What are YOUR Price Points for Baby Items?
Check out this email I recently received from reader, Jennifer…
Hi Collin! First, thanks for all you do to help us all save a bundle! Speaking of bundles, my husband and I just found out that we are expecting our first baby in September. 🙂 We are so happy and excited. Shortly after we found out, my husband said “you better start stocking up on baby freebies you know!” He has really come to love my couponing! LOL! I’m wondering if you might ask my fellow Hip2Savers to help me and other first time moms out there. I am totally lost on all things baby. What is a good price point for wipes, diapers, shampoo, lotion, formula etc.? Also, how far in advance can I stock up on certain items without worrying about spoiling? Can I stock up on wipes without worry that they will dry out? I have a million questions and know I can count on my Hip2Save community to help me out with the savings part!
Since all of my kiddos are finally out of diapers (Yippee!!), I am having a hard time coming up with good price points for the mentioned items above. So if you have a baby or toddler, please help Jennifer and other new mommies out by sharing your stock-up prices and any other money-saving tips/advice that you can offer a first-time mom. I would also love for you to suggest must-have baby items (i.e. for me, it was my sling and a Bumbo Baby seat) and baby items that you may feel are totally unnecessary.
And congratulations to Jennifer and all the other expectant Hip2Savers! 😀
Make sure to contact companies like Huggies, Pampers, Gerber (and formula sites if you intend to formula feed) get on their mailing lists! They will almost all send you higher value coupons than those you can find anywhere else. Also BREAST FEED! It is the healthiest option and can save you a couple thousand dollars. Also your child will probably have less illnesses which means fewer trips to the doctor. But if you do end up formula feeding companies will often send you coupons for sometimes 10 dollars off of a can of formula. Not too shabby 😉
I’m not very good at keeping track of good stock up prices. LOL I do try to keep the jumbo packs under about $4. I have recently bought a lot of diapers and wipes off of Amazon with all of the great 20% off coupons in magazines and the 30% off Amazon Mom discount. My must haves are my Moby wrap and good bouncer seat. We just recently bought the Fisher Price My Little Snugabunny and our newborn LOVES it. 🙂
How do you get jumbo packs for under $4? I am super curious. We usually buy Luvs diapers at $16 for a pack of 82.
I am always able to get Jumbo’s at Target for $4 or less by combining Target qs and Manufacturer’s qs. Its a little more straightforward than trying to get them for this price at the Drugstores.
walmart and rite aid always have sales for jumbo packs at about 6-7 dollars then use a coupon and they usually are 4 dollars for huggies or pampers.
I also keep diapers at less than $4 a pack. The trick is to watch sales and stock up. My best sales have been at rite aid and wlagreens when they go to 5.99-6.99 a pack and I use coupons. Huggies, luvs and pampers sometimes mail out some really good ones
yes i have a stock full of diapers in the basement, some for less than $3-4 a jumbo! huggies and earth’s best and pampers. luvs never go on sale for such low prices! but combining coupons with clearances or one day or other sales, u can def find them at this price…but STOCK up on dif sizes once u find the deal, it may be months before the next one comes along. also, cloth diaperign helps with extending times between opening diaper packages. (we use disposies only @ night and when there is a rash, or we are out for an extended period of time).
I tried the Earths Best and thought they were horrible. All of the tabs stuck to the diaper and they felt so cheap. Granted I did get them for $3.50 a jumbo pack but for that price, I still wouldnt use them again. Just wondering if anyone else felt the same way.
I would totally agree with all the comments above.
1. We were BROKE when we had our first child. As much as I wanted a beautiful nursery we couldn’t afford it. We did buy a “Amy’s Arms Reach CoSleeper” in large…it was about $150—but we used that FOR ALL THREE KIDS as a crib. Kept it next to our bed for the first few weeks and then brought it into thier room as a crib later. They lasted until they were about 2 in it. (I have small children too….) Totally worth the investment for us.
2. USED CLOTHES! They are SOOO tough on them, wear through them, or don’t wear them long enough to warrent paying full price for clothes! Goodwill, Consignment, YARD SALES! My favorite is when people don’t want to mark every piece so they label a huge sign “50 cent each piece or three for $1!” Buying my kids FULL outfits plus a spare tshirt for $1 was a steal! **Winter coats I struggle finding used, so I often buy those from the store…on sale of course!
3. BUMBO was a lifesaver at our house. Paid $35 for it, but often see them on Craigslist, and very easy to “clean up”.
4. I will agree with another comment—buy used baby toys (stroller, excersauser, high chair etc…) as you can resell them at a garage sale.
Things to pass on: personally I think the special baby tub….not worth it. A rubbermaid tub in the sink works just great. Wipe warmers….pass. I personally never used pacifiers for my kids…think they are a waste. Special Babymaking food equipment….I just used a Magic Bullet–works perfect, and a regular steamer that we already had. I also never used a rocking chair. I just sat on the Yoga Ball…as all the kids loved bouncing on that instead.
**I’m also going to support the breast is best–and saves you major moolah!!!!!
I agree totally on the used clothes thing- YARD SALES!!! I live in a military town (Camp Lejeune, baby!), where just about everyone has children. I plan my Saturday yard saling trips in the summer very carefully so that I can stock up on all the sizes & seasons for both of my children by visiting the yard sales on base housing. Also keep an eye out for local thrift stores that have ‘bag sales’; It may take a little work, but I bet you can find name brand clothes in really good shape!
Congrats!
I might be repeating what others said, so I am sorry, but I say don’t buy any clothes. For my first, I wanted all new stuff and two months into it, I regretted it. By the time he was in his next stage of clothes, I was borrowing anything that anybody was willing to lend me or give me. Find friends with the same gender baby who is done having kids! They will gladly get them off their hands as their kids grow! If you belong to a church or join a mommy group of some sort, that is even easier. Being a mom is all about sharing…advice, clothes, insanity reports. 🙂 I haven’t bought clothes for either of my boys since my first was 2 months old and the clothes they are wearing went through 4 children now (minus the 6-12 month clothes because of the crawling stage- got dragged across the floor a lot – but they made it through at least 2 kids)!
