Birds do it, and so do cats, apes, and other mammals preparing for birth. Nesting is an instinctual mechanism that prepares your “empty nest” to become full and quite busy for the next 18 years. Nesting is like spring-cleaning on steroids. Organization, cleanliness, and preparation are top priority. Now it’s time to clear some more space for your soon-to-be bundle of joy. If you get hit with the nesting instinct as you’re preparing for birth, make the most of it now, before life becomes so hectic that when the baby arrives even finding a moment to take a shower can be challenging.

Here’s a bunch of last-minute details that you’ll want to check off your list before going into labor, so you can put your mind and ease and relax before the big day. Mama-to-be’s, make sure you:

1. Prep Your Essentials

For such little creatures, babies need so much. They go through more clothes, diapers, and creams than you can imagine. Stock up on baby soap, cotton pads, a rectal digital thermometer, rubbing alcohol, a nasal syringe, nail clippers, BPA-free bottles, nipples, and more. And for you, pick up plenty of super-absorbent maxi pads, witch hazel, Tucks medicated pads, and ice packs (not the kinds of things you want to run out of in the middle of the night).

2. Cook in Quantity

If your nesting instinct is accompanied by an obsession with cooking, take advantage and get your meal prep on. Make extra servings of your favorite freezer-friendly foods. Make soups, bake muffins, prep hot cereals and stews, and then store in single-meal containers in the freezer, clearly marked. You’ll be especially grateful to come home to homemade meals and snacks after spending time in the birth center or hospital!

3. Do Laundry

Wash your towels, duvet cover, pillow shams, throw rugs, guest sheets, and anything else that needs a once-over before the baby arrives. Use an alternative to hefty chemical detergents. I like Dapple products because they con- tain eco-friendly formulas that are safe for your family and the environment. If you live in a place where you don’t have access to laundry, consider hiring a laundry service to take care of your needs for the first six weeks until you get into a rhythm. Stock up on your preferred detergent and cleaning solutions because you will be washing lots and lots of little onesies, pajamas, and receiving blankets.

4. Load Up Your Pantry

Stock up on staples like it’s going out of style—because it is. You won’t be doing the shopping once the baby arrives; you won’t have time. It’s all about keeping it healthy and convenient. Think nuts—the perfect nutrient- dense nibbler—trail mix, quinoa, and broths for easy soups. Other goods to get as you prepare for birth: whole-grain crackers, canned beans, brown rice, and healthy sauces.

5. Order Birth Announcements

You can get these online or at a stationery store, so they’re ready to go as soon as you know the final baby stats. And address the envelopes now so they’re ready to be stuffed and mailed. A great and easy way to announce baby’s birth- Pingg.com they have a variety of designs and you don’t have to bother with postage unless you really want to.

6. Restock Your Refrigerator

Out with the old, in with the new! Throw away any outdated items and shop for fresh ones. Stock up on foods for breastfeeding that you’ll want to have on hand once the baby has arrived—filtered water, fruits, veggies, hummus, prewashed salad greens, and so on. Make it easy on yourself and order your groceries online.

7. Spring into Clean Mode

You know the spring-cleaning that you’re always putting off until next fall? Whatever the season, now’s the time to tackle it while your nesting instinct is in full swing. Wipe down the windowsills and blinds, wash the floors, and vacuum under the couch and between the cushions—you may find a nice chunk of change while you’re at it! Be sensible in your quest for cleanliness: call in a team of friends, blast some good dance music, and get moving. Use chemical- free cleaning solvents. I love the Mrs. Meyer’s brand and Honest Company. Don’t push yourself if you’re pooped. Instead, push someone else, like your partner. Stay as close to the floor as possible. In fact, hanging out on hands and knees scrubbing the floors Cinderella-style is not a bad idea. The position helps to open up your pelvis and the hip swaying encourages your baby to move down into the pelvic outlet.

8. Style Baby

Don’t overbuy while you prepare for birth, but make sure you’re well stocked on those newborn essentials (T-shirts, onesies, sweaters, receiving blankets, and booties). Prewash baby’s outfits so there are plenty of things for her to wear. If you haven’t had a baby shower—put together a registry online to get all the basics and beyond.

9. Style Mama

Get fitted for the big day and postpartum. Buy adjustable nursing bras as well as nursing pads and easy-open (nursing) shirts. And stock up on soft, cotton, full- back underwear. Your thong days are over for a bit my friend. You’ll need big bloomer action for the first few weeks after the birth. Don’t go for the expensive undies here, as they may become stained with blood and discharge that will likely not wash away. Plan on tossing the granny panties about eight weeks postpartum. For pushing, you might try Pretty Pushers, a stylish affordable gown designed for labor and delivery.

