My family doesn't have a lot of money either. We take trips to the zoo, science center, beaches, and camping. Once, we visited my grandfather and went to Worlds of Fun in Kansas. I think there are a lot of great ways to build memories without taking expensive trips. Go sledding together. Go hiking. Plan a picnic and bring along some outdoor games. Find an old drive in theatre (we did it last year and it was a blast!) the kids could just run around and it was so nice to be out together without feeling like I had to keep my kids still and quiet.

I think that most of my favorite memories from my childhood were those where we traveled, took trips, visited places, or just went on a great car ride. Those were the happy times I remember, all of us exploring and having fun, learning things, new things. They were absolutes highlights!!! Same for my husband as well and he was from a family with 4 children. I've known families with 13 kids that found ways to have a good time all together. I know one family right now that have 7 children that go somewhere every Sunday together and they are not rich at all. But they do involve the whole family in planning and what they will choose. In my family we would pack a picnic and go for a nice drive out to the country or a local park, the beach, a town hundreds of miles away, and we would take photos of our trip, follow our route on a map, discover neat places along the way. It doesn't cost a lot. And if you do want to go on longer trips, make them a priority, find inexpensive lodging, bring your own food. Visit zoos, go on self guided walks, take lessons for something the whole family can learn. If you all like horses, go to horse shows or tour a ranch, a farm. Enroll the whole family in a seminar.

We had 5 kids in our family and we weren't rich, but my parents would save up during the year to take us on summer vacations. I have wonderful memories of family vacations. You need to cut back on thisgs throughout the year so you can make memories for your children!!!!

Go to state parks. They are usually less than a day away. Of course, I live in TN. That may not be so true if you live in TX.