The 36-Week Checklist: What to Have Done Before Your Baby Arrives

If you’re new here, I’m Alisa- a pediatric nurse practitioner and a mom of two, and I write about the things I wish someone had told me before I lived them.

You’ve made it to 36 weeks. Your baby could realistically arrive any day now, and while it’s tempting to spend these last few weeks nesting and organizing the nursery, there’s a more important kind of preparation that often gets overlooked… the practical, logistical, and relational groundwork that makes your first weeks home actually manageable.

This isn’t about having the perfect diaper bag or the cutest swaddle collection. This is the stuff that matters when you’re three days postpartum, running on two hour stretches of sleep, and trying to figure out what comes next. Here’s what should be done by 36 weeks, and why each one counts.

• Your Hospital Bag Is Packed and Ready

This one sounds obvious, but you’d be surprised how many parents are scrambling to throw things in a bag during early contractions. Aim to have your bag packed (and your partner’s bag, too) no later than 36 weeks. You’re officially considered full term at 37 weeks, and early labor can start without much warning.

For you: comfortable clothing for labor and recovery, your ID and insurance card, phone chargers, toiletries, and anything specific to your birth preferences.

 For baby: a going-home outfit (bring a newborn and a 0–3 month size, since you won’t know which will fit), a swaddle blanket. You’ll also want to have your birth preferences document ready, even if it’s just a simple one-page summary of what matters most to you. 

• Your Car Seat Is Installed Correctly

This is not optional, and it matters more than most parents realize. Newborns leaving the hospital should always be properly restrained in a car seat. That first drive home is your baby’s first ride, and they need to be buckled correctly for it.

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that all newborns be brought home from the hospital in rear-facing car seats. But installation is where many families run into trouble. 

Here’s what to look for: the car safety seat must be installed tightly in the vehicle using either lower anchors or a locked seat belt. If the seat can move more than an inch side to side or front to back at the belt path, it is not tight enough. You’ll also want to make sure it’s angled correctly for a newborn, with the chest clip at armpit level and the harness snug against the baby’s shoulders.

If you have any questions about the specific installation of your car seat, a certified child passenger safety technician (CPST) should be consulted. You can find a free inspection station near you through the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) at nhtsa.gov. This service is completely free and absolutely worth the 20 minutes. 

One more thing: do not use extra products unless they came with the seat or are specifically approved by the seat manufacturer. These products are not covered by any federal safety standards, and the AAP does not recommend they be used. That includes popular aftermarket inserts, head positioners, and strap covers.

• Your Safe Sleep Space Is Set Up

While you’re thinking about the car seat, take a look at where your baby will sleep. The American Academy of Pediatrics released updated safe sleep guidelines in 2022, and they’re worth knowing before baby comes home.

The 2022 AAP policy statement recommends always placing an infant on their back for the entire first year. The sleep surface should be firm, flat, with a fitted sheet and nothing else. Swings, loungers, Boppy pillows, and Dock-a-Tots should not be used for sleep. 

Room sharing - where the infant’s sleep surface is placed within arm’s reach of the caregiver’s bed - is recommended for at least the first six months, ideally through the first year. 

Set up your crib or bassinet now, before the exhaustion of early postpartum sets in. It’s one less thing to figure out at 3 a.m.

• Your Postpartum Supplies Are Stocked

The newborn supplies get all the attention, but postpartum recovery supplies for you are just as important… and often the thing people forget until they’re home and desperate. Stock these before you deliver:

For physical recovery: Peri bottle (your hospital may provide one, but having a quality one at home is worth it), witch hazel pads, Dermoplast or similar numbing spray, extra-large pads (postpartum bleeding is significant in the early days), comfortable, loose underwear, a nursing bra and breast pads if you’re planning to breastfeed, and a stool softener (your provider can tell you what’s safe).

 For comfort and rest: A donut pillow or Boppy for sitting comfort if you had a vaginal delivery, ice packs for your perineum in the first 24–48 hours, easy-to-eat snacks that don’t require preparation, and a good water bottle that holds at least 32 oz (hydration is KEY in recovery!).

