New baby on the way how much extra a week do you spend

ViolaLass

Our local council gives you £30 cashback if you buy reusable nappies (we spent about £85).

AngelOfTheNorth

Secondhand baby clothes are often pretty good value, more so than later on. When they're little, although they ruin quite a lot of clothes by crapping all over them, they also grow so fast that stuff doesn't tend to get worn out otherwise. I was given loads of barely or never worn things by friends and family. I would advise not bothering to buy much newborn stuff too, they're not in it for very long. The bigger the size, the more wear they normally get out of an item.

Regarding disposable wipes and nappies, if you use these and plan ahead you never need to pay full price. I also find Asda and Tesco to be very good, and a lot cheaper than premium brands. Some babies only get on with certain types, and if your little one's bum is best suited to Pampers then that's what you'll buy, but worth having a look at budget. I must say though, Wilkinsons seemed awful and while everyone else appears to love Aldi, they gave my daughter a rash.

Kaye1

TBeckett100 wrote: »

Second hand stuff for a new born baby? What a fantastic start.
Oh we couldn't afford to have you Duwayne so here's a life of make do.

When you are 18 and move out, you can buy new, except we've never had money so you'll spend all your income on rent and you'll never raise a deposit.

As I have said, with £20 a week spare, should have got a cat

'A life of make do?' Seriously, what a foolish thing to say.


What about a life of living within your means?
What about- saving on things which are going to be grown out of quickly so you can afford a few extras?


We take no money from anyone apart from CB. We manage what we have carefully and sensibly. We expect no-one to pay for our children. No doubt you think my children are deprived and hard done by as last week I bought a snowsuit for my daughter from a charity shop. It cost £20 new, I paid £5. Hard done by? I don't think so.


There are a lot of people on here trying to do their best- and if that means getting second hand clothes then so be it. It is also more environmentally responsible to re-use things. We have a culture of consumption and if we can re-use things instead of them being thrown away, that surely is a good thing.


And cats will s*** in a garden until the end of their days- at least my toddler will eventually learn not too!

Bluebell1000

We spend about £15 -20 for a months supply of nappies, but will be moving to washables soon. We used washables with DS1 and the elastic has stretched a little, so having to wait be bit longer before they fit DS2!

Wipes - Tesco or Asda value work perfectly for us, so we spend maybe £1 a week on wipes.

£2.50 a week for 8 weeks baby massage class, which is just finishing Plus £1.50 a week for me to have tea and a chat after the class. We'll start going to Sure Start classes after Christmas, which are free.

Clothes are all at least third-hand now, having got them second hand with DS1. Why waste money on clothes which baby doesn't care about - as long as they're warm and dry, it doesn't matter if it's pre-used Primark or new Monsoon. They will throw up and poo on everything so cheap makes sense if it's probably going to get messed up anyway

I'm currently breastfeeding, and using washable breast pads, so no weekly cost for those once bought. I did get those new.

We also have a cat She is probably cheaper to run than the children but we haven't had any big vet bills yet!

Mrshaworth2b

Baby events really helped us, I stocked up on wipes and cotton wool pads every baby event. I didn't know how many bottles I would go through because my baby had reflux and we didn't breastfeed so that was a hit to our finances.

In terms of costs there are certain options you need to decide on to know how much roughly you will be spending, i.e breast or bottle, reusable or not

I certainly do not see anything wrong with having second hand clothes or toys and books. My mil brings round books that look brand new thst she got from the charity shop, also toddlers get dirty so quickly, surely a 50p top is better getting dirty than a £5 top from mothercare!! I know what I'd rather see in paint and yoghurt!

AngelOfTheNorth

I find babies are very skilled at identifying the most expensive items of clothing to leak bodily fluids onto. If you put them in anything expensive, there'll be a poonami straight away, but the fourth hand Asda vests will remain unscathed.

notanewuser

Babies generally don't need toiletries (maybe a tube of metanium) for the first year. Breastmilk is free and BLW means no jars or pureeing. :j

DH and I were/are relatively high earners but still bought a lot of second hand stuff for DD. We also coslept (no moses basket etc) and she bathed with us (no baby bath). We changed her on the floor, sofa or bed (no changing unit).

You can spend as much or as little as you like, really.

notanewuser

Mrshaworth2b wrote: »

Baby events really helped us, I stocked up on wipes and cotton wool pads every baby event.

So did I. Grossly over stocked. She's now 4 and I still have about 40 packs!

Mrshaworth2b

notanewuser wrote: »

So did I. Grossly over stocked. She's now 4 and I still have about 40 packs!

You can have your own baby event now

notanewuser

Mrshaworth2b wrote: »

You can have your own baby event now

They still come in handy!