Now that we’re four months into parenthood, there are a number of practical things I’m super glad we did in preparation for having a baby. At the time, I wasn’t sure how much they would matter, but in retrospect, these things helped preserve our sanity to greater or lesser degrees.
photo credit: zetson via photopin cc
1. Simplify the house plants.
I got rid of everything that could not survive a couple weeks without water. What I was left with were bamboo, aloe vera and Christmas cactus – all really easy to care for. (And yes, there were times when they would only get watered once every two weeks.)
2. Sort through all the stuff in the house and get rid of every unnecessary thing.
We did a thorough clean and purge before Alena arrived. This not only made space for all her stuff (and does she ever have stuff!), it’s great to know exactly what we have now that we’re planning on moving homes.
3. Buy two types of washcloths: solid colours and prints.
We designated the solids for wiping baby’s face and the prints for wiping her bum. This system allowed us to easily identify what the washcloth was used for.
4. Take photos of all the baby clothes and stuff that were borrowed and file them according to who they were from.
I thought I was being overly-anal at the time, but when I had a two-month old on my hands and couldn’t remember yesterday let alone three months ago, having these photos for reference made it so much easier to identify who to return stuff to.
5. Get an easy, short hair cut.
A lot of moms-t0-be do this. But I’m glad I did it because it shortened the time I needed for showers. The only downside was that I couldn’t easily tie my hair up to get it out of the way.
6. Find a place with a dishwasher and insuite laundry.
When we were looking at places before we got married, our real estate agent asked us if we planned on having a baby while living in this apartment. If so, he said, insuite laundry should be a priority. Now that we have a baby, we realize just how wise that piece of advice was! Babies generate a lot of laundry. And with limited time, the dishes pile up quickly as well. Having easy access to a washer, dryer and dishwasher has saved us a lot of time and work.
7. Switch to break-resistant, lightweight dishes.
At the time, I was sad to replace our beautiful stoneware dishes that we’d gotten from our wedding with a set of white Corelle dishes, but having dinner-wear that can be handled while holding the baby with one hand has been invaluable.
8. Buy a nursing pajama set with a jacket.
I hadn’t realized that after the baby was born, my body temperature would fluctuate so greatly. Having the little jacket to throw on or take off depending on my temperature was really handy. It was less cumbersome than a bathrobe and came in handy during the middle of the night feeding/changing times.
As I was preparing for the baby, I would think, “If I had no time or energy, what would the simplest way of going about [fill in the blank] be?” The choices I made as a result have proven to be good choices. Because when your time and energy are so limited, you want to be able to spend them on things that matter the most.