With summer finally here now, and our homeschooling program for our three boys in maintenance mode, you would think we’d have plenty of time to write blog posts. But you’d be wrong….

You see, we grow all our own fruits and vegetables, and June is crunch time for some of our biggest harvests. For instance, we’ve picked 130 quarts of strawberries and have frozen 72 quarts so far, and picked 53 lbs. of peas, which we’ve shelled and frozen. We also have a bumper crop of lettuce and spinach which we’re frantically trying to use up before it gets spoiled by the hot weather.

Of course, that’s on top of lawn mowings, weeding, watering, grocery shopping, cleaning, our online business, helping Brian’s (86 year old) Dad, and well, you get the picture.  Makes us tired even writing about it.

But relief is on the horizon… The peas and strawberries should be done by July 4 or so, and we’ve begun getting regular rains again (not to mention a few storms).  Doesn’t mean we can kick back and retire to the easy chair, or computer chair, but it brings the promise of a more relaxed schedule ahead.

We’re only able to squeeze in about an hour of schooling per boy per day lately, but that’s OK for now. We plan on doing our summer fun activities in mid July through August. So far, the boys have managed to hit the local pool once and the skating rink once so far, but that will be happening more often soon.

We’re planning to go to the local Zoo and the miniature golf course that has bumper cars, and we have a remote-control boat we’ve been itching to take out to a nearby man-made lake. Might even rig up a fishing pole to the stern (back end of the boat for you land lubbers) and see if we can hook a fish, imitating something we saw on America’s Funniest Home Videos.  

Which brings up a thought… Isn’t it sad how few programs there are left on network TV that are suitable for family viewing? Now your definition of what is suitable may not be the same as ours, but I think you catch my drift. Our advice, predictably, is to turn the silly thing off and enjoy the summer weather instead.

Of course, we hope to have more time for blog posts as well, but we ain’t makin’ any promises we can’t keep, LOL. But we’ll try our best to bring you some timely information you can use to get off on the right foot for the start of the next traditional school year here in the northern hemisphere.

No plans for a formal vacation trip this year, other than a two-nighter visit with Lisa’s parents on the other side of the state. We’ll just go the day-trippin’ route this year for our summer fun in all likelihood, in view of the gas prices and busyness of our schedule.

Speaking of gas prices (and who isn’t), what do you think is causing the sudden rises in price? Is it Big Oil, the Saudis, OPEC, speculators, political manipulation, or just the realities of the supply/demand equation? Probably a little of all the above, from what we’ve been reading from the financial experts. No easy solutions, we’re afraid…

An that brings up our final random thought. Homeschoolers should make sure that their kids get a good education in practical financial matters, something that is sorely lacking in the public schools.

Yeah, the law of supply and demand is pretty basic, but we’re talking here about how to manage a checking account, the principles of saving and investment, how to decide if you can afford to buy a house and if so, how expensive, and so on. And it certainly doesn’t hurt to understand how the global financial system operates, especially when it comes time to invest your money in a particular financial instrument like stocks, bonds, options, real estate, or whatever.

We’re appalled at the financial illiteracy that seems to exist among the population in general, most of whom have been educated (and we use the term ‘educated’ loosely) in the public school system. People who should have known that they couldn’t really afford the house they were about to sign their name(s) to. People who spent way beyond their means and declared bankruptcy. Not to point fingers, but just some examples.

So the take-home message for today would be to place a strong emphasis on personal financial education for your child, because it affects so many areas of your adult life. You may need to learn it right alongside your child if it’s a weak area in your background, so you can benefit as well. It’s a subject that often gets overlooked, but one that could have a great effect on your child’s future financial success.