Want the family to get ahead?

It's tough to do when you consider the rising cost of fuel, health and property insurance and local, state and federal taxes. Our wages certainly aren't rising as fast as the cost of living.

But by taking a few simple steps, you can start the ball rolling. The most important: Start setting financial goals. By determining upfront what you and your family need and want from your lives financially, you'll all be able to focus more clearly on those objectives.

Then the diamond necklace, earrings or set of golf clubs you saw the other day won't seem nearly as important.

Your short-term savings goals may include a vacation, furniture, home improvement and the purchase of washer and dryer or refrigerator, a TV or computer.

Longer-term goals might be saving for a baby, retirement or your child's college education.

Write them all down. Figure out how much each will cost. Then, determine how much you need to invest each month to reach these goals.

Don't feel like doing the math? Use one of several online savings calculators. Among those: accountant.intuit.com/practice_resources/calculators/index.aspx, cucalc.cuna.org and www.bankrate.com. We also found a great calculator that takes into consideration the impact of inflation, which generally runs about 3 percent annually, at alaskaadvantage. state.ak.us/calc/Savings.html. It even prints out a special report for you.

If that's too difficult, here's some help. Assume you can earn a 4 percent rate of return -- easily available today if you shop around for a bank savings account. Here's what you'd have to save monthly to reach $1,000, rounded up to the nearest dollar, within the specified period:

• In 1 year: $82
• In 2 years: $41
• In 3 years: $27
• In 4 years: $20
• In 5 years: $16
• In 6 years: $12
• In 7 years: $11
• In 8 years: $9
• In 9 years: $8
• In 10 years: $7

As you can see, the sooner you start, the less painful it can be, and the more bang you'll get for the buck.

"Where will this money come from?" you ask. One fast fix is to bring your lunch to work. That immediately saves about $150 monthly -- $300 monthly, if both working spouses do this. Cut out any services you truly don't need, such as extra cable channels or call waiting and consider some romantic dinners at home rather than in restaurants. You're already on the way!

There also may be ways to scale down your goals. For example, wait two years to buy that LCD TV, and we're willing to wager you'll be able to get it for next to nothing! Then, you'll be able to use added money you saved from that goal to meet your other objectives. You also might consider some vacation destinations a bit closer to home.

Besides saving to reach your financial goals, your family needs to make sure it is well protected.

Life, health and disability insurance are important. You also may need long-term care insurance -- particularly now that Uncle Sam may make it more difficult to qualify for Medicaid coverage!

Don't forget auto, homeowners and/or rental insurance. And be sure you have a will, durable power of attorney and health-care power of attorney or health-care surrogate. You also need to arrange guardianship for your children in case anything happens to you.

Take these steps, and watch your money grow!