If you are preparing for maternity leave you may be a bit
worried about stretching every dollar.
Most of us can expect to receive only a portion of our salary, or even
no leave pay at all, while on maternity leave. So whether you are planning to take 6 weeks or 6 months off
of work, it’s time to start planning!
Today I shared some of my favorite tips for saving and making money on maternity leave with Amber Rupinta on ABC11 from Babiology:
Cut “work related”
Expenses
- Skip the dry cleaners, morning trips to the coffee shop and lunches out
- If you have an older child, pull her out of day care during your leave
- Trade trips to the gas pump for long walks with the baby to save money and the environment while shedding a few pounds
Shop Smart
- Stock baby’s closet with clothes from your local consignment store or seasonal sale – or search craigslist.org. They outgrow those adorable little outfits so quickly you can find outfits worn only once for ½ the retail price.
- Clip coupons. Now that you’ve got a little more time on your hand, spend it planning your shopping trips. Record a few episodes of Extreme Couponing and find a local coupon swap – use your downtime during feedings to advance your money saving mission.
- Plan ahead and shop sales. Use your free time to pre-plan menus, shop around store sales and make freezer friendly meals you can use you go back to work and life gets crazy.
Make Money, on your own
schedule
- If you aren’t on short-term disability or being paid while on leave, consider taking a flexible part time job. Check with local temp agencies, local churches/non-profits and craigslist.org for postings. You can act as a virtual consultant in your area of expertise or provide administrative support.
- See if your company will allow you to work 10-20% (hrs you could squeeze in over the weekend).
- Put your hobby or favorite craft to work for you. Create an Etsy site or find a local craft fair to exhibit your handmade jewelry or hand knit newborn hats.
- When you’re comfortable exposing your newborns to other little ones, consider taking care of a friend or neighbor’s little one.
- If the day care center you’ll be using offers a referral discount, start finding new friends to refer!
- Don’t forget about the cash hanging in your closet. If you don’t plan on having another baby take your maternity wardrobe to a local consignment store like Babiology or sell them on craigslist.org.
The key to saving money during your maternity leave is
planning ahead and getting creative.
Be sure to talk to your HR department to determine what income you can
expect during your leave and whether or not you can choose to defer certain
taxes until you go back to work.
If you’re lucky, you may not even feel the financial impact
of your maternity leave! Shoot,
you may become so adept at stretching your dollar that you decide to extend
your maternity leave, or not go back to work at all.
For all of my maternity leave tips pick up a copy of Pregnancy Tips for the Clueless Chick. Use coupon code SAVE25 to get 25% OFF!
Until next time,
aka Chick #1
A BIG thank you to Babiology for letting us film in their adorable store in Raleigh, NC!
A BIG thank you to Babiology for letting us film in their adorable store in Raleigh, NC!
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