Not to know how to fill the time before baby arrives…

[PlumPudd]

I’m 39 weeks pregnant and am looking for genuinely useful tips / advice on how to spend my days while waiting for baby to come. I’m enjoying a bit of slobbing about (reading books etc.) but there is only so much of this I can do and I’m getting impatient and looking for tips on how to usefully / enjoyably spend the time. Baby obviously could come at any time but realistically it feels like she’ll be another week or two.

To add some context I’ve finished work, everything is largely ready for the baby’s arrival, I don’t want to go too far from home so museums / outings etc aren’t an option and we have a toddler already but he’s in childcare four days a week so that he has some consistency for when the new baby arrives.

So how can I fill this time in a way I will REALLY appreciate after baby is here?

Batch cooking
Organising home things

Definitely batch cook, do a shop and get all your favourite snacks, long baths with a face mask/hair mask, walks for as far as you fancy, get the house in tip top shape ready for the chaos 😉

see friends?

Go to the cinema, alone, with all the snacks. It's one random thing that's harder with DC, as you don't want to have to use a sitter for a couple of hours for a film but going out is still nice.

Make sure cupboards are stocked with plenty of food staples and snack foods. I batch baked muffins, flapjacks and granola bars ready for breastfeeding munchies.

Try and see any close friends/family for a coffee where you can have a thorough catch up before your mind temporarily becomes mush due to sleep deprivation and baby brain

Go swimming. I have great memories of heavily pregnant swims followed by a leisurely coffee and cake in those final weeks. I think keeping active really helped me in labour. I also watched a lot of tele, though!

I did the typical nesting thing of scrubbing every inch of our downstairs floors. Didn't help baby make an appearance but our floors looked brand new and it was very satisfying. And definitely not something I've ever had the time or inclination to do again! Other than that batch cooking, super handy especially if you have a toddler too. Went on loads of walks and for lunches. I just generally enjoyed not being at work and having the downtime and freedom
before baby arrived.

I agree with batch cooking
Pregnancy yoga
Home spa/haircut
Walks

Batch cooking and deep cleaning

Set all your rooms up for comfort. I had a bag or box in every room that I might get stuck in, with baby things and things for me. So e.g. a few muslins, wipes, nappies, blanket for baby. Jumper, slippers, snacks, water, phone charger, nipple cream, breast pads, painkillers etc for me. You can obviously do this by having one caddy that you bring in each room with you, but in the newborn fug I never remembered to do that, and then I got stuck under a sleeping/feeding baby!

just lots of prep!

I would set up a little 'safe zone' for the toddler, near where you will be doing most of the feeding etc so that they can play etc while oyu have your hands full with the baby so toys that they dont need supervision with etc.

Batch cooking/stocking up on snacks and stuff. also other household stuff so you dont have to venture out if not necessary topick up bits
get on top of all washing etc and change all the beds etc

Batch cooking, freezer meal prep (watch The Batch Lady on YouTube) you want food you can just put into a slow cooker or oven, you will not want to be stirring food on the hob. I agree with stocking the cupboards with granola bars or flapjacks, stuff you can grab to eat. There are some extreme meal prep for a month type people on YouTube too, always good to grab ideas from.

Make sure all your basics are in the cupboard, massive bags of pasta , rice, porridge or porridge pots.

Set up a menu plan and a corresponding shopping list that you can just order online. I used to have a 3 week menu plan with some stuff on a 6 week rotation.

Get a thermal mug so your drink stays either hot or lovely and cold.

Watch some videos of life with a newborn to figure out what might work for you in terms of changing supplies, meds you may want and need.

Make sure you have a very comfortable chair/sofa to sit on.

Make the most of it - I'm currently overdue with an almost two-year-old at home because it's half term and he's term time only (I'm a teacher). I'm so tired and really wished the baby would be here by now whilst he was off!!

What are your niggliest, most annoying household things? I think I'd try and fix things that annoy me around the house/create systems and organisation for them, so they're one less thing to think about when I had a newborn - my friend had a full, snotty sobbing breakdown over her toilet flush being slightly wonky about 3 weeks post partum so I'd be aiming to fix the tiny things that could be the tipping point when I was feeling tired!

