Rolling With New Wheels!

Molly took another step today towards adulthood...she's in debt!! We found a car for her that has payments, and when soccer and graduation are over, she'll assume those payments when she starts working. It's nothing extravagant, but compared to the car she was driving that was at least at old as she was (both from the year 1991; but Molly arrived in December and so is probably the younger of the two!), it's a dream....

It was an incredible life lesson for her to see how the whole process works, and why buying a new car is so much more than just the price on the sticker. I'm hopeful it encourages her to watch her spending in the future and motivates her to want to take really good care of it. Had she memorized her Social Security Number as she's been told she should, her name could have gone on the title as well, and that would have been a good start on building credit in her own name.

She has had control of a debit card to an account I have online access to and can monitor for a couple of years now. Earlier, when learning how to manage the card responsibly, she managed to exceed her funds, and was charged an overdraft or two...for the same day, which added up and got her attention. I've tried to give her exposure to different experiences so she has a better idea of how to be a fiscally responsible adult. She told us last night she would prefer to take a year at the community college for some more core classes she's required to have, and part of the incentive for that decision is cost. I like what I hear her reasoning out in coming to her decisions, and feel confident she's going to be an accountable adult where her money is concerned.

I certainly hope she will be, anyway!! I'd like to think my days of financial responsibility for her are numbered. Conservatively spending money from her college fund is a great way to validate I'm on my way to that!!