Expenses pile-up when you have a newborn baby. From the pre-natal check-ups, pre-birth shopping, to hospital expenses, it is really easy to break the bank especially when the budget has not been thoroughly planned.
Once the baby is born, expenses continue to accumulate. From his basic needs, to monthly check-ups and immunizations, up to other miscellaneous expenses. Thankfully there are a good number of ways to scrimp on the monthly expenses upon the arrival of your new addition.
Here are —
Ways to save when you have a newborn baby:
- Breastfeed – It is the most natural thing that you can do to provide the needs of your baby. You do not need anything special, just a clean breast and a hungry baby and say goodbye to the many expenses brought about by Formula Feeding. Apart from not spending on Formula (which can rack up up to more than P3,000 pesos a month even more when you’ve got a kid with a sensitive tummy), you also get to save on feeding bottle expenses, regular purchasing of teats and bottle-feeding accessories, the expenses that the daily washing and sterilizing of bottles entail. All these plus of course the best benefit of all – your newborn becomes less-susceptible to illnesses – that means less hospitalizations, medications, and future diseases. Know more benefits of Breastfeeding here. And in case you’d have to go back to work and invest in an efficient and hardworking pump, your expenses for such can be recouped within two to three months.
- Use Cloth Diapers – You can save up to P2,000.00 a month for choosing cloth over disposable diapers. Newborns are notorious for using 10-12 nappies a day so imagine buying these disposable diapers at P8.00 a piece? Yes cloth diapering can be a one-time big time expense (except when you get addicted to it), but the P4,000++ that you will spend for cloth diapers can be used until potty training time and can be passed on to your future babies. In case you are planning to just have one child, these cloth nappies can be re-sold to other moms at half the price returning half of your investment! What’s more is that if you cannot afford the initial investment, you can start from buying pre-loved from other moms. And to add more icing on the cake – you are helping the environment by not adding garbage to the dumpsites! Here’s where you can buy cloth diapers for your newborn.
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You may also want to read:
- Places to Shop for your Newborn
- How Pregnant Moms can stay cool this summer
- Where to buy Cloth Diaper for Newborns
- 15 Breastfeeding tips for New Mommies
- Newborn and Baby Photo Studios in the Philippines
- Where to have your Maternity Photo Shoot
- Aircon-free ways to Keep Toddlers and Babies Cool this summer
- Baptismal Requirements
- Where to buy Christening Gowns and outfits
- How Pregnant Moms can Stay Cool this Summer
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- Use cloth wipes – Before I discovered and mustered the courage to use cloth wipes, we spend up to P500.00 a month for disposable baby wipes for our eldest during her newborn phase. Thank goodness for fabric stores that sell Flannel, we now have wipes that are good for two to three days wash, which also go in with our diaper laundry. Check out my past entry here on where to buy fabric for wipes. Alternately you can also use old shirts, old receiving blankets for this purpose. Recycle an old wipes container, and mix in a wipes solution either in an old sprayer or a mason jar-like container. Pour some drops of baby oil and shampoo in a cup of water, and you now have a wipes solution that you can spray either on the cloth wipe or directly on your baby’s bum.
- Take care of the Baby Yourself – This may be hard, but if you can savor the chance to take care of your newborn on your own. Forego getting a nanny (It is hard to find a good one anyway), and take advantage of your maternal instincts! It is a journey you will never forget. By the way, by choosing not to get a Yaya for your baby you get to save at least P5,000.00 in monthly expense which represents her salary, benefits, as well as living (food, toiletry, utility) expenses.
- Say yes to Hand-me-downs – Yes it is your first baby, but do not hesitate to say yes to the Hand-me-downs well-meaning relatives and friends give you. If you are OC and it is an article of clothing, you can always disinfect with a hot wash. Same goes with baby gear that are still in great condition.
- Hold-off on the shopping – This is one lessons First-Time Moms usually earn the hard way. There are a lot of stuff and baby gear that the baby will not actually need and use in her lifetime. Like how many booties does she need? And how many times will she be wearing those cute onesies? In reality all your baby needs are just clean clothes, a blanket, diapers, and you!
- Never hesitate to buy pre-loved – Most budget-conscious mothers are learning that there is nothing wrong with buying pre-loved. Buy/Sell and Trade groups are aplenty now and moms should take advantage of it. Baby Gears that hardly get used and are still in mint condition get sold over the internet surplus stores and the like. You will be surprised at how much savings you can garner with using or buying pre-loved newborn stuff. Here are some alternative places where you can shop for your newborn.
- Take advantage of what the government has to offer — It may be a hotly debated topic in local parenting forums, but the fact is our government offers free immunization shots for babies. Drop by your Barangay health center and ask for an immunization schedule. Discuss the pros and cons with your family, and if you decide to take advantage of the taxes that you are paying for, the just bring our baby to the HC as scheduled. Your private pedia can always administer the shots for vaccines that are unavailable in the center, so you would not have to worry about your baby missing a dose or an immunization. Also, if you are fine with it, monthly check-ups for babies are also free in barangay health centers.
- Buy Generic – With my eldest I buy everything labelled “baby.” Baby detergent, baby dishwashing stuff, baby whatever only to find out later it costs up to four times more than the regular products. I’m sure they have a more sensitive formula, but there are generic items that work as good as those that can be bought for a more reasonable price! Like Calla detergent. At P74.00 per kilo, it can wash a lot of cloth diapers compared to a baby brand that will cost you up to P200.00 for every kilogram. Discernment is definitely the key.
So there you have it, I am sure there are other ways to save on your newborn’s expenses. Ill be updating this post as soon as I discover more. Hope you can drop by my Facebook Page and hit the like button, so you can receive Regular Updates from Happy Pinay Mommy.
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Leaving you with this tips on caring for your Newborn Baby:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UsA2hm8CecM
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