an early age, taking them to see educational films, learning a new language are all areas parents can spend more money in that are far more beneficial for your kids.