Oh, baby! Those little bundles of joy can cost a small fortune, and that’s just getting them home from the hospital! After having 4 children, I have found a few ways to lessen the financial strain in different areas.
What is the first thing most women want to buy when they *suspect* that they maybe, might, possibly be pregnant? A pregnancy test! And you can spend a fortune on them, or you can march right down (or drag yourself, if you really are pregnant!) to Dollar Tree and buy one for a buck. And they work! As I mentioned here, they either accurately diagnosed or confirmed all four of my pregnancies.
So now that you know you’re pregnant, there are many expenses that can quickly add up. (especially when you’re a cash-paying maternity patient like moi!) So how else can you save money?
First up, shop around for the best deal on diapers. I know, I know cloth are cheapest and I kinda wish I had started from the get go. But as I mentioned, our first was in the NICU at birth, and in the hospital off and on for the first 5 months of his life, and cloth diapers were the furthest thing from my mind! Plus, we had a huge, huge stash of disposables from our showers.
Spending a few extra minutes each time you buy can really save you money! I like the AmazonMom option- you get free shipping and there are usually coupons to use as well. You can also set it up to ship automatically so that’s one less thing you have to forget. Genius!
Another suggestion- if you are having more than one baby shower, you can kindly request that one be a diapers/wipes shower. We have four kids, and with all four we went at least 7 months without buying a single diaper due to very generous diaper showers. In fact, that’s the only type of shower I had with #4. Although the 5,000 newborn-sized outfits you’ll get at a traditional shower are cute, you probably don’t need that many. But you will need 5,000 diapers!
Secondly , if at all possible, breastfeed your baby! I know this is a sensitive subject- I have really good friends who really wanted to but just couldn’t- but it is so good for baby, for you, and it is free! With our first two, we supplemented a tiny bit with formula, but our 3rd and 4th rarely had a drop of formula (mostly because they wouldn’t take a bottle very well!) and there is no telling how much money that has saved us. If you are not able to actually nurse, I suggest buying a high-quality breast pump. Even if you spend $200-$300 on the pump, this will not compare to the money you’d spend on formula! (Also, ask around about borrowing one. I was able to do this, only buying a few replacement parts.) Again, I know that nursing isn’t possible for everyone. It took me 5 weeks to get my firstborn to nurse- because he was sent to the NICU at one day old- and I was thisclose to giving up. But I can honestly say I am glad I stuck with it.
Lastly, look for bargain-priced (or free!) clothes You probably want your little one to look cute, but have you seen the prices of some baby outfits out there? I am all for dropping a little extra cash for a special event (coming-home outfit, Easter, Christmas, etc) but for the most part, I only buy super-cheap clothing for my little ones. They simply outgrow it too fast to spend a fortune! But that doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice style.
The best places I’ve found to buy baby/children’s outfits: clearance racks at Children’s Place, Carter’s, sometimes Target although their clearance is sometimes still too high for me, and garage sales. Goodwill and consigment shops, while great for adult clothing, seem a little over-priced to me for children’s clothes. You can read more here on this topic. I’ve even found swimsuits for babies at Dollar Tree!
And now for my final suggestion- I looked through hundreds and hundreds of pictures from this summer for more examples of great clothing buys, but honestly about 85% of our clothes are hand-me-downs from generous cousins and friends. If you know someone who had a child the same gender as yours and they are done having children, it doesn’t hurt to ask if they’d be willing to sell you a large bag to you for a few bucks. They’d probably be happy to see them being used again!
I have really enjoyed sharing with you today. I love helping others learn to save money! You don’t have to follow all of my own personal “rules” for cheap baby raising, but the point is to get you thinking about how to save money for important things, like college! (oh, my!)
Contributed by Kelli of Eat, Pray, Read, Love
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