Share your pre-birth rituals with Fairy Non Bio – chance to win a £300 voucher NOW CLOSED

[JustineBMumsnet]

Fairy Non Bio is sponsoring the Mumsnet Talk App, and would like you to talk about the pre-birth rituals you had (or have!) with the impending arrival of your little one. Did you wash all of the tiny new baby clothes you’d bought, then carefully fold and hang them? Maybe you manically cleaned the house in preparation or over-eagerly try and toddler proof the house? Perhaps you bulk-made meals so that you could relax once your baby arrived?

Here’s what Fairy Non Bio have to say: “Fairy Non Bio is good for anyone who wants a softer, more sensitive wash (that still leaves clothes clean!). Its gentle formula promises to be kind to both your clothes, and to yours and your new baby’s skin”

So, alongside the Fairy Non Bio sponsorship of the Mumsnet Talk App, they’d like you to talk about the pre-birth rituals you’ve had. If you avidly check out Mumsnet's talk boards, you should download the app for yourself. It's free, and allows you to be part of the conversation wherever you are!

All those who post below will be entered into a prize draw where one MNer will win a £300 Love2Shop voucher.

Thanks and good luck with the prize draw!

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I was obsessed with the bag I packed to take with me to the hospital. Paranoid that I had forgotten to put something essential in it and constantly packing and unpacking it.

I had an Indian head massage after 37 weeks so the beauty therapist could do full pressure without worrying about triggering premature labour. So relaxing, and DC still didn't come out for another week!

I washed all my little girls stuff in Fairy non bio , I also had everybody in the house running around cleaning and tidying . My daughters now 7 years old and I can only use fairy non bio on all our washing as anything else sets of her eczema

With DD I had contractors in doing works as I was due to give birth (not intentionally, it was supposed to have been finished 2 months before). As such I spent most of the run up to the birth scrubbing floors and cleaning so that the babies room was fine when she was born (thanks a lot bathstore) I suspect being on all fours may have assisted early labour.
I had no real pre- birth rituals as such, it just seems to happen

I cleaned the house from top to bottom, and got everything in the nursery clean and ready.

I washed all the baby clothes.
Made sure everything was ready for baby.
Slept for England
Had full pampering session the day before I was due to go in to hospital to be induced.

I had pre-eclampsia first time round and ended up hospitalised at 34 weeks which was when I realised I had nothing prepared at all. I was 3 days into maternity leave and expecting to have at least a month to get everything ready and suddenly all that went out of the window. I had to enlist my sister to buy nursing bras, small babies clothes and nappies etc as DH was beside himself with worry and I couldn't send him to the vending machine, never mind proper shopping. I didn't even have car seat/pram etc. So most of the preparation ended up being done after the birth, with baby in tow.

I never had any nesting instincts kick in at all - although I think my husband still wishes to this day that they did!

Knit a baby blanket and a full set of outfits. Wash all the new baby items. Get a haircut and a pedicure.

I had a month off work before my due date. I had a lie in until half 9, had a yummy breakfast and nice warm bath and then was dressed by 12pm. The rest of the day was spent keeping the house spotless and cooking slimming world friendly meals to pop in the recently defrosted freezer. I'd go for a gentle walk or little go of my indoor bike to keep relatively fit.

I already washed my little boy's clothes and had them in size order by the time I was 7 months pregnant I was so excited about his wardrobe I couldn't help myself!

I nested like mad, scrubbing every single surface by hand. It was completely irrational. I have a steam mop and could easily have had the floors cleaned in minutes but decided that hands and knees with elbow grease would be better. I also walked aimlessly for miles because I was convinced that the baby would come easier if I walked. Reading it back I think pregnancy addled my brain somewhat.

I worked until the end and made sure the house was pristine with lots of batched cooked meals in the freezer which were a real saviour both times. I wish I'd had a little more relaxing time. I seemed to stress alot particularly about baby covers and sleep covers??

DC1 I washed his clothes but he arrived early and my hospital bag wasn't packed, I asked my DH to bring me a t-shirt - he bought me something that was from when I was super skinny and weighed 7stone - so with DC2 I was ready, hospital bag packed, clothes cleaned, au pair installed.

We have a rental property and were getting in new tenants the day I went into labour with DC2, they were a total pain and wouldn't move in until I'd cleaned the oven again (it was pretty immaculate) because inside the glass wasn't clean enough. At 37 weeks I had to walk around (not too fat but still about a mile with a toddler) and unscrew the door and take the two bits of glass apart and clean them. I just sat there sobbing, I was so tired and bending hurt.

My ritual would've involved shaving legs, getting bikini line done and having a pedicure along with preparing hopistal bag, washing babies clothes and planning a going-home-from hospital outfit for the baby.

It turned out my baby was 6 weeks early and I was still in work at the time and had done none of the above. Turned up to hospital with only my work handbag

Made me realise that a ritual wasn't that important in the greater scheme of things and my world didn't end because I gave birth with hairy legs

Just cleaning cleaning cleaning and generally being paranoid in my preparation and indescribably difficult to live with no doubt

I decorated the living room shortly before 3dc where due but with dc4 I had a swap around of bedrooms then decorated them. Well I didn't do it cus I had SPD, I just barked orders at DH and bil while they did it then had a melt down when things weren't going to plan.

I had a batch cooking session. I have 3 slow cookers and this enabled me to cook and freeze multiple meals. A life saver when you have a very clingy, breast-fed baby!

Cleaning and lovingly petting baby clothes

I set up the pram and test drove it around the living room several times! I also set up the snuzpod and made it every night with lovely blankets and teddy, just gazing longingly at it!! I miss my tiny babies in their pod!

Washed all the clothes, tidied the house, sorted through older DCs stuff to make room in bedrooms. General preparation.

Some friends have written a letter to their baby with hopes and plans.

I washed all the clothes and organised them into size order- DD1 had everything hung up in order!
DS nearly as organised but DD2 not quite so much 😂
I also did a hypnobirthing course with DD2 which was amazing. I still have my birth affirmations which were laminated and put up all over the house 😍

Sorted out all the baby clothes by age and type, kept checking that the breast pump was working and checking and rechecking the contents of my hospital bag.

I didn't do a lot except try to prepare the dog! I walked to the park with an empty pram and him on the lead to get him used to it. I walked really quickly so nobody could look in and see it was empty! Before we bought baby home we led him on a blanket and then brought the blanket home for the dog to get used to the smell. My family thought I was nuts but my dog was my baby first! They are best chums now so it was worth it

Washed all the baby bits, have a good sort out and tried to catch up with a load of TV I have taped.

I cleared out the spice cupboard both times as I didn't want to risk out of date turmeric post birth! Seriously though, I made myself believe I would never get the chance again...now I think I might get the chance but just not the same burning desire to clear every cupboard and to throw stuff out!