24 Weeks Pregnant: My week-by-week pregnancy list

Currently 26 weeks pregnant and it feels like time is flying! Here is a little of what was going down in 24 weeks.

Since about 8 weeks, I’ve been maintaining a week-by-week pregnancy list of things that need to be done as we prepare for D-Day. Over the past few weeks, I’ve slowly been refining these and expanding them into areas of pregnancy, birth, and postpartum. I am a ridiculous list maker by nature when it comes to life and projects, so I knew my experience with these areas would be no different: I need lists to stay sane and sleep at night. If its written down, it’s safe outside my scattered brain.

Early on, another blogger mentioned a book called Organized Life with Baby. Feeling overwhelmed already, I reserved it from the library. Although a little simplistic, it’s provided just enough structure to work from and close the gaps in areas I know less about — especially in postpartum. Here’s a little taste of my list:

Week-by-Week Pregnancy List Summary

8-12 Weeks Pregnant

• 8 weeks pregnant: Establish diet and supplementation plan. Work to establish what supplements are needed on top of prenatal vitamin and what approach you will take to eating throughout pregnancy.
• 9 weeks pregnant: Home office/paperwork clean-up. Banish major paper pile-ups and create a space and method for organizing notes, journals and documentation, and medical paperwork.
• 10 weeks pregnant: Research the medical tests you want to consent to and begin to assemble outline of developmental milestones and questions you may have. Prepare to notify employers and begin making a maternity leave plan proposal.
• 11-12 weeks pregnant: Share the news and document the experience! Prepare fun graphics, announcements, surprises for family and just enjoy!

13-17 Weeks Pregnant

• 13 weeks pregnant: Research maternity leave, medical coverage, and what benefits are available via Human Resources. Begin systematizing workflows within your job duties and documenting projects thoroughly (if you weren’t already).
• 14 weeks pregnant: Write an organization plan for the house and begin analyzing the different routines currently in place within your home and if they can/should be improved. For me this involved looking at the most trafficked areas of our home (kitchen, laundry and bathroom) and the different routines, purposes and equipment that are stored there. Everything getting organized also got a timeline for deep clean.
• 15 weeks pregnant: Build your maternity wardrobe or begin looking at what pieces of your wardrobe are going to get sized out and when. Decide what you’ll be able to get away with and for how long. This involved looking ahead to the season in which you will be “most pregnant.”
• 16-17 weeks pregnant: Research daycares, and the types of care services you will be looking for and get added to lists of your top choices. Then set a calendar reminder and be prepared to have to call them over and over again to check on your status. I’m not bitter.

18-22 Weeks Pregnant

• 18 weeks pregnant: Begin thinking about your birth plan and preferences for the experience. I actually started doing this earlier (around week 10), but I placed it later because I don’t necessarily think everyone is ready to go there that early. If you are thinking of hiring a midwife/doula, make contact.
• 19 weeks pregnant: Begin working on your registry from a list of things you already own that may suffice, and things you will need for the first few months. We’re planning for 4-ish months — so focused in on breastfeeding supplies, diapering, clothing, a few toys and furniture.
• 20 weeks pregnant: In continuation with household organization started in week 14, tackle some sections this week. I focused on the kitchen and pantry.
• 21-22 weeks pregnant: More organization and deep cleaning. I really worked from week 14 forward on optimizing routines as well. I worked to change bad habits like leaving dishes in the sink, laundry left out and built a cleaning schedule that addresses the houses in smaller pieces, rather than leaving it all for Sunday afternoons like I used to.

23-27 Weeks Pregnant

• 23 weeks pregnant: “Making room for baby.” Begin addressing the room where the baby will call home and all the areas they may spend time and what is currently in use and done in those areas. Become more aware of contaminates in common household products and items, and investigate healthier options. Clean out room intended for baby and decide on what improvements are necessary.
• 24 weeks pregnant: Continuation of week 23. I also researched hospital arrangements, birth classes, CPR classes and breastfeeding groups online.
• 25 weeks pregnant: Set up the Nursery (in progress). Set up your baby’s room (or area) and how furniture and things will unfold. Where will toys be stored? Where is “diaper central?” Paint and repair and make any improvements.
• 26-27 weeks pregnant: Complete the organizing of your bedroom; decide on any decorative changes you wish to make; schedule time for research or projects; consider some organizing solutions for this room.

