The True Costs of Raising A Child (3 Year Update)
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| BG walking along the lake. |
- $1,362.22 for diapers (cloth and disposables), inserts, and wipes
- $26.76 for vitamin d drops
- $251.55 for kitchenware
- $376.73 for clothing (Canada)
- $830.31 for bed and bedding (Canada)
- $283.72 for clothing and bedding (from China)
- $1430.99 for gear (strollers, car seats, playpen, etc.)
- $463.08 for health and safety
- $965.43 for toys and books
- $503.36 for experiences
Grand total: $6,494.15
Nothing really stands out. We needed to buy BG new shoes and sandals as her feet are bigger. The ones from last year no longer fit her. That was the big one from the first 5 months... However, once we got to October, and after we settled, we needed to buy more clothes for winter. Wifey also spent $63 for a fancy vest that is slightly too big for BG. Wifey works for a fashion company, so the vest was much cheaper than retail price. I purchased a Maple Leafs jersey for when BG and I go to the hockey game. Those three items account for the top three expenses for this 6 month range between May 2019 and October 2019.
Diapers
We bought one last box of disposables in June for $24.14. Then sometime in June or July, BG just started to refuse relieving herself in her diaper. We would put the diaper on, she would be fine wearing it, but then when she needed to pee, she would tell us that she wanted to pee. We told her that she was wearing a diaper and that she could pee her diaper. But she refused. She'd say okay. Then after a while she'd tell us again that she needed to pee. Eventually, we just stopped putting on the diaper. Now when we go somewhere, we try to use the washroom ahead of time, but we also keep in mind the washrooms that are nearby in case BG wants to pee. Our total for this category (possibly even the final total) is $1,386.36.
Food
Until this past month, I haven't really counted anything in this category aside from vitamin D drops. However, this year BG asked specifically for a pink birthday cake. As a result, I ordered one from Dairy Queen. They spelled BG's name wrong, but I don't think BG noticed. The ice cream cake cost $35 and that was fine. Really, this could have been put under experiences, but I figured it is technically food we bought specifically because BG asked for it, so I'm going to count it in food. The new total for the food category is $61.76.
Kitchenware
We purchased nothing in this category. This total remains at $251.55.
Clothing
New socks and new shoes for BG's feet. We received a lot of second clothes that will last quite a while. However, as mentioned earlier, the big expenses here are a high fashion vest from wifey's company and a Maple Leafs jersey for when BG and I go this season. We also purchased a snow suit from Costco, underwear, and mittens for the winter. Added up, we've increased spending in this category by $276.28 to $653.01.
Bed and Bedding
We didn't buy anything here. However, stay tuned for the next update. $830.31 for now.
Clothing and Bedding (from China)
This total remains unchanged at $283.72. Grandma went back home and brought some clothing back, but I think that was second hand from relatives as well.
Gear
No new gear purchased. However, the wagon we purchased ripped underneath where the folding bars and the cloth base meet. I'll have to fix that. Aside from that, we haven't needed anything new and now that we're living in a condo, we won't have room for anything new. The total stays at $1,430.99.
Health and Safety
The only purchase here is an electric toothbrush. I bought this in May. However, BG couldn't start using it until October after her 3rd birthday. The only reason I bought it so early was all the points I was getting in the PC Optimum app. I had an offer for buying Oral-B products, 20x points for spending a certain amount, and the toothbrush was on sale. After all the points, the toothbrush only cost $13.24. I still needed to spend $28.24 as the net cost is because of the Optimum points earned from the transaction. Aside from the financial aspect of it, the electric toothbrush comes with an app that BG really enjoys. In fact, she enjoys it so much, she runs to the washroom when it's time to brush her teeth. This increased this category's total to $491.32.
