What Products To Stockpile For Maternity Leave
YOUR BEST DEFENSE AS A NEW PARENT IS TO BE PREPARED
Deciding what products to stockpile for your maternity leave and how much is no easy task.
It’s no secret that when you transition to maternity leave you will take a big hit to your regular monthly income.
What can make it even harder is that the adorable bundle of joy you just brought into the world additionally has a not so cute impact on your bank account.
So, how do you cope? Plan ahead!
They say hindsight is 20/20 and I fully believe it! This list is based on my own personal experience of what I wish I had stockpiled for our munchkin’s arrival.
The best items to stockpile are the ones that will help counteract the new expenses being introduced to your monthly budget while you still have a regular income, and simply to help you still live life with as little adjustment as possible!
Stockpile Diapers
If you are planning on using disposable diapers, try to have at least your first 3 months already on hand by the time baby arrives.
If you plan far enough ahead, you are given the luxury of waiting for clearance sales and coupons to combine with them to get your diapers at rock bottom prices.
A good rule of thumb is try to aim for $0.08-$0.10 per diaper or less. This will go up as the diapers increase in size as there will be fewer units per pack.
When calculating how many diapers you will need, keep in mind that for the first few months of your child’s life they will go through 10-12 diapers a day.
What we did was wait for a sale and use our Shoppers Optimum rewards card and PC Elite MasterCard to earn points we could cash in for even more products to stockpile.
Related: Cloth Diapers vs. Disposable Diapers
So you can do the math depending on the size of diaper packs you purchase when you have enough for 3 months.
If you have decided to go the cloth diaper route make sure you have lots or your savings will go out the window in laundry expenses.
Stockpile Laundry Detergent
Since your laundry loads will likely triple in size and frequency you will want to have lots of laundry detergent on hand. This means you will need to source the lowest out-of-pocket price possible.
By doing this ahead of time and pairing sales with coupons or coupon apps when available you can stockpile and save at the same time. If you wait for the right sale and collect coupons, you should be able to get your laundry detergent for $1.99 a jug or less.
Stockpile Personal Care Items
Once your baby arrives, it will be very rare that you get a chance to treat yourself or even think to.
By stockpiling products such as your favorite health and beauty products you don’t need to feel as though you are going without.
What I did was wait for sales and paired them with any savings coupons or store promos to get the best deals. I managed to stockpile razors, shampoo, conditioner, face products, hand-cream, body cream and my favourite make-up.
Related: How we earned 4 million PC Optimum Points
Plus, you don’t need to spend money you don’t have to treat yourself.
It’s important not to forget about time for yourself when you become a parent.
Stockpile Food
There are many foods that can be stockpiled and keep for long periods of time such as pasta, dry beans, canned foods and many condiments.
You don’t want to feel like you are sacrificing normal life by having to eat spaghetti every night because it’s an easy meal to prepare.
Start now by making a list of all your favourite foods that can be stockpiled and start watching for sales.
You will want to make sure you are getting the nutrition you need whether you are nursing or not becuase you will need all the energy you can get.
My best suggestion for stockpiling food for your maternity leave is to do enough freezer cooking to last 6-8 weeks, so you can eat good healthy homemade meals once baby arrives, and all you need to do is pop it in the oven.
Related: Stockpiling For Saving Money In The Budget
Stockpiling Fruits & Vegetables
Freezing sliced fruits and veggies is great for making quick smoothies and to add into your favourite meals. Besides, frozen vegetables are flash frozen at peak freshness so you don’t get them picked in advance like fresh produce.
Healthy produce in your meals will not only provide much-needed vitamins and nutrients to a nursing mom and baby but will give you the energy you need to get through your day on little sleep.
Trust me, you don’t get much sleep the first two years.
Stockpiling Paper Goods
Stockpiling necessities like toilet paper and paper towels is always a good idea.
They wont expire, you know they will be needed, and they are items that will affect your routine if you run out unexpectedly.
I hope this preparation not only helps ease the financial stress a new addition can bring to your life, but also clears some of the mental stress of worrying about the “stuff”, so you can spend your time enjoying your new little bundle instead.
