<p>Does your daughter understand what your financial situation really is? Because that might be part of the problem.</p>
<p>It sounds like she’s never had to think about money. Every time she wanted to do something her whole life, there was money for it, and so–not entirely unreasonably–she expects that the same will continue in college. If she wants to do all of these amazing things she’s heard about in college, then it’ll happen. She probably hasn’t even given half a thought to how much it will cost because it doesn’t sound like she has any sense of money.</p>
<p>I don’t think kids magically turn it around and become financially savvy. Some kids pick it up more than others, but it’ll be harder when they’ve never had to think about money before. College might be a good time to start teaching her about money, starting with everything you’ve done–teller her no, we don’t have the money to pay for that. It might also be helpful to give her more responsibility–expect her to pay some part of her school, or to work to pay for any “extras” beyond the minimum housing, meal plan, and tuition (and perhaps, books, if you want to pay it). Teach her that in the real world you have to work for everything, and that sometimes that means going without. Most likely, she won’t learn it on her own, until she’s forced to or has to go without because she doesn’t know how to live within a budget.</p>