Congratulations! Now make up your mind to save.
If you just saw the strip change color and had your doctor confirm the happy news, congratulations. If you just realized how much you need to care for your new baby and you’re breaking out in a cold sweat, relax. The good news is that with careful planning, you can find a bunch of savings to ease your task of raising Junior.
The first thing is you’re going to need that baby shower. Drop loaded hints, don’t be coy and tell all your relatives and friends about the good news well in advance so you maximize the chance of a baby shower. Hey, if you’ve attended your friends’ showers over the years and bought gifts, its their turn now. Don’t fight them.
Share your child’s gender as early as possible if you are not reserved about it, so you can be sure to get the right gifts. Next create a baby registry at Babies”R”Us, Amazon.com, Burlington Coat Factory etc., regardless of whether you’ll have a shower or not. Then just let people know about it. Visit any of the multiple birth websites to find a list of items to include in your registry.
For my own experience, here are a few I can think of:
- Crib
- Bassinet or Moses Basket
- Chest of drawers
- Clothes (a variety of sizes e.g., 0,3,6,12 months)
- Stroller
- Breast pump
- Diapers (a variety of sizes)
- Receiving blankets
- A baby carrier
- High Chair – you’ll need that later
- Car Seat
There’s probably more, but these are essentials. If a shower provides you with 60-80% of these, it will be extremely helpful. A registry will prevent overlap.
Next, you might want to think about a 529 plan, or saving for college. ”A little early?” you ask, but unless you are prepared to pony up $100,000/year for 4 years in 2029, you’ll do well by your son or daughter by saving something small every month now, so they can go to college without crushing debt.
My next suggestion is life insurance for your spouse and yourself to care for your little one in any eventualities. If you have kids, you should have insurance, it is that simple. If you don’t have health insurance to cover your coming baby, this is also a good time to find health insurance to cover your prenatal visits and your birth.
Without insurance, an uneventful hospital birth can cost up to $40,000, so you want to have your baby with health insurance, not without. I also advise obtaining disability insurance if you don’t have it, in case you cannot work due to a disability.
Next, you should set aside an emergency fund for your baby of perhaps $1,000, just to handle unexpected expenses during pregnancy and childbirth.
Finally, when your baby is born, you should buy everything baby-related on sale or for the lowest price. With online stores like Amazon and Google Shopping, you really have no excuse to buy those diapers for any more than the lowest price on diapers.com, Amazon.com or Google shopping.
Clip those coupons, buy in bulk, seek out bargains, plan ahead and save. Congratulations again and may your bundle of joy give you great happiness.
Recent Comments