Anyone with a small child already knows how expensive raising a baby can be; this is why someone created a wonderful thing called a baby shower. However, unless you perfect your baby registry and everyone gets you every single thing you asked for, it's difficult to ensure you get everything you want and need. And even if you did have the perfect shower, the items you received won't last forever. When you notice your items are dwindling, you get desperate, calling grandparents, aunts, uncles, cousins, godparents, etc. as the anonymous "baby" asking for more diapers to be shipped to an old, abandoned building - or else. But threatening people is not always necessary. So to avoid having to conjure up a baby voice just to get the expensive items you need, you might want to check out the numerous websites popping up that offer free baby items.
More and more websites are offering lots of free items to willing recipients. Many of these "free sites" used to offer frivolous items like pizza coupons or even sweepstakes entries, but the world of free has evolved and babies were not left behind. Now there are numerous sites available for parents to receive free baby items, usually with some time of registration required. To explore what is available out there, I took a look at some of the more popular sites for free baby items. Check them out!
Babytobee.com
Baby to Bee is a baby itself, starting officially in October of 2003. But the site has grown quickly over the years becoming very popular for offering free baby items like coupons, and information on baby cribs, clothes, furniture, toys and more.
This site also offers tons of articles and advice on becoming a parent, including recognizing the symptoms of teething, foods to eat during pregnancy, and even when Moms can have sex after giving birth (I know ... not exact about the child, right?). It also has a 00 Baby Photo Contest.
Baby to Bee has a few free clubs available to join such as Growing Family, American Baby, and Gerber Life. Growing Family is a free membership where you can receive free coupons, discounts and samples as well as "milestone gifts" for parents. American Baby offers a free 6 month subscription to their magazine. And Gerber Life is a program that offers three months of free life insurance and a free Gerber newsletter after a registration process. Offers are updated often so it would be a good idea to check the site frequently to keep up with current information.
Baby to Bee states on its site that it currently reaches one-third of the 3 million pregnant women out there and within the next year, they intend to reach up to 50% of expecting parents - quite a goal! But as they grow in popularity, and continue to serve the masses with quality information, they just may attain that goal.
Freemania.net
Free Mania was a website created by a 14-year-old in 1996. Over a decade later the site has exploded and is one of the most popular "free sites" on the Internet - much it its success due to the offering of free baby items.
The site currently offers free baby and grocery coupons for everything from baby formula and food, to diapers and clothes. They have free coupons for Target, Chuck E Cheese, Baskin Robbins and even a free Denny's Kids Meal. They also offer coupons for Similac and Gerber along with free samples of Bright Beginnings Formula. You can receive free recipes, potty training kits, diaper rash cream, and even a free 12-month subscription to Parents Magazine. And if you and your baby like to travel in style, you can receive coupons for Kate Spade, Babies'R'Us, Gap Maternity and more!
One thing that's different from this site is that the majority of their free baby items are offered without the obligation to fulfill offers from sponsors. You simply click on the link that will take you to the item of choice. If it is available, you can have it - no questions asked. Nice, right?
Getmyfreebabystuff.com
I actually heard about this website for free baby items on my local radio station, which prompted me to check their site for more information. On the radio, they talked about all of the free things you can receive just by stopping by their website, so I had to know more. When I reached the site, I was greeted by pictures of precious babies, diapers, cribs, and formula. But once I got a good look at the site, I realized that it offers significantly less than the other the previous two sites I mentioned (not that anything free isn't good, mind you!). The items they offer at this point are: Ultimate Pampers Package, Ultimate Huggies Package, Enfamil, Similac, the Storkcraft 3-in-1 Crib, and the Graco Family Tree Package.
I was interested in learning more about how to receive one of the items so I strolled down further only to be greeted by the terms and conditions. I discovered that in order to receive any of the free baby items, a person must register, complete a user survey then complete "at least 2 Silver, 2 Gold and 4 Platinum offers." Now I'm not a big fan of "completing offers" because it usually means I have to whip out my credit card then mark the calendar to remember to cancel what I never wanted in the first place. Not to mention the difficulty with dealing with customer service reps who want to keep giving you "3 free months." But that's a totally different article.
Aside from having to sign up for offers, it seems to be a good site. It doesn't offer any additional advice or information, but being able to receive one of the items I've mentioned able is certainly a plus - and one more thing than you had before visiting the site!
No matter where you choose to go to find your free baby items, the fact remains - they're free! So when you have some time, check out these free sites along with the dozens of other sites out there that might be of assistance to you. You can even benefit from them without having your own child (can we say free baby items for a shower or two?). But you didn't hear that from me!
