Someone sent this to me via e-mail this morning and I thought I'd post it. Read it and you'll know what I mean!
This is something absolutely positive for a change. Repeatedly, we have seen the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time the rewards listed in such a nice manner.
It was recently calculated that the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 came up to $160,140 for a middle income family. That doesn't even touch college tuition.
But $160,140 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:
* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month, or
* $171.08 a week.
* That's a mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.
Still, you might think the best financial advice is don't have children if you want to be "rich." Actually, it is just the opposite. What do you get for your $160,140?
* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles under the covers every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold, usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.
For $160,140, you never have to grow up. You get to:
* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs, and
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.
You have an excuse to:
* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watching Saturday morning cartoons,
* going to Disney movies, and
* wishing on stars.
* You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay or Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.
For $160,140, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for:
* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* re moving a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.
You get a front row seat to history to witness the:
* first step,
* first word,
* first bra (female) ,
* first date, and
* first time behind the wheel.
You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great grandchildren. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match.
In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, So, one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!
Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren!!!!!!! They are certainly worth every penny!
The Price of Children
This is something absolutely positive for a change. Repeatedly, we have seen the breakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time the rewards listed in such a nice manner.
It was recently calculated that the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 came up to $160,140 for a middle income family. That doesn't even touch college tuition.
But $160,140 isn't so bad if you break it down. It translates into:
* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month, or
* $171.08 a week.
* That's a mere $24.24 a day!
* Just over a dollar an hour.
Still, you might think the best financial advice is don't have children if you want to be "rich." Actually, it is just the opposite. What do you get for your $160,140?
* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* Glimpses of God every day.
* Giggles under the covers every night.
* More love than your heart can hold.
* Butterfly kisses and Velcro hugs.
* Endless wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
* A hand to hold, usually covered with jelly or chocolate.
* A partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said or how your stocks performed that day.
For $160,140, you never have to grow up. You get to:
* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs, and
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.
You have an excuse to:
* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watching Saturday morning cartoons,
* going to Disney movies, and
* wishing on stars.
* You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets and collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas, hand prints set in clay or Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters for Father's Day.
For $160,140, there is no greater bang for your buck. You get to be a hero just for:
* retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
* taking the training wheels off a bike,
* re moving a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs, and coaching a baseball team that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream regardless.
You get a front row seat to history to witness the:
* first step,
* first word,
* first bra (female) ,
* first date, and
* first time behind the wheel.
You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren and great grandchildren. You get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and human sexuality that no college can match.
In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have all the power to heal a boo-boo, scare away the monsters under the bed, patch a broken heart, police a slumber party, ground them forever, and love them without limits, So, one day they will, like you, love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!
Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren!!!!!!! They are certainly worth every penny!
10 comments:
Really costly to raise children now. I wonder how my parents can do it with their bare hands to raise all 8 children. Sometimes really kudos to them :)
I'm already feeling the tightness with just 2. *Sob* *Sob*.
I hope I could get something out of blogging which has become my part-time "job"... However, it is still a LONGggggggggg way for me sigh....
Hello Adrian, that's a really sweet banner, very Enid Blyton like! I'm gonna miss seeing Homer here though!
I got a version similar to this in my email at work a couple of months aga. I was the sweetest thing!!
Janice, Things didn't cost so much then but it's still a wonder to raise eight kids, no matter what!! :) You can say that again about the cost but looking at my post at least you know that your money is well spent LOL
I hope your part-time "job" pays off big time because you have a delightful blog!! :)
Diadmondssaphire, Yeah the second I saw it I just had to post it to share with everyone becuase it's such a great way to look at the cost of raising children! :)
Hello Marzie, Homer will always be there as my avatar LOL
Enid Blyton, I haven't read one of her books in ages. My favs were the Secret Seven & The famous Five. Such fond memories of my childhood because I used to love to read! I still do! :) I must make sure my daughter reads some of these books at least as she grows up! :):):)
Adrian! I loved Famous Five too, couldn't get enough of them and was always imagining myself solving all the mysteries. Caravan, camping, coves, secret passages... LOL! :)
A bank advertisement in my country claimed that raising a child from baby to 21 need HK$4,000,000 = US$512,820
Kin! OUCH! That's a lot of moolah! :) But it'll certainly be worth it no matter what the cost because there is no price too high to pay for a life you created! :)
Marzie, Ditto for me! :)
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