<prompt> Human: Hello all,Bare with me. I have hesitated writing to this sub for fear of judgement. I know I am very fortunate income wise so I dont have a lot to be complaining about , but my expenses are high, our savings are all over the place and we have very little savings, so looking for some advice to help get this manageable. Thinking about getting a fee only financial planner. These recommended for my situation?Here is the situation:Income: Earner 1: 150 annual bonus 30k Stock that vests annually for at least next 3 years unless I leave typically about 30k per year in value. Company is a relatively stable tech company.Earner 2: 120 annual bonus more variable from 10k - 60k. Stock that vests annually about 10k annually. Another stable tech company.Assets:500k in retirement savings30k in savings accountHome - 800k loan at 3.75. About 400k loan balance. Most of equity is appreciation due to crazy housing market in my area bought house for 550k.College Savings for 2 kids toddlers - 50k in vanguard 529 Debt:60k in student loans at 2.5 interest - variable. Paying minimum monthly at this point. About 850. Had over 200,000 in loans so have paid a lot over recent years.Credit Cards: Dont typically carry balance but right now its crept to about 10k. Excellent credit.Expenses:MortgageTaxesInsurance: 2900Other home Expenses: 2000Childcare: About 4000 yes - full time childcare for 2 non-school age childrenAbout : 2500 in other monthly expenses 1 car, home maintenance, etc.Monthly Savings:- About 12 to retirement 6 to max to 401k rest to Roth 401k- Try to put about 500 monthly to children college savings ConcernsThoughts:- I have an employer ESPP which I used to contribute to that I dont have the cash for right now. 10 discount on quarterly purchases free money.- We use an HSA and contribute about 4000 per year- My kids are in pre-school thus the high expenses. One will be in school shortly which will help with income. The other in 3 years.- Credit card debt and cash go up and down constantly. debt high now because we are far away from bonus time. We usually use bonuses to wipe out debt. Bad cycle I know.I know I need to reduce my expenses especially for things like eating out and vacations. My wife and I work lots of hours and live in a major city, an expensive city. I am looking for guidance I things I can do to reduce expense and maximize return in short term. Should I reduce my retirement savings temporarily which is already underfunded given age and current expenses? Should I stop cash contributions to kids 529 plan and contribute to ESPP instead and cash out ESPP quarterly to fund college savings? I know things will get a lot better once child expenses go down but worried about emergencies and this cycle of acquiring and paying debt.Thanks!  <response>: Budget. Cut back. Stop spending so much.Your goals should be:1. Pay off the cc debt and never let it come back. Stop paying into the 529 plan until you have done this.2. Max the ESPP. Once you have maxed it, you will get as much money out plus the profits minus tax as you put in, so you only need to put money into it until you have achieved a float. If it is one of those plans where you buy stock 2x per year at a 15 discount, and can sell immediately, you will be getting a 30 pa return pre tax. You are not going to get that on many other investments.3. You are behind on retirement savings. Boost those to between 15 and 20 of salary for both of you.4. 30k in an emergency fund is no where near 3 months of expenses since you are spending like drunken sailors. Boost the emergency fund and cut back the expenses.5. After you have done all that, you can think about putting money in the 529 or in a taxable brokerage account.The root of all your problems is that you are spending too much. Cut back. Your incomes are very high. You should be saving 50k yr. It should be easy.Good luck. 