Before my son was born, we used to do a lot of things out and about in the evening – we’d go to museums, to movies, to art galleries, and so on, almost every evening. When he was born, a lot of that changed – now we stay home a lot, play with our son, put him to bed, and usually do something quiet together at home. It sounds boring, but when I think back to the fun of doing stuff like teaching my son how to put on his own pants and then rocking him to sleep while singing him Oasis songs (did I mention that his favorite album is (What’s The Story) Morning Glory?) and I wouldn’t trade that for any movie or museum visit – we can do that when he’s older.

How Credit Scores Affect Your Loan Rates -Or- Why All Spending Is Not Equal The Digerati Life does an excellent job here of outlining how different credit scores directly affect real world loans – a compelling argument for why you should keep your credit nose clean. (@ the digerati life)

Summer Reading Made Easy I used to be involved in summer reading programs at the library. They were sponsored by a local couple who were big advocates of youth reading. We had to read books and write very short book reports on them (one page handwritten, if I remember right) and there were various rewards for meeting certain thresholds. I remember a big pizza party for the people who wrote 20 in a summer. (@ wise bread)

Finances and Caring For Your Elderly Relative Right now, parents of my friends are dealing with this with their own parents – luckily, our parents aren’t in this situation. Still, this is stellar advice – and interesting, too. (@ dual income no kids)

The Simple Dollar Retro: The Green Dollar: Being Environmentally Conscious Can Save You Money I’m a bit of a greenie (a recurring theme around here); this is one of the better ones along those lines.