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To Do before baby arrives

DavidStampsDavidStamps member
in Dads & Dads-to-be

Hey Dads,

I'm working on a to-do list for my son gets here in a couple of weeks. For those of you who have a little one at home, can you think of anything that I need/should do before my kid arrives? My list is pretty lengthy, but I figured it couldn't hurt to get some advice. We've had two baby showers, so now everything is up to us to us...ready, get set....

Thanks!

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Re: To Do before baby arrives

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    ladyjenna13ladyjenna13 member
    imageDavidStamps:

    Hey Dads,

    I'm working on a to-do list for my son gets here in a couple of weeks. For those of you who have a little one at home, can you think of anything that I need/should do before my kid arrives? My list is pretty lengthy, but I figured it couldn't hurt to get some advice. We've had two baby showers, so now everything is up to us to us...ready, get set....

    Thanks!

    I should get my wife to answer this for you later tonight.  Better sharpen a bunch of pencils!!

    image

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    ladyjenna13ladyjenna13 member
    I will tell you this.  She went crazy with the label maker, so now everything in the boys room is labeled from where the diapers are to the clothes and receiving blankets.  It really will make life easier for us.  Of course, that carried over into the entire house!

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    ColtsdadColtsdad member

    I don't know what is on your list, but here are a few things that you might want to consider, I'm sure some/most/all of these may be repeats from your list.

    - Check hospital bag.  If you are staying in the room the whole time too, check your stuff too.  Make a list, check it off, check with the wife make sure you didn't leave any of her stuff off the list.

    - Wash the bottles/nipples if you are doing any pumping/formula feeding.  Same goes for clothes (maybe 1 or 2 outfits), don't use fabric softener.

    - Make sure all baby essentials are accessible.  Diapers, wipes, bottles, bibs, burp cloths all in a convenient location.  Lots of times things like that wind up in places you THINK will be in a good spot, but wind up not being the case.

    - Clean house.  Odds are you'll have family and friends coming over a great deal the first week or so and you'll want to spend all your time with your son and won't have energy to clean.

    - Perhaps make a few meals ahead of time and freeze them so the first couple of days back in the house all you have to do is throw something in the microwave.  Family or friends may bring food, so this may be for the week after, or could be skipped altogether if you know food will be brought.

    - If you have pets, confirm you've got someone to feed them, take them out (if dogs)/change the box (if cats).  Maybe someone to bring the mail in if you wind up staying longer than anticipated (hopefully not).

    - Make sure all the thank you notes from the shower get out before you go to the hospital, if they haven't already.  You won't have time for a little while after the birth.

    Some obviously are more important than others, but those are just a few things I could come up with.

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    twindaddytwindaddy

    I think Coltsdad hit a lot of the good points. 

     I would pack the hospital bag soon and have it ready. Everyone told us that and we were going to do it the next weekend, but we didn't make it. We didn't really have time to pack one because my wife was in some distress so I just threw a few things in a bag and forgot about 3/4 of what I needed. The hospital is only 20 minutes away, but trust me you probably won't want to leave your wife and child to come home to get something. 

     

    Also not sure if your wife plans to breast feed our not. Our hospital provided a pump while we in the hospital and then when we left you can rent one from them or buy your own. If your using formula make sure you bring enough of that.  

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    ladyjenna13ladyjenna13 member
    imagepolooo26:

    Besides having the room done, your hospital bag packed, and a stocked refridgerater I can't think of much. A baby swing was very helpful to us becuase that's where ours liked to take his naps. Get the car seat in the car before you leave. that'll save you some time. We had ours inspected for correct installation. It's just something the hospital reccomended but not a big deal if you know how to put one in already. We also had a friend who brought too big of a car seat and they had to run out and buy a new one before they could bring their baby home.

    And you can always go out and get stuff you forgot. All they do is sleep. We were out doing stuff the day after we got home from the hospital.

    I don't know what state you are in, but in Wisconsin they will not let you leave the hospital without a nurse coming to the car and approving of the car seat install.  We went to our community sheriff's substation and had them install the base in each of our cars and make sure the seat sits in the bases properly.  Cities get money from DOT to fund these car seat programs.

    Do not assume the hospital only recommends that a car seat is installed properly.  Check with your state laws and plan accordingly, because most localities have laws that require hospitals to verify proper car seat installation before allowing a newborn to leave the hospital.

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    ladyjenna13ladyjenna13 member
    imagepolooo26:
    imageladyjenna13:
    imagepolooo26:

    I don't know what state you are in, but in Wisconsin they will not let you leave the hospital without a nurse coming to the car and approving of the car seat install.  We went to our community sheriff's substation and had them install the base in each of our cars and make sure the seat sits in the bases properly.  Cities get money from DOT to fund these car seat programs.

    Do not assume the hospital only recommends that a car seat is installed properly.  Check with your state laws and plan accordingly, because most localities have laws that require hospitals to verify proper car seat installation before allowing a newborn to leave the hospital.

    That's not what I said. I said the hosptial reccomends you get your car seat inspected for correct installation not that the car seat be installed correctly.

     

    I was not really addressing you specifically, just hit "quote" in error.  I understood what you were saying.  I just wanted people to be sure that they check with the policy that is in place at their hospital.  At our hospital we are not able to leave with our baby until the hospital validates the installation of our car seat.  They were very clear about that at our birth classes.  I know this is the case in most large, urban areas, where infant mortality rates are insanely high.  Education about safety is a critical component to the birth experience here as a result. 

    14 out of every 1000 black babies died before their first birthday in 2011 in the city of Milwaukee.  It is a really big deal here as a result.

    https://www.jsonline.com/news/milwaukee/milwaukee-infant-mortality-rate-drops-overall-but-disparity-worsens-sp54t7f-148680905.html

    image

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