•  Your Household Is Stocked with Everyday Essentials

The goal in the first two to four weeks home is to leave the house as rarely as possible and to reduce every unnecessary decision and errand. The most practical thing you can do before baby arrives is stock your home so that basic life can keep running without you having to manage it. 

Think about what you use on a daily or weekly basis: paper towels, toilet paper, dish soap, laundry detergent, shampoo, your vitamins or supplements, any medications you take regularly, contact lens solution, feminine hygiene products - all of it. Buy duplicates and put them away. This also applies to food: fill the freezer with meals that can be reheated in 10 minutes or less, stock easy breakfast items (oatmeal, eggs, yogurt), and keep a running list of delivery-friendly meals for when freezer food runs out.

The idea isn’t to be a prepper. It’s to remove friction from your life during a period when your energy is almost entirely focused on keeping a tiny person alive and recovering from birth.

•  Your Pediatrician Is Selected

This is one of the most commonly skipped steps, and one of the most important. The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends a pediatric prenatal visit during the third trimester for all expectant families as an important first step in establishing a child’s medical home. 

This prenatal visit is your chance to meet the provider who will care for your child from day one, ask your questions in a low-pressure setting, and make sure the practice’s philosophy aligns with yours before you’re trying to navigate a sick newborn call at 2 a.m.

Beyond answering questions about bringing home a new baby, a prenatal visit can help anticipate under-recognized challenges such as postpartum depression and introduce positive parenting strategies.

When you’re vetting pediatricians, think about: office hours and after-hours care options, their vaccination philosophy, telehealth availability, how they handle questions (do they have a nurse line?), and whether their location is practical for frequent newborn visits. Your baby will have multiple well-child visits in the first year, so logistics matter.

Identifying a pediatrician before the baby is born - and having the car seat properly installed - are among the most important prenatal preparations a parent can make, even more important in some ways than packing the hospital bag. (AAFP, 2018)

• If You’re Planning to Breastfeed, Have a Lactation Consultant Identified

Breastfeeding is a skill. A beautiful, deeply natural skill - that still takes practice, support, and often troubleshooting. Having a lactation consultant (IBCLC) identified and ready to call before your baby is born is one of the most proactive things you can do if you’re planning to breastfeed. 

Look for an IBCLC (International Board Certified Lactation Consultant) specifically, rather than just anyone who offers breastfeeding support. IBCLCs have completed clinical training hours and passed a board exam. You can find one through your hospital’s lactation program, your OB or midwife’s referral, or the ILCA directory at ilca.org.

Know in advance: does your hospital have on-call lactation support? Is there an IBCLC at your pediatrician’s office? What’s the process for reaching someone if latch issues arise in week one? Having these numbers saved before you need them, rather than Googling them at midnight while struggling, is the difference between getting help and struggling alone.

• You and Your Partner Have Had a Real Postpartum Planning Conversation

This is the one most couples skip. You’ve probably talked about the baby… what you’ll name them, how you’ll decorate the nursery, which stroller you need. But have you talked about what life actually looks like after baby comes home?

The postpartum period is one of the most significant relational stress tests a couple will experience, not because anything is wrong, but because everything is new, potentially harder than expected, and neither of you is sleeping. Research consistently shows that relationship satisfaction typically declines in the transition to parenthood, particularly in the first year, but couples who talk about expectations before the baby arrives navigate it better than those who don’t.

Here’s what a real postpartum conversation should include: 

Division of night shifts. Who handles what, and how? Will you alternate nights? Does one person handle all nights during the week so the other can function at work? Will you each take a “shift” within a single night? There’s no wrong answer, but the answer needs to exist before you’re both delirious and resentful at 4 a.m.

 What “support” actually looks like for each of you. For some people, support means someone taking the baby so they can sleep. For others, it’s someone handling dishes and dinner so they can hold the baby uninterrupted. Ask each other: "When you’re struggling, what do you actually need?" This conversation prevents the scenario where your partner thinks they’re helping by doing one thing while you’re desperately needing something else.

