The Third Trimester Checklist
Work backwards from 36 weeks, not 40. Babies come early, energy runs out, and the last month should be for resting and waiting, not assembling furniture. Everything on this list is finished by 36 weeks or it's finished by someone else.
It's a trimester of setup: the car seat, the sleep space, the bag, the freezer, the phone tree. The buying is mostly done; this is the doing.
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Care and appointments
- Appointments every two weeks, then weeklyEssential
Write questions down between visits.
- Group B strep test, around week 36Essential
- Tdap and flu vaccines, as your provider advisesEssential
Partners and close family too. Anyone holding the baby in the first months.
- Count kicksEssential
Learn your baby's pattern. A change in it is a call, not a wait.
- Know when to go inEssential
Your provider's rule for contractions, waters, bleeding, reduced movement. On the fridge and in your phone.
- Pre-register at the hospitalEssential
Online, in the third trimester. Saves the paperwork at 3am.
By 36 weeks
The hard deadline. Everything here, done, or delegated.
- Install the car seat and have it checkedEssential
Fire stations and hospitals run free checks. Most seats are installed wrong on the first try.
Compare four infant car seats →Our pickNuna PIPA aire rxThe lightest carrier here by a wide margin, and it installs with just a seat belt for taxis.
View on Amazon - Set up the bassinet beside your bedEssentialOur pickHALO BassiNest Swivel Sleeper
Swivels over the bed, so night feeds don't mean getting up. Outgrown by five months; that's the point.
View on Amazon - Assemble the crib and wash the sheetsEssential
Even if it won't be used for months. You will not assemble furniture with a newborn.
- Wash the newborn and 0–3 month clothesEssentialOur pickDreft Newborn Laundry Detergent
Wash everything before they wear it. A fragrance-free adult detergent also works.
View on Amazon - Set up changing stationsEssential
One in the nursery, one where you'll spend the day. Diapers, wipes, cream, a change of clothes.
What a nursery actually needs →Our pickParker Baby Co. Diaper Caddy OrganizerA second changing station wherever you actually spend the day.
View on Amazon - Stock diapers and wipesEssential
Newborn and size 1. Cases.
Our pickPampers Swaddlers Newborn DiapersThe wetness indicator earns its keep in week one. Register for size 1 too; newborn size goes fast.
View on Amazon - Sterilize bottles and pump parts once, then set up the drying rackEssentialOur pickBoon Grass Countertop Drying Rack
Holds bottle parts upright to dry. Looks like a lawn, works like a lawn.
View on Amazon - Order the breast pump through insuranceEssentialOur pickSpectra S1 Plus Breast Pump
Quiet, rechargeable, hospital-grade suction. Check your insurance first; many cover it.
View on Amazon - Fill the freezerEssential
Two weeks of one-handed meals. Accept every offer of food.
- Stock postpartum suppliesEssential
Pads, ice packs, witch hazel, the peri bottle, stool softener if your provider suggests it.
Our pickFrida Mom Postpartum Recovery Essentials KitThe hospital gives you some of this. Have your own; theirs runs out at 4am.
View on Amazon
The plan
- Write the birth preferences, one pageNice to have
What matters to you, and what you're flexible on. Give a copy to your provider.
- Choose who's in the room and who's on callEssential
- Plan the route and the parkingEssential
Including the night entrance. Do a dry run.
- Arrange care for pets and older childrenEssential
Someone who can come at any hour, with a key.
- The phone listEssential
Who gets told first, who gets told by whom, and who is not to post anything.
- Decide about cord bloodNice to have
Banking or donation. Decide before labor; it's not a decision for the day.
- Pediatrician confirmed and first visit understoodEssential
Usually within days of discharge. Know how they schedule it.
You
- Nursing bras and comfortable front-opening clothesEssentialOur pickKindred Bravely Sublime Nursing Bra
Comfortable enough to sleep in, opens one-handed. Buy it in the third trimester; you'll need it the first night.
View on Amazon - A going-home outfit for youEssential
Soft, forgiving, six-months-pregnant sized.
- RestEssential
Not a joke. Nap when you can. The sleep bank does not fill later.
- A last few things for yourselfNice to have
A haircut, a meal out, a night at the movies. Things that are complicated for a while afterwards.
- Talk about the first weeks with your partnerEssential
Who does nights, who does mornings, when help comes, what 'I need a break' sounds like.
Paperwork, last pass
- Leave dates confirmed with workEssential
- Insurance: know how to add the baby, and the deadlineEssential
- Birth certificate and Social Security paperworkNice to have
The hospital usually starts both. Know what you'll be asked, including the name spelled the way you want it.
- Set up the baby's fund or savings account planNice to have
You'll need the Social Security number; that takes weeks. Plan it, don't do it yet.
The name
- Choose the name, or the shortlistEssential
Some parents decide when they meet the baby. Fine — but arrive with two or three, not twenty.
Find a name with a soul →
What you can skip
The part most lists leave out.
- Assembling anything after 36 weeks
Delegate it. Your job now is to wait.
- A fully finished nursery
The baby won't sleep there for months. Sleep space and changing station are the finish line.
- More clothes
Wash what you have. Wait to see the size and the season.
- Big social plans in the last weeks
Keep the calendar clear from 37 weeks. The baby doesn't check it.
- Reading birth stories at night
Your provider and your class. The internet at 2am is not a source.
Still choosing a name? Find a name with a soul →
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