help with paying for a baby with debts!

mummyofboys

Hi everyone

this prob seems random, but you are all so good at giving advice! Basically I am due my 2nd baby in 9 weeks! another little boy, and I having been dealing with my debts and feel I am now on the right track, having a little bit left over each month , and meeting payments instead of burying my head in the sand.

I have bought the following items so far for my newborn :

Travel System buggy,car seat & foot muff Graco Mosaic Air Travel System =£99.00
Car seat 9months-5years FREE OFF Stepmum
tommie tippe sterilizer =£10 asda baby event
tommie tippie bottles x 7 = £10 asda baby event
Dummies x 2 =£1 asda baby event
Moses basket BOUGHT= £29.99 INC STAND ebay
Baby sleepgro bag (0-6months)= £3.49 ebay
Bouncer Chair BOUGHT =£20 OFF a friend
Playmatt ladybird rrp £35 bought for= £5
cot and new mattress =£70 ebay
total so far = £248.28

I have bought all this out of overtime money, and have just been awarded my £500 maternity grant. The things I need to buy with this are;

paint for my sons/ new babys room
new mattress for my son 140x 70
new pillow/bedding/duvet for my son
blinds for my sons room
pictures
storage boxes
bedding for the cot
also rails/ to put into a cupboard to make a sort of wardrobe, would anyone know where i would get these?

I would also like to buy a 3d scan which costs £65, and if possible enrol my son on weekly football lessons/team, it is 10 pound week but you have to pay upfront for 6 weeks, so my plan was to pay the first 60 out of this money then save up £10 weekly.

I just wanted to see if anyone could help me stretch this budget as much as possible!

savingmummy

Hi congratulations on your pregnancy!

I spent hardly anything when i had my 2 as i dont see the need to but expensive or have the top things.
It seems you have already bought quite a bit have you anything from your 1st son?

If your on a tight budget then only get what you NEED, what you WANT isn`t practical imo!

Storage boxes - poundland do some coloured or clear ones, they also sell baby toilietries and branded food/bottles/assessories/toys/muslins/bibs etc.

Bedding i would go to asda or tesco see what they have, matalan/wilkinsons also do sets! If you buy the branded ones from top shops full sets are well over £50 - not worth it imo!

Pictures you could make yourself - Frames from £1 shop print off pictures on high quality paper and frame Children soon outgrow things so cheaper the better!!

gonzo127

while i dont know where you could get some of the things second hand this is what i would suggest

paint for my sons/ new babys room , keep an eye out for the offers at B&Q or homebase, they do a lot of weekend only deals (also if you know someone over 60 or 65 B&Q do a 10% discount card wednesdays onlyfor them so could get them to buy them for you)
new mattress for my son 140x 70 would always buy these new (just my own feelings thou) you can get them pretty cheap these days (£50 with delivery (matressnextday)
pictures these can be gotten second hand from sunday markets etc
storage boxes my suggestion was poo for this one better one above would be poundland
also rails/ to put into a cupboard to make a sort of wardrobe, would anyone know where i would get these? - bit of a out there sugesstion do you have a local tip? as a lot of people take old bits here and at mine you can usualy find some sort of rail

mummyofboys

thanks, i never thought about making the pictures myself! thats a great idea!, no i have nothing left from what i had with my son, i was only 19 when i had him and stupidly threw it all , oh well we live and we learn! i just want to make this 500 stretch as far as possible and make sure i have everything i need..!

Lookingtothefuture

Hello and congratulations!:beer:

We have just bought our cot bed mattress for £39.99 from Kiddicare and got free delivery.

This is for a sprung cot bed mattress not a foam one. It is the Kiddicare own one but when we compared it against the others (yes we spent a good half hour testing the samples in store!) there wasn't a big difference, if any.

Kiddicare does have it's own website. Hope this helps:D

savingmummy

Try freegle (freecycle) people are always getting rid of things others need.
You could always try asking for rail/storage on there you may be suprised.


Babyworld/Mumsnet are also good sites for help and advise during pregnancy/parenting etc. Lots of tips and they have a budget forum where people can find some fab bargains.

Wilkinsons had branded paint on offer last week not sure if it is still on instore.

Tixy

I would try freecycle and freegle. Look what people are posting or place your own wanted advert.

Also keep an eye out on your local gumtree or on ebay.

For blinds try wilkos or ikea. For paint ask family/friends if they have any going spare (most people tend to keep half pots etc).

And generally research the price of everything online before you buy.

Also ask around if anyone at son's school (or nursery) has a baby a bit older who is growing out of things just as you need them, sometimes playgroups /mum & toddler groups will have swap shop events.

Also if you haven't yet start signing up for any baby freebies you find, as well as getting freebies you often get money of vouchers as well (nappies/wipes etc)

Willow_K

Hi - good luck with the baby - enjoy your sleep while you can.

For the mattress try Babymattresses online - they have foam mattresses for £19.99 plus £10 postage. I used them for my little girls mattress and it has been really good quality.

For the cot bedding you say you have bought a sleeping bag already - get another couple of bags and just buy two fitted sheets for the cot and a couple of waffle blankets - sleeping bags are safer for the baby anyway and you can use the blankets in the pram and car if you don't need them in the cot.

Search for bundles of clothes on eBay as well while your son is tiny - you can often get whole wardrobes full of clothes for £25-£30 and you can just buy a few key pieces new like baby gros - I didn't really start buying new clothes for DD until she was 18 months old and not growing quite so quickly.

The supermarkets are good for the older childs bedding.

For everything else - freegle / Wilko's or the pound shops.

Oh and just my opinion but don't bother with the 3D scan - you'll love it while your still pregnant but when he's here, no scan will compare to the real thing - use that £65 for your son's football. A better momento and something which I really wish I'd done is a hand print or foot print.