April 28, 2015
Five Easy Tips to Encourage Your Child to Contribute to Their RESP
Saving for your child’s post secondary education can be daunting – not only for yourself but for your child as well. They are at an age where they may not yet understand personal finances and the financial obligation that goes along with attending post-secondary institutions. Personally, I did not understand the OSAP loans I signed off on at that time, and I wish I had paid more attention – or at the very least had a second check – to make sure I wasn’t making a mistake.
Saving is an essential part of life, and the earlier our children learn how to do it, the better it will be for them in the long run. Helping your child understand the importance of saving for their own education will not only give them pride in their accomplishment, but foster sound financial skills later in life. It will also encourage them to take control of their education, as they have more at stake when contributing their own finances.
An RESP is a helpful tool used by parents (or grandparents) to help finance higher education for their child. Opening an account is pretty straightforward, and involves contacting an RESP company (such as Heritage Education Funds) to set up an account. Once the account is open, growing the account is all up to you and your child!
Encouraging your child to contribute their own earned money towards their education is important, but may seem like a daunting task at the time, as your child has other priorities. Here are some helpful tips I have learned along the way to encourage your child to save towards their education in an RESP:
1. Take the first step in encouraging financial independence by setting up a bank account for your child. Both of my children have their own bank accounts, bank books and debit cards (the cards are mainly used for deposits and not purchases at this time) and this was a major stepping stone for them. I want them to understand finances, how money works and how quickly it can depart! Children need to appreciate the value of a dollar, as this will better help them appreciate the cost of their education.
2. Encourage your child to be part of the monthly family budget. An important part of attending a higher education institute is dealing with the extras: utilities, rent and groceries. This is one of the areas I lacked knowledge of when I went off to university. Since a portion of my RESP’s went to financing my room and utilities, I needed to understand how they worked and how to budget for these costs, but I had no clue. So of course I overspent in these areas and my budget never balanced.
3. Start up an allowance system for your child. Having a bi-weekly allowance for your child is important, regardless of their age. This allows your child to allocate their money for wants, needs and savings. Our boys put their savings into their RESPs at the end of the month. It’s important to let them view their statements, so they can see their education fund increase month to month. If there’s an online option, allow your child to view it monthly, so they learn to appreciate growth over time.
4. Once your child reaches the working stage, encourage them to contribute money to their RESP. This will probably be the hardest thing to do, but it is so important for them to save rather than splurge all that hard-earned money on clothes, movies or food. This is where all previous education on budgets, utilities and being involved in the family budget will pay off. Your child will have a greater appreciation for their pay cheque and will spend it wisely.
5. Have your child create their own post-secondary education budget. Sit down with them and help them figure out tuition, supplementary fees, textbook fees, rent and utilities (if they are moving away for school). Use this as a tool to figure out how much money should be contributed monthly into their RESP. This is an area I wish I had concentrated on more before I made my educational choices. I was never involved in the family budget prior to living on my own, so I had unrealistic expectations of the costs, which forced me to rely on loans.
Teaching our children how to save for their post-secondary education is an essential lesson that will help them later on in life as they leave our homes to start their own home.
To help you on this journey, you can now enter to WIN a $50 gift card from Tim Hortons sponsored by Heritage Education Funds. Contest is open to Canadian residents only and ends on May 17th, 2015.
How do you help encourage your child or teen to save towards their RESP and post-secondary education? Are they currently contributing to their own plan?
Make sure to follow Heritage Education Funds on Facebook and Twitter to keep up-to-date with news and advice for planning for your child’s educational future.
Disclosure: I am a Heritage Mom and receive perks associated with this affiliation. All opinions expressed are my own.
April 28, 2015
Blogger Brunch with Boiron Canada #WW with linky
Last week I was able to attend the Blogger Brunch hosted by Boiron Canada. The event included a wonderful yoga class by Gillian B, holistic health coach and yoga teacher, followed by an information session on Arnicare from Boiron Canada as well as lunch. I had an incredible time and could not wait to show you some of the photos from the event.
The event was held at Jule’s Wellness Centre in Toronto.
We were introduced to the lovely social media experts behind Boiron Canada.
We then went into a yoga class, led by Gillian B. This was my first yoga class and it was fantastic! She was so inspiring and a wealth of information and knowledge. If you are curious on finding out more about her please check out her website – you will not be disappointed!
We were treated to drinks from Village Juicery:
Then some more information about Arnicare Gel from Boiron Canada.
Don’t forget to link up below so that I can come visit you and see what you have been to up this past week! Happy Wordless Wednesday!
April 28, 2015
Refresh Your Decor with Posterjack This Spring
Winter felt like it would never end this year but spring is finally here! Many of you may have even started your spring cleaning already (I have a giant checklist of things to get done but not quite sure where to start). One of the more forgotten areas of your home is your home decor and the prints on your wall (you know all those infant prints you have up in frames and your child is now nine with no updated photos in sight!). The best way to refresh your home for the spring months is to update these few easy items on your walls.
Here are some helpful tips from Posterjack to help you accomplish this task:
Embrace Spring Photography
Spring time is an incredible time to get outside and take photographs. The flowers are budding, the weather is cool and not too warm and the lighting is perfect for your pictures. If you have kids take them outside to join you in the hunt for budding flowers, bugs and special nature shots. Use this time to explore and build your child’s knowledge of the outdoors.
