Preparing for Baby’s Arrival

We have entered the last month of pregnancy, and I am in full preparation mode. I have washed, packed, and organized just about everything you can think of. Sure, some may call this nesting, but this is just the planner in me, and preparing for baby takes a lot of guess work out of what is soon to come!

Meal Prep

I have heard friends talk about being in “survival mode” for the first few weeks with baby. The first thing you need for survival: food! I pre-made some casseroles and put them in the freezer with written instructions on the lid for defrosting and cooking. This will make it easy for anyone to just throw dinner in the oven without having to think too much about it. The two casseroles I have done so far are my Antelope Hamburger Helper (recipe to come, hopefully) and an Alfredo Spaghetti Squash Casserole.

Assemble Baby Gear

I put together baby gear that I plan on using as soon as I bring her home. First off, the Halo Bassinest. This one was slightly challenging. It’s pretty heavy so I had Milton bring the box into the living room. From there I was able to unpack it and put it together. However, I let him carry it back to the guest bedroom because that thing isn’t light. I also put together the Rock N Play. It was super easy! I’ve heard from a lot of moms that they loved this thing for baby while they’re new. 

I charged and set up a few electronics like the baby monitor and a portable sound machine. Once I had the baby monitor up and running I set the camera on a shelf in the nursery to position it correctly on the crib. To make this easier I put a stuffed animal in the center of the crib to get an idea of baby’s visibility. Granted, I’ll probably use the monitor elsewhere before she is sleeping in her crib, but I wanted to get an idea of what I was working with.

I practiced using my car seat by strapping in a teddy bear of mine. Yes, one of my teddy bears. I read a girl’s post about being so nervous when she was in the hospital about to bring her baby home. She said multiple nurses were watching her while she was strapping her baby in the car seat, and they couldn’t help her because it is a liability. This Youtube video was super helpful.

Milton and I both got our cars washed and detailed before installing the car seat. For those of you in the South Houston area, we went to Hugh and Jeff’s Carwash Bar & Grill. It was awesome because there was a really long wait, but we ate crawfish and hung out at the bar (lemonade for me) until our cars were done. I can’t even begin to explain how badly my car needed to be vacuumed. It feels like I have a clean slate now, just for baby to eventually make a big mess in the back seat…but I won’t mind! That’s what car mats are for.

Postpartum Prep

Ok, let’s talk about the not so fun stuff. I bought myself some really cheap Fruit of the Loom underwear (because they will get ruined) and a pack of Always Discreet underwear at Walmart. I’ve been told that both of these are a must for postpartum, and I will need them as soon as I get home from the hospital. If you follow me on stories, you know I gave up on the cutesie lacy undies a while ago. My body is just different now, and those just weren’t comfortable for me anymore. I fully embrace a strong panty line every day.

Wash Clothes and Feeding Supplies

I washed literally everything of baby’s that I could with the Noodle and Boo Ultra Safe Laundry Detergent. Here’s a rough list of what all went into the wash:

• Hats
• Onesies
• Pants
• Blankets
• Crib Sheets
• Bassinet Sheets
• Swaddles
• Burp Cloths
• Wash Cloths
• Bath Towels
• Socks
• Mittens
• Literally anything else that could go in the wash

Then I opened and washed a lot of her feeding supplies. I plan on breast feeding, but I registered for bottles and nipples as well. All things feeding needed to be washed and sterilized before use. This includes bottles (and all the random pieces that go with them), nipples, pacifiers, and pump parts. To keep everything together on the top rack I used a couple of dishwasher baskets made for small parts. Then I used drying racks before putting everything away in her drawer.

Hospital Bags

I got baby’s hospital bag together first. This was easier since I had more of her stuff. I talked to my best friend Jessica who has three little ones of her own. I combined her list of suggestions with a few other things I read on other blogs. After we bring baby home I will do a separate blog post on hospital bags. That way I can share what I did and didn’t need, because I anticipate overpacking and not needing a few things I throw in there.

As for my hospital bag, it is a work in progress. I have set aside clothes that I want for the hospital, but haven’t gotten together toiletries (I still need those day to day). I’m going to make a list of the last minute things to grab and tape it to my bathroom mirror (Jessica’s idea). This way if Milton ends up being the one to get my stuff he will know what to grab and throw in there. Again, I’ll include what I packed in a future blog post when I have more perspective on it.