I strongly suggest the Miracle blanket!!! Best swaddle blanket ever, best shower gift ever, get two because baby will spit up on it and you will be helpless for the next nap or bedtime without it.
The one thing that new moms forget is that used is ok! We want everything to be brand new since it is our first and then you realize later that most of the stuff the kids only use for a few short months before they are too big. Look for friends that have stuff that they don’t want anymore or aren’t using right now. Maybe youcan borrow stuff like a bouncy seat, swing, exersaucer, playmat. These are all things that are great to have for those few months that the little one uses them, but after that you are done with them and realize you spent alot of money on them. I am down having my kiddos and donated most of my stuff, but I do still have a baby bjorn carrier active. It is practically brand new. I bought it with my second child and only used it for a few months. I also have the medeal pump in style breast pump that I am tryiing to sale as well (it was only used with one child as well). Let me know if you or anyone else is interested. I am selling them for a great price. Sorry, not sure if I was supposed to advertise on her to sale these, but they are normally so expensive and they are in great shape. I would love someone to get some good use out of them.
I agree with some of the statements above. Nursing is soooo cheap, but I do recommend the money for a nice nursing cover and a nice pump. You will not regret it.
I also make my own baby food. My son LOVES it…and sooooo much cheaper than buying jars of it and no “mystery” as to what is in them.
We also cloth diaper. It is very expensive up front, but register for your diapers and you can get some used. Wet bags and diaper sprayer are something you will never regret buying. The best part to me is that I NEVER have to look for diaper coupons or run out to the store when we are out! Also, we use a wipe solution that you can mix up when you are ready (comes in little tabs) and we just spray it on a fleece cloth to wipe him. Works wonderfully!!
I also agree with consignment and garage sales–I think my kid dresses pretty cute, and I alwasy buy used or clearance, but don’t buy too far ahead. I only buy for the next few WEEKS sometimes…every baby grows differently and may not be in the “right” size when you think they will be. With our son’s fluffy cloth diaper and his chunky thighs he is 81/2 mo wearing 18 clothes! However now he is moving and thinning out, so he may be in 18 months for a while!
Best wishes!!
I am due in the next few weeks and have been working on stocking up since I found out I was pregnant back in July so I understand where you are at the moment! I originally wanted to cloth diaper, but my baby will have to go to day care after a few months and therefore needs disposables.
The best prices that I have found are on Amazon. Once you sign up for Amazon Mom and combine the coupons that you can get in lots of baby magazines, you can end up with cases of over 150 diapers for less than $5-10! I used two coupons and a free gift card I earned from Swagbucks to get a case of Huggies Little Movers for $1.37 last week!
If you’d rather look locally (and there are sometimes some killer deals) check out The Thrifty Couple’s blog. Each week they post the best deals on diapers for the week and tell you about all the current coupons, promotions, etc. They are also starting to do the same for formula too if you’ll need to get that. I love this post soooo much. I check it religiously each weekend.
I originally thought that I wouldn’t want to stockpile specific kinds of diapers because I wouldn’t know what my baby would like, but then I realized that I can always return any unopened packages to Wal Mart or another store if I needed to. Almost all chain stores will let you exchange for a different brand, size, etc. so long as the packages aren’t opened! (It’s not like they won’t be able to resell them…) So go ahead and stockpile but get several smaller packages of newborn size so you can exchange the rest if you need to switch brands.
so I am new to shopping on amazon…are you saying that we can use the coupons that we get in the weekly paper to pay for diapers? Or are you talking about using coupon codes like the ones used at other stores.
Not coupons from the papers, from magazines. Parents, Fit Pregnancy and Parenting are usually the best places to find them but sometimes you can get them in the mail too. My other tip is to use your $5 gift cards earned from Swagbucks. If you haven’t signed up, definitely do it now! It only takes me a few weeks to earn a gift card and I don’t do anything but search and answer the daily polls.
You might want to check with your daycare. I used cloth diapers and my son’s daycare was fine with it. I took a waterproof bag and the diapers already stuffed, and the daycare did very well with it. I used BumGenius and loved them!
I checked into it already and unfortunately the daycare I’ll use is not as enlightened yet. I’m okay with it though and prefer not to use cloth at home and disposable elsewhere so I’m sticking with my plan. So far I’ve only spent around $30-40 total for 5 cases and 12 jumbo packs so I might even come out ahead this way. 🙂
Check with your daycare. A lot of them WILL let you use cloth diapers. I have a bunch of friends who used cloth at daycare.
No reason they need disposables just for daycare! Send along your cloth diapers!
My price point is probably around no more than $6 per jumbo pack of disposable diapers. For cloth diapers, I would pay no more than $20 per dipe and my favorite are Bumgenius.
Breastfeeding is a HUGE money saver. My daughter just turned a year old yesterday and I haven’t spent a penny on formula b/c I breastfeed.
As far as disposable diapers go, I use either Amazon Subscribe and Save or I do drug store deals with rewards and try to stack coupons. Rite Aid is a great place for diapers. I’ve paid $2 for a big box there after a Rite Aid coupon, manufacturer coupon and rewards. Just check for deals each week when the sales are posted. You are certain to find some!
Congrats! Being a mom is such a gift and an amazing journey. I don’t know what I would do without my little rugrats. 🙂
If you are nursing, the absolute best and most UNDERRATED nursing pillow is My Brest Friend. It is truly awesome!! I hated the Boppy–I think it is the most useless baby item ever invented–it made my breast feeding experience horrible. The only use I found for the Boppy was to prop my child up for tummy time, but you can do that with much less expensive items on the market. The My Brest Friend pillow is the only reason that I have been able to successfully nurse my second child and keep my sanity.
Drugstores are the best place to find diapers (brand name ones for $4 or less for a jumbo pack is my maximum price point anymore). Amazon has great deals too (also mentioned). You are already more prepared than I was for my first child–you found the Hip2Save website–I would have saved a bunch of money if I had only known about this type of blog the first time around….
