More babies, more happiness? Maybe not if you have three

Congratulations on your new bundle of joy! But if it's your third child, maybe you should expect less joy this time.

According to a London School of Economics study published in the journal Demography, parents are happy about the first baby, about half as much with the second kid's arrival - then for the third, it's just not close.

Sounds official, right? Before you get upset, an anchor from WVUE explains that "researchers don't think the third child is any less loved, just that parenthood is less novel."

There are some finer details, as this Washington Post article points out. For example, "When it comes to the third child, it isn't so much that parents are unhappy - they simply don't get the big happiness boosts they experienced with their first two children."

Don't pat yourselves on the back too hard, first children. This Huffington Post article notes parents level off in the happiness department not long after that first baby arrives.

We're not even going to ask what the study thinks about a couple's fourth child ...

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