Stocking Up Before Baby

 You guys know by now that I am a couponer and love to stock up on items for super cheap. I have been spending the last few months trying to fill my stockpile and get items as cheap as possible before Ellie arrives. I always love to save money but I figured with a baby coming I wouldn't really feel like heading out to the store too often once she arrived so it was better to have all sorts of essentials already stocked. I watched a few youtube videos and found a few lists online that shared lists of what to stockpile before baby- not just baby items but household items as well so I thought I would compile my own list and share it here if anyone is interested! I'm also going to share a few photos of my current stockpile because I'm pretty excited with the amount I've accumulated lately.

Stock Up Before Baby List

Baby Items

• Diapers (Obviously...) Every chart online says a different number but I looked up a few on Pinterest and just sort of guessed what we would need. I am completely stocked up for newborn through size 3, so I will be working on size 4 and holding off to see if I even need size 5 or 6. I wasn't afraid of buying too many because I made sure they were less than 20 cents a diaper and we plan on having at least one more kid in the future. Also, diapers make great gifts for baby showers!
• Wipes- Again, obvious but make sure they are one cent a wipe or cheaper!
• Bottles- Just a few free sample bottles to try out and find the kind you like. 
• Formula- Free samples are available through Enfamil and Similac. Even if you plan on breastfeeding it doesn't hurt to get the samples just in case. You can always donate them!
• Clothes- Not a ton, but look for clearance clothing and stock up for the next year.
• Baby Gear- I will share more of the gear we received at our shower and what else we picked up in another post, but we ended up with a lot of stuff. Probably not all necessary, so talk to friends and family and do your research to see what you will actually use and love. I plan on updating once Ellie is here and we actually know what she will use.

Household/Personal Items

• Paper Towels
• Toilet Paper
• Tissues
• Qtips
• Shampoo/Conditioner
• Lotion
• Shower Gel/Soap
• Deodorant
• Laundry Detergent
• Dryer Sheets
• Laundry Scent Boosters
• Sponges
• Dishwasher Tabs
• Cleaning Sprays
• Dish Soap
• Aluminum Foil
• Plastic Wrap
• Ziploc Bags
• Parchment Paper
• Lysol Wipes/ Other Cleaners
• Garbage Bags
• Paper Plates
• Toothpaste
• Hand Soaps
• Bathroom Sprays
• Vitamins
• Medications- Tylenol, Tums, etc..
• Razors
• Batteries

Pet Items

• Pet Food
• Pet Treats
• Pet Medications

Food/Drink Items

• Water Bottles
• Soda/Juice/ Other Drinks
• Snacks
• Ingredients For Simple Meals
• Ingredients to Make Freezer Meals

Post Partum Supplies

• Pads
• Tucks Wipes
• Ingredients to Make Padsicles
• Ice Packs

That's what I've come up with so far! Let me know if you think anything is missing from my list and I will add it! I've been working hard at stocking up for a few months now and would love to know what else I should be grabbing at the store!

Saving Money Preparing For Baby- Clearance Diapers & Wipes

On Sunday I ran into Walmart just to do a quick shopping trip and grab a few things we needed. Anytime I'm in Walmart I run through the baby section and just take a look for any clearance- clothing, gear, whatever it is I know buying it on clearance is a smart decision. I had seen a ton of couponers and clearance hunters mention diaper and wipe clearance at Walmart, but couldn't find any when I went on previous trips. This time however I was so excited because I was lucky enough to stumble across not one but two displays of clearance diapers!!!

 
This is the first display I saw which was mostly filled with pull-ups. I know at some point we will need pull-ups but currently I am most focused on diapers so I did leave those behind. I grabbed a few boxes of the newborn diapers because I am assuming that Ellie will be small enough for them for at least a short period of time. We also plan on having another child someday, so whatever we don't use up we will save for the next baby, or pass on to family and friends!

