Money Matters

I read a few financial blogs like My Open Wallet, Boston Gal's Open Wallet and Savvy Saver and I am amazed at how much money these women have been able to sock away.

I think their willpower is stronger than mine and their saving skills are definitely enviable. However, I have to wonder whether Madame X and Jane Dough would have amassed the small fortune that they have if they had children. I think most people would agree that children can be a budget killer. Madame X wouldn't be able to live in her small studio apartment if she had three youngsters running around. And would Jane Dough be so keen on renting out her basement if she had children living in her household? I ponder these observations as I read through their blogs.

I AM very interested in reading Savvy Saver's sister blog Baby on a Budget to see if and how her saving habits change.

Sometimes, I wonder whether our net worth would be higher ( something The Two Income Trap explores) if we had opted out of parenthood. I dunno. We could've made do in a condo instead of house in the 'burbs with a backyard and good schools. That would have saved us a chunk of change. We could have kept on driving our Yugo instead of buying a minivan. The only person taking piano, French, and dance lessons would be me!

Still, what could have been is not even worth pondering. Shaping a human being is more important to us than living within a tightly constrained budget. I believe in saving for the future but it's also oh so much fun to spend it on the ones you love. Net worth be damned.