As school started yesterday my Facebook feed was full of pictures of my friends’ children on their first day of school. I love this tradition so much and I look forward to seeing everyone’s pictures. Of course, I also shared the “mandatory” first day of school picture. You can tell it was a little rushed, but nonetheless, we got it done (rain, three kids and all).
Some of my favourite pictures were kids holding up signs stating what they want to be when they grow up. As a parent, I think it’s a great way to chart your child’s thoughts, personality and passions as they grow. I remember as a kid I always wanted to be an actress. Clearly, that didn’t pan out but my parents never discouraged me and always supported me along the way. They were my sounding board and the ones who eventually lead me to where I am today.
So… what did my five year old son Kyle say when I ask him what he wants to be when he grows up? He said he wants to be a hockey player but if that doesn’t pan out, he wants to be a baseball player.
I encourage and cheer on his love and passion for sports and I will support him no matter what, even though he’s clearly reaching for the stars (but he doesn’t know it yet). It is great to see when Kids Dream Big no matter what those dreams are.
Part of supporting my son’s dreams include helping him out financially once he’s ready to attend University. Luckily, that’s still a while away as I’m not ready to say good-bye to my little “big boy” any time soon. And although University seems like a long time away from now, before I know it, it will be time! That’s why my husband and I have been putting money in an RESP account for all of our sons every year since they were born.
What most Canadians don’t know about saving for their children’s post-secondary education is that they can receive up to $2,000 from the Canadian government to be put into an RESP of their choosing. Through the Canada Learning Bond, when you open an RESP, the Government will deposit $500 right away and could deposit up to $1,500 more by the time your child is 15, even if you don’t contribute any money yourself. That’s up to $2,000 for your child’s education after high school. SmarSAVER teamed up with RESP providers across Canada that will help you get an RESP started with $0: no enrollment fee, no annual fee and no contribution required.
To find out more, to see if you qualify and to apply, go to SmartSAVER’s online application. SmartSaver is a nonprofit organization working with communities to make it easier for lower-income families to save for their kids’ future education using RESP’s and the Canada Learning Bond.
What big dreams will you be saving for? I’d love to hear what your kids want to be when they grow up!
Wow great info!mgoing to look into this, thanks! My son says he wants to be a hockey player or a police officer
This program is so wonderful sounding and I love the fact it is to help low income families save for their children’s education. My daughter who is a single mom will be so interested in this article. My granddaughter says she wants to be a dentist.
Great Info!! We have invested into this program, with three kids we want to be prepared for their future.
Thanks for sharing! My daughter wants to be a writer.
Thank you for the fabulous information. This will be really helpful for us.
Great info.. thank you. My daughter’s 2.. don’t know what she wants to be yet. Right now she just wishes she could fly lol.
Wow! This would be awesome for my grandchildren! Thank you so much for the great post! 🙂
Great info and tips!