Kids cost a lot
I wonder how to say kids cost a lot. Seems simple right?
I'm having a conversation with my hair lady at the hair establishment and I am speaking in Spanish and so is she, we both are.
Well, she tells me that she and her hubby don't have kids yet (Todavía no hemos tenido niños, something like that) and I am going to say "Yeah kids cost a lot".
So I say "Cuestan mu......." and she goes on yeah, she knows what I mean so I say "Pues cuestan mu......." same deal.
So here's the thing, How did she know I didn't mean "kids are difficult"?
Me cuesta creerlo - It's difficult for me to believe it.
Most often, the difference is easy but with "Kids cost a lot" it seems hard.
Gracias.
7 Answers
Jeezzle, lo que pasa es que algunas experiencias son universales, y esa de criar a los hijos es un ejemplo perfecto. Cada padre lo comprende...no hay necesidad de soltar la frase completa. 
I agree with Mountaingal and, to a point, with Cogumela.
I would have also taken the expression to mean "Kids are expensive", and would not have occurred to me that you meant "kids are difficult".
I do not, however, agree with Cogumela that no native would have said that. I find it a perfectly reasonable sentence.
Si,los niños cuestan mucho (y la situación económica está tan difícil, que uno realmente tiene que pensarlo). Why not? Perfectly good, reasonable Spanish.
If I wanted to say that kids are very difficult, I would have said: Los niños dan mucho trabajo, los niños requieren mucho esfuerzo, es muy difícil criar niños, ser padres es muy difícil, or something to that effect.
As mountaingirl said, Jeez, kids 'cost' in every sense of the word, bless 'em!! So I agree, when speaking to a parent, you don't need to be specific about financial cost.
Sorry, Cogumela, you're mistaken on this one. Maybe you are talking about Spain but certainly not Mexico or Guatemala.
Los niños cuestan mucho = Kids are very difficult. this simply does not make sense.
It makes perfect sense here and many people use this expression to say "They are really a lot of work" OR "Kids are expensive to maintain."
"los niños cuestan mucho" is understandable, but it's a sentence that no native would say either.
Yes, natives say it all the time. Maybe not in Spain but in America Central it is very well understood.
Leaving aside the differences between various countries and the way this statement is phrased, to truly provide an answer in English, we do need more context.
Kids are expensive "to create/generate/make" - No, costs practically nothing maybe a dinner and some flowers.
Kids are expensive "to maintain/bring up/care for" - Yes, an absolute fortune and I am speaking from personal experience.
Jeezz, no way that any Spanish speaker could have understood:
Los niños cuestan mucho = Kids are very difficult.
this simply does not make sense. Normally, you will find that meaning of "costar" (to find something difficult) associated to actions, not to things like kids. Apart from that, context is everything. This missunderstanding is not likely to happen. Do you think that English doesn't have words with more than one meaning? Thousands! Do you have any trouble to understand each other? I doubt it. Neither have we.
To express this, one would naturally say:
sí, es que los niños son muy complicados.
ya, es que tener niños no es fácil.
... etc
On the other side: "los niños cuestan mucho" is understandable, but it's a sentence that no native would say either. It sounds as if you were to buy the kids.
Los niños salen muy caros.
Los niños traen/dan/ocasionan muchos gastos.
Los niños suponen un gasto importante.
En los niños se gasta una barbaridad.
Tener niños no es precisamente barato.
Lo de los niños es una pasta (colloquial)
... etc
good one gekko
