Third Trimester Checklist: Keeping It Short and Simple + FREE Printable

Download my super simple third trimester checklist, here!

Tomorrow I will be 31 weeks, and my husband has decided that it’s crunch time. Interestingly enough, his “crunch time” feels very similar to my past 7 months of growing and obsessing over this baby. But that’s neither here nor there. Our main concern is tackling the third trimester checklist.

We are officially in the home stretch and feeling the itch to get everything in order. Half the time my brain feels like a ticker tape, running through my mental third trimester checklist  (wash the clothes, finish the room, train the dog, love the husband, shave the legs). The other half of the time, my brain is totally lost in the clouds, fantasizing about life with this baby girl.

I am known to be a bit overzelaous when it comes to planning and organizing, and the arrival of this baby is no different. I have lists and folders and labels and charts. It’s extreme.

My main list is focused on the main things I have left to do before baby comes. The few hot-ticket items that I want to prioritize. It lives on my fridge and I keep it small as to not overwhelm myself. Below are the items from that list and how I intend to tackle them.

And if you’re anything like me, you like having hard copies of your lists. Nothing satisfies me more than grabbing a pen and physically crossing things off my checklist. So I’m sharing the third trimester checklist I created for myself as a free printable for you all to use. I kept it super simple so it doesn’t scare me every time I see it on my fridge. One page, big print, easy check boxes. I think of it as my friendly reminder. You can access it here 

Access FREE Printable, Here

Freezer Meals

As I’ve entered into my third trimester, my eating habits have changed quite a bit. Either I don’t have an appetite or I’m too lazy to make anything substantial. For the past week or so, I’ve been subsisting on cereal and cookie dough. The cereal is nutritious, full of lots of good stuff I do need. The cookie dough is more of an indulgence. But don’t worry, it’s vegan (and GF), so no raw eggs!

If I’m this lazy now, I can’t imagine what I’ll be like once the baby is born. So I am dead-set on preparing freezer meals and stocking my freezer full of them. I have some staples of my own that I can whip up in a big batch and freeze. I’ll share those recipes in another post. I also am interested in some of these recipes to boost my milk supply. Otherwise, I’ll be borrowing from lists like this one and this one to fill my freezer with easy vegan + vegetarian meals to keep me sustained and curb my dependence on cereal and cookie dough.

Nursery

My baby shower is this weekend, so I’m hoping that’ll be the point where I can really know what all I’m still missing. Then I can finally bunker down and start finalizing her room. I have about a thousand moodboards on Pinterest of what I’d like her nursery to look like. She has a very specific theme and I plan on making it impeccable (knowing it won’t last very long). I also want to use this time to see if I need to exchange any gifts or rethink some of the items I asked for. I’ve done too much research on what the best products are, so I don’t even remember what I registered for at this point. So far, some of the big ticket items we have are her crib, glider, dresser, pack and play and boppy pillow.

Baby Clothes

Washing: I showed the most self-control I’ve ever shown toward anything when it came to buying baby clothes. The restraint I’ve demonstrated walking through the aisles of Target and TJ Maxx has been nothing short of remarkable. But, alas, I have broken the seal and the buying frenzy has commenced. It’s all just so cute and little! Baby Z has a pile of adorable outfits and onesies awaiting her arrival. But they all still need to be washed. I’m waiting a bit longer for this job because I hate laundry and only want to do this once (knowing I will be living in my laundry room in a few short months). I’ll be using this detergent. I’ve read great reviews. It’s all natural, strong enough to be recommended for cloth diapers, and not overpriced. I’ll keep you posted.

Organizing: My Dynamo label maker and I are going to have a great time organizing all these tiny clothes! I plan on separating her clothes by size to keep things as organized as possible. I hate a messy, overstuffed drawer and not knowing what’s inside. This post gave me some great inspo. I’ll be getting myself some bins, making some labels and trying my best to find a place for everything. Another trick I’ve learned is keeping a bin in the closet for clothes that no longer fit. I do this for the boys and it’s a huuuuge help. Once I see they’ve grown out of something, it gets thrown in the bin. And every few months, once the bin is full, we donate it.

Stockpile Supplies

The nesting has officially begun, and this house is getting turned upside down. One of my projects thus far has been to empty out the closet in our office and make it into a supply closet. This actually happened a bit organically when Hurricane Irma hit and we stocked up on supplies in preperation. But the concept stuck and now it is our official supply closet. Shelves of dried and canned foods, paper goods, batteries, toiletries, you name it. I want to make sure that we have all the neccesities on hand because lord knows I’m not running out to buy a box of GoGo Squeeze when they run out. Some other tricks I’ve collected for keeping our supplies stocked are Amazon Pantry and Chewy.com. I just order what I want and schedule the next deliveries and it all just shows up at my door exactly when I need it.

Birth Plan

I think I have about 50 different drafts of our birth plan at this point. The more I learn, the more I tweak it. But what  I’ve gathered through that process is:

1) There’s no such thing as a birth “plan”. You’re a fool to think that any amount of planning can dictate how that day will go. But you can craft a birth preference to calm yourself down, help you feel less fearful and give you some semblence of control.

2) Your doctor doesn’t need a 5 page birth plan to read through. He won’t read it. Discuss your concerns with him and tell him what your wishes are. Stay vocal and confident about your decisions. Continue to remind him what you want (you’re not his only patient).

3) The people who need your birth plan the day of are the nurses. They haven’t been working with you for the past nine months. They’re just meeting you. So having a brief outline of what’s most importnant to you will help them help you.

4) The birth plan is mostly for you. It’s a good way to get your thoughts down and figure out exactly what you want. The more you work on it and the more learn, the more prepared you’ll feel. I plan on having a one page plan printed out in my hospital bag.

Hospital Bags

Which brings me to the dreaded hospital bag. I don’t know why, but the idea of packing a hospital bag has me totally freaked. Maybe because once I start packing, it’s real? Like when we moved into our new house and waited until the day of to start filling boxes. I’ve read hundreds of different packing lists (like this one and this one and this one). But I haven’t opened up the bag and started filling it with what we’ll need. I’m giving myself a deadline. By 35 weeks, our bags will be packed and the car seat will be installed. That gives me one month to get a grip.

Breast Pump

I found out I can get a free breast pump from my health insurance. There were a few hoops to jump through and I can’t techincally order it until a week before my due date. But I called and figured out the whole process, so now I just have a reminder on my phone to make the call and order it. It’ll be an easy one to cross of the third trimester checklist.

Gifts For Siblings 

This is a fun one. I did something similar for the boys when we got married. My plan is to pack each of them a gift bag full of new toys and treats and say they’re from the baby. It’ll help them feel connected to the baby and get excited about her. Rather than thinking the new baby is changing everything, they’ll think the new baby is adding all this extra awesome to our life!

That’s it! Like I said, I’m trying to keep my third trimester checklist simple so I don’t get overwhelmed. Is there anything you think I’m missing that I should prioritze these next few months? 

Download my super simple third trimester checklist, here!