One of the biggest challenges you can face as a parent to a newborn is trying to fit everything within a budget. From the baby’s essentials like a newborn baby swaddle to their clothing and more, it can become a little overwhelming trying to keep track of all the things you need.

Fret not! There’s still so much you can do to give your baby more than what they need and still stick to the budget. Here’s how -

• Make Segregated Lists -

Segregated lists allow you to smartly choose the non-negotiable essentials and the ones that you can purchase a little later. The non-negotiable list includes diapers, swaddle cloths and clothes.

Especially in the first few months, the baby’s body keeps growing in size and it's important to be smart about buying the right clothes. Once you buy clothes with amazing quality, they will last longer and also keep you and the baby happy.

• Make The Most Of Your Baby Shower -

When you’re pregnant, everyone around you is buying you gifts. Whether be it your in-laws, your parents, siblings, friends, aunts, and uncles, they’re all looking to get you something that you can use.

What you can do is, make a list of all the baby essentials you think you would need like baby sheets and blankets and share it with the person planning your shower. They can then ask the guests to accordingly bring their gifts based on their differing budgets. If you do this, you get exactly what you need without having to spend a lot and your friends and family will be ecstatic because you’ll end up using everything they bring for you. The perfect win-win situation for all.

• The Budget -

You also have to ensure that the budget is within reach for you and your newest family member. There are apps such as Mint which allow you to keep track of all the finances. It also allows you to create specific budgets based on categories. You can log in every transaction and soon have a proper breakdown of all your expenses.

The budget needs to ensure that all of the baby’s needs are well taken care of. Once the essentials like breastfeeding nursing pillow are sorted, then you can move on to other products that require attention, like the carry nest or matching socks.

These are some of the essentials you need to take care of in order to ensure you have an organized life and taking care of the baby becomes a real breeze.