Comments on: Here’s How Much Our Daughter’s 5th Year Cost Us

By: Court and Nic

Court and Nic — Sat, 09 Dec 2023 15:47:02 +0000

In reply to Komi.

Hi Komi – We are very fortunate and privileged to not have any daycare costs since we have both retired early and are at home with our kids. Thankfully Alberta has launched its $10/day daycare program/subsidiaries to help families near us keep this cost relatively affordable.

We are holding off on any paid sort of birthday set up for as long as possible. Thankfully neither kids bday falls during the winter time so we can be outside for them – setting up a scavenger hunt, playing tag, climbing at the playground etc all for free. Thankfully we surround ourselves with like minded families who have similar bday setups for their kids and for the bday parties that are indoors and more money we simply explain that we don’t do that in our household.

We also were able to score some great bday gifts on clearance so we stocked up for the year and grabbed gifts at a fraction of the price for future bday invites. Hope this helps spark some ideas!

By: Komi

Komi — Wed, 06 Dec 2023 16:36:13 +0000

Hi there. Is there no daycare cost involved (maybe you wrote about it somewhere earlier, this is the first article I am reading)? This is our biggest kid expense so far. And really amazed at how low you keep birthday costs. With party room rental, pizza/drinks for all adults, cake, goodie bags, etc., we ran to over $350. And this does not include an entertainer – which seems to be the standard with kids bdays we attended 🙁 There are also about $20/bday gift thing for each bday we are invited to. No way to avoid it…

By: Court

Court — Mon, 03 Jul 2023 23:22:10 +0000

In reply to L.

Wow 6 kids!! So amazing and so glad to hear this post was relatable for you and your family! Hand me downs for the win – good for your pockets and the environment. Thank you for sharing your story 🙂

We just signed Finn up for soccer for 8 weeks and it’s $100 here so I’m jealous with that $50 cost on your end!

By: Court

Court — Mon, 03 Jul 2023 23:18:38 +0000

In reply to Chrissy @ Eat Sleep Breathe FI.

Right!? Time sure does fly.

I really don’t feel like we’re doing anything crazy in our day to day spending to keep it low. I guess it’s just our way of life that’s engrained into us at this point.

When does the self awareness / taking care of oneself kick in!?!

By: Court

Court — Mon, 03 Jul 2023 23:15:11 +0000

In reply to Paula Johnson. Haha thank you!

By: L

Sat, 17 Jun 2023 03:19:00 +0000

6 kiddos here and Canadian as well and I can totally relate to this. 99% of what we own is second hand or given to us a hand me downs. This year our big expenses were: soccer for 4 kids ($50 each for 8 weeks), I had to buy 3 pairs of shin pads (had one pair given to us) at $10 each, and bought 3 pairs of used cleats for $54. So average cost per child was under $75. We also pay for our 3 oldest to take music lessons- with books the cost ends up around 950/year per child. But they got all second hand (but awesome!) Christmas gifts last year- 10 each. And birthdays are simple as well. Excluding food, we really don’t spend much more than that.

By: Chrissy @ Eat Sleep Breathe FI

Chrissy @ Eat Sleep Breathe FI — Sun, 21 May 2023 07:06:52 +0000

In reply to Paula Johnson. I can't believe Finn's FIVE!!! How did that happen? In my head, she's still a little toddler... but she's going to be a kindergartener in mere months, wow! You and Nic continue to impress me with your optimized kid spending. As frugal as we've always been with our kid spending, we were never as efficient and resourceful as you two! Well done—you're certainly continuing to prove that kids don't have to be the huge financial burden they're made out to be. BTW, this made me LOL: "she just has selective listening when asking to clean up the house". I swear, all kids are the same in this area!

By: Paula Johnson

Paula Johnson — Sat, 20 May 2023 03:12:42 +0000

Great Article!
You two, (four) Rock!