It Costs How Much To Raise a Kid?

It's 2017 and the world has come a long way.  Gone are the days of 5 cent stamps and 50 cent movies.  Prices have risen on everything, including having kids.  This is why I only have 2 kids.

According to the Department of Agriculture, the cost of raising a kid from birth to age 17 is a whopping $233,610.  That's a lot of clams!  If you break it down, that equates to almost $14,000 a year.

Now before you stop ordering cheese on your Whopper, understand that this number includes housing the child.  Not that it makes it easier to swallow, but at least it helps it make a little more sense.

Anyone with children knows that the costs for healthcare, food, and activities is enough to make you take out a second mortgage.  Whether it's baseball, hockey, dance, or cub scouts, the registrations add up.  Video games have not made it any easier.  I think we have over $5K invested in Skylanders alone!

Point is, kids are not cheap.  The love you give them is free, but everything else you pay for.  Knowing these facts, I don't understand how 19 Kids and Counting is even a thing!  Forget the logistics of doing that to your body, but the cost of that many kids is outrageous.  If you can fill a football team you have too many.

Now some may disagree with that statement, but unless your pockets are deep...and I mean like Terry Pegula deep, you probably can't afford having a football team.  That's a lot of Mac and Cheese and Popsicles to dish out on a nightly basis.  The candy bill alone would bankrupt you!

In the end, do what you want but just make sure you can take care of all of these kids without having a reality show.  Kids are an amazing part of life and having them is truly an honor.  Enjoy them, and try not to think about your bank account.