Frugal Struggles
June 1, 2007 by kellys
Filed under clothes, frugal living, shopping
I have been blessed with hand-me-downs for my son that will be here in a few weeks. Today, I and my wonderful friend, MM, started going through the clothes and seeing what I needed before he gets here. I need to figure out if he has enough PJ’s, outfits, etc… because I saw that my Once Upon a Child has all their summer stuff on sale for 50% off. When I stopped by, they has some adorable boy outfits that weren’t blue and were less than $2 a piece. That is right up my alley. The struggle I have is that I want to buy a few things for him myself but I really don’t think I need anything for him. I need to talk myself into seeing how big he is when he gets here. I struggles with clothes for my DD when she first arrived because she really needed preemie clothes for the first few weeks. I didn’t want to waste my money so I fought with the 0-3 month clothes that kept falling off her. I have already decided that I am going to wait to see if I should buy him some preemie clothes once he is here. That will be MM’s job.
So should I splurge and get him a few outfits from us or just wait to see what size he comes out as? What do yo think?
Both of my kids weighed less than 8 lbs and could wear preemie clothes for several weeks. I don’t think it would hurt to get him a few inexpensive outfits. Just keep it very thrifty so you don’t feel guilty about it. Have you had a baby shower yet? As you know, both of my kids were born in the late summer, and I got way too many summer clothes at my baby showers. Summer clothes will be really cheap in July. So, keep that in mind. You will still have time to find some great deals then.
I had the same dilemma with my kids — got lots of hand-me-downs & new stuff (esp 0-3 mo). What I did was I bought bigger sizes. So if your little one is coming soon, buy 12 mo. items and stick them in the closet! I have been so grateful for that and 12 mo comes around MUCH faster than you realize, as you already know! : )
I bought ahead of time for both of my kids, whenever I saw things really cheap on clearance. The problem is, my daughter has always been in the 5th percentile for height and weight. I bought 12 month clothes for her for the next summer and they were all way too big for her. Fortunately, I got my money back out of most of them at my yard sale. Thankfully, she is in whole sizes now, so it is easier to shop ahead for her.
I am loving yard sale season. We went out again today and I got a lot of nice clothes for 50 cents each!!!
Both of my kids spent their first few months in either layette gowns or one-sies and socks. When my first was born (a girl) I bought lots of clothing in gender-neutral colors, and got them at really cheap prices. Typically we went through 3 or 4 clothing changes a day. I think it’s still pretty cheap to get a 3-pack of one-sies (new) for about $5 at a discount store. Otherwise, t-shirts and diapers work fine, too! For goodness sake, let the kid be comfortable and take some strain off of yourself. Enjoy being a mommy with a new baby!
I kept my kids in gowns and sleepers when they were at home, but I dressed them in outfits when we went out of the house. I couldn’t keep them in onesies at our house. My husband keeps it too cold in here!!!!
Our house is comfortable and my duaghter had a sweat ring around her ar seat by 2 months. She was born in April! So I think I will just wait to see how things go and send my friend for clothes after he gets here if I need anything. I am hoping that my hand-me-downs will get me through. I just don’t have the money right now. I am trying to get the nursery set up and would rather spend my money elsewhere.
You guys always help me keep my money where it should be … my wallet!