Baby on a Budget

The purpose of this series is to provide support and information for married couples contemplating starting a family (or adding to theirs) despite difficult financial circumstances.  While I believe that there are valid reasons for postponing pregnancy, and that economic situations can be one of them, I think that our modern society often gives us unrealistic ideas of what is really necessary to raise a child. 

When our daughter was first born, my husband was making a grad student's stipend (think tiny!) while I stayed at home. Now I work as a part-time teacher and David works at Starbucks while looking for a job in his field.  It's sometimes difficult, but we get by.  If we can do it, almost any couple can too!  Our baby girl has been such a blessing to us and although it's sometimes hard to make ends meet, she's absolutely worth it!

This series consists of tips and tricks that I use in our household to save money on baby related expenses, as well as several guest posts from others detailing their personal experiences and their money saving ideas.  If you have some experience in this area and would like to contribute a guest post either on your experience raising a "baby on a budget" as a whole or would like to give advice on a particular aspect of it (including one of the topics below), send me an email at messywifeblessedlife@gmail.com.

Of course, every couple must decide for themselves if starting (or further expanding) their family is financially feasible, but I do want to provide support, ideas, and my own personal experience to help them make their decisions.  It would have made the decision-making process easier for us if we knew of others that were able to do it, were able to ask questions, and seek advice.  If you would like to see any additional topics covered, let me know!


Posts by Mandi:



Some additional topics I'm planning to address:
Buying second hand
Breastfeeding 
Cloth diapers (and wipes)
Being happy with what you have

6 comments:

  1. I love this series, Mandi. I really think this idea should be included in pre-Cana classes. Couples need to realize that having a baby is not as expensive as it's sometimes made out to be.

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  2. I am stopping by to show some love! I really love this series! Your site is pretty great!

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  3. Sharing a series of baby on budget articles is an excellent idea. Babies can be very expensive, but sticking to a budget can really bring the cost down dramatically.

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  4. I'm loving your blog. We are having a tough time. 5 kids, 2 bedroom apartment, lived through 2 hurricanes (Rita & Katrina) & most recently a tornado outbreak which demolished our entire town...nothing left so cheap is good we are getting caught up on bills and have very little (more like none) $ for clothes, diapers, books...ect...even though we don't get cable or anything...things are tight especially since we have no family or friends & sadly no handle downs for baby & kids or even us & of course kids are in school (break right now) ...it's definitely hard

    Lilhottemomma@yahoo.com
    Amy

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  5. I am so excited to have found your blog and I am just starting to read it! My husband and I are on our first month of charting for NFP and will hopefully be expectant parents soon! I was first drawn to you by our mutual desire to see more about how NFP helps achieve pregnancy rather than prevent it!! Thanks for that post ... looking forward to reading more from you!

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  6. Good ones are a little more expensive than normal diapers, BUT, I save money in the long run because the diapers don't leak, hence his clothes don't get soiled, and I don't have to do the baby's laundry that often. I'm not going back to any other diaper!
    honest company

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I'd love to hear what you have to say! You can also contact me directly by emailing me at messywifeblessedlife@gmail.com.