Local flavour: Money talk

Ladner's Laura Thomas is about to have her Money Moments show launched on DeltaTV this Sunday (Oct. 16). It's crammed full of good tips to help take control of you personal finances that sometimes come down to good old fashioned sense, like baking gingerbread cookies as a fun and inexpensive activity for children that also makes for a great hostess gift during the holidays.

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If there’s one thing that Ladner writer Laura Thomas learned during the shooting of her DeltaTV show, Money Moments with Laura Thomas, which begins airing Oct. 16, it was that everyone has some sage advice on how to make a buck stretch or work harder for them.

The nine-episode series was shot last summer and Thomas interviewed a number of “money experts” from all walks of life, both local and national, for the five-minute-long programs that will continue in rotation on local cable and the video-on-demand portion of parent company EastLink.

“Even if a handful of people save $10 with a helpful tip from the show, it’s all good,” says Thomas. “And based on that maybe they will feel a little more empowered to talk about money. And that takes away a little of the fear factor.”

She adds that all of us are in the economy together and sharing information—even on the sometimes taboo subject of personal finance—is a step in the right direction.

“I think everybody has one or two nuggets of wisdom when it comes to money. It doesn’t matter who you are,” she says. “It just reminds you that we tend to want to give away much of our power when it comes to money. We want to have people make choices for us.”

One of those nuggets that can be mined is the age old tradition of using practical lessons as a way of not only teaching a skill, but creating a fun and inexpensive activity—in this instance, baking gingerbread cookies.

Thomas says her family recipe was a hit with her seven-year-old daughter and her friend who were recently tasked with decorating them with butter icing.

“I do this twice a year—Thanksgiving and Christmas,” Thomas says, adding the kids enjoyed taking ownership of the decorating and the finished products are an inexpensive host or hostess gift during the holidays.

Thomas says she’d like to become a bigger player in the conversation and is hoping the show’s planned second season can expand on issues.

“We need to dig a little deeper into that confidence and develop our financial literacy,” she says.

Gingerbread cookies

Ingredients

(Cookies)

1 cup butter or margarine

1 cup brown sugar

1 egg

4 cups flour

1 cup fancy molasses

1 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp ginger

1 tsp baking soda

½ tsp salt

½ tsp cloves

½ tsp nutmeg

(Butter Icing)

2 tbsp of butter

1 tsp of vanilla extract

Icing sugar (2-3 cups)

Add cream until the icing reaches spreading consistency

Food colouring

Directions

Mix sugar, shortening, egg and molasses. Beat until fluffy. Add dry ingredients. Chill dough for about 30 minutes. Roll out on floured surface about ¼ inch thick (or thicker). Cut with seasonal cookie cutters. Bake in 350 F oven for about 10 minutes or until golden brown on the edges. Cool and ice with butter icing. Use sandwich bags and twist ties for piping the icing. Use candies, sprinkles, dried fruit and nuts for decorations.