Talk
about sticker shock!
That
doesn't even touch college tuition.
But
$160,140 isn't so bad if you break it down.
It
translates into $8,896.66 a year, $741.38 a month, or $171.08 a week.
That's
a mere $24.24 a day!
Just
over a dollar an hour.
Still,
you might think the best financial advice
says
don't have children if you want to be "rich."
It
is just the opposite.
What
do you get for your $160,140?
?????????????????????????????????????????
.
Naming
rights. First! , middle, and last!
.
Glimpses
of God every day.
.
Giggles
under the covers every night.
.
More
love than your heart can hold.
.
Butterfly
kisses and Velcro hugs.
.
Endless
wonder over rocks, ants, clouds, and warm cookies.
.
A
hand to hold, usually covered with jam.
.
A
partner for blowing bubbles, flying kites, building sand castles,
and
skipping down the sidewalk in the pouring rain.
.
Someone
to laugh yourself silly with no matter what the boss said
or
how your stocks performed that day.
.
For
$160,140, you never have to grow up.
.
You
get to finger-paint, carve pumpkins, play hide-and-seek,
catch
lightning bugs, and never stop believing in Santa Claus.
.
You
have an excuse to keep reading the Adventures of Piglet and Pooh,
watching
Saturday morning cartoons, going to Disney movies,
and
wishing on stars.
.
You
get to frame rainbows, hearts, and flowers under refrigerator magnets
and
collect spray painted noodle wreaths for Christmas,
hand
prints set in clay for Mother's Day,
and
cards with backward letters for Father's Day.
.
For
$160,140, there is no greater bang for your buck.
.
You
get to be a hero just for retrieving a Frisbee off the garage roof,
taking
the training wheels off the bike, removing a splinter,
filling
a wading pool, coaxing a wad of gum out of bangs,
and
coaching a baseball team that never wins
but
always gets treated to ice cream regardless.
.
You
get a front row seat to history to witness the
first
step, first word, first bra, first date, and first time behind the
wheel.
.
You
get to be immortal.
You
get another branch added to your family tree, and if you're lucky,
a
long list of limbs in your obituary called grandchildren.
.
You
get an education in psychology, nursing, criminal justice, communications,
and
human sexuality that no college can match.
.
In
the eyes of a child, you rank right up there with God.
.
You
have all the power to heal a boo-boo,
scare
away the monsters under the bed,
patch
a broken heart, police a slumber party,
ground
them forever, and love them without limits,
so
one day they will, like you,
love
without counting the cost.
.
ENJOY
YOUR KIDS AND GRAND KIDS.
The
best things in life are family and friends.
