Childbirth and its costs

So we were walking around after dinner with AD and Sotong this evening and we decided to pop by one of the infant and mothercare shops to share some of our "knowledge" (or personal bias in most cases :P ) and "educate" the soon-to-be parents on the things they need and what they should watch out for when buying some of those things. It still amazes me to think how far we've come, Lovebell and I. We were helped greatly by PJ and Darth, of course, but nevertheless, I am sometimes still amazed at the amount of experience points we have gained and the amount of knowledge we have gained as well. From breast pumps to steam bottle sanitisers, from prams to cots, we have spent a large amount of time and energy to learn what is what, and which items are the most value for money that we *should* get for baby XP.

Anyway, back to tonight.

The shop we walked into was a very *atas* one located in great world city, whose main clientele is rich FTs and the upper class of Singapore. The prams on sale ranged from a "low end" price of $350 to the other end of $2k. Cots sold were all close to $1.5k to $2k. In contrast, the pram XP sits in costs just above $200, and the cot he sleeps in costs just above $500.

Whenever I walk into one of these high end shops, I usually feel 2 emotions simultaneously.

1. Astonishment - I am stunned and astonished at the amount of money people will pay for such things, especially when it seems foolish to plow that sort of money into things that will only be used for such a short period of time.
   
2. Envy - Yet I can't help but wish that I could afford these things too. I envy their ability to spend without thinking twice. It's the whole "damn Joneses have it, so we better darn get ourselves one too" sort of mentality.
   

I have since realised that emotion 1 is closely related to emotion 2. Because I can't afford it, I naturally feel astonished at their propensity to purchase. However, to the rich person, buying a $2k pram for his son would be analogous to me buying a $2 rattle for my baby. After all, the really poor would be tsk-ing away at that too, since a rattle is nothing but a noise maker, and you could make one out of an old tin can and some beans.

So I shouldn't feel astonished at their spending habits. What's a $2k pram when they drive a $300k car and live in $5m homes? It's all part of their wealthy lifestyle.

What I should feel, and this requires a little bit more thought beyond the id emotions of envy and jealousy (hah, Freud! ) is my own joy and my love for my family. While I may not afford the $2k pram, I can afford the $200 one, and I will strive to provide that so that XP has a chair to sit in when we go for walks. While I can't afford the spa package for my wife to lose weight after delivery, I can support her in her exercise efforts and encourage her in my own ways.

I know this post sounds like I am trying to rationalise to myself, and perhaps my ego needs this post to manage my own feelings (hah! more Freud). Oh well, so be it.

What I don't understand, is why these feelings are particularly strong for things that pertain to XP. It's like I want a nice big TV for myself and I've been dreaming about one for the longest of time, but I have managed to hold off buying it for so long now, because I can rationalise to myself that the existing TV works fine, the cost is too high, I can spend it on other things, etc, etc. But when it comes to things for XP, I will always feel this sense of guilt when I see other parents buying good stuff for their children, and XP has to "make do" with his cheap things.

When it comes to buying things for Lovebell, I will ask her "why in the world do you need so many handbags?" but yet I will also be the one gladly paying for her if it is something she really likes. So why the different treatment for XP?

Is it because I grew up in a middle income family that doesn't believe in buying things for their children because, well, they never got any gifts when they were kids?

In any case, XP looks happy, Lovebell is happy, and so I am happy too.

Happy Mid Autumn Festival...