We are scattered all over the world. My siblings, nieces, nephews, cousins and in-laws. Our children now speak Japanese, German, Norwegian, Tagalog, and of course English (albeit the Canadian and British variety). And at Christmas time, each family living in a particular country will celebrate in the tradition of that nation.

Soon it will be my thirty-fifth anniversary! Not a wedding anniversary, but I've been a credit union member for thirty-five years. It all started when my father opened an account for me at the credit union for the pharmaceutical company where he worked.

As I sat in the Physical Therapy hospital waiting room, I watched the others. The middle aged woman in great discomfort, one arm in a soft cast, the old man with vacant eyes, attended by his disinterested companion, the young child wheelchair bound with shriveled limbs, confined perhaps since birth. A heavy atmosphere of pain and resignation filled the room. No one made eye contact. I looked down at the book I was reading. You could have heard a pin fall.

Every experienced parent I ask seems to swear by one baby product or another and so my husband and I have amassed quite the collection of baby stuff in hopes of having everything we might need to take care of our little bundle of joy. Of course all of that cute, tiny stuff does not come cheap so I'm always on the lookout for ways to save on baby gear. I am definitely not an expert, but I have managed to save a lot of money on some big purchase items with these tips I've gathered along the way.

Budgeting is more about developing a habit you can stick to than it is about money. We already generally know how much we’re going to make in a given period, and predict how much we need to spend. What can put us off-balance are the irregular expenses: the flat tire or the hospital stay. While these events often visit us unannounced, they really aren’t all that unexpected when you think about it. That’s why it’s important to also budget for these unpredictable expenses.

When I was a kid my father would take advantage of a rainy summer day and had me and my two brothers roll coins. It seemed that the empty peanut butter jars of coins he had accumulated were never ending. This was no small task - it took us hours and hours, but I didn't mind. The work was mindless and I liked the sense of accomplishment from seeing the full rolls neatly stacked (was this a precursor to my banking career?).

I have this recurring nightmare. There I am, stuck on the shoulder of I-95. It’s a summery 96 degrees outside; if it gets any more humid I will be under water. I am starting to melt...

When my husband and I got engaged, my mother begged us to have a short engagement and skip right to the business of giving her a grandchild. When we bought our house, my mother-in-law gave us a crib as a house warming gift since she figured we’d need it someday. They certainly weren’t subtle with their desire for a grandchild, but we knew that deciding to have a baby wasn’t a decision to take lightly. So we started planning well before there was even a bun in the oven.