A year ago, some people had asked me what are the best personal finance tips for new moms.
I was at a loss to answer that because I was just finding it out myself.
From experiencing postpartum hormones to a rush of thoughts about the future, new moms face hurdles of worries and sleepless nights. Throw in a crying baby and you’ll have a recipe for disorientation and chaos.
But like many things in life, there is light at the end of the tunnel!
After some trials and errors, I have gathered here 7 best personal finance tips for new moms (and experienced moms who are still figuring it out).
Even though not all of these tips will be applicable to you, hopefully you’ll feel inspired to put at least one to good use.
This post may contain affiliate links, which means I may receive a commission, at no extra cost to you, if you make a purchase through a link. Please see my full disclosure for further information.
Best Personal Finance Tips for Moms
I’m a firm believer that personal finance should be imbedded into our daily lives. This does not mean that it should take over our lives, rather, it should make our lives easier, healthier and hopefully, happier.
As a result of this philosophy, I have always put finances in auto pilot mode. In doing so, I effectively divert my attention from focusing on money to focusing on long-term positive effects.
Therefore, the following tips will center on actions that would yield positive results beyond just the dollar sign.
While these actions may require some short-term sacrifices, it could produce lasting results that could improve our overall finances.
And since personal finance is personal, you would have to be the judge for which is more suitable for your situation.
1. Make infant nutrition a priority
Healthcare is expensive. Period!
According to UNICEF, the first 1000 days from conception to turning 2 years old is “a unique period of opportunity when the foundations of optimum health, growth, and neurodevelopment across the lifespan are established.”
It goes on to point out that this period is “characterized by rapid rates of neuronal proliferation (cell numbers), growth and differentiation (complexity), myelination, and synaptogenesis (connectivity).”
I first found out about the 1000-day initiative during my MBA when I partnered with an infant nutrition company on a research project.
Here, I learned that breastfeeding and homemade baby food are the most optimal ways to provide the best nutrition for a baby.
This is especially true when considering the baby brain develops rapidly during the first 2 years of age.
Equipped with this information, I vowed to try to breastfeed (despite how hard it was for me) and make homemade food as much as possible.
Certainly neither of these two tasks was easy. But since my research has suggested time and time again that proper nutrition at a young age could yield a healthier child later on in life, I couldn’t resist but to try it out.
After having exclusively breastfed for almost a year and making homemade baby food, I did notice that my daughter doesn’t get sick very often.
And if she does get sick, she would recover almost immediately. I remember one day she woke up with a bad cough and after drinking some breast milk, the cough was gone.
Furthermore, she’s also not a picky eater like her mom (i.e. me). I still remember how I rejected most vegetables and meat when I was young. I recalled not liking the taste of food in general, hence I rarely ate.
My mom told me that I have always been a picky eater and got sick a lot.
It wasn’t a good feeling so I had hoped that it’d be different for my baby.
And luckily, she turned out incredibly healthy!
So the short sacrifices I’ve made as a new mom was to breastfeed her and make homemade meals. Even though it’s way less time-consuming to just buy formula and baby in a jar, I find that the long-term effects to be quite beneficial.
Just imagine the savings from medical cost. And if I were to be excessively dramatic, I would also say that this would be a reduced burden (i.e. cost) to society as a whole.
Related: My Breastfeeding Journey
2. Reduce diaper usage
During my pregnancy, I indulged myself with information online trying to get inspired for what motherhood would be like.
One of the things that I came across to was cloth diaper usage. I thought to myself, “Who would want to reuse diapers and wash them in your washing machine?”
But then I read more into it and the idea started to grow in me. I found the wide selection of cute cloth diapers that I couldn’t resist buying a few.
Not to mention, I have learned the six benefits of cloth diapers which include helping to potty train a baby early.
And I thought, “How great would it be to have an early potty trained baby?” And so one thought led to the next, I decided to give cloth diapers a try.
And I loved it!
