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Save Money on Baby Food & Supplies Our family has been blessed with four children so as you can imagine, we've found many ways to save money over the years! Here's a few ideas that might help you save some money too... Tip # 1 - Nursing your baby (if you're able to), instead of using formula will help you save a fortune during the first year, not to mention the health benefits for you and the baby. It's also a wonderful bonding experience! Tip # 2 - If you’re using formula and are living on a low income, we have a program here in the U.S. called WIC (Women Infants and Children) that’s available through the health department. Call your local office and set up an appointment to see if you qualify, it will be well worth the time and effort if you do! Tip # 3 - If you're bottle feeding your baby there are expensive bottles and there are cheap bottles. When our babies reached the age of being able to drink juice (around 6 months) and regular milk (around 12 months), we always bought the cheaper ones and they worked just fine. You can usually find them at the discount stores, for .50 cents each, and that’s a lot better than paying over $2.00 for the fancier brands! Tip # 4 - If you don’t qualify for the WIC program, be sure to use coupons whenever you can! You can even contact the manufacturers directly by the 800 numbers listed on the package and ask them to mail you coupons if they're available. Tip # 5 - In general, pre-made formulas are much more expensive than the powder mixes, unless they're on a really great sale. And yes, you can save money by stocking up on sale items, just be careful to note the expiration dates--especially on formula! Tip # 6 - We used cloth diapers and homemade diaper wipes with our first child to save as much money as possible, they're not as difficult to use as you might think! See my previous column "Save a Bundle Using Cloth Diapers and Homemade Diaper Wipes." Tip # 7 - When purchasing over the counter medicines for your baby you'll usually save a good bit by getting them at the discount stores such as Wal-mart. Grocery store prices on this aisle are usually pretty high. Tip # 8 - Check with your doctor to see if store brand medicines are acceptable substitutes. This will also help you save a lot, especially over the next 18 years! * * * Readers' Tips... Contact Michelle to Submit a Tip "I have a 4 month old baby so we go through a lot of diapers and will continue to do so for quite a while. We received all the premium brand diapers as gifts but when those ran out I started shopping for cheaper brands. I've found that the store brand of our local discount chain store are actually better fitting diapers for my daughter than even the supreme version of the famous brands. Every babies tushie is different so you may have to do some shopping to find what works best for your baby, but I'm saving an average of $4 a package so it's definitely worth the effort!" - Jennifer M "I used the store brand of baby formula that was comparable to Enfamil with my daughter. I compared the ingredients and nutrition and found there was no difference except in the price. I saved about $7 per can of powdered formula." - Tonya W. Editor's Note: Thank you Jennifer and Tonya! Whenever we needed disposable diapers or formula for our babies we also used the store brands and found them to be very helpful. More people should give them a try! "A great money-saving tip is to buy baby products from a grocery store that gives discounts for "points". At Kroger, I save $10 for every 200 points I accumulate. National brand items accumulate 1 point per dollar while Kroger and FMV brand items accumulate 2 points per dollar. I buy all my baby products at Kroger and my WIC there too (yes, that $100 worth of formula counts, too) I usually save about $10 every two months this way. Winn-Dixie also has a system like Kroger." - Alicia Hart of Georgia "Ask your pediatrician if they have any formula samples, especially if your baby requires a special formula. Drug reps give them to them and many times they do not give them out. My pediatrician had a closet full, including a special formula that my cousin had to use for her baby. He gave me all of it! It never hurts to ask." Laura W. "I have found that making my own baby food has been VERY economical for my husband and I. We bought an expensive name brand of baby food for a while, and we saved all of the little jars and plastic containers from the food, and we decided to make our own. Apples were super easy, a bag of apples you can find on sale for 2-4 dollars, and you just peel them, core them and cook them in a little water until tender, and puree them to desired consistency! Then put them into the little containers and put them in the freezer! My son loves carrots this way too. Just about any fruit or veggie can be done this way. :)" - D.T. "Don't buy jars of baby food. Most of the foods you already eat can be pureed with a blender or food processor and frozen in ice cube trays or muffin tins and put into labeled plastic bags. Not only is it cheaper, but you control what goes into the food so you can make it more nutritious. Your baby also learns to eat the things your family is already eating, and gets a wider variety of foods that what's in the baby food isle. I often puree or chop leftovers and freeze them this way for when my son can't eat what I'm eating (like if I'm eating a raw salad etc.)" - Holly N.
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