How to fill mat leave pre baby?

[Matleaveprep]

I start mat leave next week. Looking for ideas/prompts on how to spend any days before baby arrives.

I'm not good at not being busy 🫣 even finding it tough at work this week as everything is winding down. I thought by this point I'd want more chill time but it seems not. I also hoped I could to do the things which would be trickier when a new baby arrived like go for walks and explore the area but sadly finding it quite uncomfortable to drive or walk far so these things don't feel very appealing. I live rurally so most things are a drive away. There are a few pregnancy classes on around here but they're all evening things, it's the daylight hours I'm trying to fill.

• Have been cooking/baking meals and snacks for the last few weeks so that's pretty much done. Freezer is well stocked.
• Have everything we need for the baby, all washed and put away.
• Hospital bag is packed.
• Nursery is decorated.
• Birth preferences written out.
• Visited local childcare places /got on the waiting list.
• We moved last year and did a huge amount of decluttering and organising as part of that.
• Am not getting that nesting drive to clean everything from top to toe but have been trying to work my way through the 'often overlooked' jobs just so they're done.
• I currently swim twice a week, so will up that but that still leaves a lot of hours!
• Someone suggested booking a massage or something but that's still basically only going to take a tiny bit of time

Have found some third trimester stretches and things I'm looking forward to having more time for but otherwise feel like I'm going to be bored out of my mind.

Any other ideas?

Solo cinema trip (s) - mine are 3 and 1 and I miss these 😂

I relished the time to sit on my bum, and rewatched all of ER and learned to crochet. It was winter though so felt ok.

I had a haircut, wax, eyebrow shape, manicure and pedicure!

My honest advice - go for lunch, coffee, shopping, anything you like to do as everything is harder as a baby, don’t get me wrong I could still do all those things on mat leave but it was lovely being able to have me time before she came

I did an exam...in community child health as it happens. My job had ended on 31st January and baby was born 20th April. This was 33 years ago. I also did my IUD insertion training. Arriving at the family planning clinic at 36 weeks pregnant was quite amusing...the reception staff didn't quite know what to do....they're like....you're a bit late!!

Not exactly what you asked but make plans for the couple of weeks after your 'due' date as well, even just coffee with friends or something (friends who wouldn't mind a last minute cancellation) Much better to have things planned in than twiddling your thumbs, the waiting beyond that date only gets harder.

Much like PP, I cooked, went to the cinema, wandered around town (slowly!), had reflexology - just enjoyed having the time to myself really!

Get your hair done.
Massage and pedicure.
Bikini wax (if thats for you)
Go for lunch and coffee
Practice fitting the car seat and putting the pram up and down. (If you have a dog, take it a few walks with the pram).

I went off on mat leave this time last year at 37 weeks and baby didnt arrive until almost 42 weeks so had a lot of time. Honestly, enjoy the long lies or daytime naps. Binge netflix. I also had a number of appointments to attend in the final weeks.

Make a list and put it in order of preference as you dont know when baby may arrive!

Bounce on your ball, long walks, spicy food, raspberry leaf tea. None worked for me but did fill some time 😂

Oh, I also took the car for a valet and made sure the tyres had air and plenty of fuel!

Not exactly what you asked but can you postpone your leave start? For exactly this reason, I worked until less than a week before my due date with my second. You'll need the leave more when you've got your baby.

Anything that raises your oxytocin. It’s such an important hormone in the onset and establishment of labour.

So do whatever makes you feel happy, safe and loved.

Any option to work longer? I worked till 39 weeks happily and then didnt start labour til 41 weeks. Would have gone mad waiting any longer.

Read a book for pleasure. Do anything you especially want to do early on- I had bought ingredients to batch cook meals, but my son arrived 2 weeks early, so I never ended up with much time before he was born to do anything in the end 🙈😂

Congratulations! I hope you have an easy time of it and an easy baby too.

Not a cheerful task, but often delayed/put off: if you have not already, see a solicitor and make a will.

If you’re thinking of BFing at all you could go to your local BFing Support group and meet some local Mums & Mums to Be.

You can also go to local playgroups when you’re still PG. Ours used to love PG women coming along and it’s a good chance to meet everyone and get used to what happens before LO arrives.

Have a look to see if there is anything like prenatal yoga or aqua aerobics locally.

