A Checklist of 30+ Things To Do In Your Last Month Of Pregnancy

What should you do in your last month of pregnancy? Here’s a checklist of 30+ things to do in the third trimester while you wait to have your baby.

The Third Trimester Of Pregnancy – You’re Nearly There!

The last month of pregnancy, and indeed all of the third trimester, is a strange and exciting time. It’s the home straight, waiting until the baby comes. It’s the end of the beginning, and the beginning of the end of pregnancy.

You’ll probably spend it experiencing a range of emotions from fear to frenzied excitement. You might be dying to meet the baby, but also not want to wish the time away. You may however, want to wish away all the people who persistently ask you ‘Have you had the baby yet?’

Your last month of pregnancy is a time where time goes really, really slowly. And so quickly it will take your breath away. So if you want to take your mind off labour – and also make sure everything is ready – here’s a list of last-minute things to do before you have the baby.

Don’t stress that this list might seem overwhelming, as these are just some quick and easy ideas for those pregnancy things you might have forgotten.

Here are 30 things to do in your last month of pregnancy – a checklist!

• Familiarise yourself with the hospital If you’re planning on a hospital delivery, it helps to visit the hospital beforehand so you can see what the labour and delivery wards are like. Hospitals usually offer a tour once a month, but if you can’t visit in person then they will probably have a video tour – check on their website.

• Plan your route to the labour ward If you can’t visit the hospital, plan how you’re going to get there. If it’s by car, check how busy the route will be at different times of the day. If it’s by taxi, make sure you have numbers for different firms, and check that they operate throughout the night.

• Pack your hospital bag Make sure your bag is ready to go, in case you need it sooner than you think. Remember to put your hospital notes at the last minute, and that all-important phone charger. Don’t overpack as you’ll have to cart it all around the hospital – you can always get people to bring things in for you at the last minute.

• Pack your baby’s hospital bag You’ll need a bag – or space in your bag – for your baby too, with nappies and outfits for them to wear.

• Pack things in the bag for your partner. They’ll potentially need a change of clothes and snacks too.

• Stock up on labour snacks Make sure you have lots of snacks in for labour, too – think high energy bits and bobs like flapjacks, dried fruit and energy bars. You might not feel up to eating in labour at all, but it can go on for a while and you’ll need to keep your energy up.

• Stock up on freezer food for after the baby arrives Make sure you have lots of food in for when you get home with the baby. If you want to, batch-cook lots of meals like lasagne, soup and sauces. If not, buy ready cooked meals from places like Cook, or stock up on easy-cook dishes like pasta and sauce. Have lots of cake in too!

• Make a hospital playlist Make a playlist full of your favourite songs to listen to in labour. I didn’t have time to listen to any songs with my first labour. However, with my second, much calmer labour, I wanted music – so ended up listening to some random songs from my phone. Do it!

• Hire a TENS machine Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) is a method of pain relief that can be used during labour. It involves the use of a mild electrical current, delivered through a small device and wires connected to your back with sticky pads. You can rent one of these in the final month of your pregnancy. More about TENS machines here.

• Have a haircut Do it now, while you can without distractions.

• Try hypnobirthing Hypnobirthing involves simple self-hypnosis, relaxation and breathing techniques that can help you be calm and relaxed during pregnancy and manage labour better. It can involve books, audio and also attending classes. Some people swear by it, others don’t. In my second pregnancy I was stressed out by the idea of a terrible second labour so downloaded some Katherine Graves hynobirthing MP3s, which really helped to relax me.

• Wash all the babygros Get a head start on all the washing that’s coming your way by washing all the baby clothes, so they are clean before they wear them.

• Read birth stories If you want to! Some people find it helps to prepare yourself by reading up on what it was like for other people. Some people avoid birth stories completely, it’s up to you.

Read my induction birth story and my speedy second birth story.

• Stock up on box sets In the first few newborn weeks you will spend a lot of time on the sofa, feeding and holding your baby. It helps if you have a stock of good TV to watch – we went through the entire series of the American Office, which was perfect as each episode is 30 minutes and doesn’t require a huge amount of attention.

• Seek out some pre-pregnancy, comfortable outfits, for post-pregnancy. While you’re still pregnant, hunt out some of your pre-pregnancy comfortable outfits to wear. Find warm, comfortable things you can breastfeed in, with easy boob access.

• Find a white noise app. While noise can help to sooth upset babies, so it helps to find a good one. Amazon Alexa will play white noise, and there’s a whole stock of sounds – from rain through to hoover noises – on Spotify.

• Sit on the top deck of the bus. Public transport with a pram is tricky but manageable. However, you’ll never be able to climb the stairs and the view from the lower deck is no-where near as much fun. Go up top while you can.

• Carry a really small, lovely and highly impractical bag. Take your favourite sparkly clutch out, one that’s not full of a hundred muslins, snacks, sippy cups, books, wipes, a change of clothes, nappies, suncream, sunhat, jumper, more snacks etc etc.

• Wear necklaces and earrings Without fear that a baby will yank them off.

• Wear all your lovely clothes Wear all your lovely clothes that will later be ruined by sticky handprints and crawling around on the floor like a human climbing frame – pregnancy bump permitting.

• Second guess that you’re having early labour signs You’ll probably spend a lot of time wondering if *that* twinge or strange feeling means you’re going into labour…it probably doesn’t (but call your midwife if you’re worried). Read my post on early signs of labour.

• Concentrate on anything for longer than a minute Because baby brain is real!

• Have a lovely, long relaxing bath with flowers and bubble bath and a lovely drink… All without having to fish five ducks, some bath books, plastic cakes and the TV remote out first.

• Make a hot drink, and drink it hot Enjoy!

• Make a plan for who you’re going to tell when the baby arrives, and how. Work out who you’re going to tell first when the baby arrives, and how you’ll tell them – set up a group What’s App? Text people individually?

• Research baby names If you’ve not picked the perfect baby name yet, get some inspo in my posts on old fashioned baby names and royal baby names.

• Practise putting the car seat in and out It might be trickier than you think, especially when it contains precious newborn cargo.

• Practice putting the pram up and down This will definitely be trickier than you think!

• Finish the nursery Put the final touches to the nursery, if you have one. Don’t worry if you haven’t, as the baby will be sleeping in with you for the first six months at least. And they won’t notice if they have a room ready or not.

• Set up a breastfeeding area If you’re planning on breastfeeding, set up a comfortable area that you can sit in…as you’ll be in it for hours. Make it close to the TV with the remote, a book and a snack to hand

• Go out to lunch and dinner Go out to lunch alone if you can! Enjoy the silence.

• And of course, sleep Lie-in, nap, not get up at 1am, 3am, 5am and so on…

• And finally…do absolutely nothing for as long as possible Put your feet up and RELAX.

Once you’ve read my checklist on 30+ Things To Do In Your Last Month Of Pregnancy, read these posts:

• Things they definitely don’t tell you in NCT classes
• The secrets of the third trimester and the secrets of the fourth trimester.
• Very early signs of pregnancy week 1
• Follow me on Instagram, I’m Gill_Crawshaw