This Baby Lark, Looks Expencive!!!!

Gludy

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I am sorry to have to tell you, having had 4 kids, that they are not just expensive, they are very expensive in terms of cash, sleep and interference with lifestyle ... no matter who says what to you, you will not even begin to understand until a few months after the birth ...... you will not beleive it!!! promise!
 
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We have a two year old boy and a ten month old daughter and I think they are miles out (£750 for a pram! What the hell is it, carbon fibre, antilock disc brakes and Kenwood CD player as standard!?). Seriously don't worry we got given loads of stuff from friends and family and found we could easily do without most of the gimmicky stuff that is advertised, anyway you will be so knackered and grumpy you will save a fortune by having a non-existent social life!

Belated congratulations, it is the best thing that has happened to me and am sure it will be for you too.

Russell.
 

itsonlymoney

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I think some of the prices in that article are a bit high, it really depends what you need ie. baby care cost is irelevent if your Mrs is not going back to work straight aaway. At the end of the day however the answer has to be YES they are bloody expensive.
Ian
 

gonfishing

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I must agree with you Paul, and it's worse for me with 4 girls!!!
However Alistair don't bother with all the lessons and books, it's all a load of tosh and physcobable anyway, as has obviously happened in the past just let nature continue to take it's course.

Good Luck and Congrats!!
 

jfm

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Alistair, belated congratulations to you and pole-dancer Kirsty on your baby-in-production. (Sorry, only just saw your other post, was away last w/end).

Yup it is expensive. Actually I think the expense ramps up smoothly over a 20yr ++ period. Initially buying a carbon fibre pram seems spensive. but later on you get invoices for school trip to Venezuela, then flats and cars. I'm expecting invoice for a nice 2x200hp RIBeye "starter boat" any day soon.....

Fortunately, no matter how high your income, you get about £8/week child allowance to help defray all this cost :) And a massive £150 trust fund or summink that they can cash in for about £300 when they're 18 (all of which you will have paid for many times over, including the admin cost of these fruitcake schemes, out of your personal taxes. Yes, you pay £300 in tax, and the state gives your child £150 back. The other £150 is spent on the staff and office for the department that takes the £300 and gives back the £150. Good this, innit?) /forums/images/graemlins/confused.gif
 

sailbadthesinner

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mm its not that bad
the maternity clothes thing is not a problem
under human rights law she can now wear a jilbab anywhere and noone can do anything. so dye a few old sheets black and bob's your mother's brother instant adjustable maternity wear

prams
loads down the car boot
my old go-kart may still be in the cellars at liverpool
you could soon knock it up into a pram again

nappies
apparently sphagnum moss is a suitable alternative
youn do need a license to harvest it i think these days tho

food
it is probably best to stop breast feeding before the child can help itself. best to tell them to look hungry whenever you send them round to friends houses

schooling
i am sure armed with encarta and me old school books i could educate my child
duckworths latin verbs, beggs economics and me trusty rock formations of europe
leave the birds and the bees to mother and bang you are away
admittedly games will be bit lacking have to stick to french cricket i fear.

clothing
plenty of scope on that front from friends and relatives with older kids
the only rule with hand me downs is if you are going to dress them in second hand and least make sure the clothes are the correct sex
i'll never forget my mother packing that pinafore dress for me on cub camp.

pocket money
best to follow them round the last bit of their paper round so you can chinese burn them and make sure they give you some before they spend all their wages on sherbert dib dabs.

there you go
i reckon you could get through to 18 on twenty quid a year
 

jerryat

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Entirely agree! When I look back on what our two sons have cost us over the years, I shudder. I could have retired and gone cruising literally years earlier. They're grown up now thank goodness, but still seem to 'need' the occasional input, both financial and emotional too!!

There must be an up side ..... please, someone tell me what it is ..........!!!! /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

Cheers Jery
 

Alistairr

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Thanks jfm,

Blimey, this does sound good!!!!

On the up side, i bet you are secretly looking forward to your son, bringing an invoice to you for a Ribeye, New toy to play with. /forums/images/graemlins/wink.gif

At the moment there is a lot of talk on the news about goverment hand outs to new parents, but i suppose when it comes down to it, it ain't worse a sodden thing is it.

Also on the subject of Payouts,

Does anyone know if My wife, who has been Self Employed for the last 4Years and paid all her taxes and NI, will be elegable to any Maternity pay from the Country??

Thanks all for the Tips, although it sounds expensive, you DO all make it sound good fun, Thanks.

Cheers

Alistair.
 

Peppermint

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Re: Your bolt is shot mate.

You'll be told how rewarding having children is. Oh Yeah!

They reckon to get one to leaving college costs 250k plus. My two think thats a bit light.

If your lucky and they stay talking to you they'll tell you all the things that you don't want to know and nothing thats a comfort. I haven't found out what the reward is yet. If it's pride in their achievements well that seems a bit weak and anyway they rarely achieve anything without it costing you big time.

Prepare to be poor, worried and to wake up on morning wondering where your life went.
 

jhr

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They interviewed the Editor of "Pregnancy and Birth" Magazine on the Today programme this morning. She conceded that their costings had mostly been done on the assumption that people would be paying top dollar and buying new, which isn't necessarily the case, in reality (particularly in the jhr household...). She also conceded that some of the purchases were one-offs (so that, for example, you don't buy a new cot for each child) and that if you or SWMBO were to stay at home to look after your child, you could knock £30k off the £50k bill that you'd otherwise incur by the time your child was 5 years old.

Having said all of these comforting words, however, it is a sad fact that, as with boat ownership, if you have to ask how much it costs to have a child, you can't afford it. Bonne chance!/forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
 
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