Note on cloth diapers: they make potty training SOOO much easier! If not to use them for the earth and you wallet do it so you can be diaper free sooner!!

Something not really mentioned here is childcare, I just wrote a peice on was to save on childcare at PIC Current the link is: http://current.pic.tv/2008/10/07/penny-saving-childcare-ideas/#comments. I hope it can be useful to people!

Again thanks for all the useful info!

I know not everyone is comfortable with cosleeping, but the crib was another huge waste of money for us. Our son slept in a borrowed bassinet for the first three months, and we have been happily cosleeping ever since. Consider having a bassinet on hand for the first few months, and only buying a crib if/when you decide to go that route.

Look into local parent’s groups – you can often find info through your church or library, Yahoo Groups, or Meetup.com. It may not seem like an obvious money-saver, but for someone like me who lives far from most of my friends and family, providing entertainment, education, and socialization for a toddler is much easier through frequent playdates and events with group discounts as opposed to paying for private classes, going to events on our own, etc.

Cloth diapering is great and is the best if you can just do prefolds and covers. Diaperswappers has great second hand diapers, if you want try something else. I think we’ve spent around $150 total on cloth diapering doing that.

For wipes, I cut up a few flannel receiving blankets and put them in a plastic wipes container with a wipes solution. Yeah, they fray, so if you’re crafty you can serge the edges or get some fray check at a fabric/craft store to stop that. Or not. You get them as gifts, the baby grows out of them too quickly, so at least this way you’re using them.

For our first we had the whole nine yards, but now that we have two we’re much more frugal.

I couldn’t agree more that “real” items can be toys too as long as play time is defined and the “real” toys become tools again after a healthy session of fun, but I can’t imagine that car keys are EVER a good toy for a child under the age of 4. I’m not so sure Toyota or Ford could even begin to tell me the list of lubricants, metals oxides, and plastics that live in the ignition of your car, or the host of oils, bacteria, and solvents that end up on your car keys as you fill the tank and just handle them. Bad toy in my opinion. Though maybe at an age where washing hands is an enforced habit maybe its fine. I don’t want that stuff living in my daughter thanks very much.

My lactation consultant offered discounts on breastpumps. If you already have a visit to the consultant covered by insurance, see if they have a deal with a manufacturer.

We also didn’t bother with a changing table, since inexpensive ones were made from weak materials and I read too many reviews that talked about them collapsing under a small baby. Our changing pad has screw attachments, so I started with it on my bureau and then moved it to my old school desk, now in the baby’s room. A bit of that rubbery shelf liner underneath keeps it from slipping.

My reasoning: it’s going to be too soon that my kids will be demanding “the latest” (whether they get it is an entirely different matter). I might as well save a buck (or several) NOW while they don’t care!

Some good tips. Thanks

I bought a manual breast pump (pump with your hand, not an electric breast pump) and I am very glad I did. While it’s not great for long term pumping, it is a heck of a lot cheaper than the big electric ones and good enough for short term, once in a while use. I ended up having oversupply issues (yes, you can produce too much breastmilk) so excess pumping was actually off limits for me. However, it was nice knowing I had it. I also used it to help pull out my teeny tiny nipples on the first few days so the baby could latch on. I also plan on using it later for times when I need to be away from the baby for a while.