Morning all! Today I am blog swapping with Glen from Monster Piggy Bank, so if you’d like to read some more, please head over to his site for my post about things we should be SPENDING money on!
Also, it is not too late to enter the $100 giveaway that I am co-hosting, all the details are here.
The following is a guest post by Glen who blogs over at Monster Piggy Bank. Glen lives in Australia and has recently started blogging about his life and his goals as he tries to strike the right balance between being frugal and living life. Glen welcomes comments on his blog and also has a Facebook and Twitter account (@MPiggyBank) which he is active on, so feel free to stop in and say hi.
With our first baby (which my wife has nicknamed Vanilla Bean) scheduled for arrival in early January, my wife and I have been very aware of the fact that once our baby boy arrives, we will have to live on quite a bit less income than we do now.
The reason for the reduced income is that my wife will be having 12 months maternity away from work. As a part of the 12 months maternity leave, she will be receiving half her normal pay for the first 6 months and then no income for the final 6 months.
Currently she brings in about 40% of our total family income each week, which means that next year not only will we have another mouth to feed, but we will also be doing it with about half our normal income. All the while we will be trying our best to continue paying off our mortgage debt.
Preparing for the baby
As this is our first child, there is so much that we have been unprepared for, so much that is new to us and to be quite honest – It’s exciting, but also a little bit scary.
We had been planning on my wife falling pregnant for awhile and when it finally happened, I thought we would have plenty of time to save up some money prior to the birth. I mean 9 months is a long time and people have babies all the time without going broke or entering the poverty queue.
What I didn’t count on, was just how much money it was going to cost us with all the doctors appointments, vitamins and baby items that we needed to pay for. I think our son has more stuff in our house than I do, and he hasn’t even arrived yet!
Don’t get me wrong, I knew having a baby wouldn’t be cheap, but I honestly didn’t expect it to be this expensive either. Unfortunately this has meant that we have not been able to save anywhere near the amount of money I had planned to for the last 9 months, because as soon as money comes in, there is something new that needs to be paid for.
I also didn’t expect our oven and vacuum cleaner to both stop working within the last few months. Neither of these items are cheap and even without the ever present baby countdown clock ticking away in the background, the budget would not have fared very well with these extra expenses.
After the birth
Something I am near certain of is that after the birth, there will be a whole range of things we have forgotten to buy. I can foresee many mad rushes to the shops in search of some baby related item that is paramount to our new born babies comfort or well-being. This will invariably mean that the budget leakage that is currently occurring will continue well into the first few weeks, or perhaps even months, of our child’s life.
Going back to work
Something my wife and I have discussed, but not come to a landing on, is what she will do about returning to work after her maternity leave is exhausted.
Currently there are 3 options that we are evaluating:
- Go back to work full time
- Continue as a stay at home mum
- Go back to work part time
At the moment we are both leaning towards her going back to work part time, although we will have to do the maths to work out what will be most cost effective for us. We are actually really lucky that her employer provides the option for her to return to work part time up until the child is school aged at which point she will be expected to return in a full time capacity.
The primary things that we will have to consider are
- The cost of childcare (which is quite high)
- Limited support from the government / welfare
It may end up that well will break even if my wife stays home full time, instead of returning to work part time. If this turns out to be the case then she will likely stay home until Vanilla Bean is ready for school as there is no substitute for a loving mum.
Future costs
The future costs of this baby (and any other future babies for that matter) will undoubtedly have a profound impact on my family’s future financial position. There are so many unknowns for me at the moment, so many different ways in which everything could play out. Just some of the things that I have been pondering include:
- Public or Private School
- Will my son need a mobile phone or tablet when he goes to school
- Sporting activities
- Birthdays
- Pocket money
- Extra food
- Health care
All of these things cost money, and while I’m confident that everything will work out for the best, at the moment I am just trying to do my best to plan for the future. My main priority is being able to ensure that little Vanilla Bean has all the things in life that he will require when growing up in our family.
What are the biggest children related costs that you have discovered? Or, better yet – Have you got any advice for me as a first time dad?
This post was featured on the Savvy Scot, thank you!
My only advice is that you don’t really need all of the baby gear that they sell- like wipe warmers and diaper genies. All the baby really needs is clothing, food, a safe place to sleep, and love! Save your extra money by skipping all of the convenience baby items.
