BABIES HEADBAND

The Wall Street Journal. Financial Guidebook for New Parents

A practical approach to affording your kids from cradle to college.

Bringing home your bouncing baby boy or girl should be an exciting time of celebration–not cause for worry about how you’re going to pay for feeding, clothing, and caring for your new bundle of expenses. The average family will spend between $11,000 and $16,000 during a new baby’s first year, and more than $200,000 before a kid’s eighteenth birthday. Unfortunately, a second child only doubles your costs, with little economy of scale for each additional baby.

Before you start using these statistics as birth control, take a deep breath and know that you can have a family and make a comfortable future for your children while saving for your own important goals. The Wall Street Journal Financial Guidebook for New Parents shows you the way, with information on how to:

• Safeguard your child’s well-being with wills, trusts, and life insurance
• Best weigh your child-care options and decide whether to go back to work
• Save on taxes with child-friendly tax credits and deductions plus tax-advantaged benefits at work
• Manage your family’s health-care costs
• Save for long-term costs by setting up a college fund
• Spend smart and save money at every stage of your child’s development
• Continue to contribute to your own retirement savings

From maternity (and paternity) leave to flexible spending accounts to 529 college plans, The Wall Street Journal Financial Guidebook for New Parents provides all the information you need to meet your child’s expenses while also protecting your family’s financial security.

Cell phone picture. My sister and I usually send each other picture messages with text when we're texting each other anything. The message underneath this one was "new living arrangement." Sometimes the pictures have everything to do with the text, sometimes nothing. That's just explaining the picture. The real point of this is... my friend Cassie tagged me in her Facebook note, so I thought I'd do it here.

25 things about me.

1. When I'm afraid to do something, I usually procrastinate, lie, and say that I don't have time to do it. [i.e. Applying for college]

2. I love to sit, close my eyes, and listen to music, just to soak in every note and every word. [i.e. Secondhand Serenade, Josh Groban... mmmm.]

3. I can't for anything do a handwritten journal. I'd love to, I've started a thousand, but I can't ever keep them going. I usually tear them apart. I'm more attracted to online diaries, if anything.

4. I'm scared to get my license. That might go back to number one, considering I'm almost eighteen years old without a permit or license.

5. I don't think my art is good enough to get into a good art school, so I'm applying for community colleges and universities.

6. I never want to get divorced. After seeing how much my parents HATE each other, I will not marry someone unless I'm sure we'll be together forever.

7. I can't wait to be pregnant. I mean, I can wait..... but I can't wait at all. I want a baby soooo bad.

8. I have always wanted a little brother or sister. There was a point where my mom was going to reverse her... fixing to have a baby with her second husband, because I wanted one so bad. Now, I have two little [not really but almost step] sisters, and I freaking love it.

9. If I could go back and change anything in school, I would've joined chorus instead of band. I love to sing, but I wish I had more control over my voice and/or I wish I could sing at all.

10. I'm the peacemaker in my family. Always. I'm a people-pleaser, so if they ask, I'm glad to help.

11. My brain is so jumbled, I couldn't tell you how I really feel about anything. Sometimes I want to scream because my mind is constantly in fast motion.

12. My friends make fun of me because I say my words weird. For example, ketchup : "catch-up," yellow : "yallow," spider : "spah-der."

13. My favorite thing to do with my friends is sit and talk. I prefer it over all the times we play putt-putt, go to the movies, go ice skating, anything. Same goes for my boyfriend. I could sit and talk to people all day long and be perfectly content.

14. Sometimes I'm scared that I'll end up like my parents or my brother. My dad used to be really depressed and still takes medication for it. My mom had a stroke and is still really suffering from it. And my brother used to be into drugs. Sometimes I'm just afraid that I'll make stupid choices because I think I have to be like them.

15. I love sleep. That is probably my favorite thing to do... ever. In the world. Just resting my eyes and being awake is okay too.

16. I am extremely paranoid. I watch a lot of Most Haunted shows, Snapped, Psych, Monk, CSI. So when something's remotely weird, I get in my crime show mindset, and so things are ten times worse than they should be.

17. I grew up on Country Manor Dr. I lived there for only 5 years of my life. We moved after mom left dad. We lived on the same street as strippers and drug dealers. But I met my best friend in the whole world there, and I'd give anything to go back to those times.

18. I love long car rides in and around the mountains.

19. My favorite band/tv show in the entire world is The Monkees. I don't/can't/will never have enough Monkees stuff.

20. Lately, when I go anywhere, I see things and think, "Wow, that would make a great picture." It's been happening more and more often. I can't wait to get my license just so I can go and freaking take some!

21. I don't drink, smoke, do drugs, or have sex. But for the love of God, never called me straight edge.

22. If it didn't cost a bunch, if it wouldn't alter my face completely, if it didn't have side-effects... I would get a nose job in a heart beat.

23. I love bonfires. I love roasted marshmallows. I love chocolate bars in s'mores that are too hard to bite through because it's too cold out. I love the smell of fire on my clothes. I love burning knees. I love freezing toes. I love toe-bogs and gloves. I love chili. I really... love anything that has to do with winter, outdoor, bonfire cookouts.

24. I can never get too many hugs. I love kisses, but I prefer hugs over kisses any day of the week.

25. I love the Lord. Sometimes I wish I were a better Christian though. A lot of the time, I feel like a hypocrite based on what I used to tell my sister, and what I do

I know! So don't even say it! Terrible terrible quality but it was the only pic I took yesterday. Everything was pretty all over the place and it got to 12 and I forgot I had to take the photo of the day but luckily I had taken this before when I got my Minolta x700 in the mail so yay!

Rescheduled my photo shoot with Cynthia for next week which is why you guys haven't seen another huge set of pics from the photo shoot. But it's coming, its coming!

Maroon 5 concert today! I'm so excited! I bought a few rolls of film so I'm definitely going to experiment tonight!

Lots & lots of pictures coming soon. Gotta go drink some juice or something. Too thirsty. Plus is not really safe for me to be online right now. I know I've barely been journal-ing but I promise I will sometime next week. There's just too much going on for me to try and stir this pot with more problems. So right now I'm only looking at the positives.