Sticker Shock!

So today I did some online shopping for a few big items.

Arms Reach Co-Sleeper and 2 extra sheets -- $216

2x Chicco Keyfit 30 carseats -- $344

Ameda Purely Yours Breast Pump Ultra set -- $263


I am exhausted and BROKE!!! For anyone who is buying the Arms Reach, I found the best price at babyearth.com. It was only $169 there as opposed to $189 on other sites and they offered free shipping.

 

Geez...thanks A LOT for the reminder :shok:

 

It can seem a little overwhelming huh!

Remember though, you can always sell the items later on & make quite a bit of the money back :good:

My girls just turned 18 months old & I sold almost EVERYTHING (big items) at a community garage sale a few weeks ago & made $620.00!!

Keep all the instruction booklets together somewhere as it will be awesome for resale at a garage sale or craigslist

 

I feel ya!! I hate to break it to you, but it doesn't get any better the older they get! :shok: Good Luck Bargain hunting! I hope you are able to find some killer deals!

One of my favorite twin Comments is when people say, "Two for the Price of One".....No People, it's Two for the price of Two at the same time! Hand me downs aren't exactly an option when you have twins!

 

Such great advice! Thanks mama!!

 

Its so true. I had told my husband over the phone how much I spent. When he got home he wanted to see ALL the things I bought and I only had 3 things to show him!!! :blink:

I agree regarding the hand me downs, plus pregnant women seem to hunt in packs!! It seems like every woman I know is either pregnant or has just had a baby, so they are all using their stuff anyway. Grrrrrrr!!

 

try picking up stuff on craigslist in your area. I got quite a bit of good deals.

 

Good tip for saving the instruction booklets.

Ha...yes...exactly...2 for the price of 2...

 

with my first daughter I wanted everything to be brand new. This time around since I have 1/2 the stuff already I have been picking up the rest on Craigs list.

Of what you got, I got as well off CL:
Arms Reach Co-Sleeper and 1 extra sheets -- $75

1x Graco Safe Seat carseat (I already have one) -- $40 (retails at around $150)

Yesterday was the best. I bought a valco twin tri-mode which retails for $700 from the toystore as the 'floor model' for $500!!

Depending on how you feel about 2nd hand stuff, I would consider CL or ebay etc. for second hand stuff. I know I am saving a ton of money this way. However, I also remember wanting all new things for my baby and one consolation is there will always be people there (like me!) to pick up your stuff 2nd hand so you could easily re-sell your co-sleeper for $125 +/- as that is the price I have seen it for. then you get it brand new for a period of time and can salvage part of your investment when you are done. Hopefully that can help ease the sticker shock!

 

thankfully, we have a lot of stuff left over from izzy...we kept it because we knew that we were going to have another, we just didn't plan on two! they'll be sharing a crib...i picked up a 2nd moses basket on clearence at target...we have one pack n play, and another at my sil's if we need it...when we found out it was twins, baby depot had a car seat (graco snug ride) on sale that week, and it went with (color wise, same model too so the bases are interchangeable) our other one, that doesn't expire until the end of next year, so i just picked up that...i've had to pick up new tiny baby clothes...i've never used newborn size before, all of my kids have just been TOO big for them (my smallest was 7 pounds 4 oz and 21 1/2 inches long) so i didn't get much stuff in that size...at about 6-9 months we have stuff left over from izzy, and we have a smattering of things left over from jayden until size 4 when we started keeping everything...thankfully with having boy/girl twins, i don't need to stretch what clothed one boy in to clothing two boys..i go to consignment shops a lot...a few weeks ago, i picked up a boppy, and 2 bouncy seats for $40...my sil picked us up a 2nd high chair at their community yard sale (she knew what i was looking for) for $7...one similar to it that i was looking at brand new was $60...check in your area for consignment and resale shops, that will REALLY help with keeping the costs manageable...

 

I'm a bargain hunter and pick up a lot of stuff on ebay, CL, and garage sales. I save SO much money that way!

 

Yeah, it is seriously expensive to have babies, especially two at a time and I was amazed at how quickly the tally rises. In the interest of full disclosure though, I'm not a second hand shopper. Absolutely nothing wrong with it, but I just dont do it. I love to receive second hand clothes and things from friends and family but I am just one of those people who is wary about purchasing items second hand. I'm especially not into buying things second hand for a baby or anything that has moving parts, warranty items, etc. I'm just too chicken. If I buy it new then at least I know I have recourse if there's some sort of problem (I know about recalls, etc.), which you dont get when you buy second hand. I have so many friends who LOVE it and I'm always amazed at the things they pick up but I think its one of those things -- you're either a second hand shopper or you're not. Having said that though, I tend to take really good care of my things so I usually get good value for money because everything lasts me a lifetime.

I also never actually manage to sell anything. Every time I say that I'm going to sell something and get some of my money back, someone pops up who needs whatever it is and I end up giving it away. These are our first and probably not our last babies so we'll use all this stuff for subsequent kids and then I will likely pass things on to family members. I'm going to say that I'll sell it but I know I'm ever the sucker and when confronted with someone who has a real need then I end up caving in. After this experience though, I may get a little bit tougher!!

 

I can agree with you on that. My friends have been sending me A LOT of clothes. Those I do not mind getting second-hand. I also like consignment shops, because they have to be clean, free of stains, etc.

But when it comes to other things like (2) cribs, stroller, (2) car seats, play toys, etc. I will be buying those Brand New. Of course that is because right now I can afford to. My tune might be different if I was a little more strapped for cash, but while I do LOVE bargins and don't just throw my money away, if I can purchase those new...I will

 

I am planning for my DW to do a HUGE shopping trip to Babies R Us over Labor Day when my parents come visit her. I'm gonna stack every coupon I can and see how big of a discount I can get

 

Check out resale shops. There are three big chains- Once Upon a Child, Children's Orchard, and Kid to Kid. They have gently used gear and clothing. I always liked going there to shop for my two year old- and now with three children "The Orchard"is my favorite place to go.

I'm a big Gymboree fan, and they always have tons of Gymbo there in perfect condition.