Encourage Your Children to Participate in Photo Shoots
Is the weather wet and rainy outside? No worries! Set up an area inside and create your own family photo shoot. Have your children choose their props and set up the area in which you will be taking your pictures. Maybe take to Pinterest or the internet to figure out how you would like to set up the photos and go from there. In the photo shoot below our boys wanted to include their Dad’s ucalaly so we went for it and captured this perfect picture of their hands that melts my heart everytime I look at it.
Add a Pop of Colour to Your Decor
Colour has a way of changing the mood in a room. So liven it up and give your photographs a hint of colour this spring. Posterjack offers image customization features that allows you to add borders or photo effects.
Spring Clean Your Hard Drive
This is the one area that I have been slacking in. I have over four thousand photos to scroll through, save and transfer! It is also an important task to make sure you don’t lose anything important (who wants to lose those first baby photos??).
Join the 12 Prints Project
Have you been following the #12PrintsProject online? If not head over to Twitter and check it out to win prizes. Remember to keep on top of printing off your photos to make it less overwhelming on yourself at the end of the year.
Celebrate Mom!
Photographs and photo books are my personal favourite gift to receive and with Mother’s Day fast approaching, I can’t wait to see what my boys create for me! Capturing a special moment in time and gifting it to the person you love is the ultimate personal gift you can give the special person in your life.
How do you update your wall art and photographs in the Spring?
Make sure to follow Posterjack on Facebook and Twitter to keep up to date with current offers and tips and tricks!
April 28, 2015
Kidnap: Part One of Guy Erma and The Son of Empire
Two boys whose lives are as different as any two boys could be. One act of cruelty will bring them together in Kidnap: Part one of Guy Erma and The Son of Empire.
About Kidnap: Part One of Guy Erma and the Son of Empire
“I don’t want to go….do I have to go?”
Thirteen year old Prince Teodor of Freyne knows his duty to the memory of his Father and his Kingdom. He must always help those less fortunate than himself. Yet a frightening nightmare fills him with foreboding but still he must go – into the Dome.
Thirteen year old Guy Erma lives in the shadow of the Dome. He has no Father and no Mother and his future is uncertain. He must start to earn a living when he reaches the age of fourteen. He knows not where he will live or even how he will eat to survive. His only dream is to enter the military academy at the heart of the Dome.
These two boys will have their lives intersected with one cruel act but who will they trust?
My Thoughts
I LOVED Kidnap! I am a huge sci-fi thriller fan and this young adult version delivered suspense, adventure and science fiction with exciting plot twists. This is the first book in this series and I could not put it down – I finished it in one sitting!
The world that Sally creates is realistic and easy to understand and follow along throughout the novel. The terminology was easy to follow and made sense within the context of the novel. While a sci-fi novel, I did not find it overwhelming in words and you can easily relate to the characters in the book.
The differences between the majority of the people of Freyne and the rich is wide and full of quiet unrest. You feel compassion and concern for the majority of the people living in Freyne and are left wondering what will happen to their welfare. Not to mention their Prince and city!
Sally draws you into this world and leaves you craving for more. I was so sad when this novel was done and can not wait until the next novel in this series. While a young adult novel, I fell in love with it and I am well past my young adult years thus making this a novel for all individuals who love sci-fi.
You can find this book on Amazon.
Rating: 5/5
About the Author
Sally was born in Wallasey, England in 1964 and moved to the South of France when she was eleven. She spent her teenage years in Monaco learning the languages and cultures. As an English girl in a French school, she would spend her English classes at the back of the class writing stories thus inspiring her love of writing. Sally now writes marketing communications and manages large international websites. Sally currently lives in Farham with her husband and two children. You can connect with Sally on her website, Facebook or Twitter.
Disclosure: I received a digital copy of this book in order to facilitate this review. All opinions expressed are my own.
April 27, 2015
Paddington Now on DVD/BluRay + Giveaway!
The much-loved Paddington is back in this hilarious new movie, all about this loveable bear and his search for a family in modern-day England.
Paddington, the bear from the much-loved series by Michael Bond, is coming to DVD/Blu Ray on April 28th.
Not familiar with the story of Paddington? Paddington is a Peruvian bear who travels to London in search of a new home after his home is destroyed. He is sent to London bearing a tag that states: “Please look after this bear. Thank you.” His label was styled after the labels that were attached to children that were sent out of London during the war by their parents to families outside of the city to care for their children. Paddington is noticed by a kind and loving Mother who is with her two children and husband. They decide to take him in for the night. What harm could this possibly cause? Only if they knew! On top of this, a taxidermist catches wind of his arrival and wants to capture this rare bear to add to her collection. Paddington shows his ‘adopted’ family about love, kindness and the true meaning of family.
Full of adventure, mishaps and hilarious encounters, it is easy to fall in love with Paddington. He is sweet, kind and loveable. Paddington is a movie that you and your family can cherish for years to come.
Here is a trailer of our sweet friend:
Our friends at Entertainment One are now giving one of my readers the chance to win their own copy of Paddington! My Canadian residents, eighteen years of age and older can enter via the Rafflecopter form below – good luck!
Disclosure: I received a copy of this movie. All opinions expressed are my own.
