As you may already know, I am pregnant with our third child. I am currently in my last trimester and we are all excited to meet our little bundle of joy! It has been 10 years since our last baby (Surprise!) and so we have nothing left from the other boys. We have been trying to think through everything that we will need in order to be ready for him to arrive.
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Here are the areas of items that we will need:
Clothing
Diapering
Bathing
Feeding
Sleeping/Sitting/Laying Down
Safety
We are on a tight budget (isn't everyone?) and so we are trying to do this as inexpensively as we can. I will share what we will be getting, or have already gotten, so maybe this will give you some ideas.
Clothing
2nd Hand Store
We went to a 2nd hand store, called Other Mothers, for clothing. Think about it, how much do babies wear clothing? Not for very long. We got so many onesies, pants, hats, blankets, sleepers, bibs, and washcloths there! They were between $.50 - $3 each! Not bad! I just took them home and washed them and they are good as new. Actually, they looked brand new at the store even.
Diapering
Sams Club Auctions
Have you heard about the auctions at Sams Club? If you're a member, you can bid on certain items that they put on there. My mom got a huge box of diapers from there at a discount!
Sams Club/Walmart - diapers & wipes
We will be getting our wipes and diapers from Sams Club (we don't have a Costco membership). Getting the big boxes of diapers and wipes will save money because you are buying in bulk! Those little packages of diapers and wipes are really expensive and add up over time. We like the generic brands, so that saves us even more $$$!
Bathing
Walmart - "bathtub"
This one is a little different, but I really want to try it. You know those infant bath tubs that EVERYONE gets? Yeah, I REALLY don't like them. They really didn't make it easy to bathe our other boys, so we are going a different route this time. We got a NEW plastic dishpan. Yes, you heard me right, a dishpan. It's small and won't hold a lot of water...Perfect! It was less than $2 and we can use it for other things after the baby is done with it. I love multi-purpose items! I also like that it's a lot smaller in size so it won't get too much in the way in the bathroom. We have two other boys using that bathroom and they need to be able to get in there also.
Walmart / Pinterest - handmade hooded towel & washcloths
For our 2nd baby, we received beautifully handmade hooded towels for him and his older brother, who was 5 at the time. They were made out of real towels and were so wonderful to use. They are bigger and more absorbant than the "baby towels" that are on the market. So, for this baby, I enlisted the help of my personal seamstress, a.k.a. my mom. We went to Walmart and got regular towels. It took one bath towel and one hand towel. I found some posts on Pinterest and she found some videos on YouTube and went to work. I think that it turned out beautifully and I can't wait to use it! There was some left-over from the hand towels and so she made those into a couple of washcloths. Genius!
Walmart - soap
We like to use the Equate brand of shampoo/soap for babies. We get a huge bottle for less than $3. That bottle seems to last forever! Awesome!
Feeding
Sams Club / Walmart - formula
We will be breast feeding and formula feeding, so we will be needing some formula. We like to get the big containers from Sams Club as they save money. Walmart also has great prices.
Walmart - bottles
10 years ago, there weren't many fancy bottles out on the market. Now it seems that is all that is out there. We just need regular bottles. I found a 12 pack of bottles on Walmart.com for $11.99. That's $1 a bottle. Not bad! Now, I know some babies have trouble with the regular bottles and need something else. We will use whatever is best for our baby. We will start with these regular bottles and then go from there. I always get the full 8oz bottles because I can put 4oz in it at the beginning and more as the baby grows. I don't see the need in getting two sizes of bottles.
Walmart / 2nd Hand Stores - bibs
I really like the all cloth bibs as they seem to be more absorbant. The ones with the "somewhat" cloth on the front and plastic on the back let the liquid roll on down and wet the baby's pants. We found a couple at the 2nd hand store and my mom found some others at Walmart.
Walmart - burp cloths
Here's another thing that we do that's different. I really don't use normal burp clothes. They just don't seem wide enough or thick enough. We use cloth diapers, instead. You can get a 6pk for about $10. Not too bad!
Walmart - high chair
We like to use the high chairs that you attach to a chair at the table. This comes in handy with eating at the table without having another piece of furniture to maneuver around. It will be great when we are homeschooling and the baby can sit with us at the table having a snack or playing with toys. These run around $50, but we can use it for years!
Sleeping, Sitting, and Laying Down
Walmart - crib
Our babies always go to bed in their own crib, starting with the first night we come home from the hospital. We love this crib from Walmart because it has a drawer underneath! I love the added storage space for blankets and sheets. It's great to use the usually unused space underneath the crib. It's one of the most expensive item on our list, but for $168, I think that it's still a great buy! We also are getting the crib mattress from Walmart as well.
Walmart - crib sheets
Walmart has cute crib sheets and they won't break the bank. They start at less than $9 for a 2pk.
Walmart - bouncy chair
I am not a fan of the rocking bassinett that seem to be so popular nowadays. We love the bouncy chair for having a place for our boys to lay down/sit up during those first few months. They are only around $20 and for how much use we get out of it, it's well worth it.
Safety / Transportation
Dollar Tree outlet plugs
I found a set of 12 outlet plugs for $1 at the Dollar Tree! Love it!
Walmart - car seat/stroller
We chose a car seat/stroller combo so that we can cart our little one around easily and safely. Then the stroller can be used for the next few years. This is most expensive item on our list, but we are getting two things together, so it makes me feel a little better. Just remember! Never buy a used car seat. Your baby's life is worth the little extra money that you will put into a new car seat.
So most of our items are from a second hand store (Other Mothers) and Walmart. You don't have to break the bank to prepare for your new little bundle of joy.
If I've forgotten anything, please let me know. Just email us at info@www.homeschool4life.org and we'd love to help if we can!
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