[Roy Fokker]

Posted by a friend. Thought I'd share:

The Price of Children



The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child from birth to 18 and came up with $160,140 for a middle income family. Talk about sticker shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition and a car.

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! Nicknames, too!
* 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.
*Someone waiting for you with a beaming smile ear to ear when you walk through the door after a hard day's
work. You immediately think to yourself, "Wow, nobody is ever that happy to see me."

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. (Don't forget the Tooth Fairy, too).

You have an excuse to:

* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watching Saturday morning cartoons,
*pretend you're a Power Ranger, play pirates and sword fights
*have tea parties every day
* 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, handprints set in clay for 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,
* removing a splinter,
* filling a wading pool,
* coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs,

And coaching a baseball team thatnever 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 piano recital
* first bra,
* 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, 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, like you, will love without counting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

$160,140.00...so that's where all my money went!

cheers,

[VivaLasViejas]

I love it, Roy!! Thank you for sharing!!

[cheerfuldoer]

Awwwww....that's precious! I'm going to share it with my daughters. Thanks Roy! One day, you'll have kiddos of your own. Not too soon though...cause it DOES cost a LOT!

[tnbutterfly]

Thanks for sharing that, Roy. I think it's the best investment I've made...and am still making. Both of my kids will graduate this summer and I am so proud of them. They have turned in to wonderful adults. I can't take the credit for that.......God played a BIG role.

[swartzrn]

Awww--this is wonderful! Thank you for sharing this!

[CseMgr1]

I'm going to send this to my son, who has three kids.

I can already hear the thud, as he falls out of his chair and onto the floor....