All around me there has been an explosion of newborns. I’m at that age where people are starting their lives. Most are getting married and having kids. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve been to the Babys ‘R Us and the children’s clothing isle at Target this past year. I really need to figure out how they can be a sponsor to this blog. Most of the time I buy gift cards, because I’m inept at picking out clothes for myself, let alone children.

My wife and I plan to have kids in the next few years and I’m not looking forward to it. Don’t get me wrong, I think being a dad’s going to be great. You create a person with someone you love and you get to mess them up for the rest of their life. The thing I dread the most will be the expenses. Diapers, toys, food, and mostly clothing. Kids grow fast! I always joke around and tell my wife that I’m just going to buy a bunch of black Hefty bags and cut holes in them and that’s how we’ll dress our kids until grade school. Trust me, it’ll be the new baby couture. Gregory Karp has some better ideas.

Most adults can get by without buying new clothing for themselves for a while, but families must frequently purchase garments for growing children.That makes children’s clothing a big budget item for family households. Back-to-school clothes shopping totaled $7.6 billion last year, according to the National Retail Federation. Among consumers who bought clothes during back-to-school season, average spending was $241, excluding shoes. Some ways to spend less on children’s clothing: