I have successfully assembled the new gas grill. It was actually pretty easy and only took about an hour and fifteen minutes or so. After assembling the grill, we put it to good use and grilled up a hot dog for the kids and a couple of small pork chops for Karen and I (grilled chix salad postponed to tomorrow). It starts real easy with an electronic ignitor and it grills quite nice and even with its three burner tubes.Â
On another topic altogether, about 2 weeks ago I started a new savings account for each of the kids using USAA’s “First Start” program. It is a really neat program that enables you to open a savings account in their name with an associated ATM card for them to use. They also get a starter kit with a financial binder and printed information inside that talks about how money grows (in an interest bearing account vs “on trees”), and what savings and investing is all about. Under the program, they get a quarterly financial newsletter geared for their age group. What I like the most about it is that I can directly move money online from my USAA account into theirs with the click of a button. This is awesome for once-a-month deposit of “allowance” for completing their chores. Once the money is their account, they have to manage it….mindful of how much money they have for saving and spending. Tonight, they both made their first withdrawal from their accounts and went shopping at WalMart. Each of them had $20 to spend, and they were very careful about what they selected so that they got the best value for their money. I am not sure which they enjoyed more….buying something with their own money, or going to the ATM machine and inserting their own card, punching in their own PIN, and getting their own cash. I also established First Start “investment” accounts for each of them as well with a monthly allotment (in addition to the savings bonds we have been buying for years). It is a USAA managed aggressive money market account that focuses on long-term growth. Each day they can check the web and see how their money market account is doing. Hopefully it will help teach them the value of things, the power of compounding interest, and how to manage their money. It is nice having access to such great tools that you can manage online…USAA’s web-based banking tools are truly world class!Â