Thank you EVERYONE for the comments & thank you for the post! You have made our lives so much better(:

Thanks for your article.

[...] Lynnae from beingfrugal.net told how to prepare for a baby without going broke. [...]

I say, grab a pack n’ play ($50 new on amazon), a few waterproof mats ($6 for 2 at Walmart), 2 packs onesies, a few footsies, a hat, some socks, some receiving blankets, wipes and dipes. Nurse and grab a sling so you don’t need bottles or a stroller.

Since you’re in Thailand, you’re in a great position to do early potty training. It’s the norm in the non-Westernized world. There will be many older women over there who can give you practical tips.

The non-Westernized world is astounded and somewhat sickened that we force our babies and small children to wear what are essentially soft portapotties at ages when their kids have long been using the potty on their own. We use more resources, from landfills, petroleum, water, and soaps; we go to much higher expenses. And we have a much higher germ load from it.

It is easy, positive, and natural. Babies are geared at birth not to soil themselves, although they don’t have the ability to hold it long. If you catch their cue, they can hold it a short while so you can get them to the right spot so they can let go. It’s actually less trouble than changing diapers (and washing them): get familiar with their schedule and cues, and then just have a covered container handy to hold them over. There are portable covered baby potties that are perfect for this, or you can just use your own toilet. They DO learn, early, to hold it until they’re in position. And once they’re old enough to put themselves in position, they’ll use it with no problems. The knowledge and willingness is what we really mean by potty training, because even 3-year-olds usually need some help in the bathroom, and about as much as a 12-month-old in terms of handling clothes.

You’re in Thailand, so you may be able to buy the Chinese split-crotch baby clothes that are specifically made for this. They wear these from birth until they’re old enough to pull down their pants on their own, so they come in tiny sizes.

I mentioned how good this is for the environment, health, and budget, but it’s even better for the child’s self-esteem. No power struggles this way; no sense that they are a “baby”. No falling asleep in their own excrement that they are powerless to get out of.

I encourage you to give it a try, especially given where you’re living. The book I mentioned in a previous post is an excellent, research-based resource.

I am trying to be as green as possible not only for the health benefits I believe my child will receive, but also because it is good for the environment. While things do cost more, I feel the expense is worth it. For example, my husband as terrible allergies, so bad he started receiving weekly shots as a child. I’m hoping organic cotton and chemical free items may spare my child the annoyance and help reduce medical expenses.

We also try to eat as much organic foods as possible. While it is more difficult here to find organic than in the US, I figure something is better than nothing.

Also, my husband and I set up our will before we found out we were expecting. But, we had the will prepared to address any future children. No point in paying to have a will rewritten.

[...] Before I end this article, I’d like to point out an article that my friend Lynnae wrote for Get Rich Slowly: How to Prepare for a Baby (Without Going Broke) [...]

[...] overspend on newborns. My pal Lynnae had a guest post featured at Get Rich Slowly, called “How to prepare for baby (without going broke)” This post by Christina is something I’m going to have to file away for awhile, but it’s [...]

If anyone has used these, do they work well?
I hope so, personally I’m not quite ready to make the jump to cloth.

P.S. Still a lot cheaper than diposables!

One thing that strikes me is that though there is much sound advice, there is also much that is nonsense, or which neglects stuff that may -GASP- be more important than money.

There are many reasons you may want to give birth at home. Saving what is, in the greater scheme of things, a minute amount of cash is NOT one of them.

Similarily, deciding to let your son undergo surgery or not, based on a few hours salary is downright crazy. There are many reasons both ways, I’d never even consider it, but spending the needed cash is not a reason.

Indeed — isn’t that why you’re saving in the first place ? For being able to spend it on important stuff ? If giving birth to your child doesn’t qualify as “important” I don’t know what will.

Also, don’t forget to optimise for TIME, young parents tend to have even less of that than of CASH. You may, or may not, save money on using cloth-diapers and washing, it depends on energy and water prices and many other things. What is however certain is that it’ll cost you a LOT of time.

Having -TIME- for your children should also, in my not particularily humble opinion, qualify as IMPORTANT.

Our twin girls for example, in their 6 first months each needed to be changed aproximately all 4 hours (your mileage may vary, in general you need to change MORE with cloth-diapers), this works out to 8 a day, 55 a week, which where we live is 1 packet of diapers, cost of which is equivalent of 20 minutes of work.

How much time does it take to rinse, wash, dry, fold, put away 56 cloth-diapers ? I don’t know. Seems a fair bet it’s more than 20 minutes. So if money was the main priority, I’d be better off working 20 minutes more and going with disposables. Unless rinsing and washing cloth-diapers is more pleasant than your day-job, in which case I humbly suggest you should consider a change of careers.

I realize couples with only 1 child aren’t as pressed for time as we are with 3, including the baby twins, but on the other hand, if it’s your first (and it will be if you’ve got only one) then you need more time for some stuff because you ain’t yet got the routine.

Another thing that hasn’t been mentioned at all is early potty training. We didn’t find out about this until our youngest, but it saved us tons of money on diapers! Besides which getting her out of diapers very early meant we were no longer exposing our family to e-coli and other fecal germs. The book Early Start Potty Training by Dr. Linda Sonna is available many places. Our daughter was using the potty much of the time by the time she was 9 months old, and almost all of the time by 15 months. One small bag of diapers would usually last us a 4-5 weeks.

We also made our own baby food with the last one, and used a midwife for a home birth. If you live within 20 minute of a hospital, you’re in the same position that you would be having the baby in a hospital, since that’s the amount of time it takes to prep a C-section room. Just make sure your midwife is certified. Good ones will not take mothers that should give birth in a hospital.

Finally, reading to your baby inutero, and then exposing them to bright, simple books from birth, with save you all kinds of money in the long run. Illiteracy bears a high cost.

The hospital and its experts are there in case of problems.

In the case of son #3 – his umbilical cord was wrapped 3 times around his torso, and he would have strangled himself without an emergency C-section.

Stuff like that happens.

This is a one-time expense, which is at least partially covered by most insurance plans – and can literally make the difference between joyous life and tragic death.

[...] How to Prepare for a Baby (Without Going Broke) ? Get Rich Slowly (tags: baby parenting money howto) [...]

[...] Rich Slowly – How to Prepare for a Baby (Without Going Broke). This was a guest pos, by Lynnae from Being Frugal. My wife and I are considering having children, [...]

[...] JD at Get Rich Slowly gives you ideas for how to prepare for a baby without going broke. [...]

I also find shopping off season and clearance racks helps save a ton, and online too! I got a swing I have been wanting for $60 off retail by watching it on Amazon.com.

I also have a friend who is moving and I offered to take any baby stuff she does not want to move off her hands.

I wish I had not purchased so much, I know she will never use them all, but hey, she will be my only girl after 3 boys…

We cloth diaper and use a dresser top with a pad as a “changing table” and I use a car seat that will work from birth to 50 lbs. I splurged on an Amby bed, but I got it used on eBay for 2/3rds the cost. And I *WILL* re-sell everything back on eBay or to consignment stores to fund the next size up.

Also, you may want to consider having a lawyer set up a simple trust for your child if both of you should die or become incapacitated. Without a trust, it is rare that the new guardian could be challenged successfully regarding the prudence of their spending. A trust would legally obligate the trustee to spend the funds with prudence for the benefit of your child. (ie. that money’s for college, not a BMW 7 series).

@ ak, I’d like to see your sources because I’ve been researching circumcision and have yet to find any conclusive benefits. FYI, most other countries don’t circumcise and don’t have higher rates of infections, STDS, or damaging effects.

Please make sure you research any decision you make (cloth diapering, breastfeeding, circumcision) and make it YOUR choice.
http://www.circumstitions.com/Mayo.html

May I just suggest, go easy on the “borrowing.” Borrowing means that you intend to give something back, and it should probably be in the same condition as when you received it. Things like cribs, blankets, bottles, car seats would probably work well to be “borrowed,” because they hardly wear out. Also, just because you know someone that has baby stuff they’re not currently using doesn’t mean your entitled to barrow it.

For example, I have a nice battery powered baby swing in storage. I intend to use it for future children. I’m not sure how long battery powered swings last, but since it is mechanical certainly not forever. I have a friend who will shortly be delivering multiple babies, she just expects that she’ll be offered to barrow our swing. I just hope after she returns it to us there will still be enough life left for our future child/children, and am disappointed that she just expects we will loan it to her.

The situation goes much deeper than this, but just a warning to be careful with “borrowing.” I’d say ideally it would be better if you were “given” stuff from someone who no longer needed it.

Ouch! Poor little baby. No amount of diaper rash cream helped.

Add to that the urine and poop all over everything (plastic panties aggravate diaper rash) and the discoveries that

a) paper diapers biodegrade and don’t take up that much room in landfills;

b) the energy costs of heating & consuming large quantities of wash water to wash cloth diapers several times a week and of making and marketing detergent, Clorox, and diaper rash creams equal or exceed the environmental costs of paper diapers; and

c) if you use a service, the consumption of gasoline for pick-up and delivery and for employees to drive to a plant to work plus the use of environmentally unfriendly commercial wash products will up those environmental costs significantly.

The diaper rash cleared up as soon as we switched to disposable diapers.

BTW, there’s nothing cruel or abusive about saying “no” to every little whim. To the contrary, it may be abusive to shower kids with everything they want.

The adult children I know today who suffer the worst psychological and behavioral problems grew up with affluent parents who couldn’t bring themselves to say “no” and still can’t. One woman persists in paying auto insurance and buying cars for a 25-year-old daughter who drinks and drives — even after the kid got a DWI. Poor baby can’t get to work if Mom doesn’t pay for her car, and heaven forfend she should take the bus and learn the real cost of irresponsibility.

Some children never recover from a lifetime of unthinking indulgence by their parents.

Its true , sharing & giving from friends saves ,

All the best,

Tracy Ho
wisdomgettingloaded

[...] Check out the original article at How to Prepare for a Baby (Without Going Broke) @ Get Rich Slowly. [...]

Also, when you have your baby showers, ask for diapers, baby food, formula, you name it…..besides, you are most likely going to be taking a TON of items back to the store anyway, why not have a practical shower instead?
Good Luck if you are expecting!