So for me that'd be:

1. Our airing cupboard is a shitshow and towels are all over the place and some are ancient and good for nothing. I'd get to Home Bargains, get a little stacking drawer/shelf thing, tidy that up so they're not thrown in, cut old ones up for cleaning rags, and stick a nice air freshener/linen scenting thing in there
2. Ditto the cleaning cupboard under the sink. Just chaos with everything thrown in - I'd sort that out, maybe make a little grab box from a little seperate container that was for baby poo/sick accidents with the carpet cleaner, Clorox wipes, etc
3. Properly clean and organise the fridge - buy some of those clear fridge organisers to make a space for expressed milk if relevant
4. Get the windows cleaned/get someone to come and clean the driveway

And then stuff like, toddler toy donation if it's time, getting out toddler's old baby stuff and cleaning/washing if you haven't already.

Then I'd do 'stuff that will save me time and hassle in coming months':

1. Stock my bedside drawer with painkillers, tissues, wipes, snacks, lipbalm, nipple cream, etc etc now - no 2am panic of needing something and having to disturb just-asleep baby to get it
2. Check who has a birthday/anniversary/whatever coming up and buy and write and stamp/address all the cards now. If presents are needed, get those too
3. Get things I use regularly either stocked up - washing powder etc from the bulk buy aisles in Asda/Tesco - or on subscribe & save on Amazon. So washing up liquid, toilet roll, your favourite oat milk, etc etc. I have everything I can on subscription to save me remembering to get them so wherever I could 'automate' a bit of life admin I would
4. Batch cook - specifically breakfast and lunchy things as they're the times you'll presumably be alone with baby (I am assuming your partner isn't taking SPL etc, obviously ignore if they are - they can get you breakfast, haha!). Breakfast burritos/mini frittatas for quick easy protein hits, tons of portions of pasta sauce or green soup or whatever for lunches. Ditto for things the toddler will have for tea - tons of freezable toddler recipes out there
5. Buy some toddler summer clothes now and/or bag up their old stuff and get it to the charity shop/in the loft.

And then I'd go and get my hair done, go and see a film, see my friends!

You could start prepping for Xmas??!! Or just for the birthdays you know you have coming up.

I would spend the mornings decluttering and prepping freezer meals and the afternoons either swimming followed by a cafe visit or going to the movies. Catch up with friends too if any are free.

Personally I'd just laze around as you'll never get this time back, but I get that lots of people prefer to be productive.

Batch cooking - even just dump freezer bags with browned meat and veggies and sauces, laid flat and frozen, to be dumped into the slow cooker every day would help.

Swimming is a lovely idea! And cinema.

I decluttered and deep cleaned the house but that’s not very relaxing!

My sister in law re-glossed all her woodwork on her maternity leave. Mental.

Get a massage and your hair washed and blow dried at a hairdressers. Maybe a pedicure and manicure

Any of the useful suggestions above

Write a letter to the baby and toddler about your hopes and dreams for them

Sleeping 😁

@PlumPudd i was a nester, cleaned and cleaned then cleaned again 🤣.

what I really should have done is batch cooked. Trust me when you’re at home with a new baby, shattered unable to move for feeding, comforting and changing nappies - you will not have time to cook.

you will need good food, you can’t breastfeed (if you decide to) or function on oven pizzas for weeks!

I so wish I had batched cooked and frozen up into meals I could get out to defrost and then bang in microwave or oven.

Batch cooking is a great suggestion. I baked a delicious cake with my extra time (and ate most of it!) you could go for a coffee with a good book perhaps. Could you go shopping for some clothes in the next size up for your toddler and put them away? I have 2 small DC and it’s hard to keep track on what I need to buy for who! You could go for a facial or a manicure as well, I had just had my nails done when I went into labour with DC2 and my nails look great in the hospital pictures 😂

Definitely batch cooking, also declutter, organise and clean everything you have the energy to! Post baby you will be very pleased, albeit it isn’t a fun way to spend time.
Swimming is such a lovely suggestion, I do miss just swimming. I do lessons every week with my boy, and have done since he was 12 weeks old (he’s now 16 months) but it’s always somewhat chaotic! Swimming while heavily pregnant is so lovely too, so light and relaxing.