Get thee to a Library...and Check out Great Resources (even free courses online)

 Due to cold weather I found myself curious about whether a library were open..and Lucky me, it was. Then I saw a sign about the free e-courses and e-books I could get if I signed on...So I am passing those tips along and also since I have my laptop but not my cell phone for a day, I wanted to be in touch with someone. That can be accomplished online and if I brave using my Skype phone account (which costs 3 dollars monthly) I can call someone's phone from my computer.

The library is a gift that keeps giving and inspiring, so for your holiday or other gift-giving needs, why not center part of the celebration around visiting a library, helping someone use the resources there, get a library card and more? Every child should be informed about how to use their public library even if they don't take books (or DVDs etc) out if one has trouble keeping track of such items amidst other books and items at one or more homes, daycares, and stops along one's way.

Sometimes there are Free Books being let go or very cheap ones, so consider buying a few and passing them along to those who may enjoy having one they can keep or later give to yet another person. 

As kids we liked to 'Play Library" by writing our own mini books, sometimes with sequels also a few folded pages (then trimmed to make pages) with pen, pencil, crayon for text and maybe a sketch or two. We had Rea Date Stampers so we have a bunch of fun not only playing librarian but helping time speed along, maybe by a few days after an hour, and need to get books renewed if not pay fines!

Teaching financial literacay with play money (bills and coins, but keep them Safe Sized and Supervised around young kids so no little kids (or big ones) put them in their mouths which would be a choking hazard. Same with small stones or other small items that young kids and infants may find and be curious about tasting not just playing with.

Okay so back to letting kids get curious and have fun not just counting money and 'trying to understand that  4 quarters make a dollar, 5 dollars make a 5 dollar bill and 10 ones or 2 fives make a single 10 dollar bill in terms of equal value. Going through grocery flyers to learn about prices and discounts, seeing toys and clothes at various prices and learning to enjoy 'second hand pricing at thrift stores and even online with ebay etc' would likely catch on quickly with kids and many youth and adults who may not have thought along those lines. 

Then there's going to a bank (and maybe more libraries could outfit a toy area with a cash register and oversized coins and fake money, games like Monopoly and other basics to get the money games going. Yahtzee is a great counting game and players could consider the dollar amount and how to count that out with 10s, 5s and 1s, for the 3 of a kind of 1-6, such, then a full house, a small straight, large straight and Yahtzee (5 of one number on each of the 5 dice used in the game.)

Okay, so that's the jist of getting more kids connected with real life skills, being aware of YNAB, You Need A Budget software which is a bit better than mint.com I've heard from some who have used both.Some banks offer online tracking of spending and even bank accounts kids can put money in during their school 'banking morning' with small deposits (or larger ones) adding up over the weeks, months and years. In terns of having a spending plan for current and future income and gifts, one may 'share some, spend some and save some' is one tip I've heard. Paying for necessities (needs) before splurging on wants is also a guideline.

However one things about such topics, checking in with people online such as ctseniorlaw.com which offers a blog and information on Legal Caregiver Agreements (that's about paying someone for caring for another Before the care begins, especially someone over 65.) If one goes from doing care 'for free or without accountability with specific points covered' some programs may deem that 'a gift and a reason to disallow Ever being compensated in the future for such care.'

That may seem unfair and even illegal, but 'that's the system' in America possibly, so Learn before You Help Others. Things should be reviewed with a skilled professional in the area of elder law, Medicaid or Title 19 and other related fields so 'the whole picture makes sense' to all involved, often years before medicaid would be needed, as there is a look back period of 5 years (which may go up or even double some say.) I am not a professional and the information I share should not be considered legal or professional advice. I am hoping to encourage more people to work with others for each part of their life, with a 5-10 year life plan and accounting for where one is in one's learning and life journey.

Planning to have more assistance with personal care and monitoring finances and other systems can help one 'stay abreast of the latest' and not be caught off guard by 'just not knowing.' That seems to be what many systems are counting on to gain advantages that one would otherwise not be subject to if one had time and support to make plans in a more 'above-board, timely fashion.' Learning about matters in one's 40s thinking things through well in one's early 50s then making decisions Before Turning 60 may help you feel more secure with trusty team players..and those would need a lot of consideration...so one is clear about one's plans at age 65 and up.

See the online and other info of being able to transfer a primary home one resides in to a marital legal spouse, or to a sibling who owns part of ones home and has lived with one for a year prior to one needing homecare or nursing care with medicaid assistance. These topics are not necessarily difficult but often tricky to even bring up in a timely fashion and consider that the programs available come with a price tag that then may need to be paid back from one's estate. The longheld notion that one could 'leave something to one's heirs' is not a given and basically is impacted by one's health and life circumstances after age 65, dependent in part on the legal planning one has done or not done.