When I was young, I actually get what I want. Not that I am a spoiled brat but being away from my parents and living with my grandparents made my them think that their absence can be substituted by a fairly good allowance (though it was not given directly to me but to my grandma). I never had the chance to learn how to save for I know very well that whenever I need money, I can get it. And I grew up thinking that I can always have money whenever I want. That became my worst attitude.

As a mom, I have to set financial priorities at home and I have make sure that we don't just live from paycheck to paycheck. However, even after reading tons of books, magazines and online reading materials pertaining to budgeting, saving and money matters at home, I still find it difficult to budget everything. I tried a couple of tips and advices, sometimes it works and sometimes not. I don't know if I am just not good about it or probably, something is wrong with me. Until I have finally decided, I have to fight myself and learn from my mistakes so that it won't happen again. My husband and I both did that and slowly we are learning. Less expenses over the last couple of months have greatly contributed to my goal. I still have a long way to go but you know, there is something I realized. That is, parents should also teach their children the value of money and how to save money for the future. And another decision was made, the twins should learn about money matters!

My kids, just so you know, stays with my parents while we are at work and my mom, being a natural spender would always buy anything for the kids (especially when they cry so they will stop). Being the first grandchildren and being born prematurely have aggravated the situation. When I came to notice, my children were normally allowed to get money from the cash bin in our bakery (the one owned by my mom) and would always buy stuffs on another store. They will also ask for money to buy toys which they will only play for a few minutes and then -- gone, destroyed. These amounts - though small will surely influence my children and they will have the impression that money can grow on trees. And I don't want that to happen. I immediately talked to my mom and she accepted that it was a mistake for she knows my struggle very well.

The following day, I bought my kids a piggy bank which they named "Piglet". They were so excited and thought it was a toy. I explained that it was where they will keep their money. We also stressed that money is not just for buying stuffs but for saving as well. My husband and I agreed that we will give them 5-peso and 10-peso coins every day for them to put inside Piglet. After a month, the kids changed their perception on 5-peso and 10-peso coins. They now call it "money for Piglet" and there were only a few occurrences of them wanting to buy plastic balloons, toy guns, live chicks, live fish and a lot more. They have understand the first lesson - "Buy the toy for 5-pesos, lose the money and nothing for Piglet OR play with all the toys they got and give the coin to Piglet". They actually loved putting in coins into Piglet!

Effective? I'd say, yes!

Teaching children how to save money will surely help them to have financial literacy in the future. In fact, according to financial experts, it is never too early to teach them how to save money but if you don't act early, it could be too late.

My experience is one thing I don't want my children to have. So as soon as I realized, I did not procrastinate, instead, I immediately took note and acted on the situation before it gets worst.