Every mother is concerned with giving their baby the best they have to offer. But more often than not, your baby doesn’t know the difference between products that you buy for them. Their only requirement is that they stay healthy and comfortable. The rest really just simmers down to the love and personal connection you have with them. In this article, we’re going to dive into how to manage your money while also getting the essential items for your little one. When you really think of it, there’s so many ways to save money from childbirth and hospital tricks to raising your bub. Here is our take on how you can save money on baby products.
Save in the hospital
Say no to add-ons
Hospitals strive to provide care facilities to suit literally everyone’s needs. But you don’t necessarily have to buy-in to all of those facilities. Pass on a private room if it costs you more. You cant be sure how long you will actually need to stay as it depends on how your child decides to be born- with or without a fuss. And it’s not always like you’ll have privacy in your private room with all the nurses and medical care check ins you get. You might actually also feel comfortable seeing other mothers and feel connected in the same situation while you skip the private room.
Ask for samples
The hospital and maternity ward is a great place for marketers to pop freebies for mothers to sample. You might often see products in your room that the hospital forgets to put away. It could be products for you, or even a toy for your little one. Lotions, ointments, and you might even find coupons for baby products that you don’t want to leave behind. This is a great chance to trial products that you might like, and ma come in handy sometime. It doesn’t hurt to ask the nurses or hospital staff if these are collectable, because you’d have left without them otherwise!
Accept free stuff
The hospital also puts in some items to your cabinet and your baby’s that you may take. Ofcourse, first ask them. There are some products taken out of the packaging that cannot be reused for another patient, so you might save the items the hospital will need to throw away when you’re discharged. You may save some money for some swaddling cloth, alcohol swabs disposable soothers for your baby bottles and thermometers. If you’re a fist time mom, you might also spot some items you forgot to buy in the rush. You can save a few dollars from your next drug store visit.
Shop smart
Buy diapers smartly
Diapers are the one item that you will always need at some point of your baby’s growth. Because diapers sell so much, they’re always on demand. When they’re always on demand, they’re bound to be sold in ways you can save. One is to find a store that has them on discount. You can find a store that gives diapers on discount some times. You can also shop online to get discounts from some online stores. You will always find some store that sells then cheaper. It helps to also check the brand’s site for discount coupons.
You also don’t need to always use the same brand on your baby. If they don’t have very sensitive skin, you can check for brands that are on discount and buy just them. Diapers are by default manufactured for baby skin comfort, so you should have no trouble for the most part. But if not, you have option 2- buy in bulk. Since you’re using diapers indefinitely all the time, you can fearlessly buy diapers in bulk.
Choose convertible gear
You might have heard this countless times, but have you actually used one yourself? Because you’re missing out on a lot. Not just money, but space, efficiency, and being cool. From cribs to chairs to strollers, use items that can find items with multiple purposes. Thinking smart can get you a long way in saving money.
Invest in a stroller bassinet that converts to a seat. Invest in a single pram that converts to a double. Invest in a feeding chair that converts to a rocking chair. Choose a crib that converts to a toddler bed. Basically, get items that can grow up with your child so you wouldn’t be spending on new items every 6 months. When you go to shop for baby items, it’s always smart to look out for 2in1 or 3in1 options.
Shop less
We know you want the best for your baby, but as we said before- your baby doesn’t need all these different products and brands to live. They don’t even know the difference. You may start stocking up on all sorts of things, jumping on the trend. But frankly, it is enough to just get items that your baby NEEDs, and drop out the things they WANT. You can figure out what they want as you spend some time with them, and save up on buying things your baby will likely never use.
Choose hand-me-downs
Your baby clothes, just like other baby’s have sentiments attached to their own things. Specially clothes. This is totally ok to have your baby’s first onsie, or first nappy as a memoire. But most of the other clothes they wear are likely used only for a short period of time since babies grow at a very large rate until they’re about 0-4 years. Buying new clothes every few months doesn’t need to go out of your pocket. You can speak to a friend mom, or your older sibling to see if they have tiny clothes that fit your baby.
There are also a number of mums who want to swap clothes online to save up. Doing a few swaps are totally worth the money, and is a win for both parents. Encourage the swap culture. It’s also good for the environment. It is natural to buy everything under the sky for your baby when you’re pregnant. Your baby needs much fewer things than you think. So just go for the bare minimum and keep your finances under control.
Yet another way to save money on clothing purchases is to join local mom’s groups where you might connect with others who have clothing their children have outgrown.
“Check out Facebook groups. You’ll often find parents cleaning out their homes who are willing to part with nice clothing and gently used baby gear,” says Reardanz, of Babylist.
Shop online- but not for everything
Stop. You don’t need to jump out of your comfy sweatpants for every little thing. It’s the digital age. Shop online. If you’re careful, shopping online can save you a few bucks and time for travelling to the store. Shopping online, you search for what you need, and get results for what you look for. If you go to the store, you end up in a baby aisle with all sorts of baby items and before you know it, you have everything but what you came for! Cant deny this happens to all of us every now and then. Besides, the market only gets more competitive so baby stores have got all the hacks to lure you in! Shopping online has also a certain degree of care involved. Do not allow yourself to get distracted by advertisements.
Most baby products can be found online these days too! Even things like prams! And if you thought there’s no way you can buy a pram without trialing it- they’ve even got options for free 30 day home trials! Online shopping is a piece of cake in this era. Also choose sellers who don’t charge for shipping. Be careful when purchasing items that raise health concerns for your baby online. There are certain things that are better bought in-store (such as toys). You don’t want your baby refusing to play with something you thought was cute on an online photograph.
Reduce, reuse
Get disposable items out of your shopping list. If you constantly find yourself at the store swiping your card away on never ending baby items, it’s quite likely you are not using reusable items as much as you can. Things like cloth diapers, breast pads, bottle nipples are a few of many items that you can easily reuse instead of buying.
Apart from saving in the hospital, grabbing freebies, using take-home samples, using convertible baby gear, and shopping wisely there are also a few home and lifestyle hacks that can be adapted to save big on your baby products. They pretty much boil down to sharing, sampling, borrowing, claiming insurance, and cooking at home. To learn more on these hacks, read our article on lifestyle hacks to saving on baby products.
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