Reply to Why do people think you have to spend so much on your kids?

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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]You do you OP.  What if your kid is a soccer or dance or basketball phenom and you were too cheap to explore their interest, when you could afford it?  So sad, there is a balance you can strike.  My child has a fantastic life, is well rounded and gets the joy out of exploring various sports and hobbies.  I have a high net worth and don't have to budget what I spend.  I would rather give my child excellent experiences  and think about it as enriching their life.[/quote]

The likelihood that OP’s kid is phenomenal at anything is zero and OP already knows it. I think it’s good that OP had already realized that his kids aren’t worth extensive investment— the money can then be put elsewhere. 
[/quote]

Lol as if the typical UMC white kid is ever going to be in the NBA or go to the World Cup, most of your kids are destined to be pencil pushing cogs like the rest of us. Delusional to think spending hundreds of thousands on enriching activities will lead to a significantly different outcome. [/quote]

You aren’t clued. People spend thousands of dollars on youth sports so that their kid can get a recruited athlete spot at an elite college, or to get an athletic scholarship, but usually the former. You do NOT need to be an Olympic-level athlete to get a recruiting likely letter, not even close. [/quote]

My kids do club sports and expensive music programs and I have zero expectations for a scholarship nor want them to do either in college as I want them to go to get educated for a career that can financially support them.  They do it for enjoyment/exercise.[/quote]

Exactly, I was a rec soccer kid and I got plenty of exercise and had a blast. I went to school with kids on travel teams which I was a bit jealous of at the time (I probably wasn’t even good enough to be on them anyway) but it didn’t matter in the end, most of those kids never played soccer at the D1 level. There’s so much elitism on this forum and it’s full of parents trying to justify the inordinate amount of money they spend on activities.

I think if you’re truly wealthy right out of the gate and endowed with lots of family money it’s no problem to go all out for your kids. If money was no object I would do the same for my children. But at the end of the day most of the stuff UMC’s think are needs are in reality wants, and done for appearances and to fit in with various social crowds. Kids don’t need to be pampered this much to turn out decent. [/quote]

We are far from wealthy, we live in a crappy really small house, rarely vacation, and often clothes are from Walmart.  Everyone prioritizes things differently and I prioritize what my kids enjoy.  We also have college savings.

My kids are at high level activities, which also include private lessons.  I don't need to justify it.  They enjoy it and that's all that matters.  [/quote]

+1.

Before kids, DH and I used to spend entire weekends laying on the couch watching movies.

What else would we spend money on? We are not rich, but we are not lacking. We've saved more than enough for retirement. We have life insurance too.

If our kids enjoy the activities, why not? We are also taking a 20K vacation this year because they want to. I would sit on my couch all day typing on DCUM if they didn't. My money, my children and my priorities. ..[/quote]

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