[glatt]

That's the basic question.

We are a middle class family, and we live very frugally, and have built up a respectable nest egg.

We are constantly making sacrifices. Not spending money when we could just as easily throw caution to the wind and live for the moment.

My oldest (daughter) is in 8th grade. College will be here in 4 years.

I'll feel like a complete moron if the colleges look at our financial situation, take our nest egg from us, and then say "Ok, now that we have your nest egg, let's talk about financial aid" and start the negotiations from that point.

If I show up at the colleges financial aid office and have a much smaller nest egg, they will have less to take and then start the financial aid conversation at that point.

I'm afraid that I'm being a sucker by saving. Do any of you who have been through the college financial aid system or who work in that system know how it works?

We could buy new windows for the house, or a new furnace, or a new car (Ours is 17 years old.) We're turning down fun things like a zip line course in two weeks that the cub scouts are attending because it will cost $200. We're making sacrifices. Is it going to be worth it, or are we suckers?

College is so freaking expensive. It's like buying a house. We've got what I think is a big nest egg saved up, but it's only enough to pay for about 2 years of college for one kid, and we have two kids. We need to get them through 8 years of college.

I don't want them to be saddled with obscene amounts of debt, but I also don't want to be living so frugally if we don't really have to.

I welcome your input, jokes, snarky comments, etc.