As a new or expectant parent you always hear about how expensive babies are. You know with all the new baby stuff, the diapers, the college funds etc., it can seem overwhelming.

However, there are ways to keep baby costs down and I’m here to tell you that there are certain areas of your life where having a baby can save you money!

Enjoy this list of interesting and unexpected ways that having a baby can save you money!

Staying In

A child is a 24/7 job. Even once they go to bed a responsible adult needs to be present in the house… you know, in case the baby wakes up!!

Anyone with kids knows that it’s not easy to just head out for a night on the town. Going out of the house requires a lot of coordination and planning.

Every parent is different but for me and my husband we honestly only went out on 3 or 4 date nights in the first years of our sons life.

Again, I stress, everyone is different.

Many of the couples we met in our baby class made a point of going out every week (one couple had their parents living with them and the other had family close by).

We on the other hand stayed in…a lot. Way more than I expected and, the silver lining, we saved a ton of money by not going out.

Good for our wallets but not so much for our social life.

Shopping

I’ve never been a big shopper but I generally try to keep my wardrobe up to date and I have to look presentable and professional for work.

Being pregnant and staying at home for a year with my son resulted in an unplanned partial clothing ban.

First, maternity clothes are f-ing expensive. Who wants to spend tons of money buying clothes that will only fit for a short period of time?

Not me.

For my two boys I only had three pairs of maternity pants (one purchased by my mother), six maternity shirts (two purchased by my mother) and one maternity sweater.

I did a lot of laundry each week but this was really all I needed.

Granted much of my pre-maternity closet was made up of flowy shirts and wrap dresses, which were wearable until the last few months of my pregnancy.

After having children I spent the majority of my time at home in spit up stained yoga pants or spit up stained pajamas.

If you have kids you already know, and if you’re planning to have children then you will learn, that you’re largely covered in spit up, pee, poop and all other bodily fluids for the first year of your child’s life.

So, I had little desire to spend a ton of money on clothes that were going to get puked on.

And, if you refer back to point one “Staying In,” I wasn’t really going anywhere….why did I need nice, new clothes?

Personal Hygiene

As I list these items I am beginning to realize that I’m not painting a very flattering picture of myself. This next point isn’t going to help my case.

When you have children your personal hygiene can fall to the wayside, at least for the first few months.

When you’re consumed with an infant that requires 24/7 attention you don’t always make showering a priority.

Add in a toddler and showering becomes a luxury, not a necessity.

Everything else becomes more important, you know, caring for a baby, changing them, feeding them, burping them….and then you have to try to find a minute to go pee or chug some cold coffee.

As a result, you might save a few bucks on things like shampoo, conditioner, soap, razors etc.

Hey, the serious lack of showering may even results in some savings on your water bill!

Haha, I joke….the 15 loads of laundry you have to do each day will help to even things out!

Pampering

If you enjoyed the luxuries of a regular massage, spa day, blow out, hair cut and colour or mani/pedi before you had kids, well put this money back in your pocket!

Again, I didn’t indulge in a lot of these things prior to having children but after having my boys any form of pampering has become non-existant.

My husband is a professional ski coach and spends a large amount of time overseas at various races. So, unless I want to pack up an infant and toddler and bring them to the hair salon I don’t have a ton of opportunities to get out and pamper myself!

Do I look great on a regular basis?

Nope!

In fact, sometimes I think of what the 26 year old me would think if she saw the 34 year old version of me walking down the street and I know she would cringe.

I truly can’t believe how ugly I look when I leave the house some days and the really scary part, I just don’t care!

Socks, sandals and a dirty top knot with some yoga pants a spit up stained shirt, one that gives me quick access to a boob so I can feed a baby on demand,…that’s my mom uniform!

Alcohol

Don’t get me wrong, I still love me a glass of wine or champagne, but I don’t drink like I used to.

First, for any responsible parent, pregnancy equals no drinky.

Then, once you have the baby there’s breastfeeding.

And, unless you’re pumping you really can’t indulge much for the course of your breastfeeding journey.

In addition, a hangover just isn’t worth it and, at this time, it only take me two glasses of wine to wake up with a booming headache.

Not to mention I already feel like I have a hangover on a daily basis.

Only, this hangover is a result of chronic fatigue, not a fun night of overindulgence.

This isn’t to say that we are saving a TON of money on booze.

We weren’t exactly binge drinking before we decided to be parents. But, a few nice bottles of wine and champagne here and there don’t take long to add up.

So, there you have it.

A list of unexpected ways that having a baby can actually save you money.

I don’t know if this list will make you happy or make you want to cry.

I may have painted a bleak picture of parenthood. One in which you will be a dirty hermit with split ends, hairy legs and no social life.

Parenthood really is a dream!

Goodluck and enjoy!

I want to hear from you.

Have you found any ways that having a baby has helped to save you money?

All pictures from unsplash