Being a mother in 2008 is very difficult. Things are just not as simple as they once were. Used to be that kids just wanted things that made them happy, but now it's all about everyone. My kids come to me now wanting me to buy things that they were never interested in before just because their friend has whatever.
Getting the money thing across to them is just a waste of time. I remember when my son first started kindergarten I sent him money for breakfast and lunch everyday. So imagine my surprise when I recieved a letter from the school saying he had a $30 balance on his food account. When I asked him about it, he said " Mommy I figured it out!" When I asked him what, he said "If you say charge it, you don't have to pay for it!" Try explaining charging to a kindergartener. Not easy.
And lets not forget the time my daughter wanted some fancy new toy and I said we did not have the money, she looked up at me and said "write a check you have lots of those." Yeah okay. But is that really so uncommon? How many of us are really taking the time to explain to our children about these types of things? I did because of what their perceptions were. Children are very perceptive, and they take things in more than we know. If you are a mother take the time to talk to your kids.
You just might be surprised what their idea of things are. Don't be scared of them knowing the truth. If you creat a fairy tale on what the world is like, in my opinion, you are setting them up for disappointment. Be truthfull, they will thank you in the end.
