Hey friends. Hope y'all are well. VACA was lovely, and what's also awesome is that I'll be on GOOD AFTERNOON ARKANSAS TODAY! In fact, I'm officially a regular! Tune in every second Thursday of the month at 3PM for your fix of organizing good times.
Afternoon topic: I have recently helped several clients get ready to welcome new babies. And since one of the hosts of GAA is also expecting, I thought it would be a good time to chat about getting your "nest" organized for a new addition!
1) Bottles and Binkies, and really, any feeding item that requires washing:
For the first 3 months I actually recommend something that I RARELY recommend, and that's keeping this stuff on the counter top for easy access. Once you get the hang of everything, it can find a more final home. And before baby arrives, try to figure out where that final spot will be. I recommend somewhere easily accessible, like next to your dishes and glassware, because those baby bottles turn into sippy cups and Elmo plates, and those will last a few years!
** side note - spouses/partners who are not home with the baby, I recommend picking up a nightly shift of dish duty until things settle into a routine. Nothing makes a sleepless new parent more cranky than getting up for a 3 AM feeding and having to wash a bottle.
2) Diapers and wipes: have them handy. New babies are notoriously messy and you will need these items EVERYWHERE. I honestly had them in every room until I got my routine set. But definitely have a changing caddy for each story of your house.
2) Tiny Clothes:
Use drawer dividers to separate types of clothing and "file fold" to be able to see all clothing at once (y'all know I love my Ikea Skubbs!)
And also, remember that people will be giving you all sorts of baby clothes of every different size (if they have not already passed them to you). Use Hanger Dividers to keep the "future" clothes separated from the "current" clothes.
* And don't forget a donation bin in the nursery for too small clothes (because they will grow FAST, and when you are changing a messy diaper, you DO NOT want to try to force something too small on your baby - YOU'RE WELCOME). ;)
Peace, Love, and Organizing people!
Meg