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Show Frozi The Tn&xhso Vernal Express Wednesday. August 23, 2000 1 3 Financial Focus by Christie Hansen How to be your own Fairy Gcdnrtofthsr What should you do with "after-tax" 401 (k) distributions? by Steven S. Holt Edward Jones Life is not a fairy talc, and no wand-waving godmother is going to save us from the realities of keeping up with kids and caring for the house. Alas, we're on our own to discover how to live happily every after. The following are a few pointers point-ers that I've found helpful. Speak up. Don't expect those around you to read your mind. If you're feeling overworked and underpaid, say so. Express your needs. Tell your husband, "Caring for the kids all day is demanding both physically and mentally. When you get home from work, I'm tired too. I have not had the day off. W hen I see you reading the paper while I'm fixing dinner, I feel resentful." Look for solutions. While it's important to point out how you're feeling, if that's all you do, it can sound a lot like complaining. Once you've expressed a concern or problem, prob-lem, look for a solution. If, for example, you're frustrated by how often you pick up your six-year-old's toys, tell him. Then explain that from now on you're only going to ask him once to put his things away. If he doesn't comply, they'll go to "toy jail" and he'll have to post bail or do an extra chore to get them back. One family - one meal. So your four-year-old doesn't like what you've made for dinner. Tough beans. Don't play short-order cook and fix her a separate menu. Dish her up a small portion of ev ery thing you've prepared and let her eat what appeals to her. (Try to make sure there's at least one thing you know she'll eat.) If you constantly prepare one meal for the adults and another for the kids, they'll come to expect it. Train children to work." Teaching kids how to take care of themselves is the end goal of parenting. par-enting. Trying to do everything yourself does disservice to both you and your children. Give young children chil-dren a few simple tasks. A toddler, for instance, can help put toys in the toy box and tidy his room. Older children can take on tougher jobs. Try to challenge your children without with-out overwhelming them. One-on-onc training will help them experience experi-ence success. Revel in your idiosyncrasies. In other words, be happy in your . quirks and passions. My mother, for example, is into earrings. She has so many pairs she could wear a different differ-ent set each day for over two years! Find things you love and do them. Listen to music that makes you feel alive. Discover a new hobby or resurrect res-urrect an old one. Get out of the castle." Spend a little time each week on yourself. Cultivate friends with similar interests. Meet periodically for "Girls' Night Out" or other activities. activi-ties. Also, don't wait for an annual ball to go out with Prince Charming. Escape often by lining up a babysitter babysit-ter and going for a date with your spouse. Rediscover w hat it was that made you fall in love with him in the first place. Live in the here and now." It's easy to fall into the habit of saying. "I'll be happy when . . . I've lost 10 pounds ... we make a little more money ... the kids are both in school." Why not be happy now? Accept yourself for w ho you are and w here you are. Use a gratitude journal jour-nal to focus on all the wonderful things in your life. lml are your secrets for living happily ever after? Write and share them with Christie Hansen by e-mail e-mail at christiehansenQusa.net or care of this publication. A 40I(k) plan is great . hut you have to be careful when it's time to withdraw the money. Of course, how much you have available to take out depends on how much you've put in over the years. It's generally a smart move to contribute con-tribute the maximum amount possible possi-ble to your 40l(k). For one thing, your money grows on a tax-deferred basis, which means it will accumulate accumu-late faster than if it were placed in a similar-yielding investment on which you paid taxes every year. And, if you're lucky, your employer will match a percentage of the money you invest. Furthermore, most of your contributions contri-butions are likely made w ith pretax dollars and these pretax contributions contribu-tions w ill lower your annual taxable income. Now, let's fast-forward to the day when you leave your current employer. What should you do with your 401(k)? If you've accepted another job, you may be able to roll the money over to your new employer's employ-er's 40l(k) or to an IRA. If you're retiring, you also can roll your 40 1 (k) funds over to an IRA. But here's the "catch": You can roll over only your pretax contributions contribu-tions to the IRA. If you've made any after-tax contributions, as many people peo-ple do, this money cannot be rolled over, and you'll have to take it as a cash distribution. When you accept this distribution, you'll have two key issues to consider. con-sider. First, there are the taxes. You've already paid taxes on your original contributions, so you don't have to worry about that. But these contributions generated earnings, which have been tax-deferred until now. You may want to consider rolling those earnings into an IRA to avoid the taxes and possible penalty. The second after-tax distribution issue is quite basic: What will you do w ith the money? If you're going to use the funds as a source of current cur-rent income, here are two possibilities: possibili-ties: Set up a systematic withdrawal plan from a mutual fund You may want to put your after-tax distribution distribu-tion money into a mutual fund, then w ithdraw a fixed percentage such as 5 percent or 6 percent each year. By choosing a fund that has the potential to earn a higher return than the withdrawal rate, you can protect your principal. A good growlh-aml-income fund may be an option. This type of fund carries less investment risk than a straight grow th fund, but still offers the potential for a competitive com-petitive return. Purchase an annuity and immediately immedi-ately "annuitize" the money You could use your after-tax distribution to purchase an annuity contract from a life insurance company. You can then annuitize the contract, which simply means converting it into an income stream for the remainder of your life, or your life and that of your surviving spouse. However, if you choose this route, you w ill eventually even-tually consume your principal, so there won't be any money left for your heirs. Make sure to weigh your options carefully large 40l(k) distributions distribu-tions don't pop up every day. $0 Stb 1000 Witt ft ACK TO JCHOOlh Dailf Srcii!t - $4.5 Wttkif: V Aas. 2$ Stpl. t J Monday, Aaj. 28 Tic. Salad Churn Jwht hi 29 BIT Wrap - Chips Prink - Caakii Wednesdiy. Atj. 30 Chiekin Casfct Salad Crassiant Thrsdiy, An;. 31 Chiekin Breast Sandwich - Friit - Drink fridty, Sept, Chiekin Fajita Wrap - Spanith Rica It c (Plnntinn Himpf SPLIT MOUNTAIN GARDEN CENTER Your First Place To Shop For The Highest Quality Plants Visit our new FARMERS MARICET! 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