10. Make a Who-to-Call Contact List

Set up the list now, so your birth coach and partner know whom to inform of your new arrival. You can use it later to e-mail your birth announcement to your whole list. You can also set up a call chain, where you enlist five people who call five people who call another five people, and the information gets disseminated quickly and effectively.

For more lifestyle tips for pregnancy and beyond check out Mama Glow: A Hip Guide to Your Fabulous Abundant Pregnancy, foreword by Dr. Christiane Northrup

How did you prep for baby’s arrival?

Plus, more from The Bump:

Signs of Labor to Watch Out for

Make a Birth Plan that Works for You!

10 Things You Have to Do Before You Go Into Labor

Looks like Livingston McConaughey is going to be a man of the sun!

The 1-month-old baby boy was photographed spending the day at the park with his beautiful mom, Camila Alves, yesterday! The super cute twosome kept things casual, taking in the beautiful 80-degree sights in Austin, Texas. Little Liv joins big brother Levi, 4, and big sister Vida, 3, to round out the adorable Alves-McConaughey brood.

Livingston kept cool while mom showered her baby in kisses and swaddled him in a light blanket.

Camila, who celebrated her 30th birthday yesterday, had plenty to celebrate. The mama-of-three and wife to actor Matthew McConaughey tweeted, “Today I am 30 years old, Livingston is 30 days old and I’m blessed with 3 healthy children…I am so thankful and full of joy!”

We are so excited for this happy mom and her beautiful growing family! Here’s to the next 30!

Plus, more from The Bump:

It’s a Boy for Matthew McConaughey and Camila Alves!

Celebrity Babies

Matthew and Camila McConaughey Expecting Baby #3!

For years and years, soon-to-be parents have asked themselves the same question, “Can baby hear us?” and for just as long the question has gone unanswered. Now, however, researchers have finally come to a conclusion and it’s sure to be one that mom and dads-to-be are over the moon about!

Newborns are much more attuned the the sound of the native languagethan we ever thought, linguists say. Newborns can pick up on distinctive sounds of their mother tongue while in utero.

The unbelievable research was led by Christine Moon, a professor of psychology at Pacific Lutheran University. “We have known for over 30 years that we begin learning prenatally about voices by listening to the sound of our mother talking,” Moon said. “This is the first study that shows we learn about the particular speech sounds of our mother’s language before we are born.”

Prior to the study, it was widely believed that infants learned small parts of speech after they had left the womb. This study states the opposite. “This study moves the measurable result of experience with individual speech sounds from six months of age to before birth,” she said.

Seriously — how incredible? All the time the proud parents have spent singing and talking to their little babe are worth every moment (not like we’d suggest you stop doing it otherwise – it’s important to have a connect to your child pre-birth).

For her study, Moon tested newborn infants shortly after birth while still in the hospital in two different locations: Madigan Army Medical Center in Tacoma, Washington, and in the Astrid Lindgren Children’s Hospital in Stockholm, Sweden. Infants heard either Swedish or English vowels and linguists could control how many times they heard the vowels by sucking on a pacifier connected to a computer.

In both countries, the babies listening to the foreign vowels sucked more, than those listening to their native tongue regardless of how much postnatal experience they had. This indicated to researchers that they were learning the vowel sounds in utero.

“These little ones had been listening to their mother’s voice in the womb, and particularly her vowels for ten weeks. The mother has first dibs on influencing the child’s brain,” said Patricia Kuhl, Endowed Chair for the Bezos Family Foundation for Early Childhood Learning and Co-Director of the University of Washington’s Institute for Learning and Brain Sciences. “At birth, they are apparently ready for something novel.”

But we’re not the only ones amazed by what the research showed, “This is a stunning finding,” said Kuhl. “We thought infants were ‘born learning’ but now we know they learn even earlier. They are not phonetically naïve at birth.”

Prior to the kinds of studies like this one, it was assumed that newborns were “blank slates” and now, we know that is not the case.

So, as if you needed any more incentive to hum, drum or even chat with baby on the side, here’s fool-proof scientific reinforcement that it’s good for baby!

Would the findings of this study have mattered to you one way or the other?

Plus, more from The Bump:

Is Conversation Good for Baby?

Should I Talk to My Baby in Utero?

How Can I Help Baby Learn to Speak?

Stop what you’re doing right this instant. As we speak, parents are receiving their Christmas gifts a few days early and we just had to share! How adorable are these newborns decked head to toe in holiday cheer?