Other than that, your baby will be worth every penny that you spend. There is nothing like it- it is truly a priceless experience. I am a very cheap person but I have never regretted a single cent spent on my children. The joy that they have brought to my life has made it worth it tenfold!!!
Great advice, thanks Holly!
I don’t think there will be any love shortages for this bub. He will be the first of this generation on my side of the family, so I expect everyone will want to be a part of his life.
Having a baby seems to be really expensive… like MAJORLY expensive! Hopefully family and friends will be there to help us out when we make the move to have kids!
I think the order of expensiveness goes like this:
1 – Mortgage
2 – Car
3 – Dog’s surgery
4 – Baby
It’s not the most expensive thing, but it’s certainly not cheap either.
We have been given heaps of stuff like clothes and toys for our kid, but most of the big items we have had to purchase ourselves. Fortunately there is heaps of second hand baby stuff on the internet.
Good post Glen. I would agree with Holly that you don’t need to buy all the things that get hawked at you as necessities. There are very few things that a baby truly needs and beyond that you’re good. I will add that if you plan on having additional kids in the future to save as much of the clothing and toys as you can as that can save a bunch of money as well.
Thanks John 🙂
I’m pretty sure that because we are having a boy this time around that my wife will want to try for a girl. So we will just have to find somewhere to keep all this stuff so we don’t have to buy it all again.
I think you two are approaching it the best way possible; trying to be prepared beforehand ! All new parents feel the same way, that they aren’t prepared enough, but once the baby comes I’m sure you’ll quickly realize the things you need and currently don’t have. I wouldn’t buy into gimmicks too much, since there seem to be 1000’s of baby product gimmicks. I would suggest possibly using cloth diapers (Google it, it doesn’t seem as bad as it sounds) to cut back on costs and waste, and to feed your baby organic home-made baby food if at all possible. Good luck with baby Vanilla Bean 🙂 hehe
My wife and I spoke about cloth diapers, she keeps saying that as long as I am the one cleaning them then it is fine 🙁
younghouselove.com have a killer post on cloth diapering. When I recently mentioned the whole thing (disposable diapers, landfills, waste etc) to my mum, she told me she used to cloth-diaper my sister and me, too 😉
I’m fairly sure you’re gonna love everything about your baby, even the poo 😀
Good luck for your little family 🙂
My wife is very opposed to becoming a stay at home mom – she wants to have a career. I think there can be times when it makes sense, but if someone wants to have a career it probably is best they head back to work and pay a nanny or for daycare. That’s just our approach, I’m not sure how much a career for your wife is playing into your decision.
Good points DC. My wife has virtually no career aspirations and would love to stay at home full time. The only reason she is considering going back to work is for the extra money
My friends live in Sydney and make a good living but say they can’t afford a second kid because child care is so expensive. Maybe you need to give Vanilla Bean a baby brother or sister quite soon and make it worth it for your wife to stay at home!
Let’s not go crazy Pauline :p
I think i’ll see how I handle this one first.
Way to be prepared! My advice for that period immediately following baby coming home—have the basics—bottles, breast pumps/formula, pads (and lots of them) for mom, blankets, baby pjs, diapers, etc. Be stocked up because leaving the house will most likely be a nightmare. Before each child we buy diapers progressively throughout the pregnancy so it’s not as big of a burden when we’ve got the newborn at home. And that way we don’t have to run out last minute if we run out, because we don’t for about a year.
For all that other extraneous stuff, wait and see if you actually need it. It’s amazing what marketers have convinced us to buy and then we never use. It’s hard with the first one, though…you want to be so ready and have everything so perfect!
Congrats!!!
Thanks for the advice. I can’t believe how much diapers cost, I’m thinking of waiting until they are on special and buying a heap of them.
I like the wait and see approach. I think we will end up doing that quite a bit.
Nice post Glen. My wife and I are expecting our first born in December, so I know what you are talking about. I found that most of the crap that they push is unnecessary and you can get a lot of good stuff at consignment shops, if you have them. I have saved well over 60% off new items with just gently used. I have been working hard on creating a budget and having my wife and I just live off of one income to get in the habit of doing so. Good luck with your little one when he arrives.
Thanks! I think it’s a good idea that you are practicing living on a single income. I think we should follow suit just to get in the habit as soon we won’t have the luxury of choice.
I hope all goes well with your child in December.
