Here are some practical ways I have been preparing for the imminent delivery of our baby girl! (Not in any particular order.)

Hospital Bags
They’re all packed and by the door! You can read about what I packed here, here, and here. Knowing that we are ready to leave at a moment’s notice has given both Tad and I great peace of mind! There are a few “last minute” items I will have to grab before leaving, so I made a list of those and put it with our bags.

Freezer Meals
I already talked about this a little here, but I have been stocking the freezer with meals to enjoy after our baby comes (or, I just might break into them early if she’s over a week late!). My mom brought me a bunch of meals when she came down, and I have been stashing leftovers and prepared meals (purchased) in the freezer as well. A lot of what I have is the main course of the meal, so I made sure I also have a supply of frozen veggies (quick to cook), rice (always a nice side), potatoes (we “bake” them in the microwave), and a few other easy (packaged) side dishes in the pantry. I made an inventory list to post on the freezer door so we can cross of items as we use them.

Laundry
I have been trying to keep up with laundry so that when I go into labor I don’t leave a mountain of dirty clothes behind me! As soon as I have enough for a load, I wash a load. Maybe some people do this all the time, but I used to wait until probably a week went by before laundering everything all at once.

Housekeeping
In the same vein, I am trying to maintain a clean house as well, knowing that when we come back home from the hospital we won’t feel like cleaning, and we will want our visitors and guests to feel welcome! I’m putting my “nesting instinct” to good use and straightening and cleaning whenever I get that spurt of energy. I’ve also tackled some more tedious organizational projects, such as sorting my jewelry into ice cube trays and arranging our gift bags by occasion and size.

Sleeping
Knowing that I won’t be getting much sleep in the first few weeks after our little girl arrives, I am trying to “stock up” now! This has been a little challenging lately, as I haven’t been sleeping too well at night, but I am trying to be wise about going to bed at a reasonable time and taking naps when I can.

Nursery and Baby Things
Our nursery is complete (read about the reveal here), we have a Pack ‘n’ Play set up in our bedroom, and we have the essential things we need to take care of our baby when we bring her home (diapers, etc.). The only thing we still need to do is install her car seat, which we are planning on doing this week.

Reading
I have been reading about baby care, breastfeeding, scheduling your baby, and other topics that I know will help make me better prepared for the first few weeks at home. I’m enjoying both books and magazine articles, as well as blog posts on these topics!

Correspondence
I wanted to make sure that some upcoming special occasions did not get “lost in the shuffle,” so I went ahead and got the cards and gifts ready to give or mail off! I put the cards by the door with little post-it notes saying when to mail them. I also finished all of my baby shower thank-you notes since I had the time and grace to do so.

Blogging
I’ve been writing blog posts for the “hopper” so that you all will still have interesting things to read even when I’m not up for writing exciting new content! Though I will not be blogging while in labor, I expect to have new posts “comin’ at ya” shortly after the birth, thanks to the drafts I have on hand! And of course, there will be lots of picture-only posts of our adorable little one!

We are, as you can tell, so excited for our baby girl’s arrival! Though we know we can’t be prepared for everything, we are thankful for the ways God has enabled us to be somewhat prepared for entering into this new phase of life called parenthood!

Photo source: stock.xchng