Alex and I are avid Dave Ramsey fans, and have been following his 7 step plan to becoming debt free for the past 2 years. When we found out we were going to have a baby we knew we needed to prepare financially. Alex felt this overwhelming pressure to provide for his family, and I had to reassure him that everything would be fine. Here are the steps we took before Turner's arrival.
1. Immediately paused Baby Step 2, which was paying off our smallest debt
2. Saved all extra money in a savings account that would only be used for a baby emergency, ex. complications with Turner's birth.
3. We cash flowed Turner's birth and all of my midwife appointments so our savings account didn't take a dent.
4. We waited till after our baby showers to buy registry items that we didn't receive. We made one big trip to Babies R Us with our gift cards, and payed the difference with our baby savings account.
5. Thankfully, Turner was a healthy baby, and I had no complications during birth so we didn't need to use any of the baby savings account. It was a blessing to have saved for those 9 months, because we both had no idea that I would be quitting my job. Thankfully, we have that money as a cushion when our bank account gets super low.
It was tough not putting any money towards our debt for 9 months, but it was a great feeling knowing that if something happened along the way we would be financially prepared. Once I go back to work our baby savings account will be put straight towards our debt.
How did you save for baby?
1. Immediately paused Baby Step 2, which was paying off our smallest debt
2. Saved all extra money in a savings account that would only be used for a baby emergency, ex. complications with Turner's birth.
3. We cash flowed Turner's birth and all of my midwife appointments so our savings account didn't take a dent.
4. We waited till after our baby showers to buy registry items that we didn't receive. We made one big trip to Babies R Us with our gift cards, and payed the difference with our baby savings account.
5. Thankfully, Turner was a healthy baby, and I had no complications during birth so we didn't need to use any of the baby savings account. It was a blessing to have saved for those 9 months, because we both had no idea that I would be quitting my job. Thankfully, we have that money as a cushion when our bank account gets super low.
It was tough not putting any money towards our debt for 9 months, but it was a great feeling knowing that if something happened along the way we would be financially prepared. Once I go back to work our baby savings account will be put straight towards our debt.
How did you save for baby?
2 comments:
We have not had children yet, but I think this is such a smart reasonable way to think about saving for a baby. So many of us have debt concerns, that I love your approach to this and advice for saving!
-Mia
www.msmiamaree.com
Thanks Mia, I really appreciate the comment!
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