You should be able to teach your kids on how to save money. They should be able to understand the concept of money and investment as early as childhood. This will prepare them to learn money management, as they grow old.

Here are some tips on how you can teach your children how to save money:

1. Your children should be educated of the meaning of money. Once your children have learned how to count, that is the perfect time for you teach them the real meaning of money. You should be consistent and explain to them in simple ways and do this frequently so that they may be able to remember what you taught them.

2. Always explain to them the value of saving money. Make them understand its importance and how it will impact their life. It is important that you entertain questions from them about money and you should be able to answer them right away.

3. When giving them their allowances. You need to give them their allowances in denominations. Then you can encourage them that they should keep a certain bill for the future. You can motivate them to do this by telling them that the money can be saved and they can buy new pair of shoes or the toys they want once they are able to save.

4. You can also teach them to work for money. You can start this at your own home. You can pay them fifty cents to one dollar every time they clean their rooms, do the dishes or feed their pets. This concept of earning little money will make them think that money is something they have worked for and should be spent wisely.

5. You can teach them to save money by giving them piggy banks where they can put coins and wait until they get full. You can also open bank accounts for them and let them deposit money from their allowance. You should always show them how much they have earned to keep them motivated.

Money and saving is not something that is learned by children in one sitting. You should be patient in teaching them and relating the value of money in all of their activities. Children will learn this easily if you are patient and consistent in guiding them and encouraging them in this endeavor.

45. You drink your lunch.
Occasionally, meal-replacement drinks are okay, but not for the long term. A diet shake can’t provide all the nutrients and fiber of whole foods.

46. You take a fat-burning supplement.
These pills often contain ephedra, also known as ma huang (which is dangerous enough alone), mixed with caffeine-which can be lethal. The combination speeds up your heart rate and could cause a heart attack, says Heller.

47. You want to order a prescription diet drug from the Internet.
These medications are only for people who are clinically obese (those with a body mass index of 30 or more), and they can have serious side effects. It’s important to be evaluated in person by a doctor before taking them.

48. You wolf down your food.
It takes about 20 minutes to feel full. By gobbling nonstop, you may miss the signal that you’re full and overeat.

49. You load up on caffeine to burn more calories.
There is some evidence that this stimulant may give your metabolism a temporary jolt. But the effect is negligible and not worth risking dehydration, says Heller.

50. You avoid going out with friends because you’re afraid of a nachos-and-beer frenzy. Denying yourself an enjoyable outing for the sake of your diet only sets you up to pig out. Instead, strategies: “Eat an apple an hour before you go out; the fiber will fill you up,” says nutrition programs manager for Town Sports International. Then, when you go out, order a vegetable crudity platter instead of nachos, and try low-calorie drink options, such as a wine spritzer or a light beer.

41. When ordering Chinese, you stick to chicken: It’s low-fat.
It’s not necessarily what you eat, but how much and how it’s prepared. Any chinese dish can be drenched in an oily sauce. Order the entree steamed, with the sauce on the side.

42. You count only calories.
For 150 calories, you can have three rice cakes (no nutritional value) or one cup of yogurt and an apple (loaded with calcium and fiber). If you stick to low-fat, high-fiber, colorful foods, you’ll automatically consume a low-calorie diet.

43. You won’t eat carbohydrates and protein in the same meal.
The enormous effort required to keep your food separate is wasted. There’s absolutely no science to prove that consuming carbs and protein at different times makes your body use up more calories, says nutrition programs manager for Town Sports International.

44. You write in your food diary only at the end of the day.
The longer you wait, the more likely you are to under report and “forget” what you’ve eaten (like the Girl Scout cookies your coworker gave you or the handful of trench fries from your kid’s Happy Meal). Record what goes in your mouth right after you eat it.

Continued On 50 Diet Mistakes Even Smart Women Make Part 11 (The End)

You’ll need:
• templates
• thick white cardboard
• pencil
• ruler
• scissors
• craft knife
• contrasting fabrics
• glue stick
• stapler

1. You’ll need two for the house base. Place them on the cardboard, trace around and cut out.

2. With the craft knife, cut out a window (get a grown-up to help), from each house base section, only cutting down the middle and across the top and bottom. Fold flaps back so they look like shutters. Staple sections together at one end.

3. Place fabric right side down. Lay house base on top. Trace around with a 5cm overhang. Cut out. Mark where windows are on fabric and cut out.

4. Glue the fabric to the house base and smooth out. Glue contrasting fabric to shutters. Roll into a cylinder shape and secure with staples.

5. Place roof on contrasting fabric, trace around with a 5cm overhang and cut out. Glue fabric to roof and smooth out. Cut in from the outside edge to the centre, fold into a cone shape and secure with staples.

34. You’ve started a vegetarian diet on a whim.
Eliminating animal foods from your diet doesn’t automatically make it healthy or low-calorie. “Some vegetarians may be replacing meat, fish and poultry with a lot of whole-milk cheeses, which are high in calories and saturated fat,” says Salge Blake. They can also be missing out on protein, vitamins D and B12, calcium, iron and zinc. Buy a book on the topic or, better, see a nutritionist.

