The price for a baby in 1971 was....wait for it...

 My mom and I were recently going through old photos in an attempt to sort before we put them into albums.

We came across this spectacular one. Such a shit-eating grin, even at that age. Damn if I don't look like Winston Churchill...and hey, since I'm adopted, I could very well be a direct descendant...

My mom said I was very expensive when they adopted me through Catholic Family Services - $400, which would be about $2,300 today.

Holy crap. That seems pretty affordable, even by today's standards, recession and all. Now, I haven't been in touch with CFS lately, perhaps the cost is actually more than $2,300. I used a generic calculation method which I got here.

Seems low.

I have friends who've adopted kids overseas and shelled out well over $15,000 when it was all said and done. For the amazingness that my mom got from the deal (me), she was handed a bargain.

According to my mom, I started holding my own bottle at three months and was potty trained & walking by the time I turned one.

I hope to always remain such a quick study...