Hasta La Gadget!

Many headlines about saving for college are stressful — tuition rising at rates double inflation, the nation’s growing $1.2 trillion student debt (yes, that’s trillion with a “t”!), fewer grants and scholarships, etc. Unsurprisingly, 28 percent of parents report losing sleep over college costs.*

But the best way for parents to put aside their college worries, get some needed zzz’s and bypass the stress about paying for college is to save for it in advance. Our research shows that every dollar saved ahead of time can equate to almost $2 that won’t have to be paid in debt later.**

September is National College Savings Month. And rather than dread college costs and how to cover them, I invite you to celebrate college savings this month and throughout the year.

So what’s the best way to celebrate college savings this month and put to bed the stress about college costs? How can you turn pie-in-the-sky savings aspirations into attainable goals? Here are some tips for the year:

First Semester

• Create a plan and get started. Opening a 529 account can be the first step toward maximizing college savings, because 529s provide federal tax benefits and flexibility for college savings that aren’t available with most other types of accounts. And they often offer state tax benefits as well. Maybe your goal is to cover all college costs. Maybe it’s a specific dollar amount you want to reach. I recommend that families save enough for a “down payment” on college (i.e., enough to cover half the total cost). No matter what, it’s important to identify a goal that’s feasible for your family and map out what you need to do to accomplish it. To save for all four years at a public college, you might need to save a little over $400 per month for a newborn.*** That number may sound big, but it doesn’t take into consideration any large, one-time contributions, say from a tax refund, year-end bonus, or grandparents. The “down payment” model would require less upfront — about $250 a month.
• Plan a “fundraiser” as a family. Many schools have fundraisers at the beginning of the year. Work together as a family to get the kids involved in fundraising for college. Maybe they will put aside a portion of their allowance or babysitting pay.

Winter Break

• Get friends and family involved. Instead of a gift card, ask friends and family to celebrate the holidays by helping with future college expenses. The value of their 529 contributions will likely far outlast anything they purchased on Black Friday.

Second Semester

• Tutor others. If you’ve opened a 529 account and are working toward your goal, chances are that you’re ahead of the class — so help others. Strike up a conversation about college savings with your friends and neighbors. Encourage them to hit the books on saving for college and perhaps check out the title Everybody Freaks Out! But It’s Going to Be Okay.

Summer Vacation

• Reflect on your success so far and how you’re progressing toward your goal. Doing so can help increase your child’s confidence in attending college. Seventy-four percent of kids who have frequent discussions with their parents about saving for and attending college are confident that they will attend versus only 46 percent among kids who do not have these discussions.*

Check back in each College Savings Month to make sure you’re still on track to meet your goals. For more help on how to get started, visit CollegeSavingsChillout.com.

Please note that a 529 plan’s disclosure document includes investment objectives, risks, fees, expenses and other information that you should read and consider carefully before investing. You should compare these plans with any 529 college savings plan offered by your home state or your beneficiary’s home state. Before investing, consider any state tax or other benefits that are only available for investments in the home state’s plan.

*T. Rowe Price’s Sixth Annual Parents, Kids & Money Survey.

**T. Rowe Price analyzed how much would have to be saved over 18 years to cover $40,000 in college costs and how much more it would cost to borrow that amount. Assuming the borrower took the loan at the beginning of the first year of college, he or she would pay about $61,000 in current dollars over the next 14 years (four years of school plus ten years to repay the loan), assuming an average annual 8 percent interest rate. The saver would only have had to contribute about $32,000 in current dollars over 18 years, assuming a 6 percent average annual return minus 0.85 percent in annual 529 account fees.

***This assumes an investment return of 6 percent annually. The future cost of college was calculated based on the 2012 total cost for the average 4-year public university education ($19,093) for a family in the third income quartile (annual household income of $65,000-$106,000 in 2012) after the average amount of grants and scholarships for this group was subtracted. The cost was then inflated at 5.5 percent for 18 years. Source for average 4-year college cost: U.S. Department of Education, National Center for Education Statistics, 2011-12 National Postsecondary Student Aid Study.

I am not a ‘hugger’. I don’t think I ever have been a hugger but I notice I get even more distant the older I get. I’m not saying I don’t like to be touched; I’m not a house plant sitting off in a corner at parties. I’m just saying, that for me, when I walk into a room, saying “Hello” should be sufficient. Unfortunately that also means that I’m not the most affectionate parent. I know I should be – I see my nieces and my nephews, who are very affectionate with their parents, and I envy that connection. I love to be more like that, but I’m not.

When my kids were young my kiss good-bye to them was usually a quick peck on the top of their heads. Over time their Pavlovian response to my leaving was to just lower their heads to me, like waiting to be knighted by the Queen, receive their kiss and then off they went.

