Letter from Editor in Chief Maria Lin: LearnVest Launches LV Moms!

Image Credit: Jimena Roquero

Kids change everything.

In fact, having kids epitomizes the phrase: You don’t know what you don’t know.

Before my son Jacob came along, I had a pretty good life and thought I had experienced a lot for someone my age. But after he was born, I realized that the learning had just begun. Before him, I didn’t know how ridiculously, achingly sweet the smallest moments in life could be. I didn’t know that I could feel so exhausted, sometimes to the bone. I didn’t know how tough it would be to let go of certain aspects of my old life—or how fulfilling it would be to see what would cleverly transform itself into my new life. I didn’t fully know the yoke of responsibility, financial and otherwise.

Most of all, I didn’t know how much he would change my life. In many ways I’m the same person, but I look at my old pre-Jacob life like a period when I lived in a foreign country (one with better shoes and fewer worries).

Money funds our lives, and few things rock our financial world like having a child. Kids are expensive (a middle-income family can expect to spend $226,920 to raise a child from birth to age 17). As if it weren’t hard enough to figure out how to raise our kids in a healthy, loving way that doesn’t drive them to therapy later, we also have to do it without going broke.

That’s why I’m so proud today to announce the launch of LV Moms, a daily newsletter to help moms and moms-to-be take charge of their family finances with love, with wisdom and with style. To that end, we make the following promises:

What LV Moms Will Bring You …

1. We will tell you everything you need to do to protect your family and children’s future—we’ll take the boring stuff like life insurance, guardianships and taxes, and break them down in plain English.

2. We’ll share the best budget-friendly tips for running a household, from saving on food to inexpensive Halloween costume ideas to traveling on a dime with kids. (But we promise these tips will never enter into the frump zone!)

3. We’ll showcase thought-provoking and controversial news and viewpoints about motherhood and money, from selling your breastmilk to the age-old conundrum of working versus staying at home.

4. We’ll delve into issues related to teaching your kids about money, such as how to set up allowances and credit cards, even examining the unspoken messages we send.

5.  We’ll provide clever time-saving and organizational tips so that you can maximize your other most valuable asset: time.

We’ll also cover unique financial challenges, like single parenting, special needs parenting, adoption and step-parenting.

Sound good?  If you have other ideas, let us know here.

We’re also excited to announce the launch of two new products:

Baby on Board Bootcamp

This 10-day email bootcamp will walk you through everything you need to prepare financially for having a baby, from what gear you do and don’t need to setting up a 529. We’ve created lots of incredible interactive calculators to play around with, including one that adds up the value of your tasks as a mom and figures out what your “mom salary” would be (yes, we think it was long overdue!). Sign up for the Baby on Board bootcamp here.

Stay On Top of Your Finances as a Mom

Sign up for LearnVest’s new daily newsletter, just for moms!
SIGN UP HERE 

LV Discussions

Our readers have been asking, and we’ve answered: Head to LearnVest’s new forums to start discussions with other readers, share experiences and tips, vent or celebrate! We also have a special forum for LV Moms. To celebrate the kick off of LV Discussions, we’re giving away a $25 American Express card every weekday (for the first two weeks) for the most interesting or insightful forum comment! Start your conversation here.

I am reminded of a quote by Angela Schwindt: “While we try to teach our children all about life, our children teach us what life is all about.”

That couldn’t be more true for money, as well. Our kids give a richer purpose to our hard-earned dollars. I’m honored for LV Moms to be a part of your journey in figuring out how your money can provide your family with everything it needs.

Toward a richer life,

Maria

If you have any suggestions or feedback on LV Moms, please always feel free to email me.