My Children (and Grand Children) Can be Millionaires

As I reach an age where our children have moved out on their own I have begun to think of retirement and doing things that were not possible with children at home. One area of thought that has consumed much of m time over the past several months has been money. Not the lack of sufficient income because we live comfortably, but the lack of my understanding of the rules of becoming rich.

I have to admit that, even as a child, my lifestyle was to spend more than I earned. During high school, my brother Stan and I both worked for the same fast food business. I probably made more money per hour than he did but each payday, I noticed that I was always out of money a few days before the next paycheck while Stan still had his previous paycheck pinned to his bulletin board.

To overcome this "disability" of mine I got a college degree in a field that was well paid and worked hard. But the propensity to spend what I earned never seemed to be topped by earning more. Finally, in order to keep me from being mad about finances all of the time, my wife took over the books and bill paying. That solved one of the problems (my anger whenever I had bills to pay) but it did not resolve the other problem, the lack of financial wisdom and discipline.

A few months ago, while searching for some gardening information on the internet, I came across a blog about a family who was tracking their costs of running a garden to see if they could save money by growing some of their own food. It was a blog called Get Rich Slowly and I found a lot more than just savvy gardening information. J.D. posts a couple of times each day about his financial life from having been broke and $35,000 in debt three years ago to having paid off all of his debt except his house. He talks about saving and investing what he used to spend. He talks about what he is saving for now (he recently paid cash for a used Mini Cooper, his dream car) and the habits and tendencies that he has had to deal with, and still deals with, so as not to return to the debt-ridden person that he used to be.

J.D. also has from time to time provided information regarding finance books that he believes are worth reading as well as reviews of these books he has read. One such list had "The Millionaire Next Door" on it and I found it at the local library. Amazingly, none of the other books on his list were there so I may need to check my favorite used book store next.

The point of all of this gibberish is that I have started reading "The Millionaire Next Door" and I am finding it fascinating. The old adage that the way to wealth is to save more than you spend is true but it is not the whole story. The questions that I have also had regarding wealth are, "How do you save more than you earn?" and "What do you do with the money you save?" This book addresses the first question. It is a study of those people in America who have assets valued at over one million dollars compared to those with similar incomes who do are not millionaires.

Get Rich Slowly has motivated me to get started looking more closely at where my money goes and what to do with what I save. It has reminded me to grow that emergency fund. It inspires me to buy quality for less and to do well with less stuff. And mostly, it inspires me to help my children to learn these lessons while they are young so that they will all be millionaires, not just look like ones.

Bird Condo Established

I have finished another gourd project, the first of potentially several bird condos. This one was a typical project meaning that it was mostly experiment. I like trying out new things and learning how far I can take some skill be it a technique, a color or whatever. You see, nothing really does what you expect, although it is much closer to the expected the more you are patient and the more you learn from previous experiments that went . . . different.

As an example, there are a myriad of options for coloring your gourds including leaving them their natural color, varnishes (including polyurethanes), paints, stains and dyes. I have been working with leather dyes. So I chose a color that I thought would look just the way I wanted it to. But then the tone becomes lighter as it soaks into the wood or it gets darker as it drys. It bleeds into areas where you didn't really want it to go and it changes once again when you put a coat of poly on it. So the result is always a bit of a surprise. The idea is to get enough experience and be patient enough to achieve a result that is pleasing if not exactly what you had in mind when you began. And, occasionally, you get a piece that exceeds your expectations.

My Birthday Tradition

Over the past few years I have watched as my children have struggled a bit financially. They were doing well enough to cover the bills but often had to sacrifice in order to make those ends meet. But then came the holidays or birthdays and they had concerns of how to get something for family members and still not kill their finances.

Then, about a year ago I got this brilliant idea - at least I thought it was brilliant (it nearly blinded me.) I thought, what if we could celebrate my birthday in a way that wouldn't cost them any money. And what if that method still allowed them to give something? Finally, my brain being close to exhaustion, I concluded that I could host a work breakfast.

A work breakfast is where everyone shows up early in the morning before the heat of the day sets in and we work on a yard project of my choosing for a couple of hours and then we have a great breakfast. The spouses and the grand kids also come but they just enjoy the breakfast.

When the task and the breakfast are done then people can leave or just hang out - whatever they want to do is fine.

Last year was the first annual Dad's Work Birthday. Last year I ordered a few tons of gravel for the front and back yards and the kids helped me haul it and spread it as well as clearing an area in the side yard for a place to construct a jungle gym for the grand kids. Then we had a marshmallow fight with marshmallow guns that we built. There were marshmallows all over the yard and trees and everywhere. The breakfast was barely less exciting. It went so well that we opted to to try the experiment again this year.

This year was also a grand success and so I think that it has become a tradition. There was one hitch, however. My daughter Jennie somehow determined that her husband, Kyle, should be the personally involved party in the work project rather than she, herself. Hmmmm...

The project this year involved the removal of the terracing blocks which surrounded the lawn and trenching around the lawn so that a liner could be put in to contain the lawn. The blocks were moved to the west side of the yard so that they can be used in another project. Here are the pictures.


This is the before picture of the southeast corner of the yard featuring a garden hidden by much stone.











This is the southeast side of the yard before the inquisition began. Notice the stones bordering the lawn and the area beyond just begging for a project to be done there.










Check out this motley crew ready to do the work of two or even three good men. From left to right:
Ben (oldest son), Kyle (Jennie's husband), Quentin (youngest son), me and Paul (second son). Drew (third son) is absent because he lives in Montana. I guess that just living where the weather hovers below zero for weeks at a time is excuse enough for not being there. He has mostly likely not thawed out yet.





The work of prying up the stones and hauling them to the west begins.












Everyone does their part and the work progresses fast and smooth.












"Use your entrenching tool," he says.


















The blocks accumulate, somehow, right where we want them.












Digging those trenches isn't as much fun as it seemed at first but Ben and Kyle make the best of it.











Look! our own version of Stone Henge!


















The girls enjoy the morning weather without getting all sticky and dirty - Jessica with Hero in her lap and Jennie.












Enjoying the shade now that the work is all done.
























































And now time for the family photos.