3 Tips for Preparing for a Newborn

Whether you’re becoming a first-time parent, or expanding your family again, preparing for a newborn can be challenging. You may have to do several things around the house to prepare, like get the nursery ready or baby-proof your home. You may also have to look at your current financial habits to determine if there are areas you need to cut back. Whether it’s on regular spending or you’re considering saving money for a new home this financial check-in will be crucial in your preparation.

Consider creating a checklist that can help you make sure you’re on the right track for when the baby comes. The better prepared you are before the baby is born, the more you can relax and enjoy their company when they arrive. Take these tips into consideration while checking items off your list!

1 – Check-In on Your Finances

As you get more excited each day leading up to bringing your baby home, it’s important to make sure that you have all your bases covered financially. Are there areas where you can cut back on spending so you can save to buy new things for the baby? For example, you may consider cutting back on the following items:

  • Streaming Services: Do you pay for Netflix, Hulu, Paramount, etc.? If so, even just cutting back to one streaming platform can save you at least $20/per month.
  • What You Already Have: Instead of going on a coffee run every day, consider making coffee at home!
  • Eating Out: If you order in or go out to eat a couple of times a week, try meal planning to save money on going out.

Saving this extra money will allow you to put it towards the baby’s nursery, clothing, or even hospital expenses.

Plan for Change

Bringing a new baby into the family may mean you have to make a lot of big, life changes to accommodate the little one. For example, if expanding your family causes your current home to become too small, you may consider buying a new home. This process on its own can be costly, so where you can, you’ll want to avoid stressing about buying a new house in the midst of having a baby. Along with many other strategies, financial preparation can help with that.

You’ll need to take into account whether you will be living off of one salary after the baby is born. If that is the case, you’ll need to determine how much you can afford on a house based on your income. You don’t want to put yourself at risk for not being able to afford a new home, pay your bills, and provide for your family. So reassure yourself that you can afford a home that will fit your family’s needs.

2 – Think Ahead When Designing the Nursery

One of the most exciting things about having a baby is designing the nursery. The baby’s room is an area where you and your newborn spend a lot of time together. Creating a separate checklist for the nursery room may help you identify everything you will need or what you already have and may just need to pull out of storage. You’ll want to think about the setup of the room as well in regard to where you want the crib, changing table, and rocking chair to go. For example, you don’t want to place the crib near the door where your baby can easily hear noises throughout the house. You also don’t want to place the crib or changing table under a vent. If a crin is located under a vent, the heat and air conditioning could be blowing directly on the baby, causing them to potentially fuss or become too warm or cold.

If you’re reusing a crib from one of your other kids, it may be best to invest in a newer mattress, and if you are investing in a new mattress, shop with us at Colgate Mattress. Mattress safety is extremely important when it comes to your baby as it affects their quality of sleep. Purchasing a new mattress will also ensure that the mattress is sanitary and you can ensure that it is firm enough for the baby. Since babies should not be sleeping with extra pillows, blankets, or stuffed animals, the mattress should be comfortable for them to lie on without extra support. Babies can’t sleep with extra items in their crib because of the potential for Sudden Infant Death Syndrome (SIDS), so investing in a mattress that is breathable too is crucial. At Colgate Mattress, we can supply you with a variety of crib mattresses that will best fit your needs. Babies tend to roll on their faces while sleeping, so making sure they can breathe while snuggled in their crib is important.

3 – Baby-Proof Your Home

Creating a safe space for your baby is crucial not only for them but for your family as well. Babyproofing your home is an important step as it brings a level of comfort to your baby and family knowing that they won’t have to worry about anything tragic happening. If you’re moving into a new house for example, you may consider babyproofing the home before you move in. This may consist of adding locks on all doors, installing gates around the stairs and in certain areas of the home, or adding window stops to all windows in the house. Taking these steps before moving in will reduce the stress of having to babyproof your home after the baby arrives.

Along with babyproofing your home, there are also safety precautions you should take in addition to standard babyproofing. Make sure that you have smoke detectors in each level of your home and a carbon monoxide detector. Each home should have one, but purchasing extra batteries and detectors to have on hand will also be in your best interest in the event of a fire, leak, or other safety issues.

Preparing for a newborn is such a fun and exciting process, but it can often become overwhelming. Taking these steps and tips into consideration and crossing things off your list will help you to feel ready for when the big day is here. In the meantime, make sure you are enjoying each moment and taking it all in, as it will go by fast. Before you know it, you will be in the nursery room creating memories with your new family member!

 

 

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