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bean - here is a partial list of what I have spent on my 11/13 y.o.'s
1. $173 - field trip to NC mountain and SC beach later
2. $70 - spring dance dress (more for shoes)
3. Two special occasion dresses (1 for ceremony, 1 for evening party) - for 2 bat mitzvahs she attended last year
4. 4 pairs of sneakers (for both) per school year @ $25 each
5. $110 for a Texas Instrument graphing calculator for Algebra I
6. Your purchase of magazines, cookie dough, wrapping paper during fundraisers cuz your kid did not sell one and the class is not going to get an award if not everybody sells something (so you don't want your kid to be THAT one that prevents the class from getting the prize!)
7. $60 shin guards, membership to the YMCA, membership to Little League
8. Rental of violin ($60), trumpet, trombone, whatever...
9. Wii - $249
10. etc. etc.
The kicker...$3,100 for an after year end 15-day field trip to Greece/Italy/Spain with mandatory parent chaperone at $3,700 to include breakfasts/dinners...entirely optional but c'mon!
Your kids being the heirs of their grandparents....
This was last month's spending for our kids: P.S. - I do have four kids.
Pre-school snack: $20
Haircuts: $22 x 3
Art class: $60 x 3
My Gym class: $150 + $125
Horseback Riding: $240
Gymnastics: $109 x 2
Ballet & Jazz: $104
Birthday parties: $60 (3 gifts @ $20)
Doctor visits: $24 x 4
New shoes: $48 x 3
Groceries: $220 x 4
School lunch: $40 (they eat school lunch twice a week)
Gas: $68 x 4
School Tuition: $1,870 (two kids)
Do I add my $393 visit to the vet under kids??
Clothes don't add up to much because they wear uniforms and we pass from sister to sister. I only buy for my oldest about 3 times a year (and then special dresses for the others in between sometimes).
My kids are expensive but SO worth it. They will continue to do everything they desire until I can't afford it anymore! I hope I don't get lots of negative comments here!
Do you think things are more expensive now compare when your parent's were raising you and your siblings and compare to how much people make back then?
Do you think things are more expensive now compare when your parent's were raising you and your siblings and compare to how much people make back then?
i think back when i was little, we didnt have field trips out of state let alone out of the country. we didnt do more than 1 activity, and usually it was a town sport or something like that--with no traveling. i think things have gone on a bigger scale, and so have become more expensive
Do you think things are more expensive now compare when your parent's were raising you and your siblings and compare to how much people make back then?
I think there is just so much more "stuff" available. Cell phones, computers, shopping online, shopping at malls, shopping at outlets, every sport or musical class known to man is available, etc etc etc. Places such as Little Gym or Gymboree cost around $300 for 14 weeks. Summer camps are outrageous & are in the thousands of dollars. Summer camp for anything your child's heart desires.
Girls have manicure/pedicure bday parties. Boys go to lasertag bday parties.
There is just such an overabundance of things to buy or do in American society.
There is almost too much.
Cost of living these days is higher due to just having more things. How many families have 2 or more cars? Two or more tv's? Two or more computers? Two or more cell phones?
Growing up we had one car. Cell phones were not invented & the computer was just starting to be known in the techie world. We didn't have mega malls with every store imaginable b/c those stores just weren't started up yet.
And we made our own lunches the night before school starting in 1st grade Hot lunch at school was so primitive. Today it's like a McDonalds & Starbucks combined.
yes I grew up with no computer, well my first computer was when i was already in my mid teens. I bought my own cell phone only a few years ago. At home we had one tv, one small car, one record player, Cds didn't exist then, one piano. I can't remember when we got our first VCR and on tv we only had a 4 or 5 channels. plus my parents always got thing second hand or stuff that were given to them.
For us, the biggest expense was the loss of my income. It was important to us that I be home with the kids FT, so we were prepared for that loss in income.
Aside from that, little kids can cost you as little or as much as you want to spend.
Our three boys (7, 5 & 2) cost us in terms of activities (sports, music classes, etc.) and we like to do things with them, like this weekend we all went to the movies and out to lunch ($70) then Sunday we went to the Franklin Institute ($75 for family membership). Now, we could have just played outside and not spent anything, so that's why it's up to you.
As they get older, the expense absolutley goes up - they now know what they want in terms of clothes, electronics, etc., and that will cost you.
Our kids cost us, but again, it's because we want to buy them what we buy them - I know that we could do 3 kids much cheaper, but we're happy spending our money on them.
What gets me is when they talk about having kids and how expensive it is they always just seem to consider when they are little and in diapers. It was cheap when they were little compared to as they get older.
Once they get into to school it seems like a neverending supply of money going out of your wallet. Pta fees, fundraisers, fundraisers, fundraisers, money spent to buy supplies, book orders, baked goods for whatever special event going on, raffle tickets, instrument rental for band class, fundraisers for band (different from school fundraisers), special outfits for band concerts. School pictures, yearbook it goes on and on. Added costs for school projects for the diarama they just have to make. Birthday presents for all the little parties they get invited too. Gifts for teachers at Christmas and the end of the year. It goes on and on.
Sports aren't funded by schools anymore usually, so registration fees, fundraisers again, equipment, uniforms, spirit shirts for family(got to have your son's #). Pictures again.
Doctors visits, er visits(sports injuries)
Food don't even get me started on food, with three boys my fridge is always empty.
Then there is clothes, uniforms for school, and shoes. I will be so glad when summer gets here. I have a three month break from the weekly requests for money. Yippee.
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P.S. - I do have four kids.
I hope I don't get lots of negative comments here!
