Pregnancy To Do List by Month
- Alex Bunkers
- Aug 22, 2021
- 17 min read
Updated: May 2, 2024
Month 1 / When you find out
Tell Your Partner (If you haven't already)
Decide with you Partner who you will tell and when
Research what your Insurance Covers
Make an appointment at your OBGYN - Depending on when you figure out you're pregnant, you'll need to make an appointment around 7 - 9 weeks to confirm pregnancy. This is super exciting time -- expect to hear the heartbeat! If you want your partner there for this, make sure to coordinate the appointment time with them!
Get a quality prenatal vitamin - I recommend Pink Stork's Premium Prenatal found here because of the additional Morning Sickness Blend and Nourishing Baby Blend added in. Many insurance plans cover folate supplements and/or prenatal vitamins during pregnancy, so be sure to check your insurance benefits so you don't have to pay for these out of pocket!
Research Daycare / Childcare Options - Depending on where you live and the demand, you might need to get on this ASAP to secure a spot for your baby.
Download a Pregnancy Tracker - or two! - I loved the What to Expect App the best, but also loved reading The Bump. These were great at letting you know in digestible bits week by week what to expect in terms of symptoms, doctors appointments and more. Make it a habit to read through the weekly pages and related articles every few nights and you will feel very prepared.
Stock up on Snacks & Adjust Diet - The first three months of pregnancy are when the building blocks of your baby's brain and body are developing as well as the placenta...So you better believe you're going to be hungry, your body is building a human AND an organ! Seriously, you should keep snacks in your car, purse, at work and next to your nightstand. Even though your tired and maybe don't feel great, you need to be sure you're eating super healthy. Check out this list of great snack options. I drank a green smoothie made with KaChava almost everyday to make sure I was getting enough nutrients and vitamins.
Buy Expecting Better by Emily Oster (and start reading ASAP) - If you read one book, make it this one! My close friend got this for me at the beginning and it helped shaped how I approached pregnancy. Just like the description says, it's Freakonomics meets What to Expect When You're Expecting....Here's a link to the book. I also recommend her other books: Cribsheet and Family Firm later on.
Month 2
Start Purging / Cleaning out your Home - I hate clutter and messiness so the thought of all the baby stuff we'd be acquiring over the next few months (and years) was overwhelming to say the least. My husband and I usually clean out stuff pretty regularly, but having a baby sent us into a purging frenzy. We literally touched every item throughout our entire house/ garage to minimize the "stuff" we had and get everything PERFECTLY organized. If you need some motivation and good laugh on why you should do this, check out this 5min video from comedian George Carlin. I promise you will feel so much better and ready for baby to have your home in order.
Start a Researching Baby Products & Building a Registry - My same friend that recommended the Expecting Better book, also recommend the site Lucie's List to me for researching which products I should register for as well as great resources on pregnancy and beyond. I must say, the "Gear Guides" on this site are the best I've found. I started at the top and went through each one, bumping them up against Amazon product reviews and some general Google searches to determine which items I would register for. For my registry, I selected Amazon because who DOESN'T have Amazon these days? It makes it so convenient for people shopping your registry, returns/exchanges are so simple, it auto tracks your gifts and thank you notes and has a 15% completion discount! Additionally, Amazon gives you the ability to mark items as "private" so others can't see them on your public facing registry. I added things like post-partum essentials, books, pregnancy/breastfeeding snacks and more to my registry as private (things that would be weird for others to buy me)...Then, you can add all these things to your cart near the end of your pregnancy and get a huge discount! Once you announce your pregnancy, you might also be surprised how many people offer to let you borrow things...ask around! Baby stuff is expensive and it's very common for friends/family to share thins back and forth!
Find a good prenatal workout routine / gym - Staying active and fit has been shown to have numerous benefits during pregnancy and for the labor process. If you already workout regularly, great! If you don't workout, you probably shouldn't start anything too intense, but DO need to at least start walking or something. Either way, you should check with your doctor for your personal situation. I kept up with my normal cardio and weight training routine and added in some prenatal yoga, Pilates and barre.
Plan your Baby Budget - Start figuring out how much you'll need to prepare for baby, medical costs, childcare, going on a baby moon and more.
