The Price of Children

This is just too good not to pass on to all. Here is somethingabsolutely positive for a change. We've all repeatedly seen thebreakdown of the cost of raising a child, but this is the first time Ihave seen the rewards listed this way. It's nice.

The government recently calculated the cost of raising a child frombirth to 18 and came up with $160,140.00 for a middle income family.Talk about price shock! That doesn't even touch college tuition.

But $160,140.00 isn't so bad if you break it down.. It translates into:
* $8,896.66 a year,
* $741.38 a month,
* $171.08 a week.
* 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 $160,140.00?
* Naming rights. First, middle, and last!
* 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 and flying kites.
* Someone to laugh yourself silly with, no matter what the boss said orhow your stocks performed that day.

For $160,140.00, you never have to grow up. You get to:
* finger-paint,
* carve pumpkins,
* play hide-and-seek,
* catch lightning bugs,
* never stop believing in Santa Claus.

You have an excuse to:
* keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
* watch Saturday morning cartoons,
* go to Disney movies, and
* wish on stars.

You get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigeratormagnets and collect spray painted noodlewreaths for Christmas, handprints set in clay for Mother's Day, and cards with backward letters forFather's Day.

For a mere $24.24 a day, there is no greater bang for your buck. You getto 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 regardless.

You get a front row seat in history to witness the:
* First step,
* First word,
* First date,
* First time behind the wheel.

You get to be immortal. You get another branch added to your familytree, and if you're lucky, a long list of limbs in your obituary calledgrandchildren and great-grandchildren. You get an education inpsychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications, and humansexuality that no college can match...

In the eyes of a child, you rank right up there under God. You have allthe 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 withoutcounting the cost. That is quite a deal for the price!!!!!!!

Love & enjoy your children & grandchildren & great-grandchildren!!!!!!!It's the best investment you'll ever make!!!!!!!!!