The choice to have a child or to adopt a child is one of the most important and emotional decisions two loving partners can make. It's also one of the biggest financial decisions, as well. In her new book Financial Bliss, financial advisor Bambi Holzer offers some eye-opening numbers of which prospective parents need to be aware.

THE COST OF RAISING A CHILD FROM BIRTH TO AGE 17
(Source: US Dept. of Agriculture, 2004)

Not included in these estimates are:

• Additional health and lifestyle costs of pregnancy and prenatal preparation.
• All hidden "new baby" expenses
• The cost of taking a break in a career to care for and raise a child.
• College tuition, the costs of which have risen faster than inflation and in 2004 averaged $11,354 per year for public schools and $27,516 per year for private schools.
• Single-family households need to multiply all costs by 1.24 due to what Bambi calls the "No-Hand-Me-Downs Factor".
• Parents with three or more children spend 23 percent less on each child.
• Parents spend more money per year on older children than infants.