Other Medical Procedures You Can Do - Since you will most likely meet your deductible during the year with all the doctors appointments, labor/delivery costs and hospital bills, you should look into any other medical procedures you want. For example, I went to the chiropractor every other week to make sure things were aligned which really helped me stay comfortable during pregnancy and reduce any long-term issues. Other things you can do depending on your insurance: Dental cleanings (oral health is very important for pregnant women), dermatologist, ENT, etc...
Start Stretch Mark Prevention - Might as well start moisturizing and prepping your skin to stretch in the coming months! Drinking water will be important, but using skincare products is also necessary. Your postpartum body will thank you! I was constantly using body scrub to exfoliate and slathering on Bio Oil and Palmer's Cocoa Butter. I even got pretty liberal with using some of my expensive face creams and oils such as Josie Maran Argan Oil, and Sunday Riley's CEO Glow on my abdomen/thigh area.
Get Pregnancy friendly Medicines - Speaking of heartburn, pregnancy might bring on some aches and pains and you'll want to make sure you have pregnancy friendly medication on hand. Luckily I didn't need much, but I definitely went through a lot of TUMS during months 4 - 7.
Month 3
Start a Family Calendar - Prior to being pregnant, my husband and I just kept our own separate calendars and told each other about events...When I got pregnant, I figured it was time to setup a shared Google Family Calendar. This way we could easily access everything happening from doctors appointments, travel and all the future scheduling complexities that come with having kids. Bonus points for setting up a "Family Command Center".
Schedule Nuchal Translucency Scan (11 - 13 weeks) - This test checks for certain birth defects such as Down Syndrome, trisomy 18, trisomy 13, heart problems and several other abnormalities. The test involves both a blood test and an ultrasound that measures the the back of baby's neck. The combined results give you a sense of the baby's risk although is not a 100% diagnosis either way. Getting this test is optional and knowing of this possible risk could help you plan and get increased monitoring throughout your pregnancy.
Decide & Schedule Carrier Screenings and/or Genetic Testing (~12 weeks) - If you're going to do this also, it makes sense to schedule for the same visit as your Nuchal Translucency Appointment. Unless you're high risk, this will likely not be covered by your insurance, so expect to pay out of pocket upwards of $1,000. This is a much more robust genetic testing panel that test the mom to see if she's a carrier for certain defects as well as early gender detection. If the mom tests positive, then the dad could be tested. I recommend talking to your doctor about all the options here. We did all of this just for peace of mind and were able to do it without finding out the gender (since we were crazy and waited until the birth to find that out).
Maternity Clothes - Time to start thinking about budget and what you will do for maternity clothes. I practically lived in maxi dresses and leggings. Check with friends for hand me downs to save money -- I had a friend give me two storage tubs of pregnancy clothes she called the Sisterhood of Traveling Maternity Clothes. I also decided that being pregnant was uncomfortable enough and that I'd treat myself during this time. So I subscribed to Rent The Runway's monthly membership program. This allowed me to get several items per month for work and events that I could weave in to the other items I had. It was honestly so worth it and added some fun to dressing during pregnancy! Check it out here and get 30% off your first month!
Order a Maternity Pillow - I never used extra pillows before pregnancy, but man was this a lifesaver for a growing belly. I got this one and put my normal pillow on top which worked great. Next time around, I think I'll also get a wedge to be able to list on my back/sit more comfortably - especially once heartburn starts to strike later on in pregnancy.
Plan Baby Moon (or two) - Before you get to too far into your 2nd trimester, be sure to get a few last trips with your partner planned since you shouldn't really travel past the start of your 3rd trimester.
Month 4
Schedule your 20 week Anatomy Scan - For many ladies, this is the last ultrasound you'll have unless you want to pay for an additional one out of pocket or you have issues that need additional monitoring. Again, be sure to schedule for a time when your partner can be there -- this was one of the best parts of the whole pregnancy process to see your baby's growth and watch them moving around! Don't be shy - ask the Ultrasound tech for photos / videos!