Toys and Books
Yikes. So many toys. Despite the moving, we still bought BG a lot of toys. Some of which she doesn't play with. When we moved and after we moved, I threw out and donated many of the toys she outgrew and no longer plays with. Wifey wasn't happy with some of the toys I donated, but it needed to be done. We don't have the same amount of space in the condo like the house. Wifey agreed that those toys needed to go, despite being cool. It wasn't all toys, though. We also bought a few books. The major expense here was an Abby doll from Gund. That was $31.64. This Abby also came apart a bit on her wings, so I wrote a letter of displeasure on the website and they contacted me to offer me another toy. So it's kind of like we spent $31.64 for two plushes. It's still quite expensive. However, BG really enjoys Abby... or enjoyed... her hair is no longer in pigtails and it's some fancy hair style. That and BG no longer plays with Abby. Though, it could be because she's interested in playing with smaller figures now. In total, these six months we've spent $259.70 on toys and books. This increases our total to $1,225.13. My goodness. That's a lot.
Experiences
Lastly, we have experiences. We purchased tickets to ride the carousel at the zoo. That cost us $10. We also purchased candles for BG's birthday cake. This category goes up $11.41 to $514.77.
Nothing really stands out. We needed to buy BG new shoes and sandals as her feet are bigger. The ones from last year no longer fit her. That was the big one from the first 5 months... However, once we got to October, and after we settled, we needed to buy more clothes for winter. Wifey also spent $63 for a fancy vest that is slightly too big for BG. Wifey works for a fashion company, so the vest was much cheaper than retail price. I purchased a Maple Leafs jersey for when BG and I go to the hockey game. Those three items account for the top three expenses for this 6 month range between May 2019 and October 2019.
Diapers
We bought one last box of disposables in June for $24.14. Then sometime in June or July, BG just started to refuse relieving herself in her diaper. We would put the diaper on, she would be fine wearing it, but then when she needed to pee, she would tell us that she wanted to pee. We told her that she was wearing a diaper and that she could pee her diaper. But she refused. She'd say okay. Then after a while she'd tell us again that she needed to pee. Eventually, we just stopped putting on the diaper. Now when we go somewhere, we try to use the washroom ahead of time, but we also keep in mind the washrooms that are nearby in case BG wants to pee. Our total for this category (possibly even the final total) is $1,386.36.
Food
Until this past month, I haven't really counted anything in this category aside from vitamin D drops. However, this year BG asked specifically for a pink birthday cake. As a result, I ordered one from Dairy Queen. They spelled BG's name wrong, but I don't think BG noticed. The ice cream cake cost $35 and that was fine. Really, this could have been put under experiences, but I figured it is technically food we bought specifically because BG asked for it, so I'm going to count it in food. The new total for the food category is $61.76.
Kitchenware
We purchased nothing in this category. This total remains at $251.55.
Clothing
New socks and new shoes for BG's feet. We received a lot of second clothes that will last quite a while. However, as mentioned earlier, the big expenses here are a high fashion vest from wifey's company and a Maple Leafs jersey for when BG and I go this season. We also purchased a snow suit from Costco, underwear, and mittens for the winter. Added up, we've increased spending in this category by $276.28 to $653.01.
Bed and Bedding
We didn't buy anything here. However, stay tuned for the next update. $830.31 for now.
Clothing and Bedding (from China)
This total remains unchanged at $283.72. Grandma went back home and brought some clothing back, but I think that was second hand from relatives as well.
Gear
No new gear purchased. However, the wagon we purchased ripped underneath where the folding bars and the cloth base meet. I'll have to fix that. Aside from that, we haven't needed anything new and now that we're living in a condo, we won't have room for anything new. The total stays at $1,430.99.
Health and Safety
The only purchase here is an electric toothbrush. I bought this in May. However, BG couldn't start using it until October after her 3rd birthday. The only reason I bought it so early was all the points I was getting in the PC Optimum app. I had an offer for buying Oral-B products, 20x points for spending a certain amount, and the toothbrush was on sale. After all the points, the toothbrush only cost $13.24. I still needed to spend $28.24 as the net cost is because of the Optimum points earned from the transaction. Aside from the financial aspect of it, the electric toothbrush comes with an app that BG really enjoys. In fact, she enjoys it so much, she runs to the washroom when it's time to brush her teeth. This increased this category's total to $491.32.