35. You have a glass of wine before dinner to “dull” your appetite.
“Alcohol is a powerful appetite stimulator, and it lowers your defenses, making it harder to refuse that cheesecake,” says a staff dietitian with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, D.C. Wine also lowers your blood sugar, so you may be hungry again in an hour, explains Shapiro.

36. You drink wine like the French but eat beef like an American.
Some think that wine must be why the French (who eat a high-fat diet) have a low incidence of heart disease. But this is an unproven theory. “There’s no evidence that red wine can eradicate or `dissolve’ fat in the body,” says Shapiro. “And nothing can subtract calories and fat from a meal.”

37. You’re eating just 800 calories a day to lose weight.
“This actually causes your metabolism to slow down and hold on tight to what little food you’re giving it,” says a staff dietitian with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, D.C. A super-low-calorie diet not only makes it harder to lose weight but carries health risks including gallstones, gout and cardiac complications.

Continued On 50 Diet Mistakes Even Smart Women Make Part 9

You’ll need:
• small plastic container
• potting mix
• seeds

1. Make a few holes in the bottom of the container (for the water to drain out) and fill it with potting mix.

2. Write your initials in the potting mix with your finger. Sprinkle the seeds in each letter indent and cover with soil.

3. Water well and put the container on a saucer (to catch the water) in a warm, dry spot. Remember to keep the soil moist.

25. You won’t eat another cookie until you fit into you “skinny” jeans from high school.
Subjecting yourself to an almost impossible goal just sets you up for disappointment and discouragement. “Set a healthier, more realistic goal,” says a staff dietitian with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, D.C, “like running a 10-minute mile without feeling out of breath, doing 10 push-ups or losing an inch from your waist.”

26. You have a protein bar or drink on your way to the gym.
Unless you’re working out for more than two hours, these are a waste of calories and protein, says Heller. For an energy-boosting pre-workout snack, try eating a banana or half of a whole-wheat bagel with some low-fat cheese.

27. You’re sworn off dairy.
Passing on the milk and cheese to cut calories and fat deprives your body of calcium and puts you at risk for osteoporosis, says Heller. Get at least 1,000 milligrams daily. Good low-fat sources include skim milk (380 milligrams per cup), low-fat yogurt 1448 milligrams per cup) and low-fat cheese.

28. Because you work out, you think you can eat as much as you want.
Many people tend to underestimate how many calories they’re consuming and overestimate how many they’re burning off. So don’t use your workout as an excuse to pig out-you’re probably overeating and negating the effects of the exercise.

Continued On 50 Diet Mistakes Even Smart Women Make Part 7

You’ll need:
• string
• embroidery needle
• mix of dried fruit (we used dried apple, pawpaw, craisins, apricots and sultanas).

1. Thread the string through the needle.

2. Push the needle through each piece of dried fruit until you reach the end of the string.

3. Hang it from a branch of a tree in your garden.

20. You’ve cut out all snacks.
This may make you hungrier and more prone to overeat. “Snacking helps you feel satisfied,” says Stopler. Good choices: baby carrots dipped in chive-flavored cottage cheese or salsa, a small can of low-sodium vegetable juice and pretzels, a single-serving low-fat pudding and two graham crackers.

21. You pick sorbet over frozen yogurt.
“Sorbet has just as many calories, and it lacks the calcium of frozen yogurt,” says a senior clinical nutritionist and exercise physiologist at New York University Medical Center.

22. You never drink a glass of water.
This will lead to dehydration, which can make you dizzy, tired and unable to think clearly. Also, you may mistake that thirst for hunger and overeat. Drink at least eight 8-ounce glasses of water a day.

23. You think sugar-free candy and desserts are better for your waistline.
“Sugar-free doesn’t necessarily mean calorie-free,” says a staff dietitian with the Physicians Committee for Responsible Medicine in Washington, D.C. Two sugar-free Fifty-50 Chocolate Flavored Chip cookies contain 86 calories, not much less than two Oreos.

24. Dessert is forbidden.
You know how this works: Pass on the pie, and later you feel deprived and consume an entire Sara Lee cake. Avoid the binge by eating dessert every now and then.

Continued On 50 Diet Mistakes Even Smart Women Make Part 6

Step One
Use double-sided adhesive tape to attach the photograph to the pink cardstock. Trim the cardstock, leaving a 6mm border at the top and sides and a 3cm-4cm border at the bottom. Tear about 1cm-2cm off the bottom edge by holding the cardstock between your finger and thumb and slowly pulling it towards you. Repeat this step using the pale green handmade paper, measuring the borders from the edge of the pink cardstock. Tape the pink cardstock and photo onto the green handmade paper.

Step Two
Attach the wide gingham ribbon down one side of the pale pink textured cardstock, securing the ends with tape on the reverse of the card. Tear off two-thirds of the plaid paper and tape in the centre of the pale pink cardstock, torn side to the right. Tie a bow in the end of the narrow gingham ribbon and tape it along the bottom of the pale pink cardstock. Attach the photograph on its pink and green mount in the centre of the layout.

Step Three
In the top right-hand corner of the green paper, stitch three cross-stitches (use the needle to make holes in the paper before you stitch), securing the ends of the thread at the back of the layout with tape. Apply the rub-on title to the photograph and attach the sticker underneath it. Write the baby’s name and age in the bottom corner of the pale pink cardstock.