What to expect in your baby steps

Total panic. This was the initial reaction of a friend's husband when she told him he would be a father. “Later he moved to a denial phase, which was perhaps better than the current calculator addiction,'' she said. Even though he insisted he was thrilled about the coming of their first baby who is due in July, she continued, he seemed concerned about the potential financial commitments.

To her disappointment, I partially agreed with him, but I resisted pulling out my own calculator. It is nothing specific to Dubai, but having a baby is a major fin-ancial milestone in any family's life.

Suddenly, any and every future money decision has to be made in the view of the child's needs in short, medium and long terms. Budgets become tighter and the space for mis-shopping gets smaller and smaller.

Therefore, it may be wise to maintain a positive attitude and try not to lose control. After all, your concern about the immediate costs is the most manageable. This is simply because how much people spend on baby items is a relative matter, and usually consistent with their lifestyle and financial capabilities.

First things

You may know that the human race has survived for pretty long without teddy bears or Barbie dolls.

Additionally, by taking the first-things-first approach, parents-to-be may not have to worry about college education in the eighth week of pregnancy.

So what you should do in the meantime, and if you're not on a ‘no-motion' phase, is just a little forward planning of your budget so that you can direct your money more wisely. Unfortunately, there may be some challenges and financial black holes.

First of all, providing proper medical care for the mother and the baby is strictly a non-compromise zone. So sort out your priorities and check you and your spouse's insurance policies.

Most employers reduce their costs by skipping maternity coverage, even though maternity complications might be covered. If you don't have pregnancy and delivery coverage, you're in for a not-so-nice shopping experience.

Costs

It should not be a surprise that Dubai's hospitals, like almost everything else, are pretty expensive. A quick check of delivery packages at private hospitals shows that a package for a normal delivery at the American Hospital would set you back Dh7,900 (two-day stay), which does not include any pregnancy or post-natal care.

I asked a friend whose wife was due soon about what he was planning to do. Similar to the accommodation trick, he said he might be going to Sharjah, where he hopes prices would be a little lower.

However, when I checked with Al Zahrah Private hospital in Sharjah, the cost was Dh7,200 for a two-day stay and Dh5,200 for a one-day stay, which remains a big sum. Prices go much higher for more complicated cases.

Then comes the planning for your baby's insurance. There seems to be a variety of options, from hospital loyalty cards which give you discounts on outpatient and inpatient service, to more proper child insurance products.

In Dubai, international and local insurance companies offer all kinds of products. “I bought for my son a child protection policy from Alliance, which is a saving scheme for education. I pay almost $2,000 per year,'' a father of a five-year old boy told me.

So it is all a matter of financial planning from buying the first baby crib to saving for college education.

I always thought that the world of married people is divided into two groups: with-kids and without-kids. The lifestyle of the latter group seems to remain much closer to singles not only in noise levels, but also in terms of freedom and ability to make occasional splurges. But things do change once they make the transition of extending their family with one little member.