It has been not quite a decade since I gave birth the last time, but the impending arrival of Princess Kate’s second baby made me think back to when I was almost read to deliver. My four tips for an easy transition, I am sure still would hold true today. These are supposed to be the realistic list of things you might want to do before the big day. Not to be confused with the unrealistic list your hormones might have you generate- I truly believed that before my first arrived it was imperative that I wash and repaint all of the screens on my 1920’s house. This seemed even more ridiculous when I returned home with my baby to find that I had used the wrong paint color in my haste.
So with survival mode in mind I suggest you refer to my list or others that wrote before me or to make your list far in advance of those final days and weeks.
- Wash sleepers, bodysuits and bedding.
I would have all of the newborn items washed and ready to go and as much regular laundry caught up if you can. You will be amazed how much clothing you will go through with a newborn. Sometimes a diaper change gone bad can wipe out a bodysuit, sleeper and a changing pad all at the same time. *Avoid washing all the other larger clothing until you get a gage on your baby’s size and growth rate. You may need to exchange some items so keep those tags attached.
- Invest in double or triple bedding.
This might have been the best advice I ever received! I made the bed in layers with a waterproof mattress pad between each layer. This way middle of the night vomiting or explosions required only whisking away the soiled layer to the washing machine and cleaning up baby. Then everyone could get some rest and the clean-up could begin with the light of day.
- Stock up on foods you can prepare and eat with one hand.
This may not be the most health conscious plan, but a new mom has very little time to eat and simple items that I could prep and eat in 5 minutes made me feel successful on at least getting food in so I could function. Many a meal was eaten while breastfeeding and using a knife and fork was not an option.
- Buy a few pretty things to wear. And a lot of plain, inexpensive tops.
This tip is two-fold. On one hand you are hormonal when you return from the hospital, you are no longer pregnant, but most of us are also not back to prepregnancy weight or shape. For this reason I suggest that you have a few outfits that you feel good about yourself and comfortable in. They may include maternity jeans, or yoga pants, etc. Just remember that you deserve to feel pretty as you regroup and reconfigure after delivery.
The other suggestion took me living it to understand. Babies ruin your clothing! For whatever reason every shirt I owned ended up with weird new stains that did not wash out no matter what stain treatment I used. For that reason I suggest saving your favorite tops for special occasions and most of the time resorting to a more disposable wardrobe. Simple tees that you can toss when they don’t wash clean. Add a scarf and you still look complete.
Best wishes on your journey into parenthood!
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