My Pre-Baby Nesting To-Do List
/Baby will be here any time in the next few weeks, so I have the common itch to nest. But the nesting bug is combined with my own type-a, list-loving, clean freak, anxious personality, and a messy mid-renovation house. So, I’ve devised a list of things I’d like to have done by the time baby gets here.
My goal isn’t just to launder swaddle blankets and prep a nursery, but rather to make our house feel like there aren’t any pending little projects. Sure, the house will always have projects, but there are so many little things to do that I want to chip away at. My logic is that the more the house feels “done” or “together” the more time we’ll have to simply enjoy baby (or do all the other messy things that come with a newborn). It also sets us up better for the kind visitors that will say, “can I do dishes for you?” to not have to explain that they need to rinse the filter in the dishwasher because it’s due for a cleaning before they wash the pile of dishes. Essentially, I want my house to feel like a nice Airbnb where everything is stocked, clean, organized, and there’s no need to do a project or worry about doing a deep clean while I’m on vacation (I do realize newborn life isn’t a vacation, but it sure deserves some mental clarity.)
All of this is wishful thinking, and I can’t expect perfection, but we can try!
So, I’m giving you our personal list of everything we’re aiming to do in the next couple of weeks. This is likely 100% useless to you, but I happen to enjoy spying on other people’s to-do lists and can sometimes be inspired by their activities. So, if you’re a spying weirdo too, here you go!
My Pre-Baby Nesting To-Do List
in no particular order
Move baby gear into her closet - As things have been delivered, it’s piled up in the dining room. I started tackling this reorganization project on Instagram Stories the other day but I’m not quite done. I’m adjusting our super versatile closet system currently in the nursery to go from grown-up clothes to tiny human clothes and tiny human gear.
Mount bookshelf in the nursery - Shouldn’t take more than a minute to mount it, but I need to paint it and also pick a color. Soooo it will take more than a minute.
Get rug and pillows and side table and things for the nursery - The nursery will not be done before baby, but I would like to get it to a place where we can make efficient use out of it for storing baby things and doing feedings in the new glider. I’m trying to source vintage and second-hand items so it takes a while to track the pieces down. But I’m eyeing this rug.
Get smell out of nursery dresser - We bought a super cute antique dresser but it smells horribly like moth balls. I’ve tried EVERY SINGLE remedy to get the smell out and I’m not having any luck. Believe me when I say the smell is 11 out of 10 and even the professional furniture restorer I took it to was shocked. Please don’t recommend home remedies, I’ve tried them ALL!
Get the pile of artwork framed - I have a stack of artwork I ordered from artists I found on Instagram and I need to get them framed to truly admire them.
Deep clean stove - If your stove isn’t covered in crusty pasta water that overflowed, tell me your secrets. The wooden spoon trick just doesn’t always work.
Deep clean bathroom - We do this pretty regularly, but let’s be sure to get one more tub scrub and grout detail done before baby. If you’re looking for a deep clean checklist, here’s mine.
Deep clean fridge - Here’s how I clean my fridge out.
Deep clean dishwasher - Every month or so, I clean out the filter in the machine, then run an empty load with just a bowl of vinegar. It keeps the dishes sparkling!
Prime and paint kitchen walls where drywall got touched up - I can do the priming easily, but can I decide if I’m going to paint the walls a new color? Probably not before baby arrives, but I can hope.
Test and practice using car seats again - I feel better every time I practice using the car seat and it will never get old reading the manual.
Clean out the interior of both cars - Sure, I want the cars to be clean, but I also don’t want any projectiles that could harm the baby in the event of a collision. I’ve learned so much about car seat safety from this account.
Remove things from the floor throughout the entire house so Roomba can do the vacuuming for us - I adore our little robot vacuum but sometimes I don’t turn him on because I feel he isn’t as efficient when there are boxes, clothes, cables, etc. on the floor. With the house being a mess of renovation gear, piles of baby stuff yet to be put away, and Ross’ recording studio electronics, Roomba hasn’t been doing much cleaning. But I want that little robot vacuum to do his thing so I don’t have to worry about vacuuming as much when we’re occupied with baby tasks. Here’s my review of the Dyson and Roomba vacuums we own.
Figure out how to hang the new mop in the kitchen cabinet - The new mop is great, but it’s a hair too wide for the space I designed for the old mop. I must find a solution and I will not rest until it fits.
Rehang plate rack - hopefully, paint it - I’m really hoping I can pick a color for our custom plate rack, but I’m so indecisive.
Empty junk from the dining room - The dining room has become the dumping ground for everything during our 16-month-long renovation. It’s time to clear it out and put the plastic folding table away.
Secure all the heavy things to walls - We aren’t babyproofing just yet, but I would like to better earthquake-proof so things don’t fall on babe. I have a very thorough emergency preparedness kit and I worry about quakes, so it’s a surprise to even myself that I don’t have the house more prepped for a big shake. We need to anchor furniture, mirrors, and the TV to the walls.
Put the new compost bin together - I ordered this upgraded compost bin months ago and it’s just sat in a pile in the backyard. Oops.
Tidy up backyard - We’re still cautious in COVID times so we’re planning on hosting baby meet-and-greets outside. We’d like to make it clean, and welcoming for guests. I want it nice for them, but mostly nice for me so I don’t need to apologize for filthy cushions or piles of lumber.
Clean outdoor table and furniture - The table needs to be re-sealed and the furniture could use a power wash.
