Tiffany Raiford
Babies are pretty expensive. They’re small and they do just about nothing but exist, but they’re really expensive. They are so cute, so beautiful and so worthwhile, but they cost a lot of money. And we are not just talking about all the wine you’ll spend money one once your baby is finally here. There are a lot of expenses that come along with having a baby, and with those expenses comes time to work on your budget. Can you afford to have a baby? The simple truth is that you probably can; most people can even if they don’t think so. There are so many millions of ways you can save money when you welcome a new baby into your lives, and you might not even know about most of them. For example, did you know that if you’re welcoming multiples you can get free formula, diapers and wipes from many companies? Well, now you do. And we have more advice you can take, too. Go ahead; we dare you to use one of these money-saving methods when it comes time for you to welcome your new baby. In fact, we dare you to use them all.
Let a Friend Host a Shower
Let a friend throw you a shower, even if you already have a baby and think it’s tacky. There is nothing tacky about people wanting to celebrate a new life being brought into the world. So let your friends host a shower and register for things you need such as diapers and wipes. You’d be surprised just what people will bring you that will save you money. Our twins were our 3rd and 4th babies and we didn’t expect anything from anyone – even a shower. Imagine our surprise when our friends surprised us with a couple’s shower complete with 10 months worth of diapers (We really just started buying them ourselves) gift cards, wardrobes and every single big item we needed and wanted.
Buy Diapers in Advance
When you get pregnant, start buying diapers. They are often on sale at various stores, so go ahead and start buying them now. It doesn’t hurt to spend $8 or so on a small pack of diapers every now and again when you’re expecting. If you buy a pack a week throughout your pregnancy, that’s around 40 packages of diapers that you could already have.
Wait for Target Sales
Target has great baby sales throughout the year. For example, we recently purchased 8 boxes of diapers for the twins and only spent $120. We bought 8 $25 boxes, got a $10 gift card for every 2 boxes we bought and $20 off every $100 purchase. That meant we just got $80 off our purchase.
Join Amazon Mom’s Subscribe and Save and Prime
You can save a lot when you sign up for this. Moms who do get a big discount on everything from formula to diapers to wipes and everything in between. And you get things delivered to you on a specific date that you can change as you please, and everything is free two-day shipping with Amazon Prime.
Look for Coupons
You can get coupons all the time. Publix, our southern grocery store, offers them in their app every week. And many of them are for diapers, wipes and formula. Sometimes it’s so cheap with these coupons that we barely feel we are paying for anything when we shop for the babies.
Register for a Discount
Did you know that if you register at Babies R Us and you don’t get something from your registry, you will get a 15% discount on those things? That’s right; buy them after the shower and anything on your registry you buy will be discounted 15%. That kind of savings is huge to a new mom and dad, and we should know; we are moms and dads.
Pay Cash
This is a little known fact. If you go to the hospital to pay your bill once it arrives, offer to pay cash and ask for a discount. Many hospitals will happily accept your cash on the spot if you pay in full and they will offer you a discount on your bill if you do. In fact, some hospitals will still give you this discount even after your insurance agency has already negotiated the cost of your stay and services.
Breast Feed if you Can
It’s not like it’s a big secret that breastfeeding is good for a new baby. Now, let’s get something straight; I’m not telling you that you have to. I’m not telling you that you should if you don’t want to, and I’m not judging your choices. I breast fed all four of mine for less than two months thanks to reasons beyond my control the first two times and then realized I just didn’t care for it the third time around (What? Breastfeeding twins is time-consuming and I wanted to dedicate that time to my big girls). If you can, you can save a lot of money on formula. For example, my husband and I buy 4 containers a week at $26 a container. That’s just over $5400 per year on formula. If you can breast feed, you can save.
Get a Pump from your Insurance
Did you know your insurance might pay for your breast pump? Yeah, I didn’t either. However, they will. I you call and ask, they’ll let you know what they cover, if they cover it and how you can make this work and happen for you. Your insurance company is happily going to explain to you how to get a pump and have your insurance company cover it for you.
Return Gifts you Don’t Want or Need
Many people are too scared or too guilty to do this. If you don’t want or need something that someone gave to you as a gift, return it. If you’re never going to use it, it was a waste of everyone’s money. Instead of keeping it, return it for store credit and get something you need. It’s a far better use of your money.
Photo by Tim Boyle/Getty Images
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