People think we're nuts, but my husband and I are going to give our son empty boxes for Christmas. That's right- empty boxes.

Our son has everything he could want or need, and like other toddlers, he's obsessed with playing with and in empty boxes, so we figured we'd give John something he'll actually play with instead of spending a lot of money on things that he's not going to be interested in. Jay and I are going to decorate the boxes and wrap them so that John gets the experience of unwrapping gifts, and then we're going to let him play and allow his imagination to run wild.

Jay and I aren't trying to use our cheapness to complately get out of giving John presents, but we're definitely always looking for a way to save money, especially since kids can be so expensive.

How expensive? Well, let's just say this- we'd be thankful if we had a little girl, but we're very thankful to have a son because while all kids are expensive if you have a girl, you're going to shell out substantially more than someone with a boy.

The Daily Mail says that SuperMarket did a study and found that parents of little girls will spend $40,000 more over the first 18 years than parents of a little boy will.

Parents of little girls generally spend about $2,500 more on things for their little girl during her elementary years, and about $16,000 more during her high school years when she starts using beauty products and being more aware of the clothes she wears.

The one area where it costs parents more to have a son is an allowance. Parents of boys tend to give them about $5,000 in allowance during his adolescence versus just under four thousand for a daughter.

I feel for my sister who has two little girls and I hope she's ready for how much money she's about to spend on them!

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