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Every year when the kids head back to school, and the weather gets cooler, the south gets ready for their favorite season of the year, football season. Sports have become such an integral part of our society that I feel like our seasons of the year revolve around them; Football Season, Basketball Season, Baseball Season and Summer.

With sports playing such a huge role in people's lives, they tend to start their children in youth leagues as early as possible and fill their nights and weekends with sporting events from that time on. According to the National Council on Youth Sports, parents spend an average of $671 per year on youth sports, with 20%of parents spending over $1,000 or more per year—on each child!

The good news is parents have options when it comes to sports-related spending. Check out the BALANCE blog post below for tips on how to balance the family sports budget:

The phrase “passive income” is often thrown around by people wanting to make money by teaching you ways to earn it. Because the concept is so intriguing, there are a lot of misuses and misrepresentations of the term. After all, who doesn’t want to learn how to make thousands of dollars a month without doing anything to earn it?

With the extreme temperatures and sweltering heat we've been having, you may have been spending a lot more time indoors the past few weeks with the A/C cranked up. Although this is a great way to beat the heat, it's a surefire way to break the bank. 

Below are ten helpful tips to help you reduce electricity costs, even in the hot summer months:

I just returned from a fantastic weekend getaway to the beach in North Carolina. My boyfriend and I wanted to go somewhere smaller and keep things budget friendly and low-key for a relaxing long weekend. If you're like me, you can't plan for the perfect vacation without a million lists. There's always a packing list, an "places to see" list, and if I'm really on top of things, there's normally even a full itinerary. 

Thankfully, I had the budget checklist below to help me think of everything I might have to pay for and keep myself in check. Because otherwise, unexpected expenses that we hadn't prepared for could have made our budget-friendly weekend getaway quite expensive. 

The time has come for you to do like Katy Perry said and "own the night like the Fourth of July," because this weekend, there will DEFINITELY be fireworks. 

Tips for Scoring Cheap Summer Getaways

Everybody likes a summer vacation, but travel can be expensive. If you’re looking to squeeze a getaway into your budget this summer, here are some tips for traveling on the cheap and getting the best deals.

You've just graduated high school; what a major life accomplishment! Before you do anything else, pat yourself on the back. 

After the initial excitement of finishing up a chapter of your life ends, it's time to start planning for your next big adventure, college for most. One of the biggest things that people worry about when starting college is how they'll pay for it, which is why it's so important to understand the different options that are out there. In part one we talked about understanding student loans and in part two we're discussing other options that can help deal with the student loan crunch. 

You've just graduated high school; what a major life accomplishment! Before you do anything else, pat yourself on the back. 

After the initial excitement of finishing up a chapter of your life ends, it's time to start planning for your next big adventure, college for most. One of the biggest things that people worry about when starting college is how they'll pay for it, which is why it's so important to understand the different types of student loan options that are out there. 

Is it just me, or do you, too, succumb to the pressure of retail therapy? Have you had a bad day? Browsing the aisle of your favorite store will help. Were you not feeling great? Splurge on your comfort food; it's sure to work its magic. Did you get a promotion at work or find out your child got an A on a test at school and want to celebrate over a fancy dinner? 

Whether for happy reasons or sad, emotional spending is easy to do and can easily throw you off your budget. Check out the blog post below for tips to help you control your emotional spending and stay on track to achieving your long-term financial goals.

April is CUNA Youth Month, a time when credit unions around the country join together to promote youth financial literacy. When looking for literacy material for kids, there tends to be a lot of material for younger kids, including activities and stories similar to what we've shared on our CUNA Youth Month page. However, there's not a lot of material for older kids, who are reaching the age where they're starting to manage their own money and have to consider things like bills, credit, and taxes. 

Below is a BALANCE blog post with things your teen should know about their first job (but they probably don't). If you're looking for additional literacy resources for your teen/young adult, BALANCE offers entire tool kits for teens and those just starting out.