[turbo6bar]

For monthly investments, mutual funds are certainly attractive. A no-load mutual fund won't charge fees to buy. You will pay some taxes at the end of the year. That's the downside with mutual funds--they can be inefficient with taxes.

I would say an 8-10% return is conservative, which means your investment doubles every ~7-9 years. In 18-20 years, your son will have a nice sum to help with education or other needs.

The Utah college savings plan does look nice.