Newborn Parents Please Read

H

hornhooper

100+ Posts
Hi, This post is to help the growing costs of feeding, clothing, and keeping newborn babies healthly. So I found a deal online that is too good to pass.
-First, My wife gave birth to "Meg" on 5/5/2004. She weighed 8 pounds and 2 ounces. The wife tried to breast feed but she had to stop after a week. So, we started formula feeding.

Amazon.com has "Similac" for 7 dollars a can. We priced this with HEB and Sam's.
HEB has it for 12 dollars a can
Sam's has it for 10 dollars a can.
These are prices for cans differing in size but I am pricing the cost per 12.9 ounces.
Amazon also gives you free shipping for purchases over 25 dollars. I stocked up on this one.

I need help with Pampers.
I need help with clothes.
I need help with other costs that I am not aware of at this point.
I am looking for deals. Help?
 
Diapers: HEB carries a brand called DryFit. They work very well and are much less expensive than Pampers. Look for HEB coupons every third week or so on DryFit and apply them to the smallest size they carry. (Higher percentage off price)

Clothes: Just keep in mind that your kid doesn't know what they are wearing and they are going to ruin or outgrow the clothes in a matter of weeks. WalMart frequently has great deals of cute outfits for kids.

Tax help: Check with you and your wife's employer to find out if they have a cafeteria account or flex account for medical and child care costs. Estimating medical and childcare costs and paying for them with pre-tax dollars is SO much more cost effective.

Milk: My wife cried for a couple of weeks because breastfeeding hurt so much at first. Talk to a breastfeeding consultant to make sure the baby is latching on right. Breast milk is much cheaper and you get to see boobs more often. Try La Leche League for help.
 
COSTCO-
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It is sort of a shock how much all the stuff costs when you haven't been paying for it before isn't it. I might be a hair wary of Interent Similac purchases, and would double check the product code numbers back with the manufacturer. However Amazon is usually very reputable so probably a non-issue. There has been black market stuff out there before..
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Clothes and almost everything baby related can be found for unbeleivably low prices at many garage sales. Hell half the stuff we sold had never even been worn.

What you need are about a dozen "onesies" and gdo yourself a favor and go buy a package of cloth diapers. Use the cloth sdiapers as rags for your shoulder to protect your own clothing from the burp backwash that is inevitable.

Pampers used to flat piss me off on how much those damn things cost. I will however second the motion on checking the prices closely and using coupons. Often times the smaller packages had "deals" and were considerable less expensive than the larger bulk pruchase you would expect to normally be less. Coupons, coupons, soupons is my advice here. Also watch HEB, and the walgreens or Eckerds for their periodic specials.

Good luck !!!!
 
I posted this on Quacks, too...I'm repeating much of what the previous posters have said.

First of all, congratulations on the birth of your daughter!

Since you're using formula, determine the type to get with your doctor's advice and what your baby will eat, then buy the largest amount at the best price possible. Trust me, they go through it quickly and you don't want to have to run to the store at 2 am because you're out of formula and Meg is hungry. Look at places like Wal-Mart, Sam's Club, Costco, Target, wherever. Occaisionally you'll see good deals on formula at your grocery stroe, but they usally limit your purchases.

Same stores for diapers, clothes, bottles (you can't have too many of these) and other miscellaneous baby supplies.

Other costs to be aware of: doctor's visits (for Meg and your wife), car seats, bottle liners (if you go the disposable route), baby wipes, Desitin, toys, games, books, videos.

But the biggest cost to know about is the time you have with them. Maximize & enjoy all the time you get with Meg for there's nothing you can buy that can replace holding your child. They grow out of letting you hold them far too quickly.
 
On the flip-side..........just think of how much money you aren't spending on random nights out for dinner, move, drinks, whatever.

Also --- as far as clothes.........hopefully you can "network", so to speak. Friends, family, etc., are an invaluable source of second-hand clothes.

My goodness.........babies grow so fast that other than their "daily wear" uni-suits, etc., that they puke and drool all over.........most clothes are in brand new condition by the time they outgrow them.

There is no shame in tactfully soliciting items.......hell, we've been circulating the same winter coats around our neighborhood for going on 10 years.

Good luck.
 
I can tell you from some experience that HEB is not making much money on Similac. Searching Amazon I cannot find the $7 price you reported. I would be highly suspicious that Amazon can get a lower cost than either HEB or Sam's since they should be able to buy and sell a lot more Similac than Amazon, thus gaining a larger discount on the cost. Formula and diapers are typically sold at or near cost because of their high price and high rate of use. Retailers make money on the other items you buy when you go to pick these items up.

Matches for Similac
 
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