Deadlines for getting certain tasks done? Are you ready??

[mkyerby16]

:wave: Totally unprepared, inexperienced ftm to be here. Just wondering how everyone else is doing in feeling prepared or if any experienced mom's have advice! I'm due March 20th and I really haven't gotten much done to prepare for baby. What about ya'll? Am I the only unprepared one?

We finally cleared out the nursery-to be last week (it was a guest room) and I'm definitely starting to nest like crazy and want to organize things! I'm having a baby shower on the 25th and another on Feb 7th though so I've really been waiting to buy anything until I have those to see what I get. My mom did buy us a crib already, but it's still in the box until we paint. We'll probably paint after this first shower on the 25th. I've kind of wanted to hold out to see if anyone buys our bedding set so that I have it to color match the paint. If we get it for this shower (don't really expect to) then awesome, if not then we'll buy it or buy a sheet or something, pick out paint, paint, buy the dresser, and set up the crib by the next shower which is going to be at my house. A co-worker has given me boxes of her son's outgrown clothes, and my mom has seemed to pick up a onesie or outfit everytime she goes out, but I've been putting off washing it until we have baby boy's dresser to put everything in. Now that I'm 30 weeks it's hitting me that this is coming up fast!!

So does anyone have deadlines that they want certain tasks done by such as: set up nursery, have all items bought, pre-register at the hospital, install carseat, have hospital bag packed etc. Oh and anyone know when to buy nursing bras?

 

[Cattia]

This is my third baby so we have most of the things we need already. However we won't be setting up the nursery for a few months after she is born. At the moment my two kids share a room and we use the spare room as a study. I want to get as much use out of it as we can before we move baby in there and she will be in with us for at least the first six months. It's nice to have everything prepared but don't panic as they really don't need much at first, just a few clothes and something to sleep in. I haven't thought about my hospital bag yet, but I think I had that packed at about 35 weeks last time so that will be the next job. At the moment I am trying to sort through all DD's old clothes and wash them for the baby.

 

[kits]

Not exactly prepared here either. I'm only just going to start preparing for the nursery next week, it's still the spare room our guests stay in so need to shift furniture around.

I have a list of things that I supposedly need, but only slowly going through it. I bought a few things during the black Friday & boxing day sales (like baby monitor, rocker, diaper genie, bath, breast pump, etc) which includes some adorable clothes but that's it. OH's brother is giving us their cot and other family are giving us a Moses basket & rocking chair which I think can be the expensive stuff. Oh yea, also bought a stroller travel system in November

I was given a surprise baby shower just after Christmas so I have a lot of bathing bits & cute clothing.

I'm keeping gender a surprise & I keep getting told some babies love this & that while others hate it so I'm leaving a good chunk to see what baby is like.

Then again I'm a very unorganised person & thrive on chaos

I wonder if I'm being too naive but I seem quite pleased with myself & progress at the moment.

By the way, I'm 32 weeks today

Good luck!!

 

[RaspberryK]

I'm 36 weeks, everything still in storage at the moment, the way I see it is baby will need a boob, a babygrow and nappies, anything else can wait. Xx

 

[mkyerby16]

Cattia: I'm thinking baby will be in our room for the first 2 months or so at least while I'm on maternity leave so it's not a huge deal for me either. It will just be nice to have it all done and ready. I was also thinking around 35 weeks for my hospital bag, but we'll see what actually happens.

kits: You have way more than I do! I don't know how you're keeping gender a surprise! We're keeping the name a surprise and that's hard enough! I wanted everyone to know to buy pink or blue things so this baby better not come out a girl now! Although after seeing the u/s pic I'd say we're safe...

RaspberryK: So true. I know that no matter what he's coming and what's ready will be there and what's not oh well. I just feel like the less you have to do/buy/put together with a newborn the better. Plus I'm enjoying nesting and preparing everything so far!

 

[RebeccaR19]

I don't really have deadlines really, but I just have things that I feel I want done before I get to week 36.

I just washed all my baby clothes yesterday and right now most of them are in bins because we still need to purchase a dresser for this baby. I am hanging some things up, but I plan to get a dresser for onesies, hats, socks, etc.

She will not have a nursery because I would have to give up our only spare bedroom for that, and I just don't want to do that. So, she is halfway sharing a room with my son and halfway sharing a room with us. He has a giant closet anyway. So, half of the closet is hers now and I have cleared it out and started putting her clothes in there. Even the bins of clothes I have. When we get the dresser, we will put it in his room next to his. I can't wait to get her clothes put away. I think that's mostly because I don't just want them sitting around in random places. I want them organized.

