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Having children does not need to be a financial death sentence. As reported in Time , the costs for raising one child through the age of 17 is $233,610! We have three! That does not even include the cost of college, medical expenses, or other unforeseen costs. While I love my children and want to provide the best for them, I believe part of that is also raising fiscally responsible children. Here are some of the ways that help keep the costs of raising children more reasonable and teach them the life skills necessary for a bright financial future. Buy Used We buy a lot of used merchandise. Although a product may have been loved by another family before does not mean that it does not still have a useful life left. This really keeps down on the high cost of buying new. It seems like the kiddos are always outgrowing clothes, venturing into new sports, or requesting new toys. I'm a huge fan of the bi-annual consignment sales that are often provided by local churches and school...

I have been pushing my kiddos on the idea of experiences over things for some time. It is sometimes a tough sell, but they always seem to enjoy the experience and it tends to bring our family closer together. The problem with experiences is a lot of them are expensive especially for a family of 5. Here are some of my tips on obtaining discounted tickets or free experiences. Check Discount and Local Sites Of course, everyone is familiar with Groupon and other coupon sites online, but they are fantastic resources for discounted tickets. The most important thing about checking these sites is to not be too picky. If you are looking for a museum, for example, be open to a number of different local museums. In fact, if you haven't been there before it may be an even more rewarding experience. There are also Facebook and other social media sites that advertise discount tickets. Before heading out, I always check these sites and check to see if any discounts are available. I also look...