My fear is that I have passed this emotional brick wall to my children, but fortunately I find that there are two factors that may avoid this unwanted inheritance. The first is the aforementioned nieces and nephews.

During my separation and after my divorce I found I spent more and more time with my family which meant my kids spent more time with their cousins; more than they ever had during my marriage. Whenever we visited my brother or my sister everyone (cousins, nieces, nephews, aunts, uncles) would get up and give their greetings; a big hug, a handshake, or a kiss on the cheek. My daughter, Amanda, maybe for the sheer fact that she is a girl jumped right into the fray with the hugs and kisses and squeals of delight. For my boys, Alexander and Danny, that wasn’t the case. Two of my nieces, Mia and Lianna, noticed something wrong about how my sons entered the room and decided they would have none of it.

“What the hell is this?”

Their disdain was for the way the boys just stood there, stiff as boards, almost repelled by the incoming intrusion of affection.

“No, no, no,” they said and then made it their mission to change things.

From that point on, anytime we entered the house, they were like heat seeking towards my sons. They would stand in front of the boys; arms opened wide and with a big smile on their faces they would say, “Give me a hug”.

It wasn’t an immediate success. At first my sons would bend at the waist and tentatively put their arms around their cousins’ shoulders. There they’d stand like catholic school students at a dance who waited for the Mother Superior to come by with her ruler to make sure they left “room for the Holy Ghost” between them.

But in time, it worked. Now at family events it’s the boys who seek out their cousins, Aunts, or Uncles for the hug, the handshake, or that kiss on the cheek. Good work, girls.

The second thing that will save my kids from being a non-hugger like me is simply the fact that their generation seems to hug – a lot. It has taken me by surprise; I think if I tried to hug my friends even once growing up I would have gotten my ass kicked.

“Hey, nice seeing you guys again,” arms outstretched (nose broken).

Unlike when I was growing up, kids today (wow, I sound old) all seem so comfortable with it; surprisingly, even the boys. Again, I think Amanda came by it more naturally being a girl, but even the girls could go overboard at times.

My kids attended a small catholic grade school that grew smaller as each year passed (it finally disappeared completely in 2011). Amanda’s eighth-grade graduation class consisted of maybe 23 kids. When we arrived at the church for the ceremony, Amanda went around and hugged each of her classmates. Then, when the ceremony was over, and we were all about to leave, round two of hugs began.

After the graduation a group of families decided to go to a local restaurant. When we walked in the squeals from the girls could have shattered glass. Those videos of returning troops would seem like a three hour calculus lecture compared to the excitement these kids showed at seeing each other again. After all, it had been almost ten minutes since they last laid eyes on one another.

The boys, while not as animated, still hug an awful lot. But theirs are more the grasp hand, bump chest, throw left arm around shoulders for a quick bear hug, then release.

Whatever happened to just shaking hands?

The last time I remember hugging my kids was the night of my brother-in-law Marty’s funeral. As the kids dropped me off at home (I was in no condition to drive) I gave each of them a big hug. To say they were surprised by my spontaneous display of affection would be an understatement. For me, if I couldn’t hug them on one of the saddest days of our lives, then when?

I know it’s on me, and I’m probably opening myself up to some free advice from all the armchair psychiatrists out there. The bottom line, however, is that I love my children with all my heart and I know they know that.

As for the hugging, well, that’s something I just can’t seem to wrap my arms around.

That’s one whopper of a display panel there, folks, but it’s certainly a possibility in rumors that’ve appeared pre-launch for OS X Yosemite. The OS X Yosemite Beta builds released to testers thus far include references to 4096 × 2304, 5760 × 3240, and 6400 x 3600 pixel displays, and we have heard that Apple could be releasing far more … Continue reading

I’ve been counting the days until The Walking Dead comes back on for its next season. If you are a fan of the show, you will find this Walking Dead Yahtzee game appealing. It has a sweet dice cup made to look like a Walker head.

I could totally see Carl lopping the top off a Walker in the show to make his own dice cup so he could play when he’s bored. While the five game dice just look like they’ve been splattered with blood, a sixth bonus die has first aid kits, grenades, and walkers printed on it. They should have made the little pencil look like a crossbow bolt, that would have been awesome.

The game is for ages 8 and up and supports normal Yahtzee or Battle Yahtzee. I think the latter game is when you throw the dice at each other; at least that is how we played Battle Yahtzee growing up. The game is on ThinkGeek for $29.99 right now. This is way cooler than the Plants vs. Zombies Yahtzee.

Google’s Chrome OS will soon be graced with Adobe’s Creative Suite, starting with streaming access to Photoshop.

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