I liked the foam my breast friend had, but HATED the wrap around part. I cut it off an it ended up ruining the whole pillow. I bought a boppy at a thrift store for my second baby (they are machine washable!!) and it has been great.
The lack of strap/support was what I disliked about the Boppy–I felt like my child was constantly sliding into my lap. The cover for the My Brest Friend is machine washable too–you absolutely need machine washable stuff–you never know what’s going to happen on that pillow:)
Agreed! I loved my breast friend. It was also great to take on a plane when the baby was really young because it has a flatter surface and it’s easy for the baby to sleep on and you can atleast have one free arm. I have found them for 2.00-5.00 at consignment sales and for 15.00-20.00 on ebay.
I NEVER used any type of nursing pillow to BF any of my three children. If your arm gets tired, just sit next to the arm of your couch or chair and use that to prop your arm up. If you’re in bed, use a regular pillow.
LOVED My Brest Friend nursing pillow too!!! Especially when you are a first time mom nursing. With my second child I was a little more lax about using it…but it I say it’s well worth the money.
I too loved MyBRestFriend Pillow and hated the boppy. The only use the boppy got was when they werent sitting that great yet but the bumbo seats helped for that. When they got bigger than 2 months old I really didnt use the pillow as much. I agree with you though
Top price points:
Jumbo pack of diapers $3.99 or less
Tub of wipes: $1.00 or less
Johnson and Johnson baby products: $1.00 or less/bottle
Clothing: $4.00 or less
Take advantage of the Babies R us 20% off coupons they will mail you, thats what we buy our big ticket items with,
Those are the biggies for me! I breastfeed so I don’t buy formula, and I usually just buy baby food and Gerber graduate Puffs and yogurt melts at regular price.
When we found out that we were expecting a few years ago…long before I found Hip2Save, we bought 2 or 3 packages of diapers (different brands based on the suggestions of other moms) each month. We bought different sizes and styles to have on hand (and to “test drive”) after our son was born. I completely agree with the comment of “not all diapers work for all babies” because my little guy ended up being VERY sensitive to Huggies. So, once we found out which brand worked best for him we exchanged all of the other packages/brands at Walmart for the ones we needed…which they let us do as long as they were unopened. If we had it to do over again…we would have definitely used cloth diapers (at least in the beginning…when the quantity of the contents…is…less. I fully plan on doing this next time…if there is one! As far as price points…I usually only try to pay 1 dollar per tub for wipes…but I am very picky and will pay more if I have to. I won’t use anything but the brand that works best for us…mostly because of sensitive skin issues. I found that my sling, bouncy seat, and Bumbo to be my best friends. I l.o.v.e.d the “portable size” highchair (straps to your dining chair) and swing…took up much less space and were very easy to transport to family & friends homes. I found the doorway jumper & tummy-time mat to be money best spent elsewhere.
Congratulations! Best of luck!
I would say to be very careful on stocking up on too much stuff before the baby. Nothing went the way I planned with our son. I was going to only breastfeed and I had to stop and go to formula. Then, after we started formula, we had to switch to the soy because he had a sensitivity. I was going to cloth diaper, but our water is so craptastic that I couldn’t get the diapers completely clean, so we switched to disposables. Then my son had a reaction to the disposables, so we had to switch to Earth’s Best and Seventh Generation. So, had we stocked up on what I originally planned, it would have been a lot of wasted money.
Last Friday, I went to Target and there were 75% off baby stuff. I got $48 diaper bag for $12, baby outfits and so on… you should check it out. Congrats!
some must haves…a baby carrier…we LOVE the Ergo. Also make sure to stock up on sunscreen! Ours goes on great clearance around October! The bumbo is fantastic too. It is hard to stock up on diapers when you realize you only like one brand. So buy a few different brands when they have sells, and then figure it out! Save the ones you don’t like and give to someone else for a baby shower, I make diaper cakes out of them!
I second the Ergo. I bought it when my daughter was 15 months old and wanted to be held all the time. I started using it with my son when he was a newborn and am still using it at 15 months.
My other splurge was a BOB double jogging stroller. I tried so many different double joggers when my son was born and they all stunk – all three broke and went back to the store. Broke down and bought the BOB. I had been saving Swagbuck Amazon gift cards, so I did save $150, but it was very expensive. I have used it for about a year now and I love it. I plan on using it until my kids go to college 😉
One of the best investments you should make is a good stroller, there are a gazillion out there and there are a gazillion reviews on them. Your head will be spinning by the time you have done some research. Being a new grandma I had way more time on my hands then the new parents. Hands down the Baby Jogger Elite is the way to go. The kids have been using it for 9 months now and it can go anywhere( and I mean anywhere). To get a deal you need to register on Buy Buy Baby. The new style usually goes down in price in April. Get the stroller you want on your registry. Things that are left on your registry after your due date get a 20% off discount in the form of an online code or an instore coupon. Those discounts can be applied to Baby Jogger. The other BBB discounts won’t work for Baby Jogger. Yes you are going to croak when you see the price, but I have had three kids and have been through a lot of strollers in the past 25 years. It will save your back.
I dunno, I am expecting #5 and I have 2 Gracos (one single/car seat system and one double) that I have used a lot and I like them both… I have never tried the baby jogger one, though, so it might be much better, but the ones I purchased were both on the cheaper side price-wise (I can’t remember how much I paid but I know it must have been somewhere between 75 and 160, with deals and coupons, and that was including the car seat for one of them), and they have lasted almost 6 years and 4.5 years respectively so far. They are not “all terrain” but I have used them at parks, on grass, asphalt, sent under the plane several times, etc (the baby jogger might be easier to maneuver on other areas, sometimes its hard to maneuver these on “off road” areas), and they are still working well. If someone is going to go “off road” a lot it might be worth the extra $$ to buy an all terrain stroller, but for me it was worth it to bargain hunt and get the cheapest good rated stroller (with good safety ratings for the car seat) that I could find.
