This is a post from my old blog that I have moved to Hear Mum Roar.
Hello, readers, I hope you are well! It has still been hellish busy around here, my fiance is still in the process of selling the house, and of course we have the kids keeping us on our toes. Please bear with me, as the letter ‘m’ on my laptop keyboard keeps falling off as I type (thanks Mr 3).
Today, it’s all about being frugal with all things concerning babies. Whether we’re pregnant, or already have a baby or two, most of us are always keen to hear about how to save money on things our precious little ones need. There are so many unnecessary products on the market for babies, and for a first time parent, it can be very daunting. After all, what does a baby actually need?
For many parents, having a baby means dropping one income if mum or dad decides to become a stay at home parent. Some of these ideas can really soften the impact of this.
1. Use cloth nappies. If you do this one, not only will you help the environment, but you will save yourself a small fortune. There are many ways you can do this. You can use terry flat squares and fold them, or buy fitted nappies and put fleece or woollen covers on top. There are also all in one styles or pocket nappies, both of which fit like a disposable nappy and have a breathable, waterproof outer. Another option is prefolds, which have a more absorbent section down the centre, and can be folded and laid inside a nappy cover. I personally recommend against plastic pilchers, as they sweat and can cause nappy rash.
In the old days, nappies were soaked in a bucket of Napi San or similar solution. Not these days! Save your water, and dry pail them! To do this, simply place the nappies (with any solid matter rinsed off or tipped into the toilet) into a bucket and then wash them as normal. If using modern cloth nappies (any type of nappy shaped like a disposable), make sure you follow manufacturer’s instructions also. Many should not be soaked.
If you are concerned about nappy rash, you can also add a layer of polar fleece to lay inside the nappy against your baby’s bottom. This will draw moisture away from the skin. You can simply buy this fabric and cut it to size, as it doesn’t fray.
2. Use cloth wipes. Think about how much you spend on disposable baby wipes a week. When my baby girl was born over a year ago, I started out using disposable wipes on both her and my not quite two year old son. For us, this was adding up to between $15-20 a week. Within a week or two, I changed the wipes to cloth ones. You can either buy these, or make them from flanellette, terry cotton, cotton velour, or other similar fabrics. I usually just wet them with water, and they work so much better than disposables. They’re also great for wiping hands and faces. Some people prefer to use face washers as wipes, these are just as effective, it is more a matter of personal preference.
3. Use cornflour instead of powder for rashes. I buy a packet of cornflour from any supermarket for under a dollar, and it lasts such a long time, even with two little ones prone to nappy rash (my 3 year old son is in night nappies mostly). It is great to treat heat rash or even thrush, as it absorbs excess moisture and can suffocate the fungus spores of thrush. You can recycle an old powder container to put it in, or buy a cheap season shaker from the supermarket to make this really handy. Talcum powder isn’t recommended by many people these days, and it especially isn’t by me. It has been found that there might be a link between talcum powder usage in babies and ovarian cancer. It’s also not ideal for little ones and even adults to be breathing in.
4. The best toy for your child’s happiness and development is you! Talk to your child, give your baby lots of oppurtunities to get on the floor to play, and this will do them wonders. Other things I like to buy my kids to keep them stimulated is books, books, books! There is no such thing as enough, and they don’t cost much. I don’t tend to buy my babies very many toys at all when they are under one year old, because they get so many given as gifts and handed down to them. Then in a year’s time, I need to declutter them anyway.
Also, don’t discount the value of home made toys. I will have more posts about this in time. If you’re not sure what you could make, a plastic container is fascinating to a small baby, or a saucepan and spoon to bang it with. Just make sure you have earplugs!
5. Hand me downs. If you are offered hand me downs, accept them graciously. Babies really do grow incredibly quickly, and I often have found that many clothes didn’t get a chance to be worn as my children have grown so fast. It’s such a shame to waste hundreds of dollars on clothing that might only get worn once or twice. I always have a bag handy so that if I come across an article of clothing that has been outgrown, it goes in the bag. Once the bag is full, I pass the clothing onto a friend or to my local charity shop.
6. Whenever possible, make your own baby food. You can make up a special batch or two once a week, or put aside some vegetables from the family’s dinner for bubs. Either way, this will save you hundreds and you’ll know exactly what your little one is eating, and that it will be much healthier. With my third child, I discovered Baby Led Solids (BLS) which has not only made preparing food easier, I believe it’s made my little girl a lot less fussy than my first two kids.
If you have gotten into the habit of serving baby food in a jar from the shops more often than you’d like to admit and your child is hooked on a particular food, you can always try to copy the meal at home. I made the mistake with my son of letting him get hooked on one that had a lamb casserole, because it was the only way I could get him to eat meat. The cost of this bad habit was getting outrageous! So learnt to cook the same meal at home from fresh ingredients and he loved it! I was able to freeze lots and lots for the future.
7. Breastfeed. I’m not going to get into an arguement here. I’m not a lactivist, or anything like that, and it doesn’t bother me if anyone breastfeeds or formula feeds. But, it can’t be denied that breastfeeding is the frugal option when possible, as it’s free.
I hope this has been helpful, I plan to do more blog posts about this topic in the future, as there are so many ways we can raise our children frugally, be home for them if that’s what we choose, and not have to feel that they are missing out on anything as a result. After all, most of us want to take the stress of money off our shoulders just to enjoy our families more, don’t we?
I’d love to hear what others do to save money in what can be such an expensive time if we let it.
