Raising a Baby
Raising a Baby
When raising a baby, it is first important to make sure that you are stable and prepared financially. Babies are not cheap, and they demand a lot of attention from not just one parent but both parents. According to a 2010 USDA report, the average middle-income family will spend roughly $12,000 on child-related expenses in their baby’s first year of life. By age two, parents are up to more than $12,500 per year. Parents can count on spending close to $50 per week on diapers, formula and baby food alone. Not to mention items such as furniture, equipment, clothes, childcare if you’re returning to work, and medical expenses.
New parents learn early on that everything costs much more than they anticipated. But having a newborn doesn’t have to become a financial crisis. If you get a realistic grip on the expenses you’re likely to face, do some advance planning, and learn the art of the baby deal, you should be able to save a bundle on your bundle of joy.
Parents have always wanted the best for their babies, but now it seems there really are a much more focused attempt, and more worry and concern about doing the right thing to encourage baby's growth and development, particularly brain development. While a portion of a baby's 100 billion brain cells are prewired at birth mostly the ones connected to breathing, heartbeat, and other physiological survival functions, it is during the first five years of life that much of the essential wiring linked to learning is laid down.
What occurs during the first five years of life can have an enormous impact on not only how well the baby's brain develops at the moment, but how well that baby learns and grows throughout their lifetime. While experts say baby brain development is still largely a mystery, what we do know is just how great a role natural parenting instincts can play in putting your baby on the fast track to success.
When raising a baby, it is first important to make sure that you are stable and prepared financially. Babies are not cheap, and they demand a lot of attention from not just one parent but both parents. According to a 2010 USDA report, the average middle-income family will spend roughly $12,000 on child-related expenses in their baby’s first year of life. By age two, parents are up to more than $12,500 per year. Parents can count on spending close to $50 per week on diapers, formula and baby food alone. Not to mention items such as furniture, equipment, clothes, childcare if you’re returning to work, and medical expenses.
New parents learn early on that everything costs much more than they anticipated. But having a newborn doesn’t have to become a financial crisis. If you get a realistic grip on the expenses you’re likely to face, do some advance planning, and learn the art of the baby deal, you should be able to save a bundle on your bundle of joy.
Parents have always wanted the best for their babies, but now it seems there really are a much more focused attempt, and more worry and concern about doing the right thing to encourage baby's growth and development, particularly brain development. While a portion of a baby's 100 billion brain cells are prewired at birth mostly the ones connected to breathing, heartbeat, and other physiological survival functions, it is during the first five years of life that much of the essential wiring linked to learning is laid down.
What occurs during the first five years of life can have an enormous impact on not only how well the baby's brain develops at the moment, but how well that baby learns and grows throughout their lifetime. While experts say baby brain development is still largely a mystery, what we do know is just how great a role natural parenting instincts can play in putting your baby on the fast track to success.