baby

Saving Money in the New Year on Clothes!

Abby H.2 Comments
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The tote of clothes to grow into!

I’ve written about clothing swaps before, but I wanted to share some additional resources and tips.

Last night I was pulling out the 24 month clothes for Bitty Bird, and making a pile of 18 month clothes that she had outgrown and I thought about how there were probably other moms (and dads) doing the same thing!

I try to keep clothing in the next size up for Bitty, but Lil’ Man hasn’t bee growing very much, just wearing his clothes out, so I only have a few outfits in the next size up for him. Everything lives in a tote in her bedroom. But don’t worry, she can’t get into it. It’s part of her changing table set up.

We rely on clothing swaps and hand-me-downs for the bulk of our kids clothes. There is no reason that you have to spend thousands of dollars on dressing your kids!

Here are some tips to how we save big on kids clothes:

Trade with friends!

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The Pile of outgrown clothes!

We lucked out that a lot of our friends had girls about a year before Bitty was born. We received a bunch of hand me downs prior to her birth, and we continue to as well. This is great because I turn around and share them with friends who have kids after Bitty has grown out of them!

Handing down clothes or trading with friends is a great way to keep costs down and keep unwanted/outgrown clothes out of landfills!

Some of our favorite outfits have been hand me downs!

Check Craigslist Free Section! 

I have found tons of clothes (not just for the kids) in the free section of Craiglist. People move, or don’t have time to sell or donate clothing they no longer want. Instead they post on Craigslist! I’ve scored Jack and Janie, Gymboree, and even Nordstrom brand kids clothes all for free!

And in a similar vein:

Check out Clothing Swaps! 

Here are a few in Eastern San Diego County:

  • Finders Keepers Dates change. Usually quarterly in La Mesa
  • Skyline Church Clothing Plus Swap Takes place twice a year.
  • Pathways Church Clothing Swap Takes place once a year.
  • Foothills Church Shop and Swap Once or twice a year
  • Miss Charity’s Closet Monthly swap at Sonrise Church 8805 N. Magnolia Ave Santee, CA 92071 (2nd Saturday of each month)

And these two, while not specifically clothing swaps, do have clothing available for those in need

  • The Closet on 54th: Open 3 times a month on a Tuesday, Thursday or Friday 11:00am to 2:00pm. Located at Calvary Lutheran Church, 3060 54th Street, San Diego, CA 92105. Men, womens, and childrens clothing.
  • Naomi’s Closet: at Santee United Methodist Church 8964 N. Magnolia St. Santee, CA 92071 Wednesdays 10 AM – 12 PM and every 1st & 3rd Saturday, 9 AM – 1 PM (ladies clothing only, men are not permitted)
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My Helper, making soup for her babies.

Last night after separating and pulling out all of the outgrown clothes, I made two stacks. One was clothes to pass along to friends, and the second was clothes that were in play condition. A little wear, some staining, but still in ok shape (good for playing outside).

The play clothes I posted on our local Buy Nothing Group on Facebook.

I’m really looking forward to some clothing swaps this year! I have a bunch of clothes in my closet that I want to swap out!

Fun in Nature with Baby Wearing!

Abby H.

 

Recently, I was given the opportunity to try out a new baby carrier. I love baby wearing- It’s a great way to stay close to your little one while being active.

We hike, play, and have adventures all while babywearing. I am able to take Lil’ Man out on hikes to places that aren’t quite good for unsteady toddler feet. We can hike Cowles mountain, explore Old Mission Dam, and even pop out to the tide pools!

Screen Shot 2016-12-28 at 8.44.18 AM.pngYou can check out the carrier on Amazon here. 

It’s got a ton of pockets, which is great for stashing keys and snacks.

The kiddo rides pretty high because of a plastic saddle type insert.

Bitty Bird totally loved being up high and snuggled onto my shoulder and fell asleep.

You can also wear this as a backpack to back carry, which I love for long distance wearing, like when we go for hikes.

Pros:

  • It’s cotton, and machine washable.
  • It’s easy to put on and take off by yourself.
  • Tons of pockets

Cons:

  • Because it was made overseas, the waist strap is kinda small. If you wear over a size 20 US ladies dress size or a mens pant size 44, the waist band will not fit you.
  • (this may not be a con for some people) The child rides really high, so they are in your face.

If you like to try out this carrier, I am happy to offer a coupon code! 20% off coupon code UPWX8RBS.  This deal expires on 12/31/16.

 

Review: The Minbie Bottle

Abby H.

IMG_1506Recently, I was lucky enough to try out the Minbie Bottle. Ok, well, I didn’t try it, but Birdy here did.

I told ya’ll here that I have IGT, and that means we supplement with formula and donor milk, because my body simply doesn’t make enough milk.

Minbie is a high quality soft silicone baby’s bottle teat with revolutionized design-functionality that nurtures a newborn’s instinctive breastfeeding technique. Bird took to the bottle right away. The nipple is soft and looks most like a mother’s nipple. It makes it easier for her to transition between me and the bottle.

The product is the result of 10 years R&D by and Australian Mom, who was frustrated with the inadequacies of the functionality of generic bottle teat on the market when she had children, with the bottles taking over breastfeeding rather then supporting a baby’s ability to breastfeed well.

Minbie nurtures a newborn’s ability to breastfeed by allowing newborns to bottle-feed with the instinctive feeding technique that they are born with.
Minbie supports a newborn’s digestion by helping to release natural digestive enzymes. This supports a baby’s sleep too.
Minbie matches breast and bottle feeding techniques.

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One passed out panda!

Want more info about Minbie? Here is what some Aussy mums have been saying about the product recently. Thanks to Minbie for hooking us up with this great bottle. I was not compensated financially for this review, however, I did receive a free bottle and an extra nipple to facilitate this review. All opinions are my own.