Question: My wife and I bought some furniture a while back on what we thought was a 24-months-same-as-cash plan. The original purchase price was $1,600. The other day, I got a call from a collector saying that it was actually a 12-month plan, and the balance is now $2,800. We looked at the contract, and it was our mistake on the length of the plan. Still, that makes the interest rate about 30 percent. Is there anything we can do about this?

Question: My wife and I have gone from having almost nothing to making about $90,000 in the last few years. The problem is that I can’t get her interested in saving money. What’s worse, her father is the preacher at our church and he has convinced her that he knows the Lord is coming back in our lifetime. Thinking this, she says there’s no reason to save because it will all be gone anyway. What can I do?

Question: Our financial situation is pretty good now, and my husband and I feel it is time to start giving something back. There are several organizations we’re interested in helping, but how can we know if they’re legitimate and will use our money wisely?

Question: Is it a good idea to include teenagers in financial talks and budget meetings?

Question: How do you feel about online trading for building a stock portfolio? Assuming that someone has done their homework on which stocks to buy, is there anything else to know about do-it-yourself trading?

Question: Several months ago, my five-year-old son told me he wanted a Nintendo DS. He does little things around the house for me, and at his grandparents’ place, so I told him he’d need to save his money and buy it. Well, he did! He’s got enough for the console, but not to pay the sales tax. Should I help him out?

Question: My husband and I are both spenders. We want to get on a plan and handle our money better, but is there anything that will help us learn to give up stuff now so that we’ll have more in the future?

Question: My husband and I can’t agree on how we should handle the child support payments I receive. He thinks it should be put in the pool with our household budget money, but right now I keep it in a separate account. Who’s right?

Question: We paid off our cars a few months ago, and that freed up almost $800 month. We have two small children, and we’d like to take a camping trip in a few months, but we would need a roomier vehicle. We found a used van, and we think we could have it paid off in 12 months. We’d still have more money left than before, so would this be okay?

Question: We have two teenage daughters, ages 17 and 16, who are both in high school and work in the family business. We’ve done our best to teach them how to handle their money properly, including how to spend, save, and give. Also, they’ve both been saving for college. My husband thinks it would be a good idea to start charging them rent to prepare them for life once they leave home. What do you think?