RANT:
I have these two family friends, let’s call them Mark and Carly. I have known them since I was a child because they attended the college that my dad works at, and he became good friends with them. We stayed in contact, and I even worked for Mark for a few summers. Now let me be clear, Mark and Carly are great. They’re both very nice people. But…they have a problem. They have been married for 7 years and are expecting their third child. Now this sounds like happy news, right?

Wrong. They are struggling with money first of all. They already have two children, and as we all know, children are expensive. Carly is an elementary school teacher. She doesn’t make much money, and she nearly lost her job due to budget cuts. When the school district reviews the budget for next year, she very well may be cut. Mark has also been having issues keeping a job. He was fired last year and was out of work for a while, though thankfully he was able to find another job.

Then there’s the obvious..One of them would have to stay home from work to take care of the baby, or they would have to pay for additional child care. They both work full time, yet they are struggling with money. Child care for the two kids they already have is expensive. And since they work so much, they don’t get a lot of family time. If they barely have the money for two, and no time for two, how the hell are they going to handle three???

Even worse yet, they are apparently having marriage problems, though I don’t know the details. I fear they may be using this baby to try to save their marriage. I know it’s none of my business, but I think that Mark and Carly having a third child is a very poor decision. They have no time, they have no money, and their marriage is in jeopardy. I don’t see a good outcome from this, and I feel horrible for them and their children. It’s just going to put more stress on all of them, and another child could very well provide enough stress to tear their family apart since it’s already on shaky grounds. Why is it that people continue to have children in difficult circumstances? I don’t feel that it is fair for children to be purposely brought into a family that has issues with money (yes, their baby was planned.), nor is it fair for them to grow up with their parents fighting or getting divorced and ending up in the middle of a custody battle, potentially being separated from their siblings. That’s an awful life for a child.