15 More Things to Do Before Your Baby is Born

15 more things to do before your baby is born: a great list of things to do before your baby is born so that you can be prepared!

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My second most popular post is called 25 Things to Do Before Your Baby is Born. It has almost 750,000 views since I posted it two years ago. It’s the post that made me realize I could actually blog, and I consider it the start of me becoming a mommy blogger.

Since I posted it two years ago, I’ve had another baby, and thought of more ideas to add to the list. So today I want to get right to it and share 15 more things to do before your baby is born!

1. Set up baby’s room. When your baby is born, you want to make sure that their nursery is ready! You don’t want to come home to a room that isn’t completely set up, because honestly, you are not going to want to set it up after you have just given birth. It doesn’t have to be fancy, but you want it to be somewhere peaceful that you will enjoy being in. Before our daughter was born, I put together her gold, mint, and pink nursery. I did a lot of the decorations myself, and it was really easy. It was nice having it all done before she was born, and it’s a great way to stay busy with that nesting instinct!

2. Pick out baby’s “going home outfit.” And also bring a backup! For our son, we had this super cute little outfit picked out. Unfortunately, the bottoms were way too big and we had to bring him home in a little sleeper. For our daughter, we brought a little dress and it fit great. You can’t be sure how big or small your baby is going to be, so bring two outfits that will work. It’s so fun picking it out while you are pregnant and imagining how your little one will look in it!!

3. Decide where your baby is going to sleep when she comes home. For the first few nights with our son, he slept on our floor next to the bed in a little bassinet. We had planned that, so we had it all ready when we came home from the hospital. With our daughter, we decided to put her in her crib the first night. It doesn’t make a huge difference where you put them, but you want to be ready when you get home. Whether it’s a crib, a portable bassinet, or a pack n’ play, just know where you are going to put your baby when you get home from the hospital.

4. Set up a designated changing station. You want to make sure you have a place that will have wipes, diapers, and diaper cream handy. And if you’re having a boy, you want to include some gauze pads and ointment for post-circumcision care. If you have a single-level home, you can just set up one spot in the baby’s nursery (probably a changing table). If you have multiple levels in your house, it might be best to set up a spot on each floor. That way you won’t have to always be running around when baby needs a change. It might seem silly that I’m including this on the list, but it’s really nice to have everything in one place!

5. Buy Baby Tylenol. When your baby gets his shots, you are going to feel super bad for him. He will cry and it will be so sad, and you will just want to take away his pain. Buy some Baby Tylenol so that when the time comes and your baby is in pain, you will have it right there and you will have a way to help. And make sure you ask your pediatrician before you give it to your baby. Dosage is different for little babies!

6. Make a baby registry. One of the best parts of being pregnant is getting to register for your baby. Amazon has a special baby registry program called the Shop Amazon – Create an Amazon Baby Registry. With their baby registry, you can add items from any website (which means you can pretty much add anything!) and there are free 90-day returns on Baby Store purchases. And one of my favorite parts about it is that 60 days before your due date, if there is anything you haven’t received off of your registry, they will send you a discount code for 10% off so you can buy them yourself. I love their program and I can’t imagine a better way to register for your baby! And a special tip, add big things you might like to your registry because sometimes people will buy you big things! If you need ideas on what to add, check out these posts about what to add to your baby registry and the best baby items we ever purchased.

7. Take maternity photos. When I was pregnant with Little J, I gained 50 pounds. So I knew that when I was pregnant the second time, I wanted to be healthier and take better care of myself. Consequently, I only gained 35 pounds with my second baby. And I felt so much better! One thing that I loved during doing my second pregnancy was getting maternity pictures taken. Pregnancy is such a unique (although crazy) time in your life, and I recommend getting maternity photos taken during at least one of your pregnanices! If you want some inspiration, check out my maternity photo shoot.

8. Decide a way to document your baby’s growth. Something I have loved doing with both of my babies is taking monthly pictures to document their growth. And thanks to Pinterest, there are so many great ideas out there for ways to do it. Next to a teddy bear, on a blanket, with monthly stickers, or even in their crib. I’m going to share a roundup of my favorite ideas next week, but until then, just search Pinterest. The first month goes by so fast, and you’ll want to have an idea ready for how you’re going to document your baby’s growth! (Check out this roundup of ideas for monthly baby photos)

9. Clean your car. After your baby is born, you are not going to want to (or have time to) clean your car. My friend Katelyn from What’s Up Fagans wrote a great post about how to properly clean your car before your baby is born, and I love the tips she shares. It’s something you might not think about, but it makes a huge difference to have a clean car after your baby is born. One less thing to worry about, and it definitely will give you something to do while you’re waiting for baby to get here!

10. Stock up on essentials. Things like toilet paper, laundry detergent, shampoo, and conditioner are super easy to stock up on before your baby is born. If you are anything like me, you are going to avoid going to the store for the first few weeks after your baby is born. So having essentials that you can’t really live without already in your house is going to help. And if you forget (or have a small house with not a lot of storage), check out Amazon Prime Pantry. You can get essentials at great prices delivered right to your house if you are a member of Amazon Prime. It’s perfect for new moms who don’t want to leave the house!

11. Let family members know when you want them to come. When you have a newborn, the last thing you want is a million family members coming to your house all at the same time. So let them know when the best time to come is, especially if they live far away. For both of our kids, we had our parents come at separate times so that our house wasn’t super full. And if you are totally fine with having everyone over at once, then let them know. You are the parent now and you are allowed to tell people when they can and can’t come over. If you need some more tips about this (or this makes you anxious, like me!), check out this post.

12. Pre-register at the hospital. One of the most helpful things we did for both our babies was to pre-register at the hospital. We sent in all of my medical information and insurance paperwork so that when it was time to go, we only had to sign a few papers before we were checked in. Call your hospital (or ask your OB) to see if you can pre-register because it really makes a difference when you check in at the hospital! Especially if you are in a hurry!

13. Have a baby shower. Having a baby shower is another super fun part of being pregnant. If nobody has offered to throw you one, ask a close friend or your mom or mother-in-law to host one for you. Especially if it’s your first baby, you want to get as much help on buying things as you can! And if it’s your second baby, ask someone to throw you a diaper shower! My two best friends threw me a diaper shower when I was pregnant with Little A, and it was awesome to have people buy us diapers since we had everything else we needed!

14. Buy undies you don’t care about. If you haven’t already heard from other moms or your doctor, post-pregnancy is rough on your body. Specifically, it’s rough on your lady parts. You pretty much have a super heavy long period for a while, and even though the hospital does give you some disposable mesh panties, you might want to have some extra cheap ones as backup just in case. Make sure they are cotton and breathable, and definitely not too tight. You are going to be sore and uncomfortable. So get some pairs that you won’t care about if they need to be thrown away after you’ve recovered.

15. Buy some extra maxi pads. Going along with #14, you are going to be having a heavy period and won’t be able to use a tampon after your baby is born. And yes, the hospital gives you some maxi pads, but you will probably go through them all and need some more once you get home from the hospital. So get some as backup and just keep them in your bathroom cabinet. It’s much better to be safe than sorry in this situation!

Hopefully those 15 things will keep you busy and help you prepare for your baby! And if you need some more ideas, check out these posts!