Toys and Books
Yikes. So many toys. Despite the moving, we still bought BG a lot of toys. Some of which she doesn't play with. When we moved and after we moved, I threw out and donated many of the toys she outgrew and no longer plays with. Wifey wasn't happy with some of the toys I donated, but it needed to be done. We don't have the same amount of space in the condo like the house. Wifey agreed that those toys needed to go, despite being cool. It wasn't all toys, though. We also bought a few books. The major expense here was an Abby doll from Gund. That was $31.64. This Abby also came apart a bit on her wings, so I wrote a letter of displeasure on the website and they contacted me to offer me another toy. So it's kind of like we spent $31.64 for two plushes. It's still quite expensive. However, BG really enjoys Abby... or enjoyed... her hair is no longer in pigtails and it's some fancy hair style. That and BG no longer plays with Abby. Though, it could be because she's interested in playing with smaller figures now. In total, these six months we've spent $259.70 on toys and books. This increases our total to $1,225.13. My goodness. That's a lot.
Experiences
Lastly, we have experiences. We purchased tickets to ride the carousel at the zoo. That cost us $10. We also purchased candles for BG's birthday cake. This category goes up $11.41 to $514.77.
I'll summarize everything again.
- $1,386.36 for diapers (cloth and disposables), inserts, and wipes
- $61.76 for food
- $251.55 for kitchenware
- $653.01 for clothing (Canada)
- $830.31 for bed and bedding (Canada)
- $283.72 for clothing and bedding (from China)
- $1,430.99 for gear (strollers, car seats, playpen, etc.)
- $491.32 for health and safety
- $1,225.13 for toys and books
- $514.77 for experiences
Grand total: $7,128.92
The past six months, we spent $634.77.
Last time, I incorrectly predicted we wouldn't spend more money on toys. For the next update, I predict it will be pretty crazy as we need to purchase a new bed for BG. The current double mattress we have for her is fine. But, now that we live in a condo, we don't have room to waste. So we'll be looking to purchase a twin loft bed and a mattress for BG. Depending on what we get, I expect it can be as much as $2,000. We'll see I suppose.
This means, on average, we've spent $2,376.31 a year to raise our daughter. So far, we've received on average $3,045 a year in the form of Child Benefits (or Baby Bonus). Which means we haven't really needed to pay for any baby related expenses out of pocket. However, I don't consider the money from the Child Benefit as ours to spend. Instead, I count that money towards BG's RESP. However, with a $500 surplus, I suppose that money went into the mortgage or investments.
Pretty cool either way. The Child Benefit, if your expenses are low enough, is enough to raise a child for the first three years or to fund your child's RESP for the first three years AND still have enough left over.
The past six months, we spent $634.77.
Last time, I incorrectly predicted we wouldn't spend more money on toys. For the next update, I predict it will be pretty crazy as we need to purchase a new bed for BG. The current double mattress we have for her is fine. But, now that we live in a condo, we don't have room to waste. So we'll be looking to purchase a twin loft bed and a mattress for BG. Depending on what we get, I expect it can be as much as $2,000. We'll see I suppose.
This means, on average, we've spent $2,376.31 a year to raise our daughter. So far, we've received on average $3,045 a year in the form of Child Benefits (or Baby Bonus). Which means we haven't really needed to pay for any baby related expenses out of pocket. However, I don't consider the money from the Child Benefit as ours to spend. Instead, I count that money towards BG's RESP. However, with a $500 surplus, I suppose that money went into the mortgage or investments.
Pretty cool either way. The Child Benefit, if your expenses are low enough, is enough to raise a child for the first three years or to fund your child's RESP for the first three years AND still have enough left over.
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