Amd like others have said, have your hair done. I had a pedicure as I figured I’d be looking at my feet a bit during labour and I wanted them to look nice

When I was PG with DC2 I read Baby Calming which works however you feed your LO

That is a very, very good point.

@Kingdomofsleep @Peonies12 Sadly no option to extend working, definitely would have taken that one!

@tarheelbaby Excellent point on the wills, good reminder for everyone! Did mine as part of the house move. Will update when baby arrives but I think sorted for now.

@sobermum23 @Unicornorange Cinema trip is a great shout, I like going to the cinema alone anyway. I bet they're cool ATM too!! Wondering if my local one does day time showings 🤔 Will look into this.

@Musicaltheatremum 🤣 well done you!!

@ExplodingSmittens I did find a breastfeeding group but I wasn't sure if it was weird being there without the baby. I really don't know many people locally yet though so now you've said this I will brave it. Thanks for the comment!

@Sesame2011 getting the car valeted is actually high on the list for early next week as it's being exchanged for something more car seat and buggy friendly 😍

Personal grooming is all done pretty regularly anyway so am up to date there. Have just chopped about 40cm of hair for charity so definitely don't need anymore off at this point 🤪

I did have some crafting stuff squirrelled away to make baby a blanket, but strangely june doesn't feel like the right month to be knitting! 🥵 I'll get it out though so it's visually in front of me and maybe I'll get inspired.

Oxytocin activities is a good prompt too. The things which make me the most happy are time with people I love and exploring wild and beautiful places. Both of which are pretty tricky right now with schedules and more limited mobility 🤔

No idea for mine I left work then had the babies the next week.

Perhaps start planning for a trip with the baby to explore some local beauty spots. Perhaps research those hiking toddler carriers or plan some nice walks for later in maternity leave. You don’t have to book anything, or even do the things you plan, but thinking about it could help.

@Happymchappyface that's a fun idea! Thank you!

I was nowhere near as organised as you seem to be so I had lots still left to do when I started maternity leave! Very envious that you sound so on top of things!

Would learning about baby care be helpful? I enjoyed watching vlogs on YouTube like 24 hours with a new born to get an idea of what my life might look like. Or maybe a baby care book that tells you how to bath them etc? I also read The Positive Birth book to prepare for birth and some other fiction in the run up. Maybe get ahead with birthdays/occasions? Card and presents ready? My poor husband didn't even get his presents wrapped as his birthday was 3 weeks after I'd given birth!

It’s not weird at all. I would go along and have a cuppa and a chat.

At least that way you might meet a few local Mums before LO arrives

Lie down and do nothing is the best advice I would give now.

Hmm, you might just pop as soon as you finish work. I had exactly 12 hours of maternity leave. Twice.

But in the spirit of the thread let's hope you have time to get bored 😁

Dentist check up, hygienist apt, optician's check up.
Hair cut
List of people you want to notify re baby - for email or messaging
In extremis - write your Christmas cards
Buy birthday presents. Set up card reminders on Moonpig
Visit childminders and nurseries - many are very oversubscribed and you can't put a name down until the baby is born.
Buy a Nespresso coffee cup with a lid for warm drinks.
Floor scrubbing kit in case you need to get your bottom in the air to move the baby's position. <one way of guaranteeing that floor never gets scrubbed though a friend did completely refinish her decking when she was overdue>

Meal planning - quick lunches and dinners you can eat with a fork only, you can make in seconds so you can snooze or your partner can produce.
When your brain has turned to mush and you are looking at a fridge full of food and can think of NOTHING to make that is nutritious as you will be craving sugar and carbs.
Set up a supermarket delivery service.
Buy a robot hoover in Amazon sales.

@DontBuyAnotherBook I can do that for about 20 minutes before I'm either physically or mentally uncomfortable. Apparently I should practice so I'm ready to be trapped by a feeding baby, but I think I'd rather deal with that when it happens rather than in advance 🤣

Racking my brains now as my kids are teens [yay - different set of challenges though]

I found some stuff on line during the wee hours of breastfeeding that was really useful [ruined my eyesight reading Lord of the Rings on an iPhone so get a kindle if you don't have one]

Wonder Weeks - key stages for baby development where they suddenly become a bit of a nightmare, feed non stop and you generally are despairing having just got them into a bit of a routine.
https://kellymom.com This website was insanely useful for troubleshooting.
https://thewonderweeks.com
Mumsnet obviously.