Hi Moms. On Monday, my doctor put me on bed rest for the rest of my pregnancy. I'm 29 weeks today, so hopefully I have a ways to go and the baby isn't born too early. I cannot go to work, and we were just making it financially before. So needless to say I'm pretty worried about the next few months and not bringing in my extra income. I have help from family watching my daughter during the day, friends offering to bring over food once in a while, and we have very little savings that I can use throughout this time and my maternity leave - it's just not enough and I had planned on saving more over the next 2 months. I would prefer not to use credit cards, as it's just that much harder to pay off when we do resume to our regular income after I'm back to work. Any thoughts from moms who were in this situation, or any ideas about how to stretch an already stretched dollar or pinched a few more pennies? We already have the most basic of cable ($16/mo - and without it, there would be no TV - mind you I'm on bed rest - ha ha). We aren't frivolous people and have already talked to our student loan lenders for a break over the next few months. Any other ideas are much appreciated! Please be kind - ideally a heftier savings would be nice, but we have not been in that position, so I did what I could the past months. It's just now I'm looking at what could be two months longer without pay than I originally thought. Thanks in advance for all your advice!
Call HR where you work, you may have disability coverage that will kick in and help. Where I work we also have a program where we can donate PTO to co-workers having medical problems.
I financed my maternity leave by takin a loan out against my 401K
To help with your food budget, check out Angel Food Ministries. You might be able to still order today for the August pick-up, otherwise, it will be the end of September before they do another food delivery. They are pre-set boxes, but ultimately, you save close to 50% depending on food costs in your area.
The $35 box has probably 15 lbs of meat/main dish items, and about 9 lbs of veggie items. Pretty good price! You do need freezer space, since most of the items are frozen.
http://www.angelfoodministries.com/
Delivery is just one day a month, however...
We've been ordering from them for 2 years now, and it has been a real budget saver for us. You don't have to be a certain income to qualify.. anyone can order through them.
If you are having problems picking it up, maybe a friend can pick it up for you? Also, talk to your host site and see if they can deliver it for you... some host sites will deliver if necessary.
Think positive thoughts, and take care of yourself and your baby!
You could get rid of cable and read books from the library.
It's not much, but that's $16 a month you could put to better use.
You can get use to life without tv.
You can listen to a radio.
If you read a book on knitting you can spend your time knitting baby booties.
You should be allowed to do claim Short or Long Term Disability - talk to your HR at work and see what that can do for you.
If you are a home owner, try refinancing the house to pay off the student loans and get your finances in order.
you might want to see if you can swing it on one income to stay home with the kids after you have this one...two kids in day care is expensive...so would you be working to pay day care?
If you have a car that you owe money on - see if you can trade it in for a different car and less payments...
Certainly check with HR regarding any disability, sick leave, etc.
Good... Stay away from the credit cards... That will be worse in the long run.
Im sure friends and neighbors wil help with meals, etc which is a plus. If someone offers help, graciously accept it ( with exception of money).
Remember how people have helped you and pay it forward when you are back on your feet.
As hard as it is, try not to stress because that baby needs you healthy. Be thankful for what you do have and hang in there!
do you qualify for government assistance i.e. food stamps wic etc? do you pay for short or long term disability through your health insurance? i got short term disability pay while i was on maternity leave. do you pay more for your cell phones than you absolutely need? i got rid of my iphone bc of the data plan charge. do you have high speed internet? you could cancel your tv and get netflix. netflix is even cheaper than what you are paying and you can stream online. we had to move into a much smaller more affordable place. not sure you can do that though since you are on bed rest. community orgs will help you pay electric and other utility bills sometimes. if you eat out at all, even fast food, cutting that out can help.
HTH
J.
You have received a lot of good ideas and I just wanted to say I hope you can mentally let this go. Your body and mind are connected, the stress you are feeling isn't good for you. I know that things can be overwhelming but you will make it through. One way or the other you will still be here in 2 months, maybe without some of the things you have now but still here with a beautiful little one.
Take a breath, relax your shoulders, stretch out your back muscles and breathe. It is what it is.
Can you sell some items to make bills? Can you pawn some jewelry? I have done that in the past, my wedding set can pay almost a whole month on the electric bill, it can run up to $500 per month in the summer, thank God for average monthly billing. You usually have to go back and renew the loan at one month and you can do that every month or couple of months until you can get them out. It isn't something I like to do but there have been times where if I didn't we'd be out of electricity or some trip had to be cancelled.
Can you husband pick up a part time job in the evenings/weekends? Can he do computer repair or fix someones car? Is he skilled at anything that can make some money for you?
I work 3 part time jobs for trade, well, 2 of them are for trade and 1 is for cash. I am truly blessed by the people I have to help me take care of my grandkids.
Let your friends and family to help you out and be glad you have them. They are a true blessing. You should be saving a bit too with no child care bill right now. That is often a huge portion of your monthly expenses of working.
Good luck with your new little one!!!
.
You've had some good answers already, but here's one that no one has mentioned.
Could you sell some items on Ebay or Craigslist? I know your on bed rest but could your husband or a friend list the ads and do all the work?
Best wishes
So very sorry to hear of your situation. I went on bedrest at 20 weeks with my second so I know how you feel. I was able to use short-term disability that was a big help.If that is not an option for you maybe your husband could take a part-time job 3 days out of the week. I know you probably need him home whenever possible. Maybe you could work out a schedule with the rest of your family if he decided to get a temporary second job. Good luck and hang in there!
L.....I am so sorry you are on bedrest. I had it with 2 pregnancies. It is a lonely and guilt-ridden place to be. The only suggestion I have would be to return to work sooner after the baby is born. I ended up going back to work the first day my son was out of the NICU (10 days old). I felt robbed of my maternity leave, but work was calling me daily telling me how everything was falling apart and they needed me there asap. Maybe explore work from home options?
check with your local social servixces department.
Even if you do not qualify for food stamps or assistance with medical situations, they may know of opportinities you should take advantage of while you need them.
It may help you more after the baby is born than before.
Remember,,,,you are looking at this as temporary.
If you have health insurance most will have a short term disability as others have mentioned. If they don't or you don't have insurance you could talk with your work to see if they would do a short term/ job secure lay off where you could draw some unemployment during this time. I am not sure if they can but it might be something to check into.
My husband ended up switching jobs when we were put in this situation. He always worked for less than he could have made, because he didn't ask for much. Once he knew he was our only support he got more aggressive. He now makes way more than we used to make together. I know the job market is different now, but your husband may surprise you with what he comes up with. In the meantime, I would suggest he pick up a part-time job now. Once the baby comes, you will be very busy. I would consider staying home with the kids once you have the baby, as daycare will be very costly and they are only young once. We also got down to one car for a while as my husband could take the bus downtown. There are a lot of ways to cut expenses.
