Rich in-laws force daughter-in-law to enroll her kids in expensive private school, while living in a good public school district: 'I grew up very, very middle class.'

She doesn't need to keep up with the Joneses to make her kids happy.

Have you ever heard of rich families claiming that they're "living paycheck to paycheck," and wondered how that could be? Rich families say this because, after paying their bills, maxing out their retirement accounts, buying their kids new clothes, going out to eat multiple times a week, and going on vacation, they don't have any money left over. That is clearly not what "living paycheck to paycheck" actually means. If you live paycheck to paycheck, you don't eat if you miss a single payday. It doesn't mean that you blow all of your money on things you don't need, leaving you with no more money to buy more things you don't need. 

Many families with high incomes get into a lot of debt because they can technically afford the monthly payments, even though it's not the most financially responsible choice. They feel pressured to do so because all of the other rich families in their area maintain a certain lifestyle, so they feel like they have to do the same. Even if you're making a ton of money, there's nobody forcing you to live in the most expensive house or buy an expensive luxury car, just because other people who are making as much as you are doing that.

The mom in this story was raised middle-class, but her husband comes from money. After being pressured by her in-laws into sending her kids to private school, she wants to know how she can prevent her kids from becoming spoiled brats.