All About Pregnancy

I first hand understand that money these days can be very tight; And lets face it, as much as we love our children dearly, they can each be a heavy load on the poor wallet. So we as parents have to prioritize to help lessen that load. We have to learn helpful tips/advice on saving money, while not having to sacrifice or do without!

Well, from 3 years of personal experience with my son; as well as learning how to prepare for a second on the way… I am here to help any first timers out there! Because I myself, would have loved some help when I was a first timer. <3

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ok, so first things first. What NOT to waste your money on…

(1.) While they are ok to have if given to you as gifts, do not bother with the bottle warmers & wipe warmers. They most of the time never work right, cause frustration, and eat up batteries like crazy. Not to mention, that after all that grief they give you, they soon just go Ka-put & break. All you have to do is look up the simple good ole fashioned ways to do it. They take just as LITTLE time as the warmers do.

(2.) Another thing to avoid are those “Special Diaper Pails” that promise to block odors in your nursery. They cost you more money in the long run with all the special bags you have to buy for them. When the reality is, a basic regular mini trash can (with a lid) does just as great. And if you get the plastic bags from grocery shopping, save them and use them as the bags for that regular trash can. Ta-Da! Free bags! It’s a money saver and does equally wonderful!

(3.) Do NOT buy a bunch of newborn size stuff. Babies do not remain in the newborn size very long AT ALL! This mainly includes diapers & clothes. (Size one & two diapers are better to invest in, and size 0-3 months & 3-6 Months clothes are better to invest in!) Babies grow super fast. So think “Long Run”.

(4.) Infant Bath tubs are optional. They help, but its just as safe & effective to use a clean kitchen sink the ole fashioned way. So if you want to splurge for a baby tub, fine, no harm done; but you do not have to. Think “Priority” & “Money” in this situation to determine if you wanna get it.

(5.) Then there are diaper & Wipe brands… Pampers is way better than both Huggies & Luvs. If you went the name brand route. However, when it comes to name brand diapers & wipes, you are paying a crap load of money mainly for the big-shot name of it! Not the product itself.  Store brands work just as good and are WAY cheaper! my favorite brand of all (And I have tried so many other brands, to compare it to) was the grocery store Kroger’s Brand. They are called “Comforts”. They come in green packaging with a cute baby bumble bee on them. I actually get mad if my husband buys any other brand diapers or wipes. I love comforts way more than any name brand! When I used the diapers on my son, they never had issues with leaking or fitting him wrong. They were comfortable for him & great for his sensitive skin! Yet they are around $4 - $6 cheaper than Luvs, Pampers, & Huggies! So yea, dont waste money on name brand diapers. The Comforts wipes are thick, soft, and good for baby’s skin. So if it’s possible for you, go for the Kroger “Comforts” brand!

(6.) Do not be afraid of hand-me-downs from relatives and close friends. Free always helps. And if something in the mix of what they give you does not meet up to your standards, toss it or hand it down to someone else in need.

(7.) Avoid “Receiving” blankets. They are only 30 x 30 in size. Invest in bigger blankets, so they last longer. As said before, babies grow fast! Something close to receiving blankets, but are just as cute & bigger, are “Swaddle” blankets. They are 30 x 40 in size! Which does not sound like a big difference, but you’d be surprised! It helps and last a good bit longer!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Ok with that all said, here is a list of the bare basics of what you’ll need to have for the baby! Anything not listed, will be things that you could easily & comfortably be fine without.

(1.) Crib (and ofcourse a mattress & sheets)

(2.)Dresser

Here is a link to the best & cheapest set I could find for a crib with a dresser/changing table combo… & a good affordable mattress:

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Baby-Relax-My-First-Nursery-Crib-Changing-Table-Dresser-Set-Walnut/16550190

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Safety-1St-Crib-Toddler-Mattress/9864293

(3.) Bottles..I personally love the Gerber NUK brand! (and a pump, storage bags, & Nipple Cream if breastfeeding; all in the Lansinoh brand because that brand was affordable & worked best!)

(4.) Only a Few Newborn Outfits, and Dominately 0-3 months & 3-6 months Size Clothes!

(5.) Diapers

(6.) Wipes

(7.) A Simple Bouncer.

(8.) An Infant Car Seat that is up to date & meets US safety standards (and never been in a wreck before)

(9.) Around 10 to 15 Burp Cloths

(10.) About 4 or 5 Blankets

(11.) Grooming Kit (And even though this isnt a money saver tip, I absolutely LOVE “Aveeno Baby” Diaper rash cream, lotion, & Body wash/shampoo. It works so well!)

(12.) Diaper Bag (It doesn’t have to be one of those over priced bags. Go cheap. Walmart is a great place to start. But many places with low prices can work well too.)

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

the best websites to go to for best prices would be walmart.com & Diapers.com! I especially love Diapers.com because it offers everything your baby could possibly need, and their prices are awesome on most stuff.

So there you have it ladies. There is a lot more I could go on about to help. But I’d have to write a novel. (lol) But this itself will help tons if you follow it closely. You’ll also learn things through your own “trial & error” …it’s part of mommy-hood! But this should save you plenty of heart ache on that wallet! Take it from a “been there & done that” mommy like myself. (^_^)