Should Having A Child Alter Your Spending Habits? This Dad Explains

It’s March, it’s budget time – not just for nations and countries, but for families and households too.  Depending on raises they get at work, on what the FM has deemed to warrant more taxes, and what is suddenly more expensive than it ever used to be – parents and families will be making their plans for the year ahead.

Is that holiday too expensive now?  Should we buy that TV? What about new toys for the kids?  Are there things that are more pressing that we should worry about and spend on instead – what about schools, saving for the future… blah… blah… blah

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I guess these would be some of the thoughts crossing through every parents’ mind.  They definitely have crossed ours and these are often topics we will discuss. As responsible parents or as anyone who was brought up in a household where you were taught the value of money and the importance of saving from a very early age, such thoughts should not be surprising.  But then, if you grew up in such a society, it was also very likely that when your child was born, people were quick to tell you – “Oh, now that you’re parents, you are going to incur a lot more expenses… there’s a lot more pressure on your income… you’re going to have to save a lot more going forward…. Haaawww, schools are so expensive…”

And so, if you were worried before, you’re worried even more now.  You wonder if having a child is going to change your life in more ways than one… well, duh!  You wonder if those late nights are not going to happen any more… well, of course they are, but just of a different kind.  And you wonder if you’re going to have to cut back on all those fancy (read: unnecessary) things you bought or always wanted to buy… well, yes, maybe.  But that’s not such a bad thing anyway, right? After all stashing away some dough for something useful in the future rather than spending it on say… that wine opener… or the fifth pair of shades that you think suit your face better… is probably quite sensible.  So, thank you baby.

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But all kidding aside, having a child does make you alter your spending habits, whether naturally or by choice.  I mean, really, what are you going to do – leave the kid at home all by himself and go to the movies… or to watch that play?  No chance right… there you go… £200 saved already! And we can’t just on the spur of the moment decide that… Ahh… it’s a nice weekend, let’s fly off to Paris or Amsterdam or wherever.  No, that just doesn’t happen…. Another £500 saved?  Maybe more!

Before Kian was born, Kathleen and I ate out a fair bit.  As self-professed foodies, it was natural that we wanted to try out everything London had to offer, and so our dining bills ranked high up on our list of expenses.  As a newly wedded couple, with not much else to do, travel ranked high on our list of things as well… not much into shopping or the arts, our expenses were otherwise limited.  Nonetheless, once Kian was born, travel automatically became difficult, as did eating out. Those expenses were instead diverted towards nappies, cribs, toys and baby clothes… maybe not to that extent, but you get the point.

We weren’t extravagant in our expenses, to begin with, but with a new kid at home, they were definitely tempered further.  We didn’t make a rational choice or decision that once we had a child, we would stop eating our altogether or stop travelling altogether just because we had to save for his/her future.  We managed it; we balanced our needs with Kian’s and we believe we have arrived at a sensible place. A certain sum of money has been allocated to Kian on a monthly basis that will hopefully provide him with a bit of a nest egg when he grows up.  Other than that, no special provisions have been made really.

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We travel, we eat out as and when we can and we ensure that Kian has a happy, healthy and safe upbringing.  We don’t deny him learning opportunities or experiences, be it visiting parks or zoos or even travelling to various parts of the world… after all, we believe his growth and education will come not just at the future school he will attend, but also from what he picks up listening, observing and learning around the world.  And who knows, that investment, rather than the pounds and rupees we put into his bank account could provide a better ROI in the future!

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