What to do with "free days" before giving birth

[Howdidido]

So 39 weeks. Just finished work. Thought I'd just want to slob around but actually feels like such a waste. What sort of things did you do with your "time off"?
Limitations:
Got everything ready for birth And baby (I think!)
Can't walk very far
Weather's not great.
I've had the obligatory lie in. Have to pick up DD at 5.

Be a mummy who lunches.
Pictures.
Pampering and sleep.

Definitely get your hair done. Currently sitting here with DS (6 months) and desperately need a haircut!

If you're batch cooking bake up some easy muffins and pop in the freezer - really handy to defrost in the microwave and eat during feeding sessions.

Bath
Sleep
Chill out
Take a spontaneous walk (next few years will be impossible to just pop out)
And rest.
I regret my lack of rest before my kids came. Haven't relaxed in about five years
And very good luck to you, despite the obvious knackered times ahead it's still great

Sleep, sleep, SLEEP!!!
(I have a newborn and he doesn’t do sleep...)

You’re batch cooking so that’s great but I also loved having a good declutter. I sorted every cupboard, drawer etc. in every room. He’s now 16 months old and I had another declutter recently and it was just baby stuff! I was so happy I had a good sort out before DS was born! I only had one more spare day and I spent that sewing a felt picture for his nursery and making felt bunting. Then when he was here I spent my spare time cuddling on the sofa watching Netflix.

Sounds boring but I did a massive food shop, like a months worth, as I knew I wouldn’t want to go to food shopping just after having DD.
It was a brilliant decision as we had everything in and therefore didn’t have to leave the house for a few weeks after DD was born.

Sleep,
Watch films
Read
Have long showers.

All those things you can't do with a new baby :)

I always want to make a directory of my house.

Like a list of all the bits and bobs we have and where we keep them in the house.

E.g.
Kitchen scissors - Draw 1, Kitchen
Parcel scissors - Sideboard cupboard 1, Lounge
Nail scissors

etc, etc. Colour coded, natch.

Then I would make my husband revise it, and learn it etc.

Downside and upside simultaneously being that our conversation would be cut in half.

My aunt also sits down with her diary in January and writes ALL of her birthday cards for the following year, then puts them in her organiser, ready addressed, with a post it for sending date. I tried this once, but only got as far as buying all of the cards. (before anyone comments about wifework, I only do my side's cards, I never do his, and in spite of employing no system whatsoever, my husband manages to do his on time).

Haircut and dye. Wax your legs or whatever. Theatre if there’s anything you fancy. Cinema is the one thing that’s easy with a baby if you have a Watch With Baby near you - I watched more films in the first six months of my DCs’ lives than I ever have before or since.

Sleeeeeeeeeeeep!

I have a 3 week old and i need sleeeeeeeeep!

And yes, sort out thank you cards so you can do them in seconds after the event.

Cinema
Hair cut
Pedicure
Batch cook
Stock up on essentials
Eat cake

I planned to clean the house top to bottom, but he decided to come 2 weeks early instead.
Honestly, just chill with the TV or read loads of books while you don't have a baby attached to you and can pay attention to what's going on 😂

Sleep.
De-clutter.

These are all sensible ideas. And thanks. I will do some of them
I just wish they were more exciting!

Batch cooking

If you have any nice maternity clothes you want to sell - I took nice pictures of them and did descriptions so when was ready to sell them I just uploaded them to selling sites quickly

I did a lot of going out for nice lunches by myself with a decent book, it was so nice to be able to take the time to eat without interruptions! I know some people arent that keen on eating out by themselves but doesnt bother me.

Cinema is a good one if you're into films

If theres anything fancy you want to cook like a birthday cake for someone in the next couple months you could crack on and freeze it

I think I went swimming a bit as well as i found being in the water really helped my aches and pains

Week 39:
Play computer games/ internet in my underwear in a 15oC house as unable to leave my house without being chauffered (due to ice, SPD, and no longer squeezing behind a steering wheel) and had long outgrown most of my maternity clothes.

Undertake gymnastic feats such as working out how to reach the kitchen tap from different angles as my arms weren't long enough to reach the tap from the conventional angle.

Eat mince pies and despair when the online delivery ran out.

Nap to compensate for not sleeping for an hour in a row due to waking up to reactivate dead limbs due to carpal tunnel syndrome, then heave my gigantuan body over before repeating an hour later. 2 hours between newborn baby feeds was sheer decadence.

Get a taxi to aquanatal, find out it's cancelled and it's a lengths session in the main pool. Ask the lifeguard if I can do lengths with a float as I can normally swim a mile, but with 8lb+ of fully formed human in their own olympic swimming pool inside me, I have lost all boyancy.

Order even more maternity bras because I've just gone up a cup size for the 5th time and need more for the hospital bag.

No reading: brain too tired. No crafting: hands numb. No TV, too uncomfortable to sit to watch on a dining chair, and unless there was someone in the house to pull me off the sofa as I was otherwise beached on it.

Exist.

Despair that pregnancy goes on for everrrrrr

Get random warm up symptoms.

Spend a couple of days labouring and end up with a EMCS anyway.

It was not a fun week. I did not glow