The second display I found was even better! It was packed with Hello Bello diapers in size 2 and size 4. I grabbed the two size twos that I saw and a few boxes of the size 4. Each box was $15 and the smaller packs were $7. My per diaper cost was no more than 20 cents per diaper which is precisely the top amount I would like to pay for all diapers. 

My trunk was filled with diapers and I was so thrilled! I honestly thought I wouldn't be lucky enough to score this deal because my Walmart is notorious for being more expensive then others around the country and I don't see a lot of the clearance that other people report getting. I am interested see if in the coming weeks they clearance out any other items and will definitely keep my eyes peeled. 

As I mentioned, I am working on creating a diaper and wipe stockpile and I plan to spend no more than 20 cents per diaper and 2 cents per wipe. It's been a slow process but here is where my stockpile currently stands...

I am keeping bigger size diapers in the basement along with my overflow wipes. I don't want to put too many in her room so I have been putting them down here for the time being. You can see that I maintain a pretty big personal care stockpile as well. I am trying to keep this stocked so we don't need to run out when Ellie arrives. I would like to have everything we need in our personal "store" so I will keep couponing and looking for good deals!

Not diaper related but on the other side of the basement I keep household goods. There are tons of bottles of laundry detergent, cleaning supplies, paper plates, napkins, dish soap, etc...I know it's not a huge stockpile but I buy in small quantities and am not an extreme coupon by any means. I love that I don't have to rush out to get items because we don't run out of these items. 

In the center I've started stacking boxes of diapers. I also try to keep a stock of toilet paper, paper towels, and gifts here. In the baskets there are razors, toothbrushes, etc... 

We haven't gotten too far in Ellie's closet DIY yet. I did order the pieces we need to get started but I have only taken down the existing shelf and spackled the insane anchor holes someone decided to drill. I plan to have baskets inside of her closet and they will hold the back-up diapers and wipes that we will keep in her room.

The top drawer of her changing table will hold diapers and wipes (see below) but I will put extras in her closet for quick access. The ones I plan to put in her closet are in the picture above. All others will be kept in the basement. I'm hoping that my plan will allow me to "restock" items from the basement when I have the opportunity to but never run out of items in her nursery. I will keep you updated on that particular organization plan when it's in use!

My friend Brittni gave me a bunch of diapers that she had leftover from her girls and I happily brought them home! I love all the Honest diaper designs they are just so cute! 

I would love to know if you stockpile anything in your house and if you built up a diaper stockpile before you had your kids?

Have a great day everyone!

New Bedroom: Part 2

Today I thought I would share another area of my new bedroom...My Stockpile Closet!

I have been couponing for about two years now and I love having a nice stockpile so I don't have to pay top dollar for personal care items, paper goods, etc. I am a huge fan of couponing and am so glad I have a nice place to store everything now!

The closet itself goes back pretty far so there is a ton of room to grow!

In the way back on the top shelf I have a small canvas tote full of hand soaps. Next to it is my stockpile of mouthwash, then some smaller containers filled with sunscreen, soaps, and bath products.

The big canvas tote on the top shelf holds all my body washes and scrubs. These are so easy to get for free and cheap!

Moving down to the second shelf. The first bin is filled with hair products. I have shampoos, conditioners, hairsprays, dry shampoo, etc in this bin.

The next bin is filled with dental products. Toothbrushes and toothpaste are something I only buy on deals where they are free or almost free.

I love this bin and I'm sure you can see why. I'm a little obsessed with lotion =) I have a ton of free samples and many full size containers waiting to be used. Why pay for lotion when I have this much backup?

I keep ziploc bags and cleaning products towards the back of this shelf.

The bottom shelf holds computer paper, some bottles of alcohol, and laundry items.

Then  a bin of razors and shave cream. I am running low in this section so I will have to start looking for more deals!

This big bin houses my candles and fragrance sprays. I love Bath and Body Works candles but only buy them when they are on sale and I have a coupon!

