Savvy moms know every little bit counts when it comes to saving money. From shopping around for the best deals to clipping coupons each week, there are plenty of tips and tricks to stretch a household budget. As families grow and new bundles of joy arrive, it becomes even more important to spend smartly.
As you all know our family grew this year. And with that expenses grew. Let me start off by saying I can be a bit of a brand snob, OK a big brand snob. I will only use XX brand diapers and wipes and only bought XX brand baby gear and that also extended to the brands of Formula and foods I would feed my children. I was recently given an opportunity from Perrigo Nutritionals to review store brand baby foods and formula.
Perrigo Nutritionals store brand products are as nutritionally complete as the national brands, but cost significantly less. They are sold under individual retailer brands, such as Walmart’s Parent’s Choice and Target’s Up & Up Store brand product. Moms can purchase store brand products for their baby without compromising nutrition or spending a bundle!
As part of this opportunity, I was sent: - A copy of “Say Goodbye to Survival Mode: 9 Simple Strategies to Stress Less, Sleep More, and Restore Your Passion for Life” by Crystal Paine
- 1 container of store brand formula
- 9 assorted Puree Pouches
- 5 assorted Puffs
- 4 assorted Yogurt Bites
“Say Goodbye to Survival Mode: 9 Simple Strategies to Stress Less, Sleep More, and Restore Your Passion for Life”, is full of advice on how to not only save, but set priorities and manage time and money. Paine’s book contains practical ideas, like purchasing store brand products, and simple solutions that will help any parent become a super saver!
Crystal Paine’s 5 Money Saving Tips for FamiliesI've just started reading the book and Crystal Paine, Wife, mother, blogger extraordinaire, has some great tips on de-stressing your everyday. Check back with me after I've finished the book and put some of her strategies to use.
- Create a Budget A budget gives you parameters and purpose, it gives you boundaries, and it gives you freedom to live creatively within those boundaries. Shop With Cash When you shop with a credit card (or even a debit card, for that matter!) you can have your budget in your head and you can do the best to stick with it when you check out, but it’s so much easier to go just a little bit over here and there when you’re swiping!
- Plan a Menu When you have a plan in place for what you’re supposed to be eating each meal and you’ve already purchased the ingredients for those recipes, it’s a lot harder to justify chucking the plan for takeout. Use Coupons Coupons are a great way to save a lot of money on your grocery bill, but they can be hard to keep up with. Clipping, sorting, and organizing coupons takes time — so enter a coupon database! You’ll have access to printable and other coupons currently available and it’s one of the most effective and efficient ways to save money on groceries.
- Buy Store Brands One way to save a great deal of money on your grocery budget is to learn to like and use a variety of brands. The sooner you can get over being a brand-snob, the more your pocketbook will thank you. For example, while I breast fed my children, moms who choose to formula feed can save up to 50 percent by switching to store brand formula, which meets the same FDA quality standards as expensive name brands. There are also coupons available at a website - StoreBrandFormula.com (www.storebrandformula.com). This one simple change can save moms about $600 a year.
Now on to the products. I was skeptical but thought we could at least try it. BUT I was pleasantly surprised at the quality of the items and my little guy actually prefers some of these products to the name brand stuff. I now find myself seeking out Perrigo Nutritionals products at my local stores.
About Perrigo NutritionalsOur Liam is usually strictly fed breast milk so I didn’t think we would have the chance to try the formula but due to recent issues in finding milk donors we had to make a temporary switch to formula. Prior to getting my review pack I was talking to a gal pal who recommended Parents Choice formula for the switch because she found it the easiest on her babies when she made the switch. We had previously tried name brands before and our little guy rejected them as well as give him discomfort. First let me explain a bit my children have MSPI, Milk Soy Protein Intolerance. So finding a formula no matter what brand/type that wont make them sick is a hassle.
- Many moms are not aware that they can save up to 50 percent on infant formula by choosing a store brand over a national brand
- Store Brand Formula is nutritionally comparable to the national brands, yet are typically up to half the price, and can save you about $600 a year
- Perrigo Nutritionals is the largest supplier of Store Brand Infant Formula and nutrition products in the world and one of only four companies recognized by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration for meeting the strict FDA requirements for safety, nutrition and quality for infant formula-manufacturing in the United States
- Same standards and expertise used to develop infant formula applied to toddler foods
- Toddler foods are appropriately developed for variety of stages of growth and motor skills with quality, nutritional ingredients to create foundation of good nutrition
When I received my box of goodies I thought it was funny that the formula included was the very same one my friend recommended. Although this was actually the hardest for me to try, remember brand snob!, when we ran out of milk instead of purchasing XX brand I made him a bottle of Parents Choice formula. Right away I could see a difference and liked it. You’ll have to take my friend’s word for it but she says that she personally thinks it tastes the closest to breast milk. Yep SHE tried them all, so she took that bullet for all of us. My little Liam took the bottle fine and made the switch well. So I for one am sold on Parents Choice formula. 
The puffs and yogurt bites are a big hit with our little guy and we don’t see a difference other than price between the name brand and store brand. I have also found that sometimes stores will offer more flavors in their brand. That is always a plus! Since trying what was sent to us, we have tried other store brand baby foods and our little guy loves it! 
I personally love the puree pouches verses the name brand jars because I can just attach a spoon top and go… Yeah, I know there are name brand pouches out there too but now I’m hooked and love the savings.So now its your turn to try it. Perrigo Nutritionals is going to send one family treasures reader the same goodie package I received. Enter below…..
“The Perrigo Nutritionals product, information and two gift packs have been provided by Perrigo Nutritionals.”
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