There is nothing quite as exciting (or as exhausting) as the last trimester of pregnancy. The baby is coming soon and there are so many tasks to do in those last few months to be ready for your baby's arrival. Even if you are adopting or making use of a surrogate, preparing your house for the changes a new child will bring seems almost overwhelming!

As you head into the last few months before your baby’s arrival, taking the time to prepare your home will help you better handle all the changes that come. Getting your home cleaned and organized before you are juggling the demands of a newborn and your other responsibilities will give peace of mind and help you be prepared to handle any new mess or clutter that crops up. Consider tackling some of these key areas as you clean to better prepare.

 

Kitchen

The kitchen is the center of your home, where food and family meet on a daily basis. Take a few hours to inspect and prioritize these areas in your kitchen.

Refrigerator

Dedicate time to cleaning out your refrigerator and freezer before your baby arrives. Check expiration dates on items and throw away anything past expiration as well as any food or leftovers that have been lurking in the back of your refrigerator. Wipe down the shelves with warm water and vinegar.

Pantry

Just like your refrigerator, dedicate a chunk of time to going through your pantry and throwing away food items that are past expiration. Unopened cans or boxes that are not at expiration can be donated to your local food pantry. Stock up on quick, healthy snacks that you can grab on the go when you are home with your new baby. Keep a shelf stocked with bottles or breast pump supplies and be sure to rearrange a little space for kid’s snacks and food as they grow.

 

Laundry Room

Babies produce an incredible amount of laundry, much of it stained. Be ready to tackle stains and higher volumes of laundry.

Cleaners

Stock up on baby-safe cleaners for your newborn's clothing, sheets, and towels. Take it a step further and purchase laundry cleaners that are both good for the environement and safe for your baby.  

Hampers

Make sure you have adequate hampers with distinct compartments to sort your baby's clothes separately from the rest of the family.

 

Baby’s Room

You’ve probably been in a nesting stage for a while, but now is the time to double-check, dust and clean your baby’s future room.

Changing Table

No nursery room would be complete without one of these. Stock up your table with extra diapers, wipes, power, creams, as well as extra clothes. Organize the drawers in a way that makes sense for you during changing. Or don't use one at all (I never did!). I kept a basket with changing supplies in the room we were in the most and just changed my babies on the floor.

Closet

If you’ve received any baby clothes, sheets, or other future supplies, take time now to organize them in the nursery closet. Clothing that won’t fit right away can be packed away or hung at the back. Extra crib sheets and pillows should be stored on higher shelves.

 

Tackling cleaning and organizing tasks as you prepare for your new baby is a smart way to spend those last few months before they arrive. Do some organization and be sure you have a plan for future cleaning and organization as well.

So when was the last time you cleaned those make-up brushes? I have to admit, I do it less than I probably should, however now that my girls are at the "love-to-put-makeup-on" stage, I do it more. Only because I have black eyeshadow on my kabuki brush and blush on my eyeshadow brush. 😳

If you have one MamaSuds product or quite a few, there are multiple products you can use to clean your makeup brushes. Here are your steps:

1.) Rinse your brushes off. Experts say to avoid getting anything but the bristles, but I am not very good at that. 

2.) Get a shallow bowl and put either a small amount of a)  MamaSuds Castile Soap b)  MamaSuds Laundry Soap or c)  MamaSuds All-Purpose Cleaner. Then add enough water to have up to the middle of the brushes submerged. 

3.) You can let your brushes sit in it for about 10 minutes or just start swirling  each of them around in it, working out the makeup.

4.) Rinse and dry carefully. Then put a towel or washcloth down and lean them up against something (like the wall or mirror) so they are leaning with the brushes down. Let them dry overnight. 

That's it! Try it and let me know how it works! 

• MamaSuds® Castile Soap was applied directly to the red wine stain on the carpet.
• The small carpet cleaner brush was used to scrub it in.
• The machine was then turned on and the stain sprayed with water and scrubbed further until it disappeared.
• The soapy residue was removed by spraying and soaking up the soap for 10 minutes, until only water remained.

• MamaSuds creates liquid soap that is zero-superfat, meaning it will not leave any oils behind during cleaning, making it ideal for people who need a laundry soap that does not leave a residue behind.
• The company does not superfat their liquid soap to avoid skin irritation for those with skin issues.
• DIY laundry recipes can ruin your washer but using MamaSuds Castile Soap in them will ensure the safety of the machine and of the clothes being cleaned.
• Fluff Love often suggest Tide for cloth diaper washing routines due to the lack of understanding around the effects of soaps on fabric, however MamaSuds DOES work for cloth diapers.

• MamaSuds Laundry Soap was designed specifically for cloth diapering Mamas.
• It is a natural, oil-based detergent that is effective in removing poo from diapers without causing burns or irritation.
• Effective washing routine includes an initial cold rinse, followed by a hot wash with 4 oz of MamaSuds soap, then a cold rinse and extra cold rinse.
• Drying can be done in the dryer with wool dryer balls or in the sun during warmer months.
• Reviews of MamaSuds available on Change-Diapers.com, Eco-Friendly USA, Every Child is Blessing, Housewife Mama, Fort Worth Examiner MamaSuds and Customer Reviews Kid Tested... Mommy reviewed.

How did I get here?

In my last post in this series I talked about how while I was pregnant with my second daughter I had a small bottle of commercial baby shampoo leak on brand new nursery room furniture.I wiped up the small drop that leaked from the bottle and the finish came off with it. This sparked a question in my head, "What am I putting on my baby's skin?" Little did I know how much this little question would change my life. So...

Where does my story lead to next?

See Part 1 here.    See Part 2 here.

So here is Part 3 in my series.

I instantly researched the crap out of soap. Soap is.... soap, right? Nope. I do most of my research late at night, long after the hubs is sleeping and I distinctly remember sitting in bed with my laptop on my pregnant belly and learning that the soap I have been using on my three year old, and soap we used on ourselves actually had a bunch of "chemicals" and toxins in it. What!?! Hubs was sleeping next to me and I had no one to look over at and spew this information at! A million questions led to hundreds more and I was soon lost in the abyss of the internet.

A life changing decision

That night (almost 6 years ago!) I made a decision that, in hindsight, changed my life. I decided we were getting rid of the baby shampoos and body wash and I bought Dr. Bronner's Castile Soap. I loved it. I only heard one comment from hubs, "this stuff feels different". That was it.

I bought a 16 ounce bottle. Then I bought the bigger size. Then I started reading about all the things you can use castile soap for. I switched out