Baby Bear seems to not like it as much, which is a positive sign! I think cloth diapers are designed to be more uncomfortable so that the baby feels the soil more. And as a result, she’ll want to potty train early to get rid of using diapers.
And in just a few months, Baby Bear had successfully gone to the pot-pot herself without my help. And so the story of her potty training by 2 years old begins here.
3. Resist the temptation of overbuying baby items
Babies grow incredibly fast.
I don’t know about you, but even as I tried not to overspend on buying baby clothes, I ended up having a few that were only woren once or twice.
That’s because in addition to the gifts from friends and relatives as well as the gifts of hand-me-downs, I still couldn’t resist buying a few pieces of cute onesies.
And just like clothes, there are many things that a baby will outgrow super quickly.
So even if you have the new baby jitters, try to resist that temptation of buying too many new things especially during the first year. Sometimes we think we need things that we don’t really need!
After all, there are still many years ahead to spend and I’m sure one of these days, our kids will want – or demand – for new toys, clothes, and whatever else!
Related: Why You Shouldn’t Overspend on Baby Items
4. Assign guardianship
A will is a legal document where you can assign guardianship for your child in the event that you pass away.
I know death is not something we want to think about after giving BIRTH, and hence we tend to postpone estate planning as long as possible.
If the thought of losing your child is too much to bare, take your time until you’re ready. In fact, excuse me for a moment while I go hug my baby now!
*a small break later*
Okay, I’m back. Again, writing a will was a really difficult process for me.
But I knew that without a will in place, my daughter is left without a legal guardian if (God forbid) something happens to me and my husband.
This is why we took the courage to get it done. And luckily, writing a will does not have be dreadful. If your estate planning is not complex, you can use an online legal form to help you with the process.
Once this is done, you can rest assured knowing that your child will be looking after by the right person.
5. Have an emergency fund
You must have heard from many personal finance experts out there the importance of having an emergency fund.
Without the risk of sounding like a broken record, I’ll just redirect you to this article right over here.
6. Build wealth through passive income
Passive income – Easier said than done.
After becoming a mom, I was obsessed with the idea of developing passive income. I like this particular endeavor because it was challenging. “How could you develop a stream of cash flow without lifting a finger?” I pondered to myself.
It turns out, there is no free lunch.
Passive income requires hard work, determination, persistence, and an infallible mindset of entrepreneurship.
In essence, I have found that the road to build a SUSTAINABLE passive income to be one of the most entrepreneur-y thing ever.
And since I’ve not done it before, I became enthralled by the challenge. At this point, I’m still discovering, but every step along the way makes me beamed with excitement.
Here’s the potential passive income trajectory:
Perhaps one day, I might even reach financial independence through this endeavor. And to me, that would be the best way to build wealth.
Related: Active vs. Passive Income: Which Is Better?
7. Health is wealth. Put yours first!
Okay. So regardless of the tips I mentioned above, or any other personal finance tips you may have encountered, please do put your health first.
No, breastfeeding and making baby food is not a priority if it affects your physical and mental health.
If you think buying whatever baby item is justified, it probably is. (Just be sure to pay it right off if it’s on credit.)
If you feel that thinking about death makes it too hard to write a will, wait till you’re fully ready!
Having an emergency fund may be important, but not as important as your well-being.
And while building wealth is easier said than done, I’d like to believe that it can be done.
The founder of Ergobaby was a mom who designed her own baby carrier. She was a designer by trade so she combined her skills and the problem she had and turned it into a viable business that allegedly sold for $91 million.
I love this product so much that I’ve even bought a few! Overspent, guilty as charge!
But her story has inspired me to fuel my head-spinning days and sleepless nights into something more meaningful. This blog was the starting point, but it has now open other doors that I want to explore.
And so as long as your health is well maintained, you might find that being a mom could bring new possibilities.
That is, after some decent hours of full sleep of course.
And so as I’m typing this, I have to remind myself that nothing is more important than my well-being. After all, wealth is truly worthless without good health!
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