good baby gadgets image
JD
before there were bouncy chairs and swings and all the other hundreds of devices designed to calm the crying baby. What did people do when their babies got upset? Did they let them cry all day or hold them all day? Any thoughts?
Answer
For the working class, babies were carried, usually in some kind of sling. Wealthy people had nannies or nurses who cared for their babies.
A paper was published recently that points out that when infants were carried more, they grew up to be empathetic and caring, and that parents wold do well to emulate (very) old style parenting.
We seem to live in an age when many parents want to handle their babies as little as possible. Instead of being carried from place to place, they are carried in infant seats. There are bouncers and swings, gadgets to prop bottles, and chairs in which to prop babies so they can sit with assistance but no one has to hold them. Perhaps less developed cultures had the right idea.
For the working class, babies were carried, usually in some kind of sling. Wealthy people had nannies or nurses who cared for their babies.
A paper was published recently that points out that when infants were carried more, they grew up to be empathetic and caring, and that parents wold do well to emulate (very) old style parenting.
We seem to live in an age when many parents want to handle their babies as little as possible. Instead of being carried from place to place, they are carried in infant seats. There are bouncers and swings, gadgets to prop bottles, and chairs in which to prop babies so they can sit with assistance but no one has to hold them. Perhaps less developed cultures had the right idea.
How much a month does the average person spend on a new baby?
xoxo_Mrs.N
My husband and I want to have a baby soon. I was wondering how to financially prepare for our new addition.
Answer
There is no 'average' because everyone is different, and expenses vary from month to month.
Do you have health insurance to cover pregnancy and well-baby care?
Will you be breastfeeding or formula feeding? Cloth diapers or disposible? Crib or col-sleep?
Will you be returning/going to work or staying home. (If you return to work you have to caluculate the cost of daycare. If you're staying home, there are lost-wages to be factored in. Also, are you calculating in the tax benefits? (If you're in the U.S. you get a tax deduction for each family member plus an addition tax-credit for each child. If you're low income there is also the Earned Income Credit.)
Do you plan to buy every baby gadget on the market, and buy all new clothes and furniture, or are you happy with garage sales and K-Mart, and just the necessities?
Are you eligible for WIC? Do you plan on using it?
If you will be breastfeeding, using cloth diapers, and have good health insurance, the costs in the early months, once you buy the basic durable goods (clothes/furniture/car-seat/etc.) are really negligible.
EDIT: puzzled by the thumbs downs, and chuckles at Alycia's assertion that you 'need' a swing, bouncy chair AND exersaucer. They may be pleasant options if youy can afford them and have the space, but none are necessary.
There is no 'average' because everyone is different, and expenses vary from month to month.
Do you have health insurance to cover pregnancy and well-baby care?
Will you be breastfeeding or formula feeding? Cloth diapers or disposible? Crib or col-sleep?
Will you be returning/going to work or staying home. (If you return to work you have to caluculate the cost of daycare. If you're staying home, there are lost-wages to be factored in. Also, are you calculating in the tax benefits? (If you're in the U.S. you get a tax deduction for each family member plus an addition tax-credit for each child. If you're low income there is also the Earned Income Credit.)
Do you plan to buy every baby gadget on the market, and buy all new clothes and furniture, or are you happy with garage sales and K-Mart, and just the necessities?
Are you eligible for WIC? Do you plan on using it?
If you will be breastfeeding, using cloth diapers, and have good health insurance, the costs in the early months, once you buy the basic durable goods (clothes/furniture/car-seat/etc.) are really negligible.
EDIT: puzzled by the thumbs downs, and chuckles at Alycia's assertion that you 'need' a swing, bouncy chair AND exersaucer. They may be pleasant options if youy can afford them and have the space, but none are necessary.
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