 How you’ll communicate when you’re depleted. Postpartum couples often fight not because they don’t love each other, but because they’re both running on empty and haven’t agreed on how to signal that. It can be as simple as a code phrase - “I’m at a two” on a scale of ten - that means I need something right now, without it turning into a full argument.

Who is in your village, and what will you ask them for? Make a short list together: who will bring meals? Who can sit with the baby for a few hours so you can sleep? Who is your first call in a non-emergency moment of crisis? If family is coming to stay, what are the expectations around help versus hosting? Decide now, and communicate it to the people who will show up. 

What are your warning signs? 1 in 5 women experience a perinatal mood or anxiety disorder (PMAD) during pregnancy or the first year postpartum. It’s not a weakness to talk about this before it happens… it’s smart preparation. Agree together on what signs would prompt you to reach out to a provider or therapist, and make sure your partner knows what to watch for in you, and you in them. Postpartum depression affects fathers too. 

Your expectations around visitors. Early visitors can be wonderful, or exhausting. Decide together what you want the first week to look like, who you want there and when, and what the rules are (no visits without calling first, everyone washes their hands before touching the baby, well visitors only, etc). Then communicate that plan to your family and friends before the baby arrives, not after.

This conversation doesn’t have to be a formal sit-down with a whiteboard. But it does need to actually happen - ideally more than once, and ideally before you’re in the thick of it.

A Note on What This Checklist Is Really About

None of these items are about being a perfect parent. They’re about reducing friction during one of the most beautifully hard periods of your life. Every box you check before 36 weeks is one less thing you have to figure out when you’re exhausted, healing, and falling in love with someone brand new.

You can do this. And you’ll do it better when you’ve prepared, not just for the birth, but for what comes after.

Want to go deeper on newborn care and postpartum preparation before your baby arrives? My New Parent Prep Class walks you through everything you need to know - from safe sleep and feeding to what your own recovery actually looks like.

For more on postpartum preparation: 

You Won’t Just Know When Something Is Wrong Postpartum

Stop Waiting for the Baby to Arrive: What a Pediatric NP Wants You to Know About Postpartum Prep

The Conversation You're Not Having (But Should Be Before Baby Arrives)

“Pump and Dump” - Why This Advice Is Outdated, and What You Should Do Instead

References

American Academy of Family Physicians. (2018, September 21). AAP updates car safety seat recommendations for children. https://www.aafp.org/news/health-of-the-public/20180921kidscarsafety.html

American Academy of Pediatrics. (2018). Expectant parents encouraged to visit pediatrician before birth of baby [News release]. HealthyChildren.org. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/news/Pages/Expectant-Parents-Encouraged-to-Visit-Pediatrician-Before-Birth-of-Baby.aspx

American Academy of Pediatrics. (2022). How to keep your sleeping baby safe: AAP policy explained. HealthyChildren.org. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/ages-stages/baby/sleep/Pages/a-parents-guide-to-safe-sleep.aspx

American Academy of Pediatrics. (2022). Car seats: Information for families. HealthyChildren.org. https://www.healthychildren.org/English/safety-prevention/on-the-go/Pages/Car-Safety-Seats-Information-for-Families.aspx

Moon, R. Y., Carlin, R. F., Hand, I., & Task Force on Sudden Infant Death Syndrome and the Committee on Fetus and Newborn. (2022). Sleep-related infant deaths: Updated 2022 recommendations for reducing infant deaths in the sleep environment. Pediatrics, 150(1), e2022057990. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2022-057990

Sprague, A. E., & Magee, L. A. (2025, April 22). ACOG releases new guidance on prenatal care delivery. American Hospital Association. https://www.aha.org/news/headline/2025-04-22-acog-releases-new-guidance-prenatal-care-delivery

Yogman, M., Lavin, A., Cohen, G., & Committee on Psychosocial Aspects of Child and Family Health. (2018). The prenatal visit. Pediatrics, 142(1), e20181218. https://doi.org/10.1542/peds.2018-1218 (Reaffirmed March 2025)