28-32 Weeks Pregnant

• 28 weeks pregnant: Finalize your birth plan (in progress). Create a more specific birth plan and talk to your care provider to make sure you are on the same page.
• 29 weeks pregnant: Make some concrete postpartum plans for yourself. Start with ideas and rough plans for post-baby social and personal life. This is a weird one, but I’ve been told it’s hugely important and I definitely agree. For me, my “plans” so far include everything from training plans with my coach to tailgating and Roots and Blues. Everything is loose, but I feel better knowing that I’ve set some things in motion.
• 30 weeks pregnant: Organize your pantry and laundry room (ongoing). Clean out your pantry; organize your pantry for ease of retrieval and maximum use of space; streamline your laundry room or laundry area; create household list and routine templates and build a home organization binder and refine the chores that will keep home life moving.
• 31-32 weeks pregnant: Planning for Co-Parenting. Consider the practical implication of certain parenting decisions. Come up with a plan for sharing parenting with your partner during those early weeks.

33-36 Weeks Pregnant

• 33 weeks pregnant: Birth strategy and creating your “team.” Think about the people who will play an important part in your life before, during, and after the birth of your baby. For me that’s everyone from family and friends to my trainer and nutritionist.
• 34 weeks pregnant: Stock Up on Postpartum Supplies. Stock up on postpartum supplies you’ll need to take care of yourself once your baby is here. So far this is a really varied list of everything from stamps and thank you notes to G diaper liners. I’m also preparing meals to freeze and recipes to make to have things easily ready and available.
• 35 weeks pregnant: Beautify your bathrooms. Create order in all the bathrooms in the house. For me I really want to get the closet re-shelved and organized so it holds the linens that currently reside in a basket that lives in our laundry room. I also want this room to remain clean, so we’re working on the chore list/plan to focus in on this busy room.
• 36 weeks pregnant: Wind down at work and prepare for maternity leave by creating a written cloud-based documentation of all the projects, their status and what is expected to occur over the weeks you are gone. Make sure these all have a point person to contact, as well as new assignee to ensure they are covered.

37-40 Weeks Pregnant

• 37 weeks pregnant: Prepare the “final” checklist. My goal for 37 weeks is to have everything organized and ready to deliver. Create a public “master list” and then distribute versions as needed. This includes plans for how you will notifying friends and family and share the news (create “captains” for the various groups in our lives who can help notify). Also includes phone lists for your family members of other family, providers and important points of contact; rough schedules if they are available, plans and schedules for pets; legal documents; and medical benefit information. We will be keeping a hard copy of this with us as well.
• 38 weeks pregnant: Pack your hospital bag. This is pretty self-explanatory, and in the absence of more information here, I’ll definitely be doing a post on it closer to the day.
• 39 weeks pregnant: Create a “Mom and Baby” nook somewhere in your home for breastfeeding.
• 40 weeks pregnant: Take care of yourself to get ready for baby. Decide on specific and fun ways to nurture yourself before the baby arrives. Consider which forms of self-care you want postpartum for “recovery.”

As you can see, having an outline set early has allowed me to work different areas of the list ahead of time in order to have more time to make decisions. Some things even got “phase 1” completion and then refined over several weeks before being finalized by the time they came up (yes, I totally dork out over this stuff). I like being able to think things over slowly before they are “assigned” and feel more prepared, especially now with the secondary lists and plans I’m preparing for family, friends, and above all Kaitlan’s birth.

If you are like me and thrive on lists, I hope this helps you. Mine currently live on Evernote, and the Master list document for 37 weeks will live on Google Drive once it’s complete. I have the hospital packing and postpartum recovery supply lists in progress as well. I currently have a very rough outline for postpartum, but it’s still in progress and highly variable at this point.

Feeling

Great! Starting to feel a little slower and more calculated in walking and movements as I begin to feel like I’m navigating the world belly first. Half of my belly button is now turned outward, which is weird to look at every morning. I joke that it’s a cooking thermometer.

Certain things are becoming uncomfortable. Sitting on the couch writing this now turned slightly at an angle is difficult and sleeping in bed involves several tosses and turns throughout the night to ease some pressure I feel in my hips. As it gets warmer, I’m pre-emptively propping my feet up all day at work (my ankles have always swollen some with heat), and increasing my water intake to ridiculous levels.

Thoughts

Other than feeling a little slower and slightly uncomfortable, I’m feeling awesome. Workouts are still great (sans running, which I’ve scaled to shorter distances — more on that next week), and I still feel like I have good energy.

I have completely fallen in love with her kicks and rolls. They are seriously the best part of pregnancy by far for me. Before I eat, after I eat, and randomly throughout the night now, I look forward to each of her little sessions and miss them terribly when she is quiet. Most women complain about people touching their bellies, but as long as I know the person, I’m happy to share them.

More about workouts next week!