By following the preparation guidelines below before you give birth youll feel more relaxed about giving birth knowing that everything will be ready for when you return.

These are the preparations to do in the last month of pregnancy and dont include buying baby clothes and equipment which are covered in the article Things You Need To Buy For Your Baby Before You Give Birth - just search in Google for the article title.

1. Make sure you and your partner know the way to the hospital, where to park and where to go when you arrive.

2. Put the number of the hospital and a taxi company next to your phone at home and/or program these numbers into your and your partners cellular phones. Its a good idea to keep the taxi fare in a separate place in your purse and by the phone at home. Check with a cab company that they operate 24 hours a day as you wont know when your waters will break.

3. Pack your bag that you will take to the hospital and keep it in a convenient place near your front door.

4. Make sure that you always have a way to contact your partner and that they know what to do depending on where you both are.

5. Clean your house with a deep clean. Obviously this doesnt have to be you; it can be your partner. Knowing that you wont have to clean too much when you return is one less thing to worry about. Get your partner or a friend to help you with this during the first few weeks when you return. Most will be happy to help.

6. Same goes for getting other chores out of the way - get everything done (by others if possible/necessary) including the washing and ironing.

7. When your baby arrives its routines wont be established and youll find that your sleep will be broken and youll want to eat at strange times. Cook some of your favourite meals and snacks so that you can microwave them and eat hot food when you feel like it without having to do the preparation.

8. Do a big shop. You want to have everything youll need for at least a week or 2 when you return.

9. Prepare your nursing area - see the free breastfeeding guide at the end for details.

10. Get your babies sleeping area ready - youll both be tired when you return from the hospital.

By preparing in this way youll feel ready for your baby when it arrives and know that you can get on with giving birth.

Happy parenting!

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