As regular readers know, my mother-in-law passed away recently. While C and I are both doing fine, there are a million little things we need to take care of right now. The time has to come from somewhere, and in my case, that means no time to write quality posts for my readers here. Thankfully, I have some amazing blogger friends who instantly stepped up when I asked for help. So for the next week or more, you will be seeing some wonderful guest posts. I again want to thank all of my blogging friends who volunteered to help out. I appreciate you all so very much.

The second guest post is from from Jana, who blogs at Daily Money Shot, a personal finance blog about money at the intersection of life, pop culture and everything in between.

Not many people know this, but I have known Erin for quite a long time. I remember when she first started talking about her desire to adopt and how, in her typical prudent fashion, she had weighed all the pros and cons of doing so. I was amazed at how thorough and responsible she and her husband were being about the decision, and for a while there, I didn’t know if they were going to be able to. So when she told me that they were going to do it, I literally leaped for joy. I could not be any happier for her and C if I tried.

I also told her that I wanted to be the first person to buy her baby a gift (and even though she told me not to, I still plan on it. So there, Erin!). But for someone as responsible as Erin, I thought that one of the best gifts I could give her was some financial tips on how to prepare for the baby’s arrival. I know that she’s already covered the cost of adoption, and knowing Erin, she’ll also give a breakdown of how she financially prepared for everything for this baby. So I’ve decided to make it a bit easier on her and provide a list of the things that help in getting ready for a baby’s arrival:

• Practice your baby budget. A baby needs things like food, diapers, wipes and clothes. This is a fact. It’s also a fact that those things cost money. Prior to the baby’s arrival, price items like formula (yes, formula. In a situation like Erin’s, breastfeeding is actually physically impossible), diapers, wipes, and the other day-to-day necessities. Approximate how much you’re going to need to spend each week on these and write that into your budget. Another way to handle this is to actually take it out of your budget and create a baby expense fund. That way, when the baby arrives, you’re used to the money being gone and you’ve created a cushion to help pay for expenses.
• Create a stockpile. I’m not talking a crazy Extreme Couponing stockpile. But buying a few boxes of diapers, wipes and some other necessities ahead of time makes it easier in those first few weeks when you’re getting used to a little one living in your house (and you have no time to get to a store to buy more).
• Don’t buy newborn sized anything! And if you do, don’t wash it (or take the tags off) until that baby is born. I can’t stress enough how important this is. Newborn sizes are ridiculous, and they’re only for babies who weigh up to 8 pounds. Guess what? Lots of babies are born weighing more than 8 pounds. So you could have a whole bunch of beautiful, freshly laundered clothes that your kids can’t wear. What a waste of money! Buying 0-3 month clothes to start is a smarter decision, and if the onesies are too big at first, I promise the baby will grow into them.
• Find your daycare before the baby is born. And incorporate that expense into your budget.  I know in Erin’s situation, her husband is going to be a SAHD but in many cases, both parents need to work and there’s no family around to help. Where I live, it’s extremely hard to find a daycare for an infant so parents need to start looking early. By doing this, you’ll know the rate you’ll have to pay and, like with formula and other expenses, you’ll be able to practice not having that money in your budget.  If you have an employer that offers the Dependent Care program, make sure you talk to your HR department to find out what you need to do to enroll.
• Don’t stress about splurging on some items. Whether it’s an amazing nursery or too many cute outfits, it’s fine to go a little overboard for your baby. You do want to keep it in check, though, so if you’re going to splurge, decide what you’re going to splurge on ahead of time, budget for it and then go ahead and buy! For me, I wanted a new crib, books and stuffed animals. We reused my childhood furniture, bought her nursery items from Target and filled in the rest with gift cards, shower presents and overly excited grandparents.

It’s also hard to know what products should be bought brand name and what should be bought generic.  I’d like to give a good answer to that but it’s difficult. Every baby is different. For instance, we had to use brand name soap because my daughter had eczema. We used brand name formula because that’s what she got at the hospital and we didn’t want to change it. We used BJs brand wipes. I could go on. But really, just buy whatever works best for your baby and your budget. However, some items that I do suggest are worth the money in brand name: Blue Lizard sunscreen, Dreft detergent and stain remover (All Baby is good, too) and Eucerin lotion.

Erin, there is no way I (or anyone else reading your site) can be happier for you. You and C are going to make amazing parents!

Readers, what are some tips you have for Erin as she prepares for her baby?