Expenses When New Baby Arrives

The comment left by a reader to my blog got me and my wife talking about some of the increases we encountered since the baby arrived.  Some we expected and some we knew but really didn't take into account until they arrived.  Here are a few of those increases and some ideas about how to offset those costs.

There are a lot of things that should be included when trying to estimate the cost of the additional family member.  I just got my first full water and electric bill after the baby arrived.  Due to the extra laundry, water consumption has gone up.  Because it's winter, the house must be kept warmer than I like so the cost for heating (electricity) has also gone up.  Both of these increases amount to about $40 per month, you should take these things into consideration when working on the monthly budget.  I also learned that there is a special laundry soap for baby stuff and it's not cheap.
You can offset the cost of some things by using discount coupons, sign up for as many free samples as you can.  My wife was able to get a few cans of formula for free.  We don't use formula usually so we'll most likely donate it.  Last week my wife was able to get a coupon for a case of diapers from someone who didn't need it at Cosco.  If possible ask friends and neighbors to give you the baby stuff coupons they don't need or use.  Make sure you make extra space for those things you get on sale.  If you know you're going to need it and you can get it on sale and use a coupon then take full advantage.  Word of warning when it comes to diapers, don't buy more than what your baby is going to use for the particular stage they're in.  Remember babies grow and the diaper that fits this week may not fit next week.  We've returned a few cases of diapers once we realized that Baby Dumpling was going to out grow them before we would use them and got the next size up.  You really never want to run out of diapers, because then you are stuck paying full price at the closest grocery store at 2 a.m.  Additional things you could do to offset the increases is, "GO Green."  I'm not talking about going with cloth diapers, even though it's said to be cheaper than disposables, but I'm not sure if the people who say that include the extra water, electricity and soap in their estimated cost.  What I'm talking about is using the energy efficient light bulbs, water saving things on your faucets and shower heads.  During the winter you can use those additional window insulation kits, hot water heater blankets and things like that.  I've been doing a lot of these things for over 10 years and I'm still looking for new ways to save.  There are a lot of ways to save money just by doing a few simple things and with gas prices staying above $3, a dozen eggs costing over $2, a case of diapers almost $30 same with 1 can of formula, you really need think about ways to offset these costs.