If you are cloth diapering, the bumgenius are $18 each normally, but I got mine on sale for $13 each. I just google searched the kind I wanted every so often and looked at the prices that came up, then ordered once I found a price I liked.
I agree with others, the wipes I buy are pampers sensitive, from amazon mom, and they are about 25% of what you’d pay in store…just buy one tub and then use refill packs from then on…
Oh and I also agree with making baby food, but for jars, the earth’s best are really good and you can get them on sale for about 35 cents a jar (I just stocked up on some at babies r us).
My advice is don’t stock up on baby shampoo. I got so much at my baby shower, I wound up donating 90% of it. Babies don’t need much shampoo, especially if you have bald little boys like me 😉 . It took me over a year to get through a single bottle of baby shampoo.
Very true! Ours lasted forever too! Stock pile on diapers and wipes! If you are going to use formula sign up for Enfamil, Similac and Good Start. Then find what works best for you, the other coupons I trade on a site called thebump.com under swap spot. I bf and ff the last 2 months of my girls’ first year. It saved a ton!
I couldn’t disagree more. I have three boys- 2, 4, and 5 and I still use baby wash on all of them and we go through it like crazy! Plus, it never goes bad!
Unlike the other posters, I say DO buy clothes…but that is only because nobody bought me any (seriously, nobody gave me a baby shower or anything 🙁 ). Get them from the thrift store, yard sales, etc. Make sure you buy a variety of sizes and types. Get the good deals that Colin posts on here (I grabbed over $100 worth of toddler clothes from one of the deals here (can’t remember which one, sorry 🙁 ) for $25 shipped…they were all on clearance and I paid like $1-$2 each for tops and bottoms and jammies sets).
I’m also in the minority when I say DON’T STOCK UP ON DIAPERS! We stocked up on the parent’s choice brand (this was before I found out about the awesome diaper deals out there!) and my daughter simply could not use that brand. We wound up going through a couple of diaper brands before we found one my daughter could use (at first). I’m expecting again and due in April, and I plan on putting money back for diapers, instead of the diapers themselves. My price points for diapers: jumbo packs not to exceed $7 (we’re in size 6 now, so I can’t be too picky about the prices) and boxes not to exceed $15 (a good size box is about 100 count of the size 6). Don’t go into it being too brand loyal to diapers; what did great for your sister’s baby might give yours a rash, or what gave her a rash might be great for yours. You can never tell!
However, one thing you can’t have enough of is WIPES. You will use those things for EVERYTHING, up until they’re in kindergarden! If you can get 600+ wipes in the $10 range, that is a good stock up price (in my opinion), but if you can get them even lower, GO FOR IT!
Subscribe to Amazon Mom and get a free subscription to American Baby magazine, use the 20% coupons found in there on the Amazon website and get discounted wipes.
Make sure you follow Hip2Save, this website is really, really great for getting you good deals and savings. Also, this is something else I had to learn the hard way….don’t be afraid to turn down a good deal. If you’re getting diapers or wipes for free, or making money on them, try your best to get those deals. If you have to pass up a deal one week because of budgeting, don’t feel bad….diapers and wipes go on sale all the time, and odds are that sale is going to come around again in 3-4 weeks.
Good luck and congrats 🙂 And sorry for the long post!
Not just through Kindergarten! My boys are 8 & 7, and I STILL use wipes!! I reckon I have enough wipes to last another year, and thats with me even giving some tubs away as shower presents! Also, most elem schools have wipes as part of their school supply lists. So I need to keep at least 4-6 tubs aside for that!
Most of the stores prices on diapers are all about the same. I usually went back and forth between Huggies and Pampers (usually which ever one I had a coupon for). A box of about 80-90 will run you around $19.99. Sometimes Pampers will have a little tag on it showing you can Save now so look for those!! Especially at Target where you can stack it with a Target coupon. For wipes I don’t buy in bulk just because we don’t have space but I buy the store brand (about $1.59 for 88). I’ve heard diapers.com can have some good deals on it.
However, I went to a baby shower one time where they asked everyone to bring diapers sizes 1-4 and they could enter for a chance to win a $50 Target gift card. The couple left the shower with 1 car loaded down with diapers and the other with gifts. She said it was the best thing ever!! Also, put diapers on your registry because people will buy them for you.
I don’t know about formula because my son is almost 1 and I’ve nursed him the whole time. The hospital did give us some cans and then we did receive some in the mail. Now I’m giving these to my friend who’s in need of them so you could always ask around if people have some they aren’t in need of anymore.
My must have item was the Fisher Price Little Lambs swing. This was my life-saver many days!!! I also loved the Baby Bjorn. It was great being able to put him in this when I went out to run errands and he wasn’t ready for the cart yet.
We saved anywhere from $100-200 just by not buying a crib bedding set. It’s really unnecessary because you aren’t supposed to use the bumper or the comforter anyway. Never buy clothes full price, its just not worth it. We also didn’t buy a changing table we just used an attachment that came on our pack and play. I love the poppy but I know that is a love it or hate it thing for a lot of people.
Well, one of the things I WOULD NOT stock up on right now is formula. Each baby is different and you don’t want to get stuck with a bunch of canisters of formula you can’t use (or just exchange them out or donate) After you have baby, if you can’t nurse, usually the nursery will send you home with quite a few of the nursette bottles (my 2nd ds was a preemie and while I pumped he also got formula supplement, they sent me home with a case of preemie formula.)
Whenever you go to the Pedi for ck-ups, ask for samples & coupons. Every single time I went, I asked, and they were able to give me a canister of formula. And coupons, not only for formula, but stuff like Mylicon Drops, Tylenol, baby wash, lotion, sometimes diapers & wipes!
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Diapers, my stock up price was $5 or less per jumbo pack. With the right sale, coupons & drug store money (ECBs, RR, UPs), you can get them even lower. Wipes, no more than .50 to $1 per tub. Baby wash & lotion, under $2. Instead of using Dreft, I used All Free & Clear for my 2nd ds. Tide also makes a fragrance free version. I do still use the Dreft Spray, it really gets those tough stains out!
