Five Ways I’m Preparing for Baby #3!
Happy Monday blog post, friends! I can't believe my pregnancy is officially at the halfway mark! Today, I’m 20 weeks and two days pregnant, and I'm SO thankful! I thought it’d be only fitting to share with you all five ways I'm preparing to transition to baby #3! If you're also expecting and found any of these ways helpful, let me know in the comments below so I can congratulate you, and maybe swap some more ideas! ;-) I hope you enjoy!
1. Weaning my youngest
One of the first ways I prepared for baby #3 is by weaning my youngest at 14 months! Since my youngest and the new baby will only be 21 months apart, I figured it would be wise to give mama's milk machines a little break! I had exclusively breastfed my daughter to 14 months, and was starting to feel my hormones hinting it was time to close that chapter. I began to feel more irritable upon feedings, on top of being pregnant, and I usually take that as my cue that both my body and hormones need a break! I weaned my daughter right before she turned 15 months, and immediately knew in my heart that it was the right decision for both of us! She even began sleeping better once she learned we weren’t meeting three times a night for our regular scheduled feedings, which in turn was a huge bonus! I’m very happy I listened to my body, and that my little girl transitioned happy and well after weaning!
2. Transitioning my kids to the same room
I have a separate blog post you can read here about how I successfully transitioned my 14 month old daughter to my 3 year old son's room in just one week! This was a no brainer, and although challenging at first, it was the BIGGEST blessing in the end!! Originally, baby girl was sleeping in my husband and my walk-in-closet, but I knew we needed to make way for baby #3! My son would gain his first roommate, and my hubby and I would have some personal space back before our new arrival! My son was already begging me to let his sister sleep with him, and now that they’re transitioned, they both go to bed at 7pm and sleep STRAIGHT till 7am, 7:30am! Happy roommates, Happy Mom and Dad! :-) :-)
3. Downsizing baby clothes
We find out the gender of my pregnancy this week, and I can’t contain my excitement!! I already have 1 girl and 1 boy, so it's comforting to have a good amount of baby clothes all ready to go regardless of the gender! Once we find out, I'm going to go through all of my kid’s baby clothes, and really contemplate over “keepers” and “losers.” I like to reevaluate my kid’s baby clothes every now and then to make sure I'm not hoarding too many! This keeps their keepsakes more on the minimal side, but still extra special as our family grows!
4. Finishing my kid’s baby books
Anyone else struggle to get your kid's baby books finished? Usually baby books document your child’s first year INTENSELY, and then hop to each birthday year which becomes much easier to document. Having children close in age is a wonderful thing, but it can feel challenging to document each child equally if you don't make sure to keep up! My goal is to completely finish my two children's baby books of their earliest years so that I can enjoy focusing and documenting the early memories of my next child!
5. Decluttering and organizing toys
With more babies, comes more clutter… something I get really antsy about. I personally love sustainable, functional, educational, stem toys that provide long term enjoyment for as many of my children as possible! Before a new child comes, I do a deep declutter of any toys that no longer have a spot, or use in our home! This whole process makes me feel more at peace knowing my kids have toys they truly love and actually play with.
I hope you all enjoyed five ways I'm preparing for baby #3! If you're pregnant too, Congratulations!! Let me know in the comments below how far along you are, and what you’re doing to prepare your home and family for your newest addition!! I can't wait to hear! Happy baby prepping!
Cool, Calm, and Collectedly Yours,
