Money Saving Tips for New Parents
Those who are about to become parents should think about money saving strategies before baby arrives.
For starters, creating a baby register at a baby specialty store or other favorite retailer is a must. A baby registry works like a bridal registry. When a baby shower is scheduled, the parents can visit the store of their choice, choose “wish list” items and enter them into a computerized registry. Shower guests and anyone who wants to purchase a baby gift cans simply check the registry and purchase something from the list. When creating a registry, it is a good idea to have some items in various price ranges, so that friends and loved ones can purchase items within their budgets. The neat aspect of the baby registry is that some people are very generous, so it is not unusual for families to receive high dollar items like child safety seats and strollers. When baby arrives, there will be more money for other items.
Consider hand-me-downs or gently worn items. New babies grow fast, which means that friends or family members may have baby clothes that are as nice as new. With careful laundering, baby clothing can be passed along to other families for years. Consignment shops are also options for finding nearly new clothes and other items.
Consider breastfeeding. Breast milk has immune building properties, and is loaded with nutrients that promote healthy growth and development. Even breastfeeding for six weeks is very beneficial for baby and can save money. If baby is drinking formula, ask the paediatrician for samples. Many paediatricians have an abundance of baby formula samples on hand are willing to share.
Purchase a supply of cloth diapers. Using cloth diapers can save hundreds of dollars per year. For parents who prefer disposables, having some cloth diapers on reserve means not having to buy disposables on credit when cash is low.
Become a coupon master. Parents who are not particular about the brand of diaper can purchase diapers at a discount every week. Diaper coupons are common in Sunday newspaper inserts and magazines. Coupons can also be printed from diaper company websites and other coupon links. Magazines for parents of new babies are good sources of freebies, and feature coupons with deep discounts for other items.
Prepare more meals at home. A meal at home can be prepared for less than half of what the same meal would cost at a restaurant. Invest in a crockpot. With the right seasonings, a less than tender cut of meat will taste like a five-star entree after a few hours in a crockpot. Save the eating out for nights when restaurants offer free kids’ meals.
So, there you have a good starting point to begin saving money as a new parent before and after baby arrives.
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- Cloth Diapering Now “a No Mess Deal” with New Bummis and Tots Bots Diaper System (prweb.com)
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- How to Store Cloth Diapers (theecochic.com)
About The Real Supermum
This is a great post, and would really help any new parents x x
Great ideas for parents to be, also a good idea is to keep an eye out for baby events which happen every so often, this is a great way of stocking up on things like, bottles, milk, toys, nappies, wipes, etc at a reduced cost.
If you are doing a baby register then an idea is to also put clothes for when they are a bit bigger (3-6months, 6-9months) as with lots of people buying clothing for the LO sometimes there is too much newborn or 0-3months!!!
If you shop in Boots then register you LO as your baby as all baby products will then give you 10 points per pound instead of 4 points…these can add up & you can either treat the LO or yourself to something nice!!! =]
xXxXx
i think that equiptment if you want it all new its expensive, but actually once all that is got, i find child benefit cover the day to day things such as nappies wipes and formula, i buy bulk when the baby events are on and they last untill the next one, im also a big fan of car boots, got some fab stuff, toys, clothes, equiptment for next to nothing and in good conditon, babies arnt using these things for long, so dont really get ruined.
I love charity shop hunting and looking on fb for bargains as i know my daughter isnt in them very long, i also make sure that if any of my friends need anything i will hunt through all old clothes to see if anything us useful xx
When I was preg with my 1st I baught everythin brand new and believe me it cost a fortune when I was preg with my 2nd I signed up to all sorts of parent stuff…pampers, emmas diary, asda baby group, bounty baby group, I got sent all kinds of free samples and nappy vouchers x x x
another great tip is using your local freecycle site. I have kitted out my soon to be born daughters wardrobe with everything she needs from birth to 2 years old…everything is immaculate and only been worn once if at all..!
That’s all really helpful.
