Thursday, November 5, 2009

Parent's Choice Formula - A Life (and money) Saver!

As a mommy with a newborn and a toddler, I really want what is best for my children.  From the clothes to the toys to the food.  We all know in this economy, the best isn't really always within reach of our budgets.  Mine, especially.  I work full-time, as does Justin, but we are barely scraping by.

I always wanted to breastfeed my children.  It was a dream, a goal, something to look forward to.  With Konnor, I endured 6 weeks of pain and agony trying to breastfeed.  My nipples were simply too big and his mouth too small.  Sure, we tried nipple shields, but that didn't work.  I could never afford a decent pump, so pumping was out of the question as well.  At the time, I was 19 and working at Taco Bell, still living with my mom. 

After those 6 weeks, I gave up.  Feeling defeated and depressed, I went in search of formula.  $25 a can is going to kill me, I remember thinking bitterly on my drive to the store.  At Wal-Mart, I probably read labels for an hour.  When I first saw the Wal-Mart brand formula, Parent's Choice, I didn't even consider it.  But as I read the label, and compared it to that of Similac, I realized there wasn't much difference.

That day, I bought Konnor Parent's Choice Milk-Based Infant Formula w/ Iron.  He loved it!  It was so easy for him to digest, and we never had any problems.  I loved it so much, that when my best friend had her baby, and was unable to breastfeed, I gave her a can to try, and she became hooked as well. 

When I had Ariana, I was determined to give breastfeeding a second shot.  I was prepped and stoked when she was born.  Unfortunately, it didn't even take a week for me to come to the conclusion that we weren't getting anywhere.  Having the same problems as before, I gave up the hope of breastfeeding.  I wasn't as bogged down by it as I was with Konnor, because I knew we had alternatives.  I knew it would be okay that I wasn't meant to breastfeed.

So, again, I made the trip to Wal-Mart.  Ariana started out with the same formula Konnor did.  We noticed she was very fussy and gassy, so we tried Parent's Choice Milk-Based Gentle Formula.  It was suppose to help with the fussiness and the gas.  We gradually moved her over to that formula, but noticed even though it helped, it hadn't solved the problem.  Ariana just has a very sensitive tummy.

A lot of people were telling us we needed to go to soy formula.  Especially my grandma.  I wasn't really ready to try soy, though, and Wal-Mart still had another option.  So we gradually switched her over to Parent's Choice Lactose-Free Sensitive Infant Formula.  We figured if she had problems digesting the lactose (which many babies do) this could be our solution without going to soy.

It worked!  This is what I love about Parent's Choice.  We had options.  One type of formula wasn't working, so we tried another.  And, if we needed it, they offer Organic Formula and even Soy Formula. Not to mention it's about 40% cheaper than the name-brand formulas, but with almost the same nutrition.  We go through about a can of formula a week.  At $15 a can, that adds up FAST!  I couldn't imagine paying the $25 a can - I would go broke!

Want to sample Parent's Choice Formula? Wal-Mart is giving away free samples of Parent's Choice Gentle Formula.  Just follow the link, fill out the form, and they will send you a free sample!  Pretty awesome stuff, and just one more reason why I LOVE Wal-Mart!


1 comments:

Monica said...

Great article! I totally know what you mean about Parent's Choice! I love that they have choices, and all of them are affordable. I wasn't able to breastfeed my twins, and having Parent's Choice was a lifesaver. We were given a National Name Brand at the hospital, so naturally, being a first time mom, I thought that this was what I was supposed to use... and then we needed to buy more.. I had no idea how we were going to pay for all of that We went through a can every couple of days!
Well, we did our research and chose to switch to Parent's Choice. We saved over $1400 in the time that we formula fed our girls.
One thing we know now is that the FDA actually regulates infant formulas, and requires all manufacturers to make them nutritionally equal. So regardless of the price of the formula, you're getting essentially the same product. The main difference in these formulas is the marketing costs behind them.... and when they pay for commercials, or advertisements, they pass that cost on to the consumers.
Check out the Parent's Choice savings calculator! You'll see just how much you save! http://www.parentschoiceformula.com/baby-formula-savings-calculator.aspx