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Make sure you sign up for all the baby co’s like Gerber, BeechNut, Pampers, Huggies. I would advise putting your due-date a month (or more) before your actual due date so you can start receiving the coupons sooner, esp for diapers! Huggies sends me mailers about once a month. Gerber sends me a booklet every few months. AFA food, I used Beech Nut and also made home made, very simple and easy to do. Some great websites, I can’t remember the one I used, as it was bookmarked on my other computer that crashed.
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Congratulations & Good Luck!
I agree, don’t stock ANY formula, have NONE in the house, it is the biggest pitfall to breastfeeding! If you don’t have it in the house, you can’t use it when you’re frustrated! 😀
We saved anywhere from $100-200 just by not buying a crib bedding set. It’s really unnecessary because you aren’t supposed to use the bumper or the comforter anyway. Never buy clothes full price, its just not worth it. We also didn’t buy a changing table we just used an attachment that came on our pack and play. I love the boppy but I know that is a love it or hate it item for many.
This was the best piece of advice I got – Get ready for unsolicited advice from everyone where ever you are, even strangers in the grocery store. Remember that they mean well and only want to share what they think is their best advice. Smile graciously, thank them and keep going, don’t let them get you worked up. Also too, all momma’s, grandma’s, mother-in-law’s…everyone will have different ways they did this or that (swaddling, burping baby, powdering or not powdering their bum…), and will insist that the only correct way to do whatever is their way. Remember that you are the parent of this new little one, so when your mom is with you and insists you do it one way, save yourself the battle (especially since she’s there to help and you need any sleep and help you can get) and go her way; when she’s gone do it your preference…same goes with mother-in-laws and so forth. In fact, trying everyone’s ways seemed to help me pick what I liked best between them all.
Great advice!!!
Best Post Ever!
Congrats Jennifer, I too just found out I am expecting in September as well, as was freaking out because I got rid of everything and am starting all over again, but as mentioned in all the wonderful comments above, look for your deals, Im constantly on this site several times a day and appreciate everyones help as well for posting deals. The one thing my husband too is thrilled about is that I never couponed until the past 2 years and before paid full price for diapers and etc and now Im so fortunate that couponing will help save us tons especially at this day and age. The amazon mom subscription is working for me and I have everyone looking for those 20 percent coupon codes. Same with the wipe deals on there and start stock piling. Good luck and thanks Colin and all the other wonderful couponers out there for helping each other.
Congratulations to you too Alecia! Thanks for the tips!
Do not buy lots of newborn clothing, Buy clothes in different sizes when on sale. If you buy wipes buy a larger package and if you need them on the go, use ziplock bags to be able to carry a smaller stash in baby bag and/or purse.Childrens place outlet (if you have one near) has GREAT prices on clothes for little ones.Macys also has their baby clothes go on sale alot so pair with coupons when you can. .I Breastfed my kids, saved me tons of money,but if you cant dont feel guilty, Different methods work for different moms.If you stockpile formula,organize by expiration date. Last of all, you dont need every gadget that comes out in the parent and baby magazines(I learned that the hard way, kids that they would rather play with the box than the toy).Be creative,babies learn from the weirdest things:) Congratulations!
Just wanted to say thanks for this post! I’m in the same situation as the emailer (due in Sept. with our first). Also, there’s not a Babies ‘R Us within 50 miles of us (closest is in the next state over), so no 20% coupons for us. Is the next best option Wal-Mart/Target or AmazonMom (which I am heavily considering)?
Congratulations to you too Cat!
Hmmm…..actually I would recommend on not stocking up on too much! You just have no idea what size your little bundle of joy will be. If you will be able to breast feed )i would WAIT to buy an expensive non-returnable pump until your little one is latched and eating away) If you get lots of clothes for your shower or you stock up on some stuff just washed a few newborn necessities and keep the rest with receipts and tags on. My son would skip complete size ranges and we were stuck with lots that I just had to have washed and organized before his arrival – haha!! Also, you don’t know if your little one will need newborn (most likely) or size 1 diapers or which brand so i wouldn’t really stock up unless its SUCH a deal that you wouldn’t be upset about losing the $$$. I get ALL my little one’s plastic toys, ride on toys etc from yard sales for $1 – $5. I wanted new equipment cus he was my first and wanted something I knew was in a good condition to last through all of our children and you just don;t get that from used stuff. I picked what I wanted then stalked babies r us for when it was on sale….they usually puts lots of equipment on sale at once with coupons and then i opened a credit card and saved an additional 10 or 15 percent!
The one thing i did find out was that someone else’s MUST have might be your omg what a waste…. You just don;t know if your little one will have allergies, sensitive skin, etc….i say buy as little as necessary and then start to stalk up once you know……your little one doesn’t really need much at all the first month 🙂
It’s been awhile so I don’t recall all the items but I do remember my rule of thumb is $7 per “jumbo” pack is the same as the warehouse club price, so anything between $5 and $6 is my stock-up price.
When my son was born two years ago, we had a small stockpile of diapers that we received as gifts from our baby showers. When those ran out we would purchase individual packages of diapers but they never lasted very long, especially when he was a newborn. Eventually, we started purchasing diapers in bulk at Costco and it has been wonderful. If you or a friend or family member have a membership at Costco or a similar store, my suggestion would be to look into diapers and wipes there. I spend about $35 for 1,000 Huggies baby wipes and $50 for around 200 Huggies diapers (this is for size 4 diapers, you do receive more diapers per box for smaller sizes). These last for quite a while! I’ve also tried the store brand diapers and they work just as well.
In regards to formula, I was able to breastfeed my son for most of his first year but we did supplement with formula on occasion. My advice is to research breastfeeding, attend a class, and gather as much information as you can about it. It’s definitely best for the baby and it’s free! If you need formula, wait until the baby arrives to stock up on that because they may be intolerant to a specific brand. When you find the one that works for you, some companies are very generous sending coupons during the first year of the baby’s life.