Schedule the rest of your OBGYN appointments (especially if you work) - Whether you are having a normal pregnancy or are considered high risk, your doctor's likely provided you a schedule / timeline of all the appointments you'll need through the remainder of your pregnancy. Make all your appointments ahead of time so you can be sure to get days/times that are most convenient for your schedule (and perhaps same day of week / time so it's easy to keep track of...The further along you get, you'll be going more frequently, potentially multiple times a week. I made all mine early and got the last slot on Tuesdays so that I could minimize the impact to my work schedule. Oh and don't forget to add them to your new shared Family Google Calendar!
Announce the News -
Friends & Family - Figure out fun ways to tell your family, friends and everyone. Be sure you let them know the news is still under wraps if you don't want them posting on their social media accounts or texting other friends/family before you have a chance to tell them yourself.
Work - Make sure you've brushed up on your company's maternity leave policy. Some choose to wait longer to tell their co-workers, but I chose as soon as possible to start planning. Obviously if you've announced on social media already, don't be surprised if work knows.
Baby Shower (or sprinkle) Plans - Now that you've told people, time to start thinking through a baby shower date and plans. A good rule of thumb is to have your shower between weeks 30 - 36 to give yourself enough time to have everything ready before baby arrives. Of course you know your situation, so if you're expecting an early delivery or having twins you need to adjust accordingly!
Maternity Photos - I opted not to do maternity photos, but if you are doing these, you'll want to book early and start planning! Many photographers offer packages / bundles that include sessions for maternity, newborn and 1st year photos.
Month 5
Research Life Insurance Policies - Not one of the "fun" topics...and certainly something I hope no one ever has to use, but something you and your partner definitely need to discuss and decide on. I do know people that have been in this absolutely horrible situation both with and without life insurance and it has made a huge difference.
Start Kick Counts (~ 18 - 22 weeks) - You should feel your baby move by 22 weeks and can start performing kick counts. If you're like me, I didn't feel anything for sure until the later part of this window because a) I didn't really know what I was looking for and b) I had an anterior placenta. Here is a great article on fetal movement and performing kick counts.
Start Researching Birth Decisions to Create Birth Plan - I went into the "birth plan" concept pretty chill - my birth plan was more of a "go with the flow" plan...After all, doctors do this everyday and are the true experts. Still, some things you might be passionate about or that you'll want to talk about with your partner and decide on are:
Do you want a home birth, birthing center or hospital birth (some of this will already be decided depending on your doctor and where they have privileges at this point).
Who do you want in the room during delivery?
Who do you want at the hospital during labor?
Induction Preferences (rupturing membranes, Pitocin, etc...)
Vaginal labor vs. C-section
Do you want an amniotomy (forced rupture of membranes to break your water)?
Pain Management Options / Medications (Natural, epidural, Demoral, etc...)
Fetal Monitoring
Do you want episiotomy (snip of skin to make opening bigger)?
Do you want a mirror to watch the birth?
Are you opposed to medical students performing or watching?
Delayed cord cutting?
Who cuts cord?
Do you want the Golden Hour? This is pretty standard at most hospitals.
Cord blood banking & stem cell preservation?
Keep, donate or trash placenta?
Circumcision?
Who / when should the first bath be?
Sugar Water allowed?
Pacifier allowed?
Lactation Consultant?
Some other things that will happen and are required by most states are the antibiotic eye treatment, vitamin K injection, Hepatitis B Vaccine, Heel prick for health screening, hearing test, etc...
Month 6
Get TDAP Vaccine (weeks 27 - 36) - You can usually walk in to any CVS or Walgreens and get this in about 30 minutes. It's covered by most insurance. Anyone who will be around the baby a lot should also get this vaccine if they haven't within the last 10 years.
Educate Yourself - Between the hospital, pregnancy apps, Pinterest, blogs and internet in general these days, it is easy to get all the information you need. If you're in Houston like me, The Motherhood Center offers a huge variety of classes online and in person. Here are a few of the common courses and sites I used to prepare:
Breastfeeding
Milkology - I took this online class over two nights. It was okay for the price, but you can probably find most of this information for free just by reading blogs, Youtube videos, etc... The most important thing most of these classes emphasis is to remember is that even though breastfeeding is natural, it isn't easy at the beginning -- success comes from hanging in there the first few days/weeks.
