this wasn't in the plan |but life is still pretty good

Part I of how many you ask? Probably a lot. My oldest is just three and frankly, I have no plan whatsoever for teaching my children about money. My youngest brother turned 16 almost a year ago and just recently got his first job...and his first checking account...and his first debit card. Suddenly he thinks he has all the money in the world, which is odd because he was always so great with his money when he was younger. What this little anecdote shows me is that you teach your children about money, but you can really only teach them so much. There is much that must be learned on their own, by experience.

A few months ago, we went with some friends to a local children's museum. Bug loved it and has been begging to go back ever since. I try to explain to him that we can't go very often because it costs a lot of money ($10 for all of us - not a whole lot, but if we went each time he has wanted to, it would be). But he's three and every other word out of his mouth is "why" and well, he just doesn't get it. So I'm trying to figure out how I can help him understand that money doesn't grow on trees (or inside plastic debit cards). It's such a simple concept, yet at the same time not simple at all.

Part II