to ask why having kids is expensive?

[HodgePodge23]

What do you need to buy them apart from toys, food, clothes and a few other bits and bobs here and there? I have an 8 month old so maybe things will get more expensive with time, but I really don't understand why people say having children is expensive. What are people spending their money on?

Supervet- the OP said she is planning to Home educate. I can only assume she earned nothing prior to having a baby, and has also been living in a bubble where she can't contemplate that other people do have high earning careers, and either adjust to loss of income or enormous childcare bills once they have children. It seems a very odd question to be raising and makes her seem worryingly naive.

I have To buy the whole uniform from the school, I wince every time I need to go in

Yeah, but the question was why are children supposed to be expensive. The answer is they can be but they don't have to be, whereas people are saying wait until you are buying £100 jeans and repairing things they are smashing up. Crazy.

Ego

Exactly, I wnet rogue this year and got his trousers from tesco!

I know I would have more money but my life would be poorer in other ways, I wouldn't change a thing

Except perhaps the purchasing of lurid green hyper venoms

I don't know what full time money is as presumably those of us working full time might earn from £13k to £500k+ and one poster said last week she was on £1m a year. however giving up work usually does have an impact on earnings. It might also mean your daughters earn yes as the example they are modelled at home is women serve and men work and earn and keep women. In a sense it can cause generational destruction in terms of earnings and prospects for women.

Ego

Do you remember the days of long lies, wandering around the shops ( not toys r us), wine in the afternoon, nice food, no mcds, mine craft, stampylonghea, being able to read a full newspaper without muuummmmmmm, fridge stacked with wine, nice cheese.....sigh

I have not worked for ten years. even factoring in that I may h ave chosen to work part time... I have lost about 120k.

clothes, even charity/bargain soon add up.
shoes. at 35-40 pounds a time to fit her orthotics..three pairs per year.
toys.
food
school stuff...(they are bombarded with adverts for school events and want togo to at least some of them)

they break things. they are small and have yet to learn the laws of physics (with respect to swinging off curtains) they also fall and bump into things.

window locks are pretty expensive.

loo roll. lots of loo roll. which I guess is cheaper than the nappies and wipes.

washing detergent. running the washing machine. everyday.

muff- I have already said I work 10 hours a week, for £18K.

So does that mean my kids are costing me £42K a year because I could be working full time?

I don't see it like that.
I wouldn't be doing what I do if I didn't have kids, I would be in my old career earning £24K or so.

I know this thread is 18 pages long now so the OP is probably terrified enough, but a few months ago I paid for my daughter's extra curricular activity (150) and paid for her bite plate at orthodontist. That was e1,000, gone, on one child in the space of about a week!

I have certainly found it has got more expensive.. My Ds was unaware of latest films so we would wait till it was out on cinema club..He was happy with a new DS game now he wants a specific one.

My 8 year old seems to eat as much as me. School shoes cost a forrtune, he has music lessons.swimming lessons, cubs..

As for comments on HE ..I was thinking the other day while we are having a lovely holiday it is far more expensive with him at home..

The extra heating..I might sit with a blanket wrapped round me in the evening rather than putting the fire on in winter..Would not expect my DS to do the same. Going on holiday as a LP I end up paying for 2 adults.

My Ds has a "style" now so won't wear any old clothes. We do have some second hand clothes and buy stuff in the sales but sometimes they just need clothes and shoes

Some children are more expensive than others because they have greater care needs or need more specialist equipment. Sometimes it does have to be expensive.

YANBU.There are a lot of parents that raise children on very low incomes.

I agree with the others - ask again in 11 years! It seems starting secondary is astonishingly expensive.

My daughter is just starting at her state secondary, and that has been an eye watering experience.

New school uniform + pe kit + other items dictated by the school (calculator, stationery etc...) - £300+

Bus pass for getting her to said school - £600 per year.

School trip that "All" year sevens go on in the second week of term - £170

That's not even including the optional extras of music lessons (£450 a year for a shared lesson), and all the optional trips and residentials.

However, the one I dread is her feet growing. My DD is very sporty (does a lot of sport outside of school) and having just bust her foot whilst playing netball last week, I was told that her general pe trainers are not good enough and she now needs proper netball shoes. That's another £40 spent.

At the moment, my daughter has got;
Netball trainers
Cross country trainers
General pe trainers
Hockey boots
School shoes
Summer sandals
Out of school shoes / trainers

When you consider the average price for her shoes are £30 - £40 (narrow foot, cheap shoes rarely fit!) it is very expensive... And they need replacing every few months when her feet grow!

But as a baby she was cheap as chips - breast fed, cloth nappies, hand me down clothes and free childcare from my mother. Shame they don't stay that way .

I sympathise about the shoes.

DD has 113 pairs of shoes, including 8 pairs of shoes for dancing ( her last pair of dance shoes cost £89!!)

I worked many years full time but for the past couple of years prior to having my baby I was part time (6 hours). So I haven't noticed much of a change in income at all. I worked just so I had something to do every week but now I have a baby he is my "something to do."

I never really saw loss of earnings as being an expense of having a child. Although I totally get where others are coming from who see it that way.

Hypothetically speaking, if you or your partner earned enough to keep you going (e.i. enough to live but you wouldn't have all the luxuries), would the other stay at home? Some people come across as placing too much importance on money. I'd take less luxuries over not bring able to be with my kids all the time anyday.

I guess this gets into a whole different kettle of fish but childcare doesn't sit right with me. It's totally fine for those who have no other options, but it seems as if some people work when they could cope otherwise. I'm not particularly materialistic so that's why I see it that way.

Hey ho, different strokes for different folks. And yes, I know I'm lucky that I don't have to work. But I am in no way rich, quite the opposite.

Sanctimonious, much?

Way to take a pop at working mothers and cast yourself as the sainted mummy martyr.