Elevate or at least reinforce kitchen table legs - I haven’t talked about this kitchen table too much since I first pitched it, but I will soon! It’s in the kitchen and semi-useful, but it’s in need of restoration.
Drain washing machine pump cleanout - Don’t forget to drain the waste compartment from your front-loader!
Rinse house with the garden hose - Not necessary, but feels so good to remove dust and cobwebs. It’s especially nice to do before the next item on our list.
Wash windows - This has nothing to do with baby, but as summer approaches and we use our windows even more, I’ll be glad to not think about how filthy they are when I go to open them. Here’s how I wash my windows.
Re-install dining room door - We temporarily removed this door during construction and it’s ready to go back on. It should have taken 4 minutes but, of course, it became a multi-day project when I insisted the hardware needed to be cleaned and polished before reinstalling. So it must be done!
Get cabinet guy to finish the darn kitchen - Yeah. The kitchen still isn’t done and I’m waiting on the cabinet guy to do some final projects.
Get help installing casing and door in the nursery - At 9 months pregnant, I’ve moved from being an enthusiastic DIYer to someone that’s happy to hire out projects. We’re calling in our favorite handyman to do some carpentry work that I don’t have the energy to do.
Seal and hang porch swing - Remember when I bought a porch swing for Ross’ birthday two years ago? I stripped about 1/6th of the paint off of it and then failed to finish. So, I sent it to a local guy that will finish the stripping process for about $180. Money well spent in my opinion! He just needs to return it so I can seal it and hang it.
Get to inbox zero - This is a big goal, but wouldn’t it be nice if we didn’t have anything in our email inboxes? I use mine as a to-do list, so each email is something I haven’t done and is weighing on me. Luckily, it’s hovering around 20 messages, so it isn’t too bad but it feels so so close that maybe I can accomplish it?
Stock up on refill cleaning products - We have a local store that sells bulk cleaners that you pump into your own bottles. I want to be fully stocked!
Stock house of toilet paper, dry goods, pantry items, etc. - I want to not only buy the pantry items we need, but I want to be sure it’s all in arm’s reach. We store about 16 rolls of toilet paper in the bathroom and then I restock them from the giant box in the garage every so often. But I want it packed to 100% before baby. Having 12 is enough, but I want it packed to 16, I just do!
Prep announcement mailings - We’d like to mail birth announcement cards, so I need to pick a favorite design and update addresses so we can just plop in her name and photo when the time comes.
Mend all the things on the sewing chair - By “sewing chair” I mean the chair that I throw a bunch of garments to mend onto. I’m happy to report my mom has helped with this and I almost have an extra chair available to use at the dining table!
Move bed so there’s more bassinet room - I’ll admit we did do this task the other day and you can see in the photo above. The bed, dressers, window, and sconces all look completely off-center, but at least I have more room to get in and out of bed with the big swivel bassinet next to me.
Make frozen meals - I’m not going to get this popular nesting activity done. Luckily, we love take-out and we have friends and family that have already offered to bring us meals.
Figure out pendant in the closet - I think I’m going to swap the bathroom pendant light for the one in the closet (that matches the kitchen lights) to make the upper cabinets of the new closet doors more accessible. More on this later.
Get the cabinet guy to install the closet, then fill it with our stuff - Hopefully, our primary bedroom closet will be installed next week which will give us storage space back so we don’t feel so displaced. I recently emptied our clothes from the baby’s closet (where they had been for the last 2 years) and have them on rolling garment racks until our closet is ready to go.
Clean out fireplace - We don’t use our fireplace much so I’m bad at fireplace maintenance. There are some burned logs and ashes hanging out in there from the wintertime. Again, it doesn’t matter, but when I’m holding a sleeping baby on the couch and I’m looking around the living room, it will bug me to see 8-month-old ashes piled in the firebox.
Sell den rug and curtains - I’m trying! Nobody on Facebook Marketplace wants to buy my rug from the den.
Deep clean vacuums - I love doing this task, so I have no problem getting the interior of my vacuums sparking.
Check the ‘maintenance required light on Prius - I took the car to the mechanic a month ago and now the check engine light is on. ugh. I don’t want to take it back in again, so I’ll use this gizmo borrowed from a neighbor to check the status at home.
Take things to specialty recycling - The boxes of items to go to metal recycling, lightbulb recycling, and e-waste recycling are adding up. I want them purged and outta the garage!
Fix the light by the driveway - One of our exterior lights got bonked and needs to be re-attached to the fence.
Clean and refill cat/bird/bee water bowl - We have a bowl of fresh water and a solar fountain for the neighborhood wildlife but drained it when there was a bacteria being spread between birds earlier this year. It’s time to clean the bowl and give some water to our parched summertime creatures.
Finish home insurance stuff - We switched home insurance reps because the first person was slow and annoying. Unfortunately, so is the second representative so it’s been a 6-month process. I’ll get there!
Clean air purifier filter - They only clean the air if they are clean! Here’s my purifier.
Give Ross a haircut - I’ve been cutting Ross’ hair all pandemic and I must say it’s a favorite hobby. We aim to squeeze in one more trim before baby so he’s lookin’ pretty for our family photos.
Sanitize pacifiers and bottles - Self-explanatory.
Wash Allbirds - My favorite shoes are my favorite because they’re so comfy but also because I can toss them in the washing machine. I haven’t done so in months, so I might as well launder them before I’m inundated with baby clothes and cloth diapers hogging the washing machine.
And that’s about it. Do you think we can get even half of these things done in the coming weeks? I’m not so sure myself, but a gal can try.
