On the "No Tuition Plan"

I have no children.  When people ask me if I do, I always tell them "I'm on the no tuition plan." Thus, I have little experience with babies and can be considered diaper illiterate.  Just recently, two people close to me are going on the tuition plan. My cousins, Jim and Paula, just welcomed a healthy baby boy into this world at the end of May. My husband and I sent them a check toward the first week of diapers.  Well, that's what I jokingly wrote in their card.

Next up, my good buddies, Caleb and Jenn are due to have their own healthy baby boy in July. It's their first child, and they are registered on three baby registry sites.  So, off I went to the computing cloud of baby gifties.  Interestingly enough, they are not registered for diapers.  Not even on the diapers.com site - which carries everything under the sun including diapers.

So, just out of curiosity, and also to see if my joke for my cousins actually carried any relative dollar purchase weight, I checked out the price of diapers.  Wow! Fifty bucks doesn't stretch very far! I did appreciate the unit price breakdown ranging from 17 to 36 cents per diaper.  As  a businesswoman, I naturally started rough calculations and did some quick research. At an average of 50 diapers per week, that's 2600 diapers per year per child.  That's over $900 per year - nearly $100 per month. That's a big dent in any budget even for skilled, dual-income couples. FYI, you cannot buy diapers with WIC funds or food stamps. That's bad news for the poor -- especially the single mom on one or no income.  You think they stretch out the use of each diaper to cut down on the overall expense?  Surely they do.  Diaper rash, infections, and overall poor hygiene result.

So, I'm thinking, I'll direct some of my "no tuition plan" disposable income toward disposable diapers for those in need. Next time you see or hear a plea to support a United Way diaper drive, think about how uncomfortable that poor little kid is wearing that dirty diaper hour after hour, because mommy has to choose between feeding him and dipping into that $50 box of diapers.

Support diaper drives.  Learn more at http://www.middlesexunitedway.org/activities/drives.

Oh, and if you're reading this, Jenn and Caleb, you're getting diaper money for your sweet baby James!