A Dad's Perspective - Spending Money

A few years ago I was talking with a coworker about spending responsibly. He told me about his neighbours. They all had new cars with all the gadgets. The latest electronic gadgets, plenty of toys for the parents. But when it came to their kids they didn't have the money to get them things.

He told me how he tried to make sure that he kids always had clothes that fit and books to read, etc. even if it meant that his wife and him put off buying something for themselves. When he got a new car it was the base model. It didn't have a TV in it, so he bought one a Walmart, made to fit in his type of car for a few hundred dollars (cheaper by far than if it was an option when he bought the car) so that his kids could watch DVD's on driving trips.

I guess my point is, pay your bills and save for your own retirement first. But with your extra money it might behove you to spend some on your kids or things that the whole family can use.

I see now that having a baby leaves me with little free time for myself, so if I found something that all of us could use at the same time it would be pretty nice.