Hellobee Boards

@Smurfette: Yep, one-tome $25 co-pay....the L&D cost is no longer a factor, lol (although things like vacations and college educations still are )

@MrsTiz: That's like saying it's silly to save for retirement because I could die before I retire. One's current financial situation is the best predictor of what his/her financial situation will be in the future. Sure, some people will get laid off and others will get huge raises. But those people are few and far between. Most people will get raises in line with inflation and therefore won't see much of a difference in take home pay. I don't think it's silly at all to make decisions re: family size based on one's current financial situation. If anything, I think that's the most responsible thing you can do for yourself and your family.

Not very. I'm not going to have 10 kids or anything, probably just 3 or 4 but we will always make it work. I put myself through college (until I dropped out ) and so did DH. We're not rich by any means but we're also not poor. We are financially stable and could always provide for our children. They may not have a 4 year Harvard fund or get a new car bought by us when they turn 16 but those things aren't important to me. We will save what we can to help out for their college and I'm confident we will save a good amount but I'm not concerned about paying for it completely. I learned a lot and appreciated it much more that I paid for college myself.

If we were seriously struggling of course that would be an important factor, but we are thriving even with T and have a bright future ahead.

Finances are not our chief deciding factor because we (right now) don’t want more than 1. But, of course finances should be a heavy consideration when deciding to have more children. As a parent, my first and biggest responsibility is to provide the best life I can for the children I *have* – that doesn’t mean I have to (or even intend to) pay for college in full, a wedding, cars, material items but it does mean that my main responsibility is to ensure I can adequately and comfortably afford the children I already have before adding more.

@Lawbee11: totally agree.

@MrsTiz: I understand what you mean and agree.

@Danizaur: Just curious, did you drop out because you didn't feel like it was the right track for you or because of the financial burden? As an outsider it seems to me that you didn't really appreciate the college education if you chose not to complete it.

@MrsTiz: I think a lot of people don't consider the cost of higher education at all when deciding family plans, or they just brush it off as an option and not a necessity. To me, at least a bachelor's degree seems like a necessity in the work-force now if you want a high-ish paying job. In 18 years it'll be even more of a necessity. I met with a financial advisor a couple of weeks ago and he told me that if we put $200/month into a 529 starting now, we might have enough to pay 2 years of tuition (at a public university) and living expenses for our LO. That is insane. How can I expect her to pay her way through college when it's going to take me 18 years and even then I may not even be able to pay all of it? I get that not everyone can afford to send their kids to college, but as someone that's feeling the pain of student loans, I wish my parents had planned ahead a little better.

important, but not the be-all end all. we want 3 and hopefully will have 3. finances come into play for our timing for RIGHT now not TTC #2 just yet, but won't be a factor in our long term family plan. i understand the reasons for wanting to be financially stable and not bring on more than you can handle and i respect people's choice to do so. i do err on the side of financial frugality, and want to save for my and my children's futures, but i won't let my lack of being able to save for their entire college fund be a reason not to have the number of children i want.

It's very much a consideration for us. Neither DH nor I make very much money, and despite being responsible with what we have, we can't afford another kid in daycare. I have no idea when we will be able to. Sure, maybe you don't *have* to spend lots on your kids, but daycare is a pretty basic need, and we can't meet it right now, hence we aren't having another one until we can.

We are stopping at 2 for other reasons.

I would never hold it against my parents for not paying my entire college education, or even if they could pay part. I want them to focus on their retirements. Yeah, my student loans blow, but that's not their fault.

@sorrycharlie: completely agree.

We are also stopping at two but not for financial reasons, just because that's all the kids we want. We were not (and still are not) in the best financial situation as in, we can't afford luxeries or vacations but our kids are fed, have clothes, toys and all other needs plus some. We are not saving for either kids college, I paid my way and they will too. We need to focus on our own future. We will always help our kids when we can but paying for college likely won't be one of them.

Not very important. We want between 3-6 children - huge range, I know! - and we want to keep them fed, clothed, healthy, and help out with college expenses down the line (but certainly not pay for everything).

I'm lucky to be in a casual work situation where we do not pay for child care and I still make about 60% of my pre-baby income working on projects from home during naps and nights. As more kids join our family, I could see that work load potentially getting harder to maintain, but women have been working their bums off for centuries to get their families by - in the grand scheme, my lost sleep is not a big deal.

I'm also 26, so it's hard for me to imagine being done anytime soon. We have one, and another on the way. I've always loved the idea of a big family, and I feel like I'd be much more likely to regret not having more children at the end of my life than not having more money.

Not a huge factor. Were saving aggressively for retirement, live frugally, and can afford to have more. We've lived off one salary since we were married and now I SAH and earn a small amount that I'm hoping to grow from my blog.

We absolutely will not pay for their college should they choose to go- well help partially and conditionally just like both of our parents did for us. I know more kids that dropped out or goofed off bc they had zero financial investment in their classes. I feel strongly that a part of our financial responsibility stems from working jobs in high school and saving up for college (and working there too). So from that aspect it's not a huge factor-we are saving now should he and any other future LOs choose to go. I have my ba and mpa debt free and DH has his bs and CFA debt free.

We'd like to have two bio and two adopted. Good thing we live in the Midwest otherwise id probably change my tune

@lawbee11: I wouldn't be surprised if a Ba becomes less relevant actually, with more people opting out due to raising costs. I'm glad I went and graduated but wouldn't be surprised if the tides turned.

It's a consideration in that we probably won't have 3 anymore, but not so much to stop us from having 2.

It's important for us to take family vacations, have LOs in extra curriculars, and pay for university (though it's nowhere near the cost here in Canada that it is in the USA)

@Danizaur: fair enough. I can understand not wanting throw money at something if you feel like it's not taking you where you want to go.

@keepcalmcarrie: This! Totally agree.

We want 3 children and we will be able to afford them, but will not be paying for full college tuition, new cars etc. My parents helped pay about half of my college, bought me a used car, and are willing to help my sister and I if we have serious things come up. I know not everyone is close with their siblings, but I think I'd much rather have my sister and our relationship, than have my parents pay for everything and go on extravagent vacations growing up. Thats just my personal experience.

We're lucky in that we have family who loves helping out (certainly did not expect or ask my mom to watch LO full time. I wanted to pay her and she will not take any money), so we won't have outrageous childcare costs. Things may be a little tight when the kids are small, but that's such a short time in the grand scheme of things. I envision my family 10-15 years from now when I think of family plans. Thankfully, DH works for the state and has a great retirement plan, etc.

To me, it is a big factor, but not everything. If we had no worries about money, we would probably have four and a full time nanny If we really wanted to be sure we could pay every cent of college we'll stop at two, but we might go for three anyways!

We plan on saving $200/per kid/per month and I know that won't cover everything... @lawbee11: 2 years... that's terrifying! Hopefully our families will help us with the cost as well. We may be taking out loans for our kid's college at some point. But, my great grandparents paid my grandparents college, my grandparents, paid my parents, my parents paid mine, and I want to do the same.

I have to admit I do judge parents that don't seem to factor money in AT ALL...

It's a factor but not the #1 reason we would stop. I don't expect that I will pay 100% of my children's college tuition. It's just not something I feel I have to provide. Sure, I would love to help if I'm in the situation where I can, but I would rather fund my retirement and take family trips and build memories. Those are my priorities and I feel like 2-3 (leaning more 3) kids will complete our family.