Below the shelves I have all my paper products. Paper towels, toilet paper, tissues and a few reams of copy paper live down here.

I love stockpiling products such as these because they have such a long shelf life. If I'm able to stock up at a time when the items are cheap- it is great to have a place to store them until I need them!

Do you have a stockpile?

Ikea Baskets: They Fit!!!

Hi everybody!

Sorry yesterdays post went unwritten...it was a long weekend which I will explain in this weeks project 365 post. I still haven't quite caught up on my sleep and have had more then a few reasons to be a little stressed/overwhelmed in the past week! However, today let's talk about something I am totally in love with... my new bookcase!

When we last left off with this little project I had just ordered baskets from Ikea. I had searched everywhere for bins to fit in these cubbies and when I ran out of options I broke down and ordered the baskets from Ikea.

Here's how it looks now:

(Yes I was watching the Bachelorette last night)

So I chose to purchase six baskets because I actually have two matching baskets in my closet that are holding other items right now. If I do decide to use all eight I have them but for now I'm happy with the way six baskets looks!

On the right side of the shelf I store some of my completed scrapbooks. It is so nice to be able to keep them out on a shelf, rather than stored away!

On the left side I have a few more scrapbooks and my coupon binder. My coupon binder is just on this shelf temporarily, but it doesn't look too bad there.

Starting on the top from right to left (which I know is weird- I should go left to right, but oh well!). This basket holds my electronics. Cords, electronic duster, light bulbs, batteries, etc.

Next is extra gifts. These are gifts I bought on sale and want to give people, but don't have a particular person in mind. I will hold onto these as spare gifts if I need them.

Next is health and first aid. In here I have my prescription medicine, contact solution, bandaids, and couponed medicine.

The last basket on the top row is for extra office supplies. Pencils, pens, markers, notebooks, etc all end up in this basket!

In the bottom left basket is the free tools I receive from Harbor Freight and other tools I might have around. I may use these for gifts or use them myself.

Finally, the bottom right basket holds my couponed makeup and other cosmetic items. These are all items that haven't been opened yet and I could potentially use as gifts, or I may use as a back up for myself!

So this shelf holds a ton of items which is great. I love being able to hold a combination of my stockpiled items and other day to day items on one shelf!

I am totally in love with my new set up! =)

Have you made any changes to your house lately?

A little more organization in the closet....

Well this weekend I have been OBSESSED with cleaning and organizing. I will be sharing more about that tomorrow, but for now, I thought I would show you a little project I completed yesterday afternoon just to make my closet look a little prettier.

Recently, I had been eyeing some beautiful bins by Michael Graves at JC Penney's. I ran into JCP when it first opened yesterday morning in order to get my hands on these babies...

Originally I wanted to get all light blue bins, but they didn't have enough so I picked up two small blue, two small tan, and one big blue.

The area that I wanted to contain in these bins is one that has been driving me crazy lately. I have stockpiled quite a few items on my shelves, and although I was using an old boot box from Bakers as a bin, it wasn't working quite the way I wanted it to.

It was time to dump everything out on the floor, which resulted in quite the mess.

Then I sorted everything into categories; lotions, hair products, body wash, shaving needs, and dental needs.

Then it was time to put everything in a home!

A bin for lotions. Holy crap, I have a lot of lotion.

A bin for toothpaste, mouthwash and dental floss. I probably don't need to buy toothpaste for a long time.

A bin for razors and shaving cream.

And a bin for hair care and body wash.

The leftover items were corralled in a small pile on the floor.

And how much better do those shelves look now?

The items that I had in the pile on the floor were placed in a bin underneath my bed. The boxes of tissues that were on the shelf got switched to the other side where dental items used to be.

Should we do a little before and after tour?

Before.

After.

How much better does that look?!

I swear I get giddy with excitement every time I walk in my closet! =)

Happy Columbus Day everybody!