important things to get done before baby arrives

[flymo79]

anyone got any "I wish I'd done that before the baby arrived" tips? am thinking along the lines of making sure we both know how car seat works, doing a big shop etc.....

Is that a special pillow for resting your snacks on whereisshe?

Does anyone know what the strongest over the counter painkillers are the don't affect breast milk?

*that, not the

Go out to dinner (not that you will have much room for it).

Seriously - it'll be the last one for a while.

Thread title made me laugh.....I'm going through a nesting frenzy at the moment. 30 wks pregnant and been on my hands and knees all evening scrubbing skirting boards that I haven't cleaned in years but HAD to clean them now. Also couldn't sleep last night thinking that I NEED new hand towels in the bathroom....cue trip to John Lewis today to buy said towels......I also have a list of house tasks now. Poor DH!

Go for lunch with a different friend every single day. Enjoy the last days of pregnancy. I'm hindsight I forgot to enjoy pregnancy as I couldn't wait for the baby to arrive. Take lots of pictures of you and your other half with your fabulous big bump.

Definitely spend quality time with your OH!

The only other thing I'd do is sleep as much as possible. I wasn't prepared for how drained I'd feel and could have done with some sleep banked. My DS wouldn't sleep unless he was held for weeks so I couldn't really sleep when he did.

Some very good tips on here. Something I found useful was having a nappy changing station (wicker basket with nappies, wipes, sacks) ready for use when you get back from hospital upstairs and downstairs. So two changing mats. One for changing at nights in our bedroom and the other stayed in the lounge / dinning room downstairs.

Was brilliant as it meant I didn't have to lug it all around the house or keep going up or down to change nappies. Same goes for clothes. I emptied some drawers in our tv cabinet for spare vests and babygrows as babies need so many changes in a day and it saved time running up and down when they have wee or poo on themselves

Have a dry run with equipment....pram....steriliser....how all the gadgets work.

Sleep.

BackRoads if by snacks you euphemistically mean piles then yes

Few little things I did

I bought cream boxes with lids (large ones) and a label maker.

I labelled them 0-3 3-6 6-9 months etc

I was therefore able to see if I had too many 3-6 and did some exchanges. It worked out great as baby grew as quick as a mushroom so I didn't really waste gifts, just changed for larger.

Do up the nursery.

I bought a large plastic display holder from amazon with little pockets so all cards were displayed but nice and neat ( ie. I could open windows etc without them blowing all over the place)

We did our baptismal course and made preliminary enquiries for christening venues and wanted bsby christened soon after birth

Buy some post natal clothes and a few treat (nice handcream, pretty earrings)

I didn't bother with a formal nappy bag but bought a pretty carry bag. S,e of the current beach bags woud be ideal.

We booked. We booked a newborn baby shoot well in advance. Was well worth it.

Wishing you a safe and healthy pregancy and delivery

Although I agree it would be good to sleep, I do remember getting seriously pissed off when everyone was advising me to sleep as much as possible when heavily pregnant and I had to wake up every hour or so to roll over and was exhausted constantly. Getting up for a newborn was easier for me!

Like this

Oh I see whereisshe that's a bit disappointing!! Where do you pre order said cushion from? I've had piles before so wonder if it'd be a good idea to order one before DC1 arrives?

This is a really useful thread. Loads of things on here to get cracking with before baby arrives!

BackRoads I bought mine from amazon. It was invaluable - the only thing I could comfortably sit on for about a fortnight. An hour of pushing to get DD out was not good for the piles situation . I also highly recommend condoms filled with water and frozen (not inserted just rested gently on the area) - much better than ice packs as more malleable and a better shape. Also disposable.

I did a load of 'personal admin' stuff that I thought it might be hard to do with a newborn in tow. Some of it was boring and necessary (opticians, dentist) but some of it also had the added bonus of making me feel good (hairdressers, beautician).

I am 35w with baby number 2, number 1 is in child are today so I am currently still in bed after going back for a nap, will nip into town later for eyebrow threading, bit of a mooch and coffee.

I also have planned a stock take of freezer, fill it up, hairdresser and pedicure. Was going attempt a lone trip to the cinema at some point over next few weeks but there doesn't seem to be anything good on.

Watching this thread with interest! Thanks for all the tips so far! I had just mentioned to my dh y'day that I wanted to book a newborn photo shoot.

Lounge in the pub garden for most of the day with DH/DP/friends, have a nice lunch a few fake beers and then go to the cinema.

Male a phone call to a friend who you know you will speak to for at least an hour.

Make any other important calls that you would like to make uninterrupted.

Have a long bath on your own with no interruptions or baby monitor sitting within hear shot.

Do a few enjoyable things on the spur of the moment, especially if it's a friend calling to say 'meet you at so and so in 5 minuets?'.

Set up a shopping list on Ocardo so when the house is empty of food and you are delirious with tiredness you can press just 1 button and food will appear the following day.

Have a day for yourself, get your hair done and enjoy the whole experience.
Go on a date with your DP or even a weekend away.

Batch cook.

Save an online shopping list so you just have book a slot and pay.

Practice putting the carseat in the car.

Lunch with friends, great for relaxing and maybe a while before you feel upto it again.

Buy lots of tea, coffee and sugar ready for the visitors. Tell them they can only come if they bring cake!

Before first baby n will do again in 4wks before had him I cooked meals for dinner that could be batch cooked n frozen so didn't especially batch co ok just chose dinners wisely we froze alot stuff into foil disposable trays to save on washing up as well n also had several Pyrex dishes with plastic lids that stack well - was handy once husband back at work.

If you aren't planning to go back to work after ML, or if there's the smallest possibility that you might not go back, then update your CV now and collect and note down examples of when you did wonderfully accomplished things or displayed particular skill sets at work. Trying to remember and pull together all that stuff after you've had a few years' career break is a lot more difficult than you might think.

For me: buy a microwave and a larger freezer.

See ALL your mates.

Have lots of baths.

I won't say sleep cause I don't know who these people are who can sleep in late pregnancy, I wasn't one of them!

Go out for dinner.

Treat yourself to a massage.

Take pictures of your bump - in years to come you won't believe how big it was!

Oh yeah and maybe some cleaning or something. Well get someone else to do that.