Frugality, thy name is Divorced Mother.

My ex cut my child support by about $100 last month, so I'm trying to clothe and diaper an almost 4 month old on a rather tight budget. I use cloth diapers part time, so it's only the disposables, that get used at night and for outings, that were affected by this, until yesterday.
Zak has now officially doubled his birth weight, outgrowing the fitted cloth diapers that I'd bought for him. I'd also bought one-sized diapers, so I'm not having to potty-train him today, but that's less diapers, and more laundry. While I am thrilled to see he's growing, it's only going to get more challenging as time goes by.

Note that at the top of this post, I don't mention having to feed Zak. No, the boy isn't starving- I am proud to be a nursing mother. Not only does that mean that Zak's food does not have to be purchased, but it also means that he's getting the best food on earth for him. I can't provide much in the way of fancy clothes or toys, but the fact that I can provide at least one thing that is the very best for him is a consolation. I also freely admit that nursing itself rocks.

The following is not a crack on formula-feeding parents.

Nursing, if you're a SAHM/WAHM, is low-maintenance, very cheap, and might I add, uses between 300-500 calories a day. Even WOHMs may find it easier to pump than deal with sterilizing bottles and midnight formula runs. (Not all do, though, and I sympathize entirely.) The benefits of breastmilk are too numerous to list here, and cannot be duplicated or even approximated by formula. I knew when I became pregnant, there were far too many reasons to breastfeed to consider formula feeding by choice. As this post is about frugality, I'll focus on the financial ones.

My ex-husband is not financially responsible. I don't mean that he'll come home with various doodads when we'd set aside money for Zak's college; I mean he'd run off to Europe for a month to "find himself" when he had a divorce in the works, a baby on the way, and was already about twenty grand in the hole. Also, for those of you considering divorce: do find out what your lawyer charges per hour before hiring one, and make sure you can afford that. His lawyer charges more per hour than he gives me per month- much more than my nearly bankrupt ex can handle.

While I'm no financial genius, I knew at the outset that throwing away money like old newspapers would not get us the American Dream. So, I sought to run the house in a way that would make things pleasant and save money. But the homecooked dinners were ignored (dinners he now swear he misses), the efforts to bring in a little extra were sabotaged. It got to the point where I had to buy groceries online at some expense, because he refused to take me grocery shopping. (I do not drive- yet.)

So, I'm doing what I can with what I've got, which means lots of laundry, hunting for sales, and prayer. It also means bringing in whatever I can in terms of money. I hope sell body products online soon.