If you are currently preparing yourself for the arrival of a new baby or planning a little bit further down the road for this exciting new milestone, one thing’s for sure – along with the joy and love you will bring into to your family, you will also want to put some extra thought into how you will afford the addition of this new family member.
Through effective budgeting you can then also help to avoid the financial stress that can come along with a new baby – and instead enjoy every moment to the fullest. If this is a stage of life you find yourself at here is how you can go about budgeting for the arrival of your newest family member.
First thing’s first, you can begin by composing a list of all of the many items that will potentially need to be added into your ‘Baby Budgeting Expense’ category. You can even further separate these items into sub-lists entitled ‘One Time Baby Expenses’ and ‘On Going Baby Expense’.
Here is a potential list of items you will need to include in your baby budget using the above-mentioned expense headings.
Potential Baby Expenses
ONE TIME EXPENSES:
Car seat
Stroller
Baby backpack
Diaper bag
Crib
Crib mattress
Bedding accessories, sheets, etc.
Changing table and pad
Rocking chair
Bassinet
Baby monitor
Dresser
Playtime/Activity Equipment Expenses:
Play centre/walker
Bouncer/swing
Childproofing Accessories
Bath tub
High chair
Nursing items and clothing
First Aid Supplies/Thermometer
Other
ONGOING EXPENSES:
Diapers
Clothes
Formula/Food
Child care
Healthcare/Medicine
Other
PHEW, now that is a long list! Keep in mind, however that some of these items you will need and some you may not. Some of them perhaps you will purchase second hand or even borrow from other family members or friends. With that being said however, it is ideal to still factor in most, if not all of the items you might need for your baby – that way you’ll be budgeting for a realistic amount and not underestimating how much things will actually end up costing overall.
Again, there may be some additional items you will need to include on this list that are not present on this list, yet in the end this is a good place to start and you of course can personalize your budget to meet your family’s own needs.
Locating and Estimating Prices
Now that you have created and itemized your baby budgeting expense list, you will then need to add realistic prices into this framework. In order to find how much these items will cost, you can go about this in a variety of ways. Word of mouth from friends you know have recently purchased them can help you identify the cost of things, however going online or into stores in person to gauge how much these items will cost will help you get the best idea how much you will need to budget for. As a result, you will be able to be as accurate as possible with your total budgeting needs.
Within this step, you can compare brands and store prices in order to see where you may be able to purchase items for less and also where you can locate quality items for you baby. For example, some people may opt for more natural or organic products – and therefore these prices will need to be budgeted for accordingly.
After you have collected these prices, adding them into your budget will allow you to move forward finalizing the total amount you should prepare to work into your budget. When you add up all of these prices, taxes included and have also accounted for quantities on an ongoing basis, you will now have your overall tally and therefore monthly/yearly budgeting goal can be set.
Reducing your Budget
Lastly, this additional step can be incorporated into this process, as you may want to determine whether or not there are items you may be able to do without. While, sometimes you won’t necessarily know this until after the baby has arrived and he or she has reached certain developmental milestones, you may however know this right from the get-go and rule out items you just don’t need.
Again, you may also be able to buy certain items from second hand locations and this can then allow you save money – also reducing your proposed baby budget even further.
Additionally, you may already know you will borrow certain items from someone who no longer requires certain baby equipment, for example, a swing or an activity centre, and so on. Here you can also adjust your budget according and go from there.
With a family that is soon-to-be expanding, the task of budgeting will be your ‘best friend’. It is likely that you already have a budget, however your current budget will certainly need to be re-evaluated and re-configured to accommodate your new family dynamics and financial responsibilities.
Just as you would plan for any type of financial milestone, adding a new member into the family will also be an appropriate time to focus again on budgeting and being prepared for the new changes you will soon encounter. Whether you are soon-to-be a new parent or adding a second or third child to your family roster – taking into account the prices associated with the new and ongoing expenses you will have is an ideal course of action as you prepare to welcome your new child into your lives with open arms.
