What do you think about putting the baby on a budget?
How much is to much to spend on the baby in a month?
My daughter was just born in May. Anways, my Fiancee keeps spending heaps of money buying her stuff. She spent like 1500 between the babies birthdate and today. Mind you we already had baby furniture, cloths, formula, and diapers. Although, we have had to reup on the last two a few times.
So, anyways she thinks it unreasonable to put the baby on a budget. But I dont think its out of the question at all. What do you think and how much would you budget for the baby?
I am not speaking of emergency type situations, I am speaking of the every day needs and my fiancee’s wants.
The two of us already have budgets, that we decided on when she got pregnant. Now she is using the baby as an excuse to spend extra money.
Michael B- I am a grown man. I can do without a 100,000 dollar car.
Why do you people equivilate cheap with being responsible?
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dood!! C’mon!! Your daughter is part of your family now like it or not. You don’t budget for one person in the family…and a helpless person that needs the three necessities and THAT IS IT. The whole way you phrased the question offended me. Is it your fiance’s first child? Give her (the adult seems to need boundaries not the baby) some time. How would you, O penny pincher, like to drive a new $100, 000.00 car home and have to put it in your garage? and beside the story of how you bought it you’d only have pictures to show your buds?
forget washing, waxing and showing off your new wheels..that costs money.. Let her be proud..figure out a way to not end up broke and then let mom have her day in the sun. So much of child rearing isn’t “fun” give her a break.
It’s not the baby who should be on a budget and if your some one who is cheap I hope your wife leaves you with the baby. You can put a person on a budget because it’s not the baby spending the money. I do think this is about controll in more than one way.
It’s important to live within your means; but at the same time, there are certain things that you just can’t skimp on
Diapers, wipes, and formula should be unlimited on an as-needed basis. These are necessities.
Clothes are necessary to some degree, but baby will outgrow them very quickly. There’s no need to go crazy.
Toys aren’t really necessary for a baby that age. It’s fun to buy a few small items, but baby won’t even be able to play with them for months.
I suspect that much of the expense comes from things that just weren’t anticipated before birth – a bouncy seat (a must), a baby sling (also a must in my book), etc. If this is the case, the spending should slow dramatically.
I think the two of you need to sit down and talk about where the money is going. There are reasonable expenses; then there’s just “needing” every little cute thing that comes along. A budget is not a bad idea, if you both can agree to it and stick to it.
as long as you buy what they NEED the rest is useless. why pay thousands for toys and clothes theyll outgrow in a couple of months? Youd be better off putting the money in a college fund.
well besides the obvious, diapers, wipes, formula, things you NEED for baby, there shouldnt be anyreason to be spending too much money, there is only so much you can buy, I hope she isnt buying so many clothes, becuase they may wear them once or twice. Esp now when its hot, my baby born in April has just been in a onsie each day. As far as toys, untill baby is older there is only so many toys baby can have. I think she should def be on a budget. I spend about 200.00 bucks a month on my baby, Maybe even only 150.00!!
It sounds as though your Fiancee is the one who should be on a budget.
Anyway babies go through a lot of formula and diapers so you should expect that to take a lot of money.
Since it sounds like you may have everything that is needed I think that your Fiancee is just excited and is getting carried away. Talk to her and remember that effective communication goes both ways.
A budget may not be a bad idea but you have to make sure that it is a realistic one and don’t forget to plan for emergencies.
Good Luck.
I had the same problem, and I put myself on a “baby spending budget” I wrote up a chart of how much formula and diapers cost and then gave myself that cost plus some for other needs/wants. I now with my extra time look for deals and coupons so I can make it within my budget. It all depends on how much you have income wise and other costs. But the money would be better put into a college fund or other fund for when they are older.
With or without a baby, it’s important for couples to TALK about finances and agree on a budget, especially if they aren’t rich – and let’s face it, most of us aren’t. Finances are a huge issue for some couples and it’s important you guys be able to work on this before you walk down the aisle. Don’t underestimate how much this issue can put stress on a r’ship. Alot of good r’ships are ruined because 1 is a spender and 1 is a saver. There has to be compromise and discussion and self-control!
Remind your fiance that a baby doesn’t CARE what he or she has on! And babys grow so fast, it’s really just STUPID to be buying him or her clothing all the time that is expensive. They will literally grow out if it within 2 weeks. I know it seems harmless to her because baby clothes SEEM inexpensive compared to women’s clothes. But just b/c they are cheaper doesn’t mean you need to go crazy. Believe me, you’ll need all the money you can get when the baby grows into adolescence and the clothes AREN’T so cheap anymore!!
I went all out on my son too. I think that if you can afford it and have the extra money then you should go ahead and spoil the baby but if you’re just making ends meat then it’s kinda rediculous to be spending mortgage money when you don’t need to. It’s fun to shop, especially for babies. I would much rather by baby clothes than clothes for myself.
What on earth is she spending that much money on if you already have all the baby equipment needed? I don’t think you need to put the baby on a budget but it sounds like your wife needs one! Babies don’t need tons of “stuff”. Money would be better spent in a college fund. Tell your wife to calm down, she’ll have PLENTY of opportunities to spend money on your child as she grows and her toys get more expensive!
You don’t put the baby on a budget, you put its MOTHER on a budget. At 1 month of age, the baby neither knows or cares about toys, trinkets, gizmos, and doo-dads.
You should set the mother down and tell her that 95% of all the crap she has bought, thus far, will end up in a yard sale with the price tags still on it. Enough already!
I think she needs to understand that babies grow so fast and how much are you really going to use the material things. I dont think your baby needs a budget, but her. She needs to learn to control the urges to buy everything for the baby. (this does not include the necessities for her.) Let her only spend a few hundred dollars. Like I said babies grow so fast and she probably wont even use half the things she is buying.
It’s silly for your fiancee to be spending a lot on clothes right now, since your baby will grow out of them quickly. You should not skimp on food or diapers, but there’s at this age you don’t have to worry about lots of toys or anything. You should talk with your fiancee and see if she could cut back on the unnecessary spending. Babies cost a lot, no matter what. You don’t need to add more to that.
Wow… that is alot. If you have all the necessities then you should give her about a $50 weekly allowance aside from diapers and formula… still that is alot that she can spend. If she buys clothes and stuff it is just a waste. The baby will only be that small for a very short period of time. My daughter was in her newborn stuff for about 2 months and then she had a growth spurt and left many outfits with tags. You wife need to understand that the baby just needs love and attention… not shiny pretty things.