Over the next few weeks, millions of American families will take part in the annual spending ritual, stocking up on everything from socks and blue jeans to pencils, compasses and computers.
Experts say budgeting is the key.
Beth Grossman has one child each in grade school, high school and college. They're sensible about clothing, she said, but the bills for academic extras like scientific calculators and honors-level books still mount up quickly. I try to purchase things as the year progresses, but depending on the activity you can't always do that. For example, my son is a music student and needs a new suit each fall for performances. That's not counting several thousand dollars worth of computers for the kids.