From Diapers to Doctors: The Unexpected Expenses of Parenthood

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Ah, kids. They bring so much joy, love, and… financial ruin? That’s right, folks. While we often talk about the emotional and time commitments that come with having children, we don’t always discuss the financial implications. And this should be of no surprise to you, but the cost of raising kids can be a bit…much. Especially when you winged it like us 😉

First, there’s the obvious expenses when they were babies, like diapers, formula, and clothes. Of course I didn’t think that babies can go through up to 12 diapers a day! That’s like, a diaper change every time they blink. And let’s not forget about the baby clothes that they’ll outgrow in a matter of weeks. There’s some of the hardware that lasts longer – cribs, strollers, changing table etc. But the day to day, adds up!

But wait, that was just the obvious. The real financial fun begins when your kids get older. Coco# is 9 now, and Coco#2 is 6. There are the extracurricular activities, which can include everything from karate to basketball to underwater basket weaving (okay, maybe not that last one). And those activities come with a nifty price tag. Athletics classes, for example, can cost close to $200 per month. That’s not including the cost of shoes and spikes that he blazes through, competitions etc. “But I like to run Mummy” vs “Why can’t you just run around the block, again and again?” is a constant debate over here. Don’t even get me started on the cost of something as simple as his Scouts activities – “I’d like to collect more badges Mummy, so I need to get the Swim certifications etc etc etc”.

Tuition classes for subjects in school? Nah, we figured school would be enough. Guess we completely overlooked the part where neither of us speak / read / write Mandarin and that would be their mother tongue??!! Well done Mama and Papa Coconut, well done! We got by pretty alright the first few years of school but at this point, they desperately need help. I found a in-person tuition teacher and holey-moley-guacamole, goodbye thick wads of cash, it’s been nice knowing you.

A peculiar scene in the SC house that’s becoming quite the norm these days…

Oh, then there’s the food. Kids are like bottomless pits when it comes to eating. They’ll go through an insane amount of food in a day and snack like it’s their sole purpose in life. I hear “Mummy, I’m hungry” more often than any other phrase. Thank goodness I realised early on that the cost of feeding them healthy, organic, non-GMO, gluten-free, peanut-free, soy-free, dairy-free, taste-free food would take us straight to the streets. Sometimes, you can’t help but wonder – are hot dogs every night really that bad?

Of course, there’s also the unexpected costs that come with raising kids. Like the time my son decided to execute a poorly timed “tornado jump” off the sofa and ended up flat on his mouth with a gash on his inner lip. That unexpected trip to the Accident & Emergency was a fun little surprise on the old credit card. That, though, was nothing, absolutely nothing, compared to the looks of recognition from the nurses and doctors that were shot my way. Guess they were yet to forget that just a few weeks prior, I’d come in with the other son who had a gash on the back of his head from deciding to go all ninja warrior in the playground. These kids are going to land me in jail soon for what is incorrectly coming across as reckless parenting!

Birthday Parties? I can’t even go down this path. It brings me physical, emotional and financial trauma to think of what we need to do, each year for each kid. This is good money that could go straight into my counselling sessions for the earlier bits of built-up requirements from having kids!

Generally what each birthday looks like at the SC Home

But despite all the financial challenges of raising kids, we wouldn’t trade them for the world (right? Right, of course). Because let’s face it, the joy and love they bring to our lives every single day is priceless. And if we’re lucky, maybe one day they’ll pay us back for all those classes with a fancy beachfront retirement home. A parent can dream, right? Right 🙂

(This blog was written on a particularly fun morning, tongue in cheek, and totally with the sole intention of letting Coco#1 read it when he’s back from school and hear his endless giggles. Some things in life, are priceless and worth the world!)

Author: Ms.K

Ms.K is everything that Mr.C is, without the natural interest in investing and company financials! The activity planner for the family, the driver of random ideas and soon to be ‘retiring’ in to full time motherhood – Ms.K has no idea what she’s in for but remains super excited!
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