It’s almost always a good idea to shop used, especially for kid stuff, since they grow out of it so quickly. However, there are things best left behind on your trip to the neighborhood garage sale. Cribs and children’s furniture – Only because you may not be aware of safety recalls. If you buy, be aware. Car seats – a good, new car seat can be very cheap. With used, you don’t know the quality of the seat and padding which degrades greatly in an accident, with use, or by being dropped on the ground. Heaven forbid, your child ever needs the protection of a car seat, but if he or she does, you want it to work. Swimsuits and undergarments – For obvious reasons, though a wash...

Here are some dad advice and ways to save money that you might not have thought of: Shop consignment stores: Not thrift stores, where used merchandise donated for charity is piled high at bargain prices. Consignment stores are more choosey at what they take in and arrange it more as a store. Sure, you can’t find all sizes, but you can find items that either business-worthy for you, or hip enough for growing kids. You just have to figure out a crafty way of selling this to the rest of the family, but expect savings of 60 – 70% for items that are only gently used. Switch from premium to regular gas: Okay, this one is not for every family car, but if you’re using premium just...

When we first created GreatDad.com three years ago, we said there were four underlying forces that would fuel a trend to more involved fathers in the 21st century: 1. Changing role of women in the workplace and continued evolution toward income parity (and maybe superiority) 2. Lack of job security in a post-industrial economy with far less emphasis on life-long employment with one employer 3. Change in societal expectations about involved fathers versus previous generations 4. Post 9/11 change in perspective on importance of core values including family. I still think much of this is true though the effect of 9/11 on the family was less than expected after the push toward greater consumerism...

A stay-at-home dad from St. Michael, Minn., studying to be a police officer, has won $1 million as the FLW Fantasy Fishing champion. [From MyFox Twin Cities | St. Michael Dad Wins $1 Million Fantasy Fishing Prize] Now, this is a concept and I wish I had thought of it before wasting all this time working on GreatDad.com and another full-time business venture. I could have been making millions of dollars in the fantasy sports arena where you “reel in” millions just by drawing cards with fish on them.