Discussion: What other products can we add to help parents stockpile for maternity leave?
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Nappies of all sizes I’d defiantly recommend!!!
I bet, and they don’t come cheap at all!!
STOCK PILE PADS FOR MOMMY! This is something no one prepared me for the first time around and you go through sooo many of them; the last thing you’re going to feel like doing in those first couple of weeks is going to the store.
This is a great list! We stockpiled all of these items plus formula. We had a whole year’s worth of formula when we had our second child:) It was a little ridiculous!
I wish I had stockpiled more frozen meals. I think I lived on cereal the first year of my daughter’s life and I have no idea what my husband ate!
Quick smoothies! Great tip. Where was this post when my kids were young?
these tips are awesome!
thanks for doing this story 🙂
My daughter had a few of those things. She had limited freezer space and still does. Luckily she had diapers given her so she was good to some degree. Plus she would come for a visit with the baby and things would disappear from my pantry……lol!!!!!!!
I’m glad to see that diapers are #1 on your list! I used to work at Babies R Us, and seriously, it was the thing that people just never purchased enough of – especially for newborns. I would also suggest making meals and freezing them, like casseroles. You don’t want to be eating poorly while busy taking care of the baby.
Some great tips! Thanks! I stockpiled a lot of stuff when I was prego but what I really wish I had done was the freezer meals. My little guy was 7 weeks premature and we were constantly back and forth to the hospital NICU (for just over a month). We ended up having a lot of take out but if I had freezer meals we would have ate much healthier and cheaper! I would just worry about being too tired later in my pregnancy to make all those meals! lol I also stockpiled wipes before hand and we had a “diaper party” so there were lots of diapers on hand 🙂
I agree – great idea for a post … and fresh!!! 🙂 – the first thing I was thinking was nappies (diapers) too
Great post! After having three little ones ourselves, we’ve come somewhat of pros at this very things. I can not emphasize the stock piling of food before hand. My wife and I did this with each one. We would make the freezer meals in a throw away casserole dish and then freeze it. When it came time to use it we could just pull it out and throw it in the oven. The single dish would provide dinner and at least several lunches as well. It makes it so much easier and less stressful. Another thing we did was save as much money as we possibly could. You can’t earn any income while on ST leave in the States, so we had to make up for the loss in wages.
The freezer meals was one of our major hindsight “ah-ha” moments for sure! After going through it without the additional planning and a husband who was working 12-14 hours a day at the time, I dont know how we survived! LOL:)
What a great idea for a post-loved it!
It’s a great post for those who are doing research on having a baby. I enjoyed it. Mr.CBB
I’m totally impressed you can get your diapers for 8-10 cents. I feel great when I get pampers for 12 cents a piece. I’ll be checking out 50 freezer meals in one day as I’m just learning the art of freezer cooking now!
Glad you enjoyed it:)
Those are some pretty good points 🙂 I’ll have to check out the freezer meals, because I was resigned to eating a frozen pizza I really didn’t want last night. Unexpected OT the past few weeks has really screwed up my eating.
The freezer meals are great for more than just having a baby so yes check it out. Mr.CBB
Great post….i definetly made sure to stock up on diapers…but only size two or above as my little guy was in those within a month…i also made sure to have tons of laundry soap, paper goods, cleaning supplies and personal care. I wish I had prepared frozen meals for 6-8 weeks or stock piled on food as i was bed ridden for almost six weeks after the baby and poor hubby who has no idea how to cook had to attempt to cook for me and our four year old while taking care of me and baby…..:)
You know the more I think about it and what I saw my sister in law go through I would say the frozen meals would be a must. Mom and Dad were exhausted and the last thing you want it to cook or spend money on eating out. Thanks for your comment Joanne!! Mr.CBB
Thanks for having me as a guest on your site! I truly enjoy working with you, and now I have it writing everything I want to stockpile when munchkin#2 is on the way! LOL:)
Thanks my dear it was a pleasure as always. That’s going to be some big news.. what would be even bigger on our end is if we had a child.. good lord the relatives would sing the praise! Thanks for the list I’m learning lots about babies, maternity and paternity leave and so on!! Cheers Mr.CBB