New Baby and Newborn Hospital Costs

Last week we welcomed our baby daughter into the world. She is quite healthy, happy (in a screaming, crying sort of way) and cute as a button. Mom, Dad and big brother are all doing quite well except for a lack of sleep which will hopefully go away in a few years.

Hospital costs for the new baby

I decided to keep track of the costs incurred during hospital visit. Our total cost for the three night stay (c-section) was $424. Here is a breakdown:

• Parking – $144
• Pharmacy costs (diapers etc) – $55
• Cafeteria - $35
• Rooms - $150. The rooms are actually $260 per night but my employer insurance covers $210 of that so our cost was $50 per night.
• Gas - I made a lot of trips between home and hospital so I estimate the cost at $40.

The diet

Ok, enough about the baby already – what about Mike’s diet you are undoubtedly asking? Diet went well – I managed to eat pretty healthy and avoid the junk food. It was interesting remembering the kind of items I was buying two years ago when my son was born – a lot of coffee, donuts, two bite brownies, cream soups etc. This time it was much healthier foods and I think I felt a lot better for it.

Carnivals

Carnival of Personal Finance #145 was hosted at Million Dollar Journey who ironically did a “Baby Education Edition”.