For clothing, I try to find things on sale and stock up a few months in advance if I come across a good deal. I also love garage sales in the warmer months, people are always getting rid of baby items and many are brand new or barely used. Congratulations on the baby!
You may find super cheap diapers but quality really does matter. I would rather pay a few more cents per diaper than waste detergent and water washing the sheets and clothes because of leaking diapers. I have tried most brands (including store brands) and I have come to buy to only Huggies (with coupons and reward points its worth it) Usually if I can get a box (about 80-90) for between $10 – $15 its a good deal. Dont forget to sign up for the Publix baby club they send out GREAT coupons!
Same here, I use Pampers cruisers right now, I have used Huggies supreme in the past (and Target, and CVS brand also). It all depends on works best for my little one at the moment, but I definitely prefer to spend a little extra $ to avoid leaks and stains, which have happened (for some time the CVS/Publix ones worked at the Target ones, which was great because back then I was getting good deals, but for some reason Luvs never worked).
There’s so much info out there and so many “necessities” for a baby. First and foremost is the checklists you might get from babies-r-us, etc. Those are terrible, throw them away! With the first baby it’s a lot of trial and error. You find that what was a necessity for one person is totally useless for you, and vice versa. I think a good, sturdy highchair is a must, but there are many people out there who prefer a booster seat type highchair. I think a breast pump is absolutely essential for the first month or so if you’ll be breastfeeding. Otherwise, I would have keeled over in pain. Others will just nurse like mad. I’ve also heard that $4 for a regular pack of diapers is the stock-up price, but I just try and look for cheap prices. I also use cloth diapers and wipes (you can make your own wipe solution) and that has saved us loads of money. But cloth diapers aren’t for everyone. A swing was an essential with our first, not with our second. The book “Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child” is a must!!!!! I also liked “Babywise”. Good luck!!! (the second baby is sooo much easier than the first, by the way)
When buying wipes, make sure to rotate your stock so you are using your oldest inventory first. If by chance you have too many wipes and they do dry out, don’t throw them away. Simply pour a little water over them and they will be good as new!
Wipes have many uses–we use them on our little puppy when she has accidents around the house (for her and the floor!)
Good luck to you and best wishes 🙂
Best tip for diapers, memorize your preferred cost per diaper, not bag or box. I had a hard time getting the deals on the brand names low enough to be worth the time investment. It would look like a great deal until I figured out the cost per diaper, often I was still better off with a generic brand. Also keep in mind that not all diapers work for all babies, so a huge stockpile of diapers that give your child a rash, or just don’t fit right, isn’t super useful. Although if you do end up with ones you can’t use, you can probably find another mom to trade with.
I have heard that if you live in a large enough urban area, a diaper service costs about the same as disposables, so that’s a possibility if you want to go cloth, but are concerned about the initial cost and time spent with the extra laundry. Although you will be doing a TON of laundry anyway.
Speaking of laundry, assuming of course that your child doesn’t have extremely sensitive skin, regular Tide is great for baby clothes. Just don’t use much in the machine. A little goes a long way. And you can find great coupon deals for Tide. If you are concerned about a particularly horrendous stain, you can do some hand pre-washing in the sink before you do run the clothes through the machine. I HIGHLY recommend Method’s Go Naked soap. No dyes that might harm the clothes, and you can buy it in environmentally friendly bags that you can pour into a pretty soap dispenser.
Breast feeding is best for your baby’s health and your wallet, but if you have to buy formula at any point, I would highly recommend the Kirkland Signature from Costco. They only have one variety, so if your baby has special dietary needs it won’t work, but the cost is well under the cost of the brand names. As they start moving on to solid foods, my best recommendation is to look at the ingredients and taste everything you feed them. Pureed veggies should taste like the veggie, same goes for fruit. A friend gave me some extra jars of a fancy organic brand that listed the same ingredients as the gerber (pretty sure it was water and peaches) and the gerber tasted way more like the actual fruit. If you have the time to make your own foods that’s great! Even if you don’t, a banana in the diaper bag is a great emergency food, you can even just snip off the end and squeeze it into the baby’s mouth. Doesn’t look pretty, but works in a pinch.
As far as must have products are concerned, I would highly reccomend a cheap umbrella stroller as soon as it’s safe for your baby to sit in one. Way easier to carry around and navigate through the world (also works great as a doll or stuffed animal stroller for down the road). A baby sling is great for off roading, although if you can afford one, I would have loved to have one of the fancy back-packing style set-ups for our daughter. Keep your eye out for sales on toddler sizes of Robeez style footwear. They were great for our daughter when she was learning to walk, we got ours at Target, don’t remember the brand. And last, but definitely not least, if you are buying a carseat that clicks into a base, call the manufacturer (or go to their website) and order extra bases. We had four, one for each of our vehicles and one for each set of grandparents. Install them once and you will always be ready to go out on adventures.
If you are considering formula feeding, sign up with all the formula companies, good start, similac and enfamil and they will send you checks in the mail that you can spend when you buy formula. the stores take them just like any other form of payment. you can also stack a coupon ontop of the checks.
Check websites like thebump.com or craigslist and you can usually trade away the coupons and checks you are not going to use to get the checks for the brands you will use.
As for diapers, I pretty much stick to Huggies for my boys. I aim for 10 cents a diaper, but sometimes have to spend a bit more. If I can stock up for that price, I do. I would not get too many diapers ahead of time though. There were some brands that just did not work with my kids and you dont want to find that out after you bought 200 diapers or something. Also you never know how long your baby will be in a particular size. Amazon has easily been my best bet for diapers lately.
I would skip the store bought receiving blankets and swaddling blankets all together. They are too small to actually do anything with. I made my own receiving blankets by just buying a yard and a quarter of fabric and then zig zagging around the edges. They work perfect for swaddling, or are a great size to lay on the floor for the baby too. They fold up to a nice size for the diaper bag too.
