It’s a blessing to have children of your own. But it could be a shame to let your finances deter your choice to have your own little bundle of joy. An increasingly good number of couples these days are procrastinating planning for a child because of career and financial reasons. You never know what you might be missing out on by putting your child after financial insecurities. But there are ways you could devise to save for the arrival of the little one. So you could have the double bonanza of having a child and yet not vex about your money matters:
1. Medical Insurance
Unless you are planning for a home delivery, or you happen to be one of those lone mothers deciding to give birth in the woods, you will need to deliver at a hospital, pay for the delivery apart from the regular doctor visits you will make. There will always be overheads apart from what you estimate with a hospital delivery. So make sure you have a maternity insurance coverage. But you might as well talk to the hospital staff on the things they bill for. Ask them to list it out and if there is anything from the list you think is rather unimportant, they could skip that bit. Also, ask if you could pay half the admission fee if you are discharged sooner than the expected discharge time. That way you could keep a check on your pockets.
2. Explore Online Baby Stores
There are online retails for baby products that can give you massive discounts. More often than not, you might have to subscribe to loyalty cards to earn points. You won’t believe how quickly you will be able to redeem these points because you will always see yourself having to replenish the baby needs. Some also offer cash back advantages. So don’t think twice. Just go for it. Download the apps if need be, or simply save the sites to your favorites for quick access. Try out Zulily or Ebate for some great offers on baby products.
3. Opt For Nursing Over Formula Milk
It’s a known fact that ‘breastmilk is the best milk’ for your baby. Everybody from you mother to the midwife to your doctor has advised you to breastfeed your child. So does your maternal instinct instruct you to do. Health benefits apart, it also comes free! Just think about how formula milk could burn your pockets with the need of every refill. But don’t blame yourself if you are unable to nurse your child due to a medical reason or out of personal choice.
4. Don’t Make Your House A Diaper Store
Needless to say, diapers are what you will need to spend the most on. You will have to keep up with this bit until your child is potty trained. But that doesn’t guarantee to put a period to making your house a diaper outlet. With the arrival of the second or the third or the fourth child, it will turn into a vicious circle. But you could switch over to traditional cloth diapers. Trust me, it’s going to save a lot of your money, but you will have to expend energy over cleaning the messy cloth, wash it in detergent, soak it in an antibacterial solvent and dry until the next use. And imagine the hillock of the cloth diapers your baby will need, and you will keep working on. But it’s worth saving all that money! If you still want to keep yourself out of doing the gross business, simply watch out for the seasonal sales when diapers are up for grabs. Amazon mom can give you few great deals on this as well.
5. Baby Clothes
Don’t invest too much in baby clothes. Your baby will keep growing so quick that he will be out of those sizes very soon. Get few onesies, but don’t mind using the cute little outfits that your baby received as gifts or your immediate kin has pulled out from the old stock she had from the times when her children were small. If possible, ask your friends to give away those clothes!
6. Don’t Worry About Spending On Fancy Baby Items
The market for baby items is so full of fancy things – your baby will barely need them – rather you could care for your baby without them too. They are merely pieces that are great on display but will rarely be put to use. Fancy baby bottles, for instance. Or baby spoons. Swap that spoon with the tiny dessert spoon you will find in your kitchen. Or a crib bumper.
Use soft cushions or pillows instead! Don’t use the disposable bibs because you are lazy to use the washable ones. Look for two-in-one articles. For instance, few swaddling blankets could be used as baby towels as well. Look for crib-cum-bassinet that can be attached to your bed when needed rather than spending on baby cots that most babies refuse to sleep in during their early days.
7. Put A Check On The Numbers You Will Buy
Opt for items that don’t need a purchase as a package of the same kind. You can buy two numbers of swaddling blankets instead of a pack of those, for instance.
8. DIY Baby Stuff
You could put old clothes or artifacts to use by making DIY baby articles. You could use a neat towel and lace it for a hooded swaddling blanket. If you are gifted with the art of knitting, you could do wonders with the woolen yards for your baby.
9. Home-made foods
There is a gamut of baby food at the supermarket isles. However, homemade purees can turn out great money savers on one hand, and on the other nourish your child while he/she bonds with you through the mama-made flavors.
So bringing a baby into the world should never be a concern with regards to your financial ability. It all depends on how well you organize your finances!
