Baby Prep: 3rd Trimester To-Do List

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It wasn’t until I hit 25-ish weeks that I realized this pregnancy was FLYING by and there was a baby coming SOONER than later. First on the to-do list was baby girl’s registry - see my blog post here for tips on putting together your registry. During that time I think we probably started getting serious about the nursery and at about 30-ish weeks is when I started thinking about what needed to be accomplished before baby’s grand entrance. To be honest, my doc had been clear with me from the beginning that she thought baby girl would definitely come at 40 weeks or beyond (writing this at 40 weeks and 2 days) so I wasn’t that worried. But as most of you mamas-to-be know, everyone is in your ear like “oh I delivered at 34 weeks” or “baby could come at any time.” That being said, it’s never a bad idea to be prepared!

I shared on IG stories that hubby and I used the project management platform Asana to manage our 3rd Trimester To-Do list. A shared iPhone note or google doc would probably work just fine but I liked being able to add detailed notes under certain tasks, scheduling deadlines, and also assigning tasks to my husband (the best part TBH!) Below is a high-level overview of our 3rd Trimester To-Do List:

How to Prep for Baby’s Birth - 3rd Trimester Check List

I remember as I was writing out all of our tasks it felt SO daunting. Tip: spread them over 6-8 weeks leading up to baby’s birth and they are very manageable and digestible . Also this is definitely the time to lean on your partner. The last push of baby prep felt a lot like wedding planning - my hubby is AMAZING but I can’t fault him for not knowing what needs to be done, so assigning tasks and making it clear “you are in charge of calling the pediatrician and asking XYZ questions, calling our insurance and figuring out the process for getting a breast pump, and doing the research on cord blood” made life so much easier (and less frustrating) for both of us.

For tips on what to pack in your hospital bag don’t miss this post I did with baby planning expert Bump Bestie.

For recs on virtual classes, there’s a whole list on this blog post. We ended up doing Tinyhood for most of ours and are planning to do Taking Cara Babies sleep course very soon.

One thing I know that’s missing from this list is scheduling a newborn photoshoot. The only reason I didn’t include is because we are having baby amidst COVID and won’t be able to have visitors over so this isn’t applicable for us. I’ll definitely be back to update this list post baby girl’s arrival because then we’ll really know if we missed anything! xo - Ashley

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