Looks like the nurses at Middle Tennessee Medical Center got into the holiday spirit and dressed up the little bundles. So. Dang. Cute!

We’re wishing you and yours a happy, healthy holiday filled with love and laughter!

What special memories will you make together this year?

When my first child was born (after a grueling 36 hour labor) – he and I were an exhausted, overwhelmed, high strung, nervous mess. I had every intention of breastfeeding, but I had no idea how hard it would be. I latched him on over and over and as he fought me, we’d both just sob. I tried nipple shields, a lactation consultant, and after about two weeks I had an emotional and physical breakdown and switched to formula. It was insanely difficult to let go of that ideal while feeling the pressure from moms around me. I wish I could say changing to formula made things so much easier, but it didn’t. My son had a huge case of The Colic and we both were pretty miserable for six months as we tried different formulas to find one that his tummy could handle.

I was scared to have a second baby after that first experience but worked up the courage to go for it. When my daughter arrived, I wanted to try breastfeeding again. I was (way) more relaxed that time around but it still took 5 full days for my milk to come in. I used little droplets of formula to supplement while I latched her often and pumped to stimulate production. And then a moment I’ll never forget, while a lactation consultant was on the phone with me, I heard suck, and swallow! I was feeding my baby with my own body!! I went on to breastfeed exclusively for 6 months after that. Interestingly, overall, she was a much easier/happy baby. At 6 she’s also healthy, smart, and rarely sick.

So what does this all mean? Did breastfeeding make my daughter an easier baby? I don’t think so. My son is 9 now (he’s also healthy, advanced in school, and rarely sick). He’s still a pretty intense kid, too. I’m not convinced had we breastfed things would have turned out much differently. But do I wish I could go back and try it again with a new relaxed, accepting attitude? Absolutely.

Plus, more from The Bump

Mark Your Calendars, August 15 is Public Display of Breastfeeding Day

Breastfeeding Advice Hospitals Don’t Give

Must Watch: Real Mom Breastfeeding in Public Tips

Here’s another benefit to breastfeeding: It helps baby develop healthy bacteria in her gut! A new study in Genome Biology found that breastfed infants had more diverse microbes in their guts than infants who were formula-fed. Now, I know what you’re thinking, “Diverse microbes? Bacteria? Isn’t that bad” It’s not. If baby has a wide range of bacteria in her gut, her immune system will be stronger. Experts say that although the microbes in breastfed babies’ guts were associated with a resistance to antibiotics, their immune systems were trained to cope by fighting off stomach bugs.

In the study, researchers analyzed stool samples from 12 infants (6 were breastfed and the other 6 were formula-fed). They looked at the genetic material in the samples to find the types of bacteria in babies’ guts. Experts believe that more research is needed to confirm the link between breastfeeding and healthier guts in babies, but that this was a good start.

Do you think breastfeeding helps baby’s immune system? Do you or did you breastfeed your baby?

Plus, more from The Bump:

Breastfeeding Fiascos

Top 10 Breastfeeding Problems — Solved!

Health Benefits of Breastfeeding

Some people say “never wake a sleeping baby,” but some moms actually do this a lot. And that could be a result of postpartum depression. According to a new study from Penn State University published in Child Development, moms with depression symptoms were worried and anxious about their infants’ sleeping habits at night, and were more likely than moms with fewer or no symptoms to wake their babies and disturb them.

Pediatricians urge parents not to wake their baby if he’s sleeping peacefully, isn’t experiencing distress and doesn’t need a feeding. Experts note that parental depression or excessive worry, disrupts both baby and parents’ sleep and also can lead to problems in the parent-child relationship later on. So why are depressed moms more anxious about baby sleeping at night than other moms? Researchers believe that the mothers’ symptoms of depression are directly related to moms’ lack of confidence in parenting and their emotional state.

The findings were part of a larger analysis, Study of Infants’ Emergent Sleep Trajectories (SIESTA). In the larger study, researchers analyzed data from 45 infants (ranging in age from one to 24 months) and their parents over a week. The mothers kept a sleep diary and also completed two surveys, one about depressive symptoms and the other about moms’ worries about their infants waking up at night. Researchers also set up video cameras where baby slept, at the door to baby’s room and two additional cameras where parents would take their babies at night, to see if the moms’ self-reported behaviors matched up to their survey answers.

If you think you might have postpartum depression, it’s important to seek help immediately. Talk to your doctor asap.

What do you think of these findings? Do you wake your baby up at night? Or worry about baby’s sleeping safety at bedtime?

Plus, more from The Bump:

Postpartum Depression

Is it the Baby Blues or Postpartum Depression?

Treatments for Postpartum Depression