Baby Paper

Taking home the baby was an experience unlike any I’ve had before. In my opinion, this project was easier than I had expected. It was easier because I always heard stories about how many times it woke you up at night and how it wouldn’t stop crying (which is partly true). One aspect that was particularly annoying was how many times it cries from about eight to ten. During this time, I was trying to finish homework and also watch the Republican Debate. The constant distraction deterred me from doing those two things and made me extremely frustrated. Although it was frustrating, it was not very hard. During my time with the baby it only woke me up once while I was sleeping, which was not horrible at all, especially compared to most real life situations. I am a horrible sleeper so this was not bad at all. This was a normal night for me. It was even better because at least I had something to do while I was awake. The most common problem I faced was having to change the baby’s diaper. It was hard because I had to hold the baby’s head and get him out of his seat, while changing the diaper. Changing the diaper was also the easiest problem to face because all you had to do was switch the diapers and the baby would stop crying(which is obviously not what would happen in a real life situation). The toughest problem I faced was when I was driving and the baby began to cry. This was the hardest because I first had to find a safe place to pull over and then I had to tend to the baby’s needs. This also delayed my arrival time to wherever I was going by a fair amount of time. Another problem that was hard to deal with was when I was at practice. The baby cried a couple times during practice and it was embarrassing and frustrating to the coach that I had to leave the field multiple times to tend for the baby.

I believe that this experience was beneficial to me because although it wasn’t a real baby it showed me how much of a hassle caring for a child is during high school, especially when I have many extracurricular activities and sports going on. This project showed me how unprepared I am to take care of a child. I would recommend this project to other people because I feel that it’s a smart way to show people that having a child is a big deal and not an easy thing take care of. I believe it would raise awareness to students and even to adults about having intercourse before you are ready to care of a child.

If I were to have to take care of an infant all the time, my life would change drastically. First, I would most likely have to stop any high school sports or any other activities after school to be able to take care of the baby. Secondly, I may have to work more hours at my job so I could have a larger income so I could pay for the expenses of the baby. Thirdly, I wouldn’t be able to go out with my friends very much and over all my social life would decrease. Lastly, it would be hard to concentrate on a task at hand including homework, chores, etc… my grades may suffer and classes could become harder because I may start falling behind. At this point in time I don’t think I would make a good parent because I simply do not have enough time to take care of a child and I feel like I’m not mature or responsible enough to be a father, although later on in life I would like to think I would make a good parent. Also, at this time it would make things mentally harder for me. I was particularly angry the night I had the baby. This could possibly ruin my relationships with my friends, parents, and teachers.

Budget

The cost of delivering a baby normally is roughly 10,000 dollars but if complications do occur and you have to have a cesarean section it costs roughly 15,000 dollars.

Item(s) Per month Per year

Crib *330 dollars 330 dollars

Nursery Furniture *2000 dollars 2000 dollars

Food/Formula 166 dollars 2000 dollars

Diapers 50 dollars 600 dollars

Clothing 60 dollars 720 dollars

Car Seat *200 dollars 200 dollars

Childcare 584 dollars 70000 dollars

Toys/Miscellaneous 33 dollars 400 dollars

Stroller *200 dollars 200 dollars

Doctors’ Visits (with insurance) 15 dollars 180