Whew, the final part, for now, lol

Welcome to this weeks Money Monday discussion. We are talking about Preparing for baby - Feeding.

Yeah, those cute feeding bottles and bibs and high chair, all that, we will talk about the cost factor of feeding our little ones. Let me tell you a story; I have always wanted things in a particular order - am a planner, and if things don't go according to plan, oh lawd, I get in a mood and finding out I was pregnant, after having actively tried for years and given up - story for another day, I was pissed, don't get me wrong, I was happy to finally be pregnant, but it had come at the wrong time in my plans. So I started looking at what I could shift around in my life.

My one worry was how am I going to do the home cooked meals and exclusive breastfeeding I had read so much about and planned to do - I would be in my final year of school after baby comes. I started reading on storing breastmilk, researching on the right bottles and milk storage containers, pumps, etc. and I got scared, lol. Yeah I scared myself with my own research. I mean the prices I was coming across, hmmm.

Then I went home and spoke to my mom and two aunties about it - Well I told them I was pregnant and per my calculations, baby will come in April/May and I will go back to school after delivery, what do we do. I remember the look on their faces, like huh, is this child normal, lol. They took me through my options and we dwelt more on feeding, child care and health. My mom said I know you very well young lady, stop looking online and listen:

Breastfeeding after delivery is very good for both mom and baby but if you are unable to, it doesn't make you a bad mother. Buying all the expensive bottles and feeding sets or gadgets is great but that will not feed the baby. What do I mean?

Am sure like me you have gone online or Instagram and seen an assortment of bottles and you are already making plans to get the Gh1000 cedis starter set, but first let's talk about how you intend to feed baby. Do you intend to breastfeed exclusively the first 6 months or Formula feed from day one or a combination of both? Will you breastfeed from source or express sometimes or exclusively express?

Depending on what you choose, you will need to buy accordingly. I for one chose to do a combination feed because I would leave baby with mom and go back to school and I didn't trust 'Dumsor' to keep my milk safe for my little one. Immediately, that meant getting bottles and looking at sterilization and cleaning and ensuring my baby didn't get sick because of her bottles. I looked at the name brand bottles and I fell in love with Tommie Tippee but I knew I could get more bottles with the same amount if I bought say Boots. Don't get me wrong, I was looking at my finance at the time - I still love TT bottles. Let me share my list

Feeding Bottles - If baby feeds 6x a day, that means I need to have at least 12+ bottles, some for storing expressed milk too. Will it be plastic, glass, stainless steel, etc.

Sterilizer - steam or cold water - You can also use buckets with lids or a cold water sterilizer ( Boots) or Electric.

Sterilization tablets or solution ( for cold water sterilization) - tablets are easier to store, less space, less likely to spill, Bottle solutions - storage space, wrong measurements when pouring, tendency to use less to stretch next purchase, spills and waste.

Cleaning and Drying - Brushes - for bottle and nipples/teats, liquid soap - leaves less residue and smell in the bottles, drying racks

Breast Pump - I got a simple one with less parts to be cleaned and easy to use. It can be Manual or Electric or Silicone

Formula: the type/brand and how easy it is to get, powder or liquid, small ready to feed or big batch. If possible, get a small tin or sachet or 1 bottle of ready to feed formula and try it with baby first before making a big purchase. I went through 4 different brands before settling on the ones we used - I used two different brands and switched depending on funds and availability. Babies can run through a small 400G can in a week or two, depending on the baby, a 900G can might last the month but if you don't trust your storage and yourself - spills, get the 400G cans, ensure to close them tight and store appropriately.

Bibs - small things seem to get lost fast, get as many as you can but don't bring all out for use at the same time, also plastic bibs for solid feeding

Cups and spoons - believe it or not, some babies prefer this method of feeding to bottles, and experienced mothers will tell you its faster, avoids nipple confusion, easier to clean and disinfect, and is less costly- unless u want some very fancy ones.

You can also get: nipple shields, nipple creams, multivitamins - for both mommy and baby ( Consult your doctor first), Gripe water, Bottled water, high chair, plates with suction ( saves you - trust me), cups, heat sensitive spoons, storage containers for milk or homemade meals, breastmilk storage bags, nursing bras for you, nursing pillows; the list is endless.

These don't look like much but can cost quite a small fortune and you need to pay attention to the sets or brand you get as some might need special parts to enable you use them with other brands, might require replacements - ensure it it easy to find/buy, etc.

No matter what you buy, always make sure what will go into baby's tummy is prioritized over the container - Don't spend Gh100 cedis on and bottle and then not have enough to buy the right formula for baby or dilute or use wrong quantity.

Always remember baby's wellbeing is more important than brands. Share with us in the comment section, join us on the app let's learn and share.