Birthing
Mommy Labor Nurse's Birth It Up Course - I had done so much reading and already taken the Milkology course, so I opted to skip this and just do the free one my hospital / doctor provided since I figured that would be most accurate for what I could expect in my exact situation. Check your hospital website and/or OBGYN for courses offered.
Baby CPR
You may be able to find a local in person course as well.
Newborn Care / Sleep Training
Taking Cara Babies - She has a few courses on newborns, sleep training and more. Several parents I know raved about these courses and said they work wonders. We did the First Five Months bundle for $99. You can also decide to skip these for now unless you get desperate and instead try the reading her and others' blogs, follow her instagram and other free resources first such as this blog here. 2 year UPDATE: We followed Cara's advice as well as Ferberized Penelope and she has slept like a dream (knock on wood). I highly recommend doing exactly what Cara/Ferber say. Our son came 2yrs after Penelope and he was a bit more challenging, but we stayed consistent and got him sleeping on a good schedule. They began sharing a room at ages 2.5 and 7 months respectively.
Month 7
Tour Hospital - Most hospitals give tours (even virtually in the time of COVID). I definitely recommend this for peace of mind on where to go, what to expect and more.
Complete Hospital Pre-Registration - You're not going to want to fill out a bunch of forms when you're in the throws of labor and show up at the hospital. Save yourself the frustration and pre-register.
Order Breast Pump - If you plan on breastfeeding, most insurance plans cover a breast pump and even lactation consultants. I used this site was super easy to add your insurance information, see which pumps qualify under your insurance and then order (for free)! You can even choose to upgrade and just pay the difference. I went with the Medela Sonata to start and figured I'd also get the Elvie if breastfeeding was going well. UPDATE: I did not use the Elvie with my second baby at all and ended up producing way more milk...Not sure if the Elvie's suction is great for encouraging production, but needless to say, I didn't miss not using it. The Medela Sonata was my all-time favorite between the three pumps I had.
Download a contraction timer app
Finalize Birth Plan / Decisions - Also be sure to talk through this with your partner since you'll be distracted during birth. If your partner knows your wishes, it will be easier for them to make sure things are progressing how you'd like. You can also type this up, print and keep in a folder in your hospital bag with other important documents.
Research & Pick Pediatrician - If you're in Houston, we go to Blue Fish Pediatrics and LOVE it. They have a ton of offices everywhere, are friendly and knowledgeable and kids love it.
Find New Mom Groups - If you think you'll be bored and want to go on walks or have something to do, find a group in your area!
Deep Clean House
Start drinking Labor Prep tea and eating dates - This is supposed to help shorten your labor. Pink Stork's stuff is my favorite, but you can find lots of options on Amazon.
Month 8
Pack Hospital Bag - Here's a guide on what to pack.
Wash / Sanitize Baby Stuff - You don't necessarily want to take the tags off and wash everything since you never know what might be too big/small or what you might have too much of. Just make sure you have a good amount of the basics to get you started washed and ready for when you get home: onesies, blankets, bassinet sheets, swaddles, burb clothes, pacifier, breast pump, etc...You're going to be doing a lot of laundry anyways, so you can easily wash new things as you need them. Same concept for diapers, you don't want to unpack a bunch of diapers and then your baby is already outgrown them and you can't return. Personally, I recommend keeping everything packaged except the things you KNOW you need at the beginning.
Finalize Nursery
Prep a Diaper / Nursing Caddy / Post Partum Caddy (on each floor) - I ordered this cart from Amazon and used the top tier for diaper changing supplies, middle tier for pumping and the bottom tier for post-partum supplies on the first floor of our house. For the second floor where our master and nursery were located, I just kept the diaper / pumping stuff in the nursery and had a post-partum caddy in each bathroom. The wheels made it easy to roll around to wherever I was in our living room / kitchen and have everything I need. Here's what I kept in each section (most of this are the things I had added to my registry as "private"):
Diaper Changing - changing mat, diapers, wipes, diaper cream, hand sanitizer, a toy for distraction, burp clothes, extra onesies.
Nursing - Water Bottle, Medela pump, hand pump, Lasinoh starter kit w/ balms and covers, Kiinde pump bags (I highly recommend the Kiinde system found here).
Post-Partum - diapers, padsicles, tucks/ witch hazel, peri bottle, sitz bath spray, chapstick, arnica. The Fridamom kit was amazing!