I have to clear out 2 corners in our room that currently just have boxes sitting in them. But they are boxes of our clothes I have to go through and find somewhere else to store them. In on corner, I will set up a pack'n'play and in the other, I will set up a changing table. I'm not sure when I will get this done, but the more I look at the filled-up corners, the more they irritate me. So, I don't see this sitting around too much longer. I will get to a day when I can't stand to look at it anymore and I will go through it. I just know it will take a couple of hours. But I think it will be done before I get to week 30 just because I know myself and when things start to nag at me, it isn't long before I get them done.

Once all of that is done, I still need to go through the baby things we have. I will have a shower at the very end of this month. And then when I bring all of that stuff home, my mom will be here with me to help me do some things. I'll be about 31 weeks then, so I will use her help and get as much of that sorting done as possible.

After that, I don't know what else I have to do, but I want to be at a point where I can just chill out when March comes. And if I get bit by the nesting bug, I will then be worrying about more specific things instead of these larger tasks that need to get done.

 

[katestar53]

I'm almost done, apart from a few bits and bobs everything is ready! I am a far too organised person and sometimes wish I could be more laid back! We are lucky to be having another boy so there wasn't a great deal to do. The biggest task was moving our toddler into his new big boy room to make room for his brother!

The plan is to have everything done by mat leave in 5 weeks then I can enjoy some quality time with Harvey before baby #2 comes along.

 

[kits]

After reading my post I guess I do have quite a few things. It's mainly so I don't need to spend too much money afterwards. I like my oh spending money on our business & bills so my wage from my own job has really just gone on baby stuff & New furniture/appliances.

We get a really nice & long maternity leave in the UK but the pay isn't great so I think that's why I've been collecting stuff over the past couple of months. I've either gotten things on sale, as gifts or second hand.

As for the gender, it's kind of fun not knowing. We live at my oh's pub so everyone likes to analyse & guess baby's gender. We have some of our closer customers/friends placing bets so apart from a couple of times when I've bought outfits I've really enjoyed not knowing & playing the guessing game myself through old wives tales

 

[MrsKChicago]

I've missed my deadlines... My nephew was a preemie, and it made me really want to get things ready early early early, but it just didn't work out that way. The holidays got in the way. We hosted Christmas, so we needed the space that's going to be the baby's room, and my shower is in a week, so it seems silly to start buying things at this point. After the shower, I'm making baby basics high priority - we at least need to get his room painted, get his dresser in there (we already have that), get his clothes washed and organized, and order a bassinet and car seat if we don't get them at the shower. Once that's done, I'll focus on a crib. I'd like him to nap in it from the start so it's not totally unfamiliar, but it's not an emergency if it isn't set up.

 

[Amythyst]

I have no nesting instinct... must be because of my PCOS and extremely high testosterone levels ... haha.

 

[RaspberryK]

I agree with not having too much to do with a newborn, but really nearly everything is just unnecessary in my opinion, 3/4 of the stuff you are told you need you don't. Baby will be sleeping in our room and most likely in our bed/on me for a while.
The actual having a baby and being a parent - you just can't ever be prepared for.
I also have no nesting instinct, amythyst - I thought I was just faulty.

Xx

 

[Monzter79]

I think I'm pretty prepared stuff-wise. I'm a FTM and had NOTHING starting out. So I had to get all your standard stuff. Clothes, bedding, pack n play, nappies, pump, monitor, tub, soap, first aid, car seat, necessities blah blah etc. I did much of it early because I'm very excited, and because I kept finding really good sales on the things I wanted.

I've done a lot to organize/clean/clear clutter from my home. Not because I HAD to, but just to make way for new things, and to make keeping up with things easier once baby is here. I feel more secure when I'm organized.

No nursery, he's staying in our room at first. My hospital bag is relatively packed, LO's stuff is prepared but not IN bag. I'm just not "ready" to put them in yet.

No clue if I'm prepared for actual motherhood! Lol it's just stuff. But it makes me feel better... I am a nester.

 

[londonangel]

We didn't get our cot last time until baby had arrived - just got Moses basket for baby to use at first and got nursery furniture delivered about ten days after arrival so as not to tempt fate. This time we have a cot in the loft but not buying mattress until baby has arrived - it will go in Moses basket when it first comes home. I recall one shouldn't be measured for nursing bras until 36 weeks. I haven't sorted out mine yet but hopefully will do it this week. I went super overdue last time though so am not in a huge rush.