Between the nesting instincts kicking in on overdrive and my OCD, I’ve been keeping a pregnancy checklist with all of my to-dos as we approach our final countdown to baby girl. Yup, I’m that person who has an Excel checklist, a hand-written daily list in my paper-based planner, a family calendar hanging in our kitchen and on our iPhones, and of course I keep multiple running lists on my iPhone Notes. With only 5 more weeks to go, I’ve (slowly) been checking off the Third Trimester tasks and writing up my Postpartum list so I don’t forget anything when I go into sleepless zombie trance mode. I thought it might be helpful to share my full list of pregnancy-to-postpartum action items in a handy “Pregnancy Checklist”. Of course, not all of these are necessary, but the former management consultant in me had to take the MECE approach, haha! Note that timing is recommended and check with your doctor to add in those medical tests and appointments. For a downloadable printable Pregnancy Checklist, see below.
First Trimester
- Get healthy: read up on pregnancy health and safety, start taking those prenatal vitamins, and start your daily kegels (see our Tips for a More Comfortable Pregnancy)
- Choose a healthcare provider (OB, midwife) and schedule appointments
- Check out costs and develop a budget for baby (delivery costs, baby gear, child care, education, etc.). Some recent stats from the US Department of Agriculture (not including the cost of college):
“It’s more expensive than ever to raise a child in the United States, where families will shell out an average of $233,610 from birth through age 17 — or about $13,000 a year — according to new figures from the government….Families in urban areas in the Northeast, such as New York and Boston, were likely to pay even more — an average of $253,770, or roughly $14,000 a year — because of higher housing and child-care costs.”
- Call your health insurance company to determine coverage options and benefits (fertility, prenatal care, delivery, postpartum and lactation support). Often times insurance companies offer special programs for pregnant women providing additional resources, services, and amenities. My previous insurance provider sent a gift card, a ton of great pregnancy / baby literature (including Mayo Clinic Guide to a Health Pregnancy), nurse consultations, and additional lactation consultant support.
- Start moisturizing the belly (check out our Pregnancy-Safe Beauty Products)
Second Trimester
- Research maternity and paternity benefits (FMLA, company policies, and short / long term disability) and develop plan for recovery time / maternity / paternity leave
- Prepare siblings and / or pets for baby (include siblings in ultrasounds, consider a baby training course for pets)
- Getaway for some relaxation with a babymoon! With Bash, we had an amazing and luxurious stay at Twin Farms; this year we dropped the ball but hopefully will get our act together for a summer getaway
- Research and test baby gear; start building your registry
- Start designing nursery (check out our Pinterest board for nursery inspiration)
- Research and develop plan for newborn care and ongoing child care (stay at home, nanny, daycare)
- Interview and schedule doulas / baby nurses (if interested)
- Compile contact information for shower invitations, thank you notes, and baby announcements
- Get a prenatal massage (Nick got me a membership to Yelo Spa while I was pregnant with Bash…3+ years later, I’m still enjoying it this time around…best present ever!)
Third Trimester
- Participate in childbirth / labor / breastfeeding / newborn care classes
- Read up on the birthing process, newborn care, and baby’s first year (my favorites: Happiest Baby on the Block, Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child, Solve Your Child’s Sleep Problems, What to Expect: The First Year, Babywise, and Baby 411)
- Take infant CPR / choking safety course (the American Red Cross has a list of courses by location). I can’t stress the importance of this! If you never have to use it, great. But it will give you a little more peace of mind when you start introducing solids. Nick and I have each had to employ some of the choking techniques, despite our best efforts to make sure Bash had very tiny bites
- Complete registry; order remaining baby supplies
- Set-up nursery (note that some furniture deliveries may take up to 12 weeks). For the procrastinator / minimalist / space-constrained, a newborn really only needs a safe place to sleep, poop (a changing station), and eat (feeding supplies), and somewhere to store their “stuff”; the details can be finalized later
- Wash baby’s clothes, sheets, swaddles, and burp cloths in free and clear detergent (we like Planet detergent and instead of dryer sheets, wool dryer balls scented with essential oils)
- Interview and select pediatrician (don’t forget, convenience is key – you’ll be visiting them a lot over the next few years). Some pediatricians will visit your baby in the hospital, but don’t worry if they can’t. We used the hospital-based pediatricians and then scheduled our ongoing appointments with our selected doctor
- Start preparing for breastfeeding by moisturizing those nips
- Start getting regular manicures (newborn photos have a lot of hand shots!)