Install Carseats - According to safety standards, the safest place to put your car seat is in the center of your backseat (to increase buffer space). The second safest is behind the driver side (since you're natural instinct is to protect that side of the vehicle). There are usually tons of free services/organizations that offer to make sure car seats are installed properly - do a quick Google search to find some in your area!
Get husband / sibling gifts (optional) - I got my husband a gift for becoming a father and wrote him a letter ahead of time to give him at the hospital. You could also do the same for any siblings if you want them to have a special "Big Brother/Sister" shirt or something. Alternately, you might have the siblings pick out a special something to give their new baby sibling.
Arrange Newborn Photos - If you're in Houston, we went to Sarah Borchgrevink.
Check Hospital Visitor Policy and Decide Communication Plan - I gave birth during the time of COVID, so my husband was the only person allowed; but many hospitals have visitor hours, limits on number of visitors, age limits, etc.. Be sure to check your hospital's rules and talk with your partner about how you'd like this time to be. Some choose to keep it intimate with just the immediate family, others want all sorts of visitors. Depending on what you choose, you'll also need to come up with a communication plan for how often you will provide updates and to who.
Finish Thank You Notes - Writing thank you notes from your shower / pregnancy is the LAST thing you'll want to do post baby. Try to stay on top of these as you go if you can, but either way, definitely have them done and mailed out before you go into labor.
Finalize Plan for Pets / Siblings During Birth
Start Tying Up Loose Ends at Work
Send formal email to communicate the plan and alternate project owners to teams / clients for while your out.
Create your Out of Office Message.
Submit any required HR paperwork for maternity leave.
Change owner of any recurring meetings so team can adjust while you're out.
Month 9
Plan a Last Date Night
Finalize Plans for Coming Home from Hospital - Align with your partner and/or anyone who will be helping you on what you need them to do for meals, laundry, etc... Don't be afraid to delegate!
Set Visitor Expectations - You don't want it to be a mad dash or hectic when you come home. You're going to be getting tons of visitor requests, etc.. Make sure you and your partner have discussed how you would like your first few days and weeks at home to look -- then make sure you communicate that to family. Don't be afraid to be upfront with visitors and time box them (i.e. specify they can come over from 3-4pm because you have to feed baby and it's easier without guests). Doing so upfront is way easier than being stuck and uncomfortable asking someone who is outstaying their welcome.
Make Freezer Meals - We made a ton of food and put in our garage freezer which was a life saver whether you use them in the early days or months later when you return to work and cooking dinner is the last thing you want to do. Don't forget to have some easy breakfast & lunch items on hand too!
Meal Train Setup - If you've never heard of meal trains, it's an amazing thing to setup for a family whenever there is a births, surgeries, deaths or any situation where a family might need support and cooking is the last thing they should worry about. Usually a friend creates one for you and you send out the link for friends and family to signup for a certain day they will provide a meal... Check it out here.
Download a Diaper App - We used a lot of Pampers, so I downloaded the Pampers app where you can scan the box and earn rewards like more free diapers!
Download a Baby Tracker App - I used Huckleberry and loved it for both children. It made it so easy to track. I especially loved using it for my second, because I was able to reference detailed info from Penelope to see if I was on track.
Arrange for Cleaning Service While at Hospital - Whether you have a regular cleaning service or not, this can be a wonderful nice-to-have. Although you've hopefully deep cleaned your home and have everything in order, a nice touch up while you're at the hospital can make coming home so much easier those first few days.
Stay on Top of Laundry - Again, stay on top of this...You don't wanna come home to a ton of already dirty laundry.
Stock up on Household essentials - When you get home from the hospital, you are not going to want to worry about running out of toilet paper, pet food or other essentials. Here's a few ideas of things you'll want to have stocked:
Laundry detergent
Baby laundry detergent
Dish detergent
Paper towels
Toilet Paper
Shower Supplies / Toiletries
Toothpaste
Trash Bags
Ziplock Bags
Pet Food
Children's / Baby medication
Coffee
Perhaps a few non-perishable snack / food items and kitchen staples (not too much since you might be getting a lot of food delivered)
nice tips for expecting mothers