Across China, certain cities are starting to relax the family planning policy. A growing number of couples are now allowed to have two children. But surprisingly, many eligible couples are still not sure whether they wish to have a second child.

The joys of parenthood.But like all parents around the globe, it comes with a price sometimes too high to pay.

With skyrocketing real estate prices, food prices and other essentials rapidly inflating, it hardly comes as a surprise that many families choose to stick with raising only one child, despite being now allowed to have a second.

A citizen said "Diapers, milk powder, clothing it's all about money. And prices continue to go up as they grow up. It's stressful to raise a second child today."

Not all grandparents agree however, and the wish to see large families prevails.

An senior citizen said "It would be nice to have two children in a family. They could grow up together and take care of each other. In our generation, my parents raised several kids. Young parent nowadays think too much of themselves, they just don't want to shoulder more responsibilities."

Though young urban couples seem more rational in their family choices, the strong influence of the elder generation could help cities encouraging local residents to procreate. These cities are seeing the age imbalance increase, with too few young people to care for the elderly.

But for now, it's the elder who are eager to assist, frequently raising their grandchildren whilst their parents are at work. New family planning policies are being rolled out in a limited number of cities. In the city of Yangzhou, 650 couples were granted permission to have a second child last year. This year, the policy is expanding.

Ji Bin, Deputy Director of Yangzhou Family Planning Commission, said "More than nine hundred eligible couples will have the permission to have a second child. The number this year is thiry-five percent higher than last year."

More choice for young couples, but also a necessity for some cities. But as long as other supporting policies don't change, rearing children remains an expensive undertaking in China. And, as everywhere in the world, we all want the very best for our children.

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