If you are considering a sling or a wrap or something, you can make a knock off moby type of a wrap for a fraction of the cost and it takes hardly any sewing whatsoever.
As for baby food, I did the store bought for my kids. I found that with sales and coupons I could usually get it for about 25 cents a container. I did not buy organic. Big Lots always has baby food too for a quarter a jar regular priced. You do have to watch expiration dates there, but they are always at least a few months out.
Wipes deals are hit or miss. On Black Friday BRU does their cases for $5 and that is a great price. If you hit a good sale, stock up!
I got enough baby wash and lotions at my shower to bathe a small army of babies. Again, I would not go too crazy here either until you figure out what works best for your baby. One of my kids ended up with eczema and I have to buy him only Aveeno soap and lotions.
Congratulations! Glad you asked this question! I agree that there are tons of specialized baby stuff that are not always good or cost-effective. Here’s what I found out with my kids: (1) Cloth diapers aren’t always cost-effective. When I had my first baby, I tried cloth diapers, but switched to disposables, because I had to double the cloth diapers, and my baby STILL soaked through them, so I had to wash his clothing, bedding, etc. That wasn’t going to be cost-effective at all. (2) Skip the baby softener and use vinegar for your rinse–cheaper & better. My son developed a rash from the no perfume/no dye detergent. The vinegar rinses out the detergent and no, there isn’t any vinegar smell after you dry your clothes. (3) I want to ditto what is being said about second-hand clothes, whether from friends & family, garage/church/school sales, etc. Babies grow sooo fast, stain clothes, and aren’t label conscious (wait ’till the teen years for that!), so get them second-hand (have a couple of sizes larger, too), then throw away the stained stuff (or cut them up to use as spit up cloths, etc.) sell, pass on, or give away what’s still good as soon as they’re outgrown. (4) A good way to keep track and keep pacifiers clean is one of those keepers that you thread through a pacifier and then clip the other end to your baby’s shirt.
Congratulations on your baby! 🙂
My advice is that if somebody offers to throw you a shower, request it to be a diapers and wipes shower. 😉 You can get tons of supplies that way, and avoid a bunch of useless junk you would have gotten otherwise. I mean I KNOW your baby will need 38 stuffed animals, but I think s/he will be able to handle it with just 12. 😀
Babies aren’t really that costly, especially the new ones. ITA that breastfeeding is cheap and easy, go for it. It’s good for you too. 🙂
Making your own food is also easy. Check out this site:
https://www.wholesomebabyfood.com/
Diapers are what they are…sometimes you can get them cheap and sometimes not. I love Amazon’s deal with the S&S plus the 20% off coupon (look for the free baby mag at BRU, the coupons are always in there 😉 ) or $4 – $4.50 per pack.
Good luck.
I love love babycheapskate.com! Every week she does a post on where to get the cheapest diapers…AND she figures out if its a good deal by price per diaper, not per pack. I think this makes way more sense because smaller diapers = more per pack, larger diaper = less per pack.
But really, the cheapest most consistent and easiest way I have found to get diapers and wipes is to join amazon mom and order them from there. You get 30% off and free shipping. If you can combine them with a coupon code that can be found in baby magazines like American Baby and Baby Talk, then you can really get a good deal. Even without the added coupon code, it’s still the best deal I’ve found. You save time, gas, and money by using amazon instead of running around to the different stores to purchase stuff.
I emailed Colin the same question a fews months ago, so I’m loving reading the responses. I’m due with my first child on April 22nd, so I’m no baby expert, but I am excellent at saving money. Last summer, I started stocking up on baby essentials at yard sales. I bought a bottle drying rack and dishwasher basket for $.25 each. Yard sales are a haven for deals. I always see brand new wipes warmers, which tells me they are totally unnecessary.
I am very proud of my crib. My husband and I went to Babies R Us this weekend to buy a $250 crib. Our store had a clearance section and we ended up buying a $400 crib for $96!!!
Don’t be afraid to ask for items from those with children. I am borrowing a swing, vibrating chair, video monitor, travel system (from my brother), boppy, sheet savers, and Pack N Play. All together, we’re saving about $1,000 by not buying this stuff new.
We’re not finding out the sex, so I’m struggling buying clothes. However, my sister-in-law has one daughter and has saved some clothes for me, plus a woman I work with has 3 sons, so I asked her about her baby clothes. Both are on stand-by until after the birth.
Congratulations to you and thank you for the advice! Wishing you a happy and healthy baby in April!
I’m due April 22nd, too! This is my 2nd.
I would check Target for Clearance. I just got back and they had a ton of clothes cheap. For me thats less than $4 per item. I found overalls, shirts, pants and 3 piece pj sets all for less than $4 each.
I agree Amazon Mom is best. I rarely get a pack of diapers for $4 each for me its more like 5-6 each. Which is still nice.
Sign up for Huggies and Pampers newsletters (via mail) they will send you lots of coupons 🙂 Huggies has some nice $3 off ANY Huggies 🙂
My mom sends me coupons for diapers and formula. You should never have to buy those things for full price. I would not buy that many diapers in advance. My baby went through different growth spurts and so you really don’t know how many to buy. They go through the different sizes really fast! If you are doing formula, I usually get Enfamil and they have $2 coupons off that. Johnson’s and Johnson’s soap you could probably stock up on and they have coupons for that too. If you are a trooper and do breastfeeding you will save a lot (formula cost me about $30 a week). I don’t know about wipes. I go through a ton of wipes though. I would do the sensitive kind when they are a newborn and now my favorite is the thick wipes from Pampers. (The thick ones gave my newborns bum a diaper rash). Just my thoughts!
A litle bit more advice is to start saving. My daughter was born 10 weeks premature and with 3 birth defects. This has never happened in my family so it was a complete shock. I had to take a $20,000 paycut to work from home. The medical bills we have are outrageous. SInce me and my husband both work, we did not qualify for any assistance with the bills, and I was told by one of her hospitals last week “the hospital has to make money.” Already this year she has been to the doctor twice and had to have 3 prescriptions. Just put some money away for doctors copays and trips to the pharmacy. And Congrats!
