Nothing quite compares to the feeling of being able to welcome your new baby home. With that being said, the feelings of confusion about what you need to do with your home are completely normal. Everyone experiences things like this from time to time as well. If you want to make things easier on yourself then here are a few things you can do to make the transition a little easier.
Prepare for Your Needs
The first thing you need to do is try and prepare for your baby’s needs as much as possible. Don’t decorate the nursery, simply because you don’t need to. It won’t do them any good and it may even cause you way more stress than you need. A lot of people focus heavily on decorating the nursery when the truth is, you just don’t need to. The baby will usually sleep with you for the first six months or so and after that, they won’t notice or even care about their surroundings too much. If you want to help yourself then try and come up with a five-year plan for your baby’s room. If you can do this then you can avoid having to decorate every few years because you feel as though they are too old for the space that they are in. At the end of the day, it is very easy for you to find a lot of inspiration online and when you do, you may find that it is very easy for you to come up with something that is going to suit them over the long term. In the same vein, it’s important to know that the nursery isn’t the most important room for you to decorate. You should focus on your bedroom. You need to try and do what you can to make your bedroom into a nice and calming space, as well as make it somewhere you can truly unwind and relax. If you can do this then you will soon be able to focus on what matters.
Batch Cook
The more batch cooking you can do now, the better. If you are feeling up to it then at least make sure that you are cooking a few meals so you can freeze them. When you freeze food it will keep for at least a few months and if you do this then you should find that you can easily grab a nutritious =meal that is going to fill you up, without having to worry about a thing. You won’t also have to deal with the expense of takeaways if you do this, so try and keep that in mind. Some of the easiest foods you can batch cook include individual pasta sauces, curry, chili and stews. Make sure that you stock up on some microwave packets of rice too because if you can do this then you are bound to save yourself a lot of hassle and stress. You can also ask your friends and your family to see if they can help out a little too. There is a chance that you will be drowning in baby growth but you probably won’t have time to go and do a full food shop. If you can keep things like this in mind then it’ll help you out quite a lot.
Downstairs Basket
Did you know that babies can easily go through well over 12 nappies every single day? Unless you have a one-storey apartment, you will soon find that this means a lot of trips to the bathroom. You will be tired and achy after childbirth too so it is a good idea for you to make sure that you take care of yourself here. Make a downstairs basket so you can make sure that you always have somewhere you can keep everything. If you know that your previous children have had a lot of issues with baby acne or eczema then you need to make sure that you have something to cover yourself if your new baby has the same issue. Creams and ointments will usually do the trick, so make sure that you keep this in mind. If you want to avoid spending the entire day trekking up and down the stairs then you should include a muslin cloth as well as some wipes, cotton wool and some spare baby clothes. Adding a spare top for yourself will help you out a lot here, so try and make sure that you keep that in mind as it will stop you from having to run upstairs in the event of an emergency.
Clear Clutter
Newborn babies do come with a great deal of stuff. Even if your home is the tidiest house in the world, you will soon find that it ends up feeling cluttered if you don’t keep on top of baby stuff. One thing you can do to help yourself here is for you to try and declutter your home. You may find that there is a ton of stuff you just don’t know anymore, and if this is the case then you can make your life way easier by simply getting rid of it. Bulky items can be cleared with ease, so make sure that you give that some thought as it will make a major difference to your home overall. A lot of new parents have the idea of taking out a storage unit when they declutter their home, as often, you may find that you end up with a ton of items that you just don’t need, but that you don’t feel as though you can get rid of.
Lights
The lighting solutions in your home were probably chosen before you became a parent. Your needs will probably change quite a lot over time. If you want to help your child and yourself then now could be the time for you to think that over. Consider getting some dimmer switches or some smart ambient lighting. If you do this then you will soon find that you can make your home much more friendly for your baby and that you can easily give them the support that they need to drift off without much help. Total darkness may seem like the best solution if you want to keep a drowsy baby asleep but at the same time, you have to make sure that you have a little light so you don’t bump and trip over things as you make your way over to them. If you can keep this in mind then it will help you out quite a lot.
Rethink your Space
It is a very smart move for you to start visualizing the everyday challenges that come with your new baby, but if you can optimize your home then you will soon find that it becomes easy for you to work through them. With this in mind, you have to remember that part of planning your home for your baby will involve organizing your bedroom for the new arrival. If you can rethink your space then you will find it easier to accommodate them and this can make a major difference overall to your mental health. If you don’t feel as though you can change your bedroom around then this is understandable, so take steps to make it more friendly to your baby so you can meet their needs without compromising your own. Little things like this can make a major difference so keep them in mind if you can.
