Nesting Instinct While Pregnant
I'm 34 weeks pregnant with my second baby and this time around, my nesting instinct kicked off later than my first pregnancy. In my first pregnancy, my nesting begun as early as 28 weeks. My maternity bag was packed and ready to go. This time around, I've started to think about what I need to pack and how I can organise my maternity bag. Some of things I've started to organise include medicines that I need to take daily, electronic chargers and labelled baby items so that my partner or mum or MIL can find baby stuff easily rather than rummaging through the bag.
Nesting can be channelled into cleaning, organising, limiting social gathering and/or repeatedly updating your birth plan/packing your maternity bag. Some of the telltale signs that you're nesting instinct has kicked includes:
Suddenly becoming a CLEAN FREAK.
I know it's common to amp up your regular routine of straightening up and wiping down countertops. But many parents-to-be find themselves motivated to engage in intense deep cleaning which I'm guilty of. This may mean digging under and into the nastiest crevices of your home and scrubbing surfaces you may have never even glimpsed before. In my case, I've started cleaning all the nooks and crannies of the house. This includes mopping the floors, dusting every surface, vacuuming all the rooms including the dog bed and cleaning all the windows.
Did you catch the organisation bug?
What didn't bother me before, now it does. The nursery being untidy, my firstborns closet is not organised and the fridge not well stock. It's natural to want to get your home in order before your baby arrives. It's also practical and you will have less time and energy to rearrange your home when you are engaged in the 24-hour-a-day job of caring for a newborn whilst recovering from your delivery. Get your credit card ready because this also means, that you will get the urgent urge to buy organisational tubs, storage closets, shoe storage and etc to store everything neatly and don't forget labelling everything and anything.
You are in a declutter mood
Many pregnant people feel the urge to donate or giveaway home items they feel they no longer need—or never really needed to begin with—before their baby arrives. Again very practical... Discards may include old clothes, dated knick-knacks, and unused appliances or electronics. It's always good to do a spring clean once every other year to ensure that you're not keeping items that do not serve a purpose. I've donated lots of clothes, kitchen gadgets (i.e. toasters, kettles) and shoes that I no longer use to Salvos and Vinnies. Also as this is my second baby, I'm more intentional of items that I want to donate, especially those that pose a risk to my baby once they walking about. This includes coffee tables that have sharp edges, little decorative items on the coffee table that is a choke hazard and any items that have button batteries.
The nesting instinct is natural and it comes to everyone at different times of their pregnancy so don't fret if your nesting comes later or even earlier than your friends. With all the organising, cleaning and preparation for the baby, please make sure you set some time aside to relax and enjoy the pregnancy journey. Remember you're growing a baby and that takes a lot of energy.