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This article is by staff writer Lisa Aberle.

When I wrote about the pros and cons of homeschooling recently, I left one major piece of the puzzle untouched: How does a family handle the loss of income if a stay-at-home parent is required?

It’s not just the loss of monthly income. The parent who stays at home doing the bulk of the educating is also missing out on some other benefits of employment (employer contributions to a 401(k), social security benefits, avoiding a resume gap, etc.). These aren’t necessarily easy to quantify.

So let’s take a look at the financial piece of the puzzle to the extent we can; but first, is it possible to homeschool without losing income?

This article is by staff writer Holly Johnson.

The United States policy on maternity leave can be a touchy subject among families, and especially women. Unlike all other wealthy countries, many of which mandate weeks and months of paid leave for natural and adoptive mothers and fathers, the U.S. mandates no such thing.

In fact, the last movement toward maternity fairness in the U.S., the Family and Medical Leave Act of 1993 (FMLA), included a provision mandating 12 weeks of unpaid leave annually for mothers of newborn or newly adopted children. Twelve weeks doesn’t sound so bad, but that unpaid part can sure sting.

This article is by staff writer William Cowie.

You hear it all the time, here and many other places: Debt is bad — evil, even — you know, like smoking and drinking and gambling. Yet, despite overwhelming evidence that smoking is bad for us, almost one person out of every five still smokes. And in the past year, that number has not declined significantly.

The government even has campaigns to get people to stop doing what’s bad for them. Beer companies have to add “Please drink responsibly” to their ads and, in many states, gambling is flat out illegal.

People aren’t borrowing enough?

So, if debt was bad for you like those other vices, you would expect your government to have some educational program to warn you of its evils, right?

This article is by editor Linda Vergon.

A mother’s love is more precious than gold, but you don’t need to spend a mint to make Mother’s Day special for her. In some ways, your lack of funds could actually help you make her day more meaningful.

When it comes down to it, most moms prize the time they can spend with their children more than anything. So if you don’t have the funds to take mom out for Sunday brunch, a Broadway play, or a trip to Nordstrom’s, it may just be a good thing. Maybe you can’t escape the realities of your budget right now, but here are some ways to tell her you care even if your wallet is a little weak.