Glen, what’s your reason for considering whether your son might need a mobile phone in school? I’m curious because I see many kids with phones today and can’t help but wonder why they need one. I guess I’m just a dinosaur and grew up without high tech stuff just fine. I’m secretly learning quite a bit from your own experiences (nothing is more genuine than someone going through it first hand and telling me/us about it!) You’re probably nervous but I have a feeling you will get through it just fine. Thanks for sharing your personal life issues with us.
I also see so many kids these days with phones that I assume it’s just something I’ll need to purchase for them.
I’m glad you are learning from me and hopefully I don’t give you a bum steer.
Congratulations on the upcoming birth of your baby! What a wonderful way to begin the new year. As a person without any kids I have no suggestions on how to save for such things.
Hopefully he waits until the new year as I don’t want him coming around Christmas time!
As I’m not a parent I don’t have any advice, but I’m sure you will get a lot of great tips! Good luck with new fatherhood!
We have been getting a bit of advice, but it’s so hard to know what to listen to. Thanks for the luck! Hopefully we won’t need it…
Once my wife and I were married people would often ask when we were going to start having kids. At one point it got so bad that I jokingly call the phase between the wedding and having a child the, “So when are you going to have kids,” phase.
My response would often be that we were waiting a few years and wanted to save money before we had any. Most people would say that you’re never financially ready to have them so why wait.
While I do agree that you’re never ready, emotionally or financially, for children. That does not mean I want to be broke with a baby to worry about on top of money.
I share your pain – We got the exact same thing! I used to hate having to see the relatives, just because I knew we were going to get quizzed on why we weren’t having kids immediately after getting married. I don’t know why everyone feels that it is their business to wish children on you, when you have your own plans and life goals?
That is so exciting for you. In hindsight, now that I have big girl five year old, I would just say don’t stress it. I was terribly stressed when she was a baby, mainly because I only was able to take 6 weeks off for maternity leave. I think with your wife having a whole year, that will take off loads of stress. The biggest expenses for us were diapers, formula (I was unable to nurse due to some medical complications) and childcare. You really don’t need much for the first year other than food, clothes, and diapers. You will find that you actually enjoy spending money for things that make them better people like swim lessons or sports. I think you are very smart to plan, but I know you will do great. I would go out with your wife as much as you can now, because it will be a while before you get that time alone again.
The biggest problem with us going out now is that my wife is always so tired and finds it exhausting going out for any more than about an hour or 2.
Thanks for the advice Kim, I appreciate your insight 🙂
There’s only so much prep you can do. Holly is right there is an overwhelming amount of stuff out there but so little you need. Our daughter is 5months and hasn’t even used her crib yet. This is something I absolutely did not plan, or think I would ever do, but we co-sleep. Initially she was sleeping in our room in a (borrowed) bassinet but when I was nursing her at night (breastfeeding is a MASSIVE money saver) we were both waking up for long periods of time and it was taking me forever to get her back asleep but she would fall asleep almost instantly if laying beside me so it just made sense and I was comfortable with it so while she’s nursing at night (starting to ween a bit now-she’ll be in her crib within the month) she sleeps with us. Have a baby shower and get a good start on stuff you need/want. The only 2 ‘toy’ type things that our daughter regularly uses is her swing and exersaucer/jumper now that she’s getting bigger. Honestly though she has just as much fun laying on a blanket on the floor with a few small toys to chew on or squeeze. A baby-safe mirror to play with and you’re set. We have a genie and wipe warmer that were gifts (we didn’t ask for either) and both go unused. By second hand-especially clothes! Kids, especially babies, grow out of them within a 3 month period. Cloth diapers, while and initial investment-huge money saver and you can buy online (we don’t do this but I would). I know this is easier said than done but just don’t worry about anything- stuff has a magical way of working out. You find ways to make it work. Given the maternity leave cap in Canada (55% of your income to a max of $457/week) I’ve lost about 60% of my NET income (i’m allowed 52 weeks). Given our debt load that’s huge but we’re surviving! It was the best thing that’s ever happened to us! Good Luck!!
Thanks for all your input, this is super helpful – I like the idea of the mirror – I wouldn’t have thought of that.
I’m not sure how the sleeping arrangements are going to happen yet, I guess we will cross that bridge when we come to it.
I’m sure everything will be fine – it’s just a case of fear of the unknown.
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