We planned early on BUT then I stopped working (long story..it wasn't entirely intentional) and although our lives got a lot less hectic saving for college went out the window. We have some money that is to be used for retirement & college but because of the economy have been trying not to break into it.
We currently have a daughter in private university (one that is less expensive than Harvard but more than public university), and a son who is a freshman. Luckily my parents did a better job at saving and are willing to help us. (My parents did other things to help my two brothers, and they figure it's better to help us now.) We did pay for about 1/2 of my daughters first year with money we had put in a college fund in her name.
I expect that DS14 will end up at public university. A large research university is probably a better fit for him. My daughter is not gifted but has LD's and really needed a place where class sizes were small with teacher that are in it 100% for the teaching. If my parents keep helping us through my daughters BA we should be able to afford a public university for my son.
