The Joys of Parenting

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.

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!

* 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 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 that never wins but always gets treated to ice cream or pizza regardless.


You get a front row seat to history, to witness the:

* first step,

* first word,

* 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, 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!!!!!!!

It's Been A While...

But, Things are good. For now at least. Donn got his job back at UPS, which is AWESOME. They're even willing to pay for him to go to college. It's so exciting! THings might actually look up for us for once. But of course it's always 2 steps back. I don't get it. it's like you work hard for what you have, just to die in the end anyway and all those things that you work for go to someone else. Must be nice to be Paris Hilton. To have the money handed to you so you never have to struggle in life. What a bitch.

Adrian has started solids now. It's funny, he gobbles it right up. At first he tried to blow bubbles with it, but now he eats like hes done it his entire life. Guess he was more than ready to start solids. Too bad i was supposed to wait until his 6 month checkup to start him on solids lol. Ever since I started working though, i've been having problems with milk supply. so 4-5 times a day he gets to be breastfed, and the rest i have to formula feed just because i'm not producing enough milkies for him anymore. it makes me sad :-(

here's his 5 month pictures... isn't he a cutie??? oh, i love being a mom. :-P just like on the turbo tax commercials... isnt my little tax deduction cute? just kidding... but he sure is a cutie.