- Finalize baby name
- Conduct hospital tour (many hospitals have virtual tours if you can’t make it in person)
- Determine plans for child / pet care during labor and delivery
- “Rehearse” hospital trip: develop a plan for routes to get there, know where to park, and after-hours entrances (if you go into labor after hours, you typically go through the ER)
- Ask partner / family members / caregivers who will be in frequent contact with your newborn to get TDAP vaccination
- Develop “birth plan” (or at least share your intended preferences with your partner, doula, and / or healthcare providers)
- Call insurance to check if breast pump is covered and place order
- Book newborn photographer, research poses, and purchase styling props (we loved Lola Melani’s work with Bash and are excited to work with her again for baby girl)
- Determine how you will announce baby’s arrival (gather addresses / emails, designate a point person)
- Get a bikini wax
- Stock up on postpartum supplies and household essentials
- Pre-register with hospital
- Pack hospital bag
- Install car seat – make sure you know how to properly install your car seat with baby as this is a hospital requirement (we watched some YouTube videos for our car seat and The Car Seat Lady is a great resource)
- Make some freezer meals (or for city-dwellers, plan on a lot of Seamless deliveries)
- Get a head start sending thank you notes for baby gifts
Post-Delivery / Postpartum / Fourth Trimester
- Come to the hospital prepared with a list of cute newborn photo ideas and take copious amounts of photos as you only get one chance at these! (see our Pinterest board for some newborn hospital photo inspiration; Clickin Moms has a great article on How to Take Pictures of Your Newborn in the Hospital)
- Document your birth story, special mementos, save hospital hand / footprints / namecards
- Attend hospital workshops on breastfeeding / newborn care – many hospitals offer free workshops led by lactation consultants and nursing staff
- Schedule your postpartum care and pediatric appointments per your discharge instructions
- Ask the hospital staff for some extra supplies to take home
- Start wearing a belly band / corset / girdle for support and comfort (my friends who’ve had c-sections highly recommend the Bellefit to keep pressure on the wound and getting back into pre-pregnancy jeans faster)
- Get ready for a lot of trial and error, late-night googling “is xyz normal”, and panicked Amazon purchases
- Download a baby tracking app to help track feeding, sleeping, pooping schedules (I loved Sprout Baby app – you can also export the data to Excel for trending analysis, yeah, we’re big nerds)
- If you are planning on professional newborn pictures, confirm your session as the optimal window is between 4 – 12 days to capture the sleepy stage
- Start reading the Wonder Weeks (I just downloaded the app, but the book provides additional insight on newborn development) and refresh yourself on newborn soothing, healthy sleep habits, and development
- Once your milk comes in, test out your pump and start building your freezer stash (I was so anxious about nipple confusion that I waited a long time to bust out the pump. While there was no confusion, Bash never really took to the bottle, so this time, I’m going to introduced pumped bottle milk a little earlier. Bonus: you can pass off some late night feedings to others with the bottle and get some much-needed rest).
- Don’t stop those kegels! Check out a post-natal yoga class
- Send baby announcement (I love Minted and have used them for Bash’s announcement and all of our holiday cards for the past 5 years)
- Check out a new moms support group (I liked my group at the Prenatal Yoga Center) and local baby classes / meetups
- Add newborn to health insurance (often there is a 30 day window, so make sure you do this early)
- Develop / update will, update trust / beneficiaries, and determine legal guardians
- Research and consider additional insurance coverage (i.e., life insurance, long-term disability)
- Confirm baby’s birth certificate – you will likely work with hospital administrators on the logistics and can expect a mailed copy within a few weeks post delivery; we also ordered several additional certified copies
- Request Social Security Number for baby (often the hospital staff will help start the process) but you may need to wait until the birth certificate arrives if you apply later through the SSN office
- Apply for passport for baby
- Establish college savings fund for baby – it’s never too early to start saving!
Downloadable Printable
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