Thank you for the advice. I will keep you and your little one in my prayers!
Congrats to all those expecting out there! The only thing I thought I really wanted when I was pregnant with my first but then never ended up using was a diaper genie. I’m sure some people love these things. The reason I ended up not liking it is I normally change my son downstairs in the living room. It’s pointless me for to change him downstairs and then run the diaper upstairs to put in the diaper genie. Of course you don’t want a diaper genie just sitting in your living room. LOL
Oh! I forgot books, lol. I would highly recommend Dr. Spock, it’s been updated recently. And any sort of a symptoms book, such as ”
Taking Care of Your Child: A Parent’s Illustrated Guide to Complete Medical Care ” Very handy flow charts that let you know when to apply home treatment (and just what that should be) when to call the doctor, and when to head to the ER. Kinda like old school WebMD, only way less likely to tell you you have a rare, awful disease, in my humble opinion.
I tell all my parenting friends (no matter the age of the child) to pick up a copy of “Child Behavior: The Classic Child Care Manual from the Gesell Institute of Human Development” the same authors also have books for every year of age 1-14. They are about behavior and development, and very helpful for when your child goes through a difficult stage and you start to suspect that it’s all your fault because you are a horrible parent (it’s not and you’re not). Strongly, strongly recommend this series! So helpful!
Cant give out a good price on diapers or wipes because I am brand loyal (Pampers) I’ll buy them no matter what. But I can give a suggestion on must have items… I loved my baby bjorn oh man that thing was a life saver with our first born and my rocker/ottoman in the nursery perfect for those tough nights, feedings and story time. Were expecting in July and I cant wait to pull all these things out again 🙂
Okay, so I don’t have a baby anymore, but I have a handicapped daughter, so she has been in diapers for over 11 years. So I would venture to guess that I have been buying diapers and wipes longer than some people! Lol (not a complaint, I LOVE HER SO MUCH) As a self-proclamined diaper rash expert, one tip I share with everyone is that when you find an ointment you like, add cornstarch to it! It is inexpensive, makes the ointment thicker so it stays on longer, and good at keeping the skin dry. Triple paste is great, but very expensive and rarely on sale, so some cornstarch and mineral oil with desitin is my own home recipe! My friends tell me I should sell it lol.
Anyhow, I agree with most of the comments here and have a few other tips. Breastfeed, breastfeed, breastfeed!!! Go ahead and watch for sales & clearance now, but don’t stockpile too much until baby is born and you find what diaper works best for you, and if they will have any skin reactions to certain wipes (ie, with my son pampers worked best, with my daughter it was Huggies). But once they are born and you see what works, none of it ever goes bad. My Target frequently has diapers on clearance which combined with coupons is awesome. Join newsletters on websites for any products you want to try and any stores near you. Here in Florida, Publix has a Baby Club and it gives tons of freebies and coupons. I belong to Reward R Us and just used my dollars to get 3 tubs of wipes and 2 bottles of hand sanitizer for $1.06 OOP. CVS ECBs are also great for buying diapers when they have a sale. Yes, consignments shops and friends/family with hand-me-downs are awesome for clothing, but you are a new mother and will want new clothes. Watch clearance @ Target, Ross, Marshalls, and TJ Maxx. I do better at their sales then at used clothing stores. (Just got 4 pair of leggings for my daughter @ Target for $1.74/pair) If you are already a couponer and bargain hunter, all of this will come natural to you! You will learn the good price points of the products you like at the stores in your area.
Most important, enjoy and savor every moment….this is such a magical and blessed time, you will remember it and treasure it forever. Congratulations!
I have two girls and there is a lot of great advice here. I wouldn’t stock up on formula though (except from the freebies from the hospital and mailings). I doesn’t have an extremely long shelf life and you may have to change a few times to find what works best. Having breastfed one of mine to 6 months and the other the whole time…breastfeeding rocks. I was shell shocked when I started buying formula at 6 months! Do it if you can but also know that it doesn’t suit everyone!
Many stores do price match but my favorite is diapers.com. They have a 365 day return policy and pay for return shipping so it’s super easy to order and return if you are unsatisfied. Babycatalog.com has really competitve prices so I found a Peg Perego carseat and stroller that I really wanted (rarely on sale and no coupons usually apply to it like the 20% in BabiesRUs) way cheaper than anywhere else but I wasn’t comfortable with their return policy so I did a price match with diapers.com and got the two items for about $300.00 less than I would have anywhere else!!!
With my first baby we were very thrifty. We bought the majority of our big items off Craigslist. However, I’d do a couple of things different. We planned on having our second within 2 years of our first…they are 22 months apart. I wish I had thought about a stroller that grew with my family. We ended up buying a VERY expensive Phil and Teds stroller, but it has been a life saver. I wish I had researched better with my first. So know we have 2 strollers. You can buy a breast pump from the store, if there is a good sale…just do not open it until you intend to use it. They’ll take it back if all the tape is still correctly adhered.
I’d only buy a medela…all my friends who purchased a different brand ende up going and getting a medela. I wouldn’t buy used…lactation consultants urge against this.
A great book is Baby Bargains. You can typically check it out at the library…but make sure you get the currently edition (their on the web too). They go through reviews, safety, and price and give recommendations.
Also, register for anything and everything. Keep tags on, gift receipts, and exchange if you want. This allowed my husband and I to purchase an extra car seat base. Buy only what you know you’ll need (diapers and wipes) prior to shower. I recommend only scentless wipes in case you have a sensitive baby. Also, the diapers that come in the plastic tubs dry out FAST. So only stock up on the “refill” packs.
I had two Medela single pumps and they both broke. For my third one, I bought an Evenflo, and it was half the price and is still working. I liked my Medelas, but not worth it to replace them with each child.
I hate to be a downer, but please wait until you are into your 3rd trimester to stock up. I know first hand what a punch in the gut it is to have to get rid of baby bargains when something unexpectedly goes wrong. Won’t make that mistake again.