Look out for baby events (the asda one is always really good) you can stock up on nappies, wet wipes, formula etc for a reduced price. Also if you shop at boots register for the parenting club then you get more points for every pound you spend on baby items, then you can save them up and either treat yourself or your little one. I saved them up and used the points to buy my little man’s pushchair so that saved me about £70! X
I had 90% hand me downs or second hand items babies grow out of clothes so quickly there is no point spending £15 on an outfit when they may not even wear it .. i always brought one size and the next one up cause you never no if you have a big baby all the expensive newborn clothes may not fit !! Stuarts didn’t so i’m lucky i brought second hand
i also tried breastfeeding for 5 weeks but ti wasn’t in the best interest to either of us ! i am now considering whether it’s worth getting cloth nappies as they cost £20 a week for disposables
that’s a very american sounding arctle.
careful planning is all that’s needed.
2nd hand does not need 2nd best, just means pre loved. In that vital 1st year babies grow so quickly. ebay, charity shops, car boots etc are all good for picking up bargains.
Tap up friends for things they no longer use. I picked up a Silver Cross 3D Travel system including car seat for £140 from a colleague at work. It had only been used a couple of times.
Breastfeeding saves you at least £10 a week as the average container of formula now costs between £8 and £10 and you will use 1-2 a week dependant on how hungry your child is and their age. You then have the extra savings of not needing a sterilizer, bottles, etc.
Join every baby mailing group going (supermarkets, things in bounty pack etc), all will tell you of good deals looming and also may provide freebies.
Bulk buying can save money. I used to buy boxes upon boxes of nappies and wipes from a local wholesale distributer, not only did it work out cheaper (even with VAT added on) it meant i always had the items in stock.
Careful planning with food. Most prepared food will stay in the freezer for 3 months, When nearing the time you’d start weaning then start pureeing what you’re having (if healthy). This spreads the cost and is less time consuming.
You can save money with cloth nappies but only if you don’t use a nappy laundering service.
NCT sales are great for baby stuff and ebay i got a NEW moses basket for £2 and went to mothercare that weekend and it was £65 i was shocked! nappies are expensive but if you buy them in bulk and your not overly fussy of what brand you use most supermarkets have something on offer (asda baby events are great to stock up) and cant forget car boot sales… love to get a bargain! but if you wanna buy new shop around! x
this is an excellent post for new parents, if you go on a lot of free websites they give a few baby things away and also sign up to all the baby porduct makers i.e. cow and gate, pampers, huggies, aptamil, they all send vouchers in the post. x
I have joined every baby club to get coupons and money off, clubcard points and boots advantage card points. I definitely look after money and it helps alot xx
This will help a lot of new mums and familys on a low income their some very good ideas
This is a very useful and informative post that I am sure will help many new parents/parents to be.
The things I found helpful when I was pregnant was, when people ask you or offer you baby clothes, ask them to get the next size up – I got lots and lots of 0-3 stuff, which was amazing but my son had literally time to wear all of it about once, some of it hadn’t been worn because he grew out of it so quickly!
I also found that you can get brilliant bundles of clothes on ebay/local facebook groups at a really good price – I don’t have a fortune to spend, and they have been a godsend, second hand is definitely not second best! x
Brilliant blog with some brilliant ideas, i had lots of second hand items and all of them looked like they had been barely used. As babies they grow so quickly and are in clothes all of 5mins. Lots of supermarkets ect have baby clubs…. join them you get lots of free goodies and money off vouchers. Every penny counts when you have another mouth to feed
some great tips, the hand me downs are a great money having technique but I was subject to hand me downs and I hated it. It does make it special when when i got something new.
The coupons is the area you could really make a difference
This is a really good post and I will definitely be following most of the tips in this article once I finally get pregnant of course.
I know that it might never be too late to stock up on some items but I don’t want to do that and then find out I can’t have kids i.e. as daft as it may sound I don’t want to jinx myself. Am I the only one who worries about this?