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D.C. Area Babies
moms who use disposable diapers... question
how much would you say you spend a month on diapers? did that amount decrease the older the child got? at what point?
i'm trying to redo our budget based on one income so I have a better idea of how things will look post birth without me working. i figure that is one of the biggest baby expenses (along with formula if BFing doesn't work out) for the first year that i have no idea how much it will cost....
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Re: moms who use disposable diapers... question
I order a mega case of Pampers about once a month from diapers.com. The biggest cases run approx. $45 (varies by size) and I usually throw one other thing into my order to get free (overnight) shipping. The biggest cases have 200-250 diapers depending on the diaper size. I want to say we changed diapers more frequently when DD was smaller, but you get more per case, so I don't think I was really ordering more frequently in the beginning.
There are cheaper ways to go - I think Target diapers are about 30% less expensive. I ended up not using them just because there's no graphic to distinguish front from back and it took more brain cells than I had at times to figure out which was the front when I went to change diapers. (Pathetic, I know.) But they work just fine otherwise.
We get our diapers at Costco. I obv. don't know how things will change in the figure, but it looks like a big Costco box will last us about 3.5 wks or so. I think it was around $25? Or maybe 20? It was Costco brand. A ginormous box of wipes that will probably last us 4 months was about the same price.
Also, I got our Enfamil formula at Costco for $33 (retail would have been about double that) & it will last about 3 wks too.
If you don't already, I would consider a Costco membership. You can always double check at online retailers (I've heard diapers.com can have good prices). I would not rely on grocery store/target/walmart/etc. for routine purchases of formula and/or diapers.
I started out using Pampers, but switched to Target diapers around 4 months. We love them, and they are significantly cheaper. Yesterday I got 140 diapers for $19.99, that was a bigger pack than usual, it's usually 96 for 13.99. We did definitely use more diapers when he was younger. I'd say now we use 8 a day or so, down from 12 or so the first 2 - 3 months? (oh, it's all so fuzzy now!). If you can find generic diapers that you like and that work for your lo it's definitely the way to go!
I also use diapers.com and would echo the $49 every month or every 3 weeks, which definitely decreases once the child hits the year mark.
The other expense I did not figure in was how expensive BFing was (for me, at least). I am a working mom, so the pump, pump supplies, pump cleaning supplies, pumping bra, freezer bags, etc. all added up fast. Some of those are one time purchases, but many aren't. I also found that I had to pay a lot of money for lactation consultants early on in order to be able to BF and had to rent a pump for a while when mine failed and had to be sent back in. I also had a lot of clogged ducts which led to a lot of visits. Going to formula partly at 7 months and fully at 10 months didn't change our expenses all that much. However, if you have a kid who is sensitive to formula, then you have to buy the $$ stuff. So, therefore, I would figure feeding into the budget from early on to the tune of about $50-$100 a month, regardless of BF/FF. I'd be interested to hear what others thought of this, though.
Finally, we had some guilt spending on our cats (toys and good treats) to make up for bringing home this interloper. Since I see you already have furry babies, this might apply to you too. Good luck!
Initially, yes. There were a lot of costs involved in BF. Once you add up the pump, the LC, the new wardrobe (practically, nursing tanks, bras, etc.) that first month it was probably way more expensive to nurse than ff. After that, the only real on going expense we've had are the freezer bags ($8 a month, maybe?). But, for budgeting purposes I think emack makes a great point. BFing isn't cheap.
BTW, do you all know about Amazon's subscribe and save programs? You get something like a 15% discount and free shipping on a lot of commonly used items. I used it for freezer bags but I know they do diapers also.
I figure $50 a month for diapers and wipes per month, per kid. Diapers at BJ's are about $40 for the big case and we buy approx. one a month. Wipes are $20 - $25 a case and they last 2-3 months.
PP is right about number of diapers - as kiddo gets older, they need fewer diapers a day... but as you buy the bigger diapers, there are fewer in the case... it turns out you buy about the same # of cases of diapers, so don't go too crazy trying to figure out the math there.
i'm still at the beginning here, so i'm guessing somewhere in the $20-40 a month range. altho, i'm not sure how this will change as DD gets older.
i'm a big fan of Amazon's subscription service for ordering diapers. shipping is free, and the diapers are 30 percent off right now, for any brand you like. i've found its got the best deal on Pampers and 7th Generation diapers. better than Target or BJ.s.