It seems to me there are 2 categories of people who have had kids and didn't have doubts about it in the recent years where I live in Russia: 1) people that are very earthly and down-to-earth, often with not enough money to afford some sort of minor luxuries, but still living very traditional core family values, sometimes having more than 1 kid, and having enough money and practical skills to make ends meet. 2) people with quite a good amount of money that can afford good child care, care centers, good schools then, so to speak, money helps them to afford expensive care of their children (call it 'yuppie'-style having a child, if you want)... Of course, there are people in the middle, as it always is, and I am far from thinking my suggestion couldn't contain flaws, but the latest statistics I was reading in the Russian 'Ogonyok' magazine says that the divide between the rich and the poor is extremely big in Russia, so that I can use to support my point here. (another example is that almost all rich people have children, which i think no one would deny).

That being said, Valda, you've touched a difficult question it seems to me... So I think a lot is decided in where a person belongs more - material area or traditional-core-values area. If a person is solidly in the latter of the areas, there is no doubt about the decision (people just can't help having kids there, which explains huge population growth in Africa by the way). If it's the first area, money can be and is an important factor in making this decision (which again expains declines in birth rates in richer countries, or richer population sectors in some countries).

Any civil objections are more than welcome.