Things to do before Bubs is born

[faeriegirl]

on the frozen meals thing i also read that it was a good idea ... pre chop vegies and blanche them slightly put in snap lock bags and freeze so when you do get around to cooking meals half of your work is already done P
( i never thought of this when i had T but lucky my DP is the most wonderfull cook and stayed home to look after us for a couple of months !!!)
and definately pre wash any baby clothes, blankets you have

[Renee Elizabeth]

I would say organise someone to clean inside and out your windows. I kept saying I would do this and when I was breastfeeding Marnie in the first couple of months I would be staring out the window getting very agitated because they were dirty and i hadn't organised to clean them!

[Netty]

My SIL made a really good suggestion the other day;

Stock up on cards and present wrap. I went to Red Dot and they have heaps of nice paper and cards for $1 so I bought heaps! That way if you miss catching up with anyone for their b'day or whatever, you can send them a card and only have to go as far as the mail box.

I have been nesting and cleaning out fr months so the only things I have on my list for after I finish work (next week yay!) is clean out kitchen cupboards plus give all the cupboard doors and drawers a good cleaning and clean oven... not looking forward to that. Speaking of which, does anyone have any good non chemical way of cleaning the oven out?

I have a few crafty things I am going to do if I get bored too.

All the cards I have saved I am going to cut up the ones I can recycle into new cards and throw the rest out.
I have huge piles of magazines that I am half way through pulling out all the recipe pages of and then cutting out all the recipes I like that are nice and simple and then I am going to make up a few of my own recipe books.

I would cook up lots of food for the freezer but we only have a p*ssant size freezer. I do have a slow cooker though so should be ok with that.

Cheers
Nets

[SSmiles]

We had a huge list of stuff to do before Riley was born...some of the things are the same as others here but here's our list:

* Have the car serviced
* Get tax done
* Have carpets cleaned
* Cook up plenty of lasagnes/soups/quiches etc for the freezer (the BEST thing we did!)
* Stock up on things like toilet paper, toothpaste, nappies, dog food, UHT milk etc
* Have the pets vaccinated
* Defrost the freezer
* Wash the baby clothes, wraps, sheets etc
* Have automatic garage door openers fitted
* Have car seats installed
* Get baby's room finished

I think those are the major things we wanted to get done (& did get done)... BUT I would totally recommend doing as much as possible as "two" before bubs is born because we feel like we never see each other these days. Also, if you're still able to sit for long periods, go to the movies or out to dinner etc. I miss being able to do things like that...but Riley is totally worth missing out of course!

And my last thing is to REST/SLEEP as much as possible...it wasn't easy for me because I was so uncomfortable and I kept saying "I can't sleep at night anyway, I know what it's like to have a newborn because of that" but NO WAY...it was not even close to being the same thing...

[faeriegirl]

Netty Bicarb soda is great for household cleaning it makes things really white and shiny. just put it on a damp sponge with a scourer, vinegar is great to rinse that off again ( though it shouldnt really leave a residue or anything but i dont think it is very good to get it on your element
also lemon juice / essential oil is a great disinfectant
and eucaliptus oil cleans , removes stains and disolves stuff like marks sticker residue apparrently even tar off paintwork on cars !

[Janie]

Great thread! Most of these ideas are stuff that i've thought of, or has already been suggested to me, but there's a few newies in here!

I'm def. getting the carpets and windows cleaned. I had a really good think about how much time I'm going to be spending at home after bubs arrives and decided that I don't want to be looking at stuff like that! I'm just trying generally to make sure the house looks nice, esp. as we'll get lots of visitors.

Keep the ideas coming girls!

[Debbie Lee]

This time I'll be making sure we haven't started any major renos before bubs comes.
When we brought Gabby home I had no kitchen! We had a make-shift kitchen set up in the loungeroom. It was AWEFUL! I would sit and BF for hours just staring at mess!
So... if you have any unfinished projects... get them done!

Carpet cleaning is good.
Have a heap of meals frozen in the freezer (either ones you've cooked yourself or some lean cuisines etc.).

I wouldn't stress too much about baby-proofing yet. That kind of happens as bubs gets older and you can sort of see what he/she is gonna get into. Bubby can't really get into much in the first few months

[Flossie]

I would say organise someone to clean inside and out your windows. I kept saying I would do this and when I was breastfeeding Marnie in the first couple of months I would be staring out the window getting very agitated because they were dirty and i hadn't organised to clean them!

DH will be hired for sure

[nikbrad]

This one is for yourself:

Finish that book you have started.

Once bubba comes you will either be too tired or have no time! Goodluck

[Ca Plane Pour Moi]

3. Presave email address in an email if you're going to announce that way too to some ppl- then all your partner/hubby has to do while you're in hossy is add to the text and press send. (I worked in a major government office and had loads of colleagues to tell so this made it very easy for DH).

I've actually organised someone at work to pass the e-mail round so I didn't forget everyone - but also have a distribution list ready. Please remember to tell your hubby/partner to put this in the BCC box - I'm a bit paranoid about giving out e-mails of friends and family, especially as most of the addys I have for friends and family I've never used, just taken from those stupid round joke e-mails my parents and sister send to everyone they've ever met.

[kungfubecca]

Has anyone mentioned to pamper your self.

I recomend finding a really good beauty therapist and book in for
a waxing,
followed by a massage,
then a facial,
maybe get a manicure and pedicure,
then go get your hair done at a hairdresser,
get them to wash it and cut a nice easy manageable style.

Then go home and have a nana nap.
followed by a nice meal out with your loved ones.
Do that as close to the birth as you adre wait and you will probably still feel likr a million bucks after oll that hard work your about to do.