Coping on maternity pay

littleme96

You cope because you have to! I am now a SAHM and luckily we never had debts to begin with, but I didn't find the drop in income too bad (although I wasn't earning as much as you do).

Check out Freecycle and Ebay for baby stuff, you can pick up some excellent items for little or no cost and baby won't know any difference! Get baby clothes from the same websites or from supermarkets - they are cheap and often good quality. Babies grow out of clothes so quickly that it's a waste to spend a fortune in Gap! If you need specific baby items (not necessarily clothes) and you know that someone wants to get you a present, ask if they'd be willing to buy you it or contribute towards a bigger item.

Try and breastfeed if you can, this saves an absolute fortune! Yes it can be bloody hard at first, but it really is the money saving thing to do and means you don't have to be warming bottles in the middle of the night either...

We didn't do this, but many people now use cloth nappies and wipes. Despite a relatively high initial outlay, they pay for themselves over time, can be used for subsequent babies, often have a high re-sale value and help the environment too!

Look at your budget now and see what you can cut out or reduce once the baby is here. I assume you will probably be spending less on petrol as you won't be commuting and may be saving money on lunches, social events at work and collections. It all adds up! Have a look at your food budget now and see if you can reduce what you buy, buy cheaper brands or make things from scratch to save money. Do you have any non-essentials that you could get rid of from your budget - Sky for example or gym membership?

It'll all work out! Good luck!

old_motters

You know, we found the NCT nearly new sales an absolute Godsend. I picked up a Mamas and Papas changing table for £10 probably £150 or so new, a Mamas and Papas swing unused for £40, £60 new. And fair deal of awesome clothes from Next, GAP etc for a couple of quid an item. There were also prams and a couple of cot beds at all of the 3 sales we went to, many in great condition.

It's worth spending the money on membership to get the best deals before the hordes descend. Membership also includes some parentcraft classes which are very useful too.

The membership pays for itself though in the money saved from the nearly new sales. We must have gotten about £800 worth of stuff for £150/£200.

onlyroz

I lived on my match-betting income whilst on maternity leave.

MrsTinks

I know it's been suggested already but I think in fairness if you can't make ends meet on maternity pay then go back to work... have you thought about what your childcare arrangements will be when you return? Are you returning part time and can grandparents help with a day or two a week with little 'un to save daycare costs?
Yes we earn more than you do but full time day care still swallows 1/3 of my income after tax etc. That might not seem much but it's still a culture shock...
Then again I always knew I had to return to work (unless we win the lottery) as we have debts from before we met and bills to pay etc. And I like a certain standard of living I watch the pennies because I want to be debt free
On the other hand I also want some luxuries in life like a car that doesn't break down and clothes that fit me etc... And when the time comes I want to be able to send my daughter to the school I went to - not exactly free... But I made these choices and accepted the trade offs that I would have to make to get them.
We can't always have everything we want so we need to prioritise... is it more important to you to be at home and breast feeding, than living within your means and expressing and working?
Or could your husband get a better paid job with less uncertainty than taxi driving... My father was a taxi driver for years so I appreciate the volatile nature of the business...
Could you do something from home? Or have you thought about becoming a child minder? Could you face dealing with other peoples children as well as your own?

I have the worlds nicest child minder and my daughter adores her and her daughters... Yes it can be upsetting then you know someone else gets to spend more time with your child than you do, but I know that she is still MY daughter and for me to give her the things in life that are important to me I have to work... Maybe because my parents couldn't give us the things they wanted to it's more important to me? I want to be able to send her to a good school, I want her to be able to go to Uni and I want her to be able to see the world... So I made my choices accordingly...

Sorry that turned into a ramble but ultimately if after looking at your SOA you can't make the numbers balance then you need to make the decisions about what will be most important to you and your partner...

There isn't a magical answer for all because we're all different