Preparing for a new baby can be expensive. When I was preparing for the birth of my son, I was confused and overwhelmed by the seemingly endless array of baby products that are available. Friends and family wanted me to register for baby shower gifts, and so I did but I really had no idea whether we really needed all of the things that I was picking out. Fortunately, I did a good job of guessing (mostly) and chose things that ended up working well for us.
After my son was born, I realized that we had chosen to forego some of the things that people traditionally associate with babies. While we knew that friends and family members wanted to give us gifts for the baby, we did not want to choose a lot of expensive things. We were so grateful that people wanted to give us gifts that we wanted to respect their generosity. Even so, our decision to leave certain things out of the baby registry and not buy them ourselves later on came from a blend of factors including a desire to save money, a desire to keep our home free of clutter, and a desire to implement a simple, natural style of parenting.
If you are expecting a new addition to the family, you may be wondering what things you really need for the baby, and what things you may be able to do without. The following suggestions are a few things that have worked for us. Since parenting is such an individual thing, these suggestions will not appeal to or work for everyone. If you are looking to save some money, they are at least worth considering.
The biggest area in which we saved was the nursery itself – we decided not to have one. Although we have a room in our home that is dedicated to all things baby, it is more of a play room and not a nursery. No crib, no changing table, no chest of drawers. Where, then, does our precious little one sleep? With us, of course. While the risks and benefits of co-sleeping are a matter of constant debate on parenting discussion boards all over the internet, we decided to try it and its still working great for us. What about diaper changes? We set up a basket with diapers and wipes next to the sink in the bathroom, and we use a thick, soft bath mat as a changing area. Our little guy has gone through periods of time where he has been quite a wiggler during diaper changes and I’m glad that I change him on the floor instead of up on a table. What about all of his clothes? Where did I put those? I found some nice canvas sweater organizers that hang from the closet rod, and I washed and folded all of the adorable little outfits that we were blessed with and organized them by size. It is easy to open the closet door and see what is on each of the hanging “shelves”.
Other things that we chose to do without are formula (opting to nurse instead), bottle and wipe warmers, a baby bathtub, and a baby swing. We did choose a high quality infant car seat, though, and I am glad that we did. Although our son has outgrown it now, it is built like a tank and I felt confident that he was safe and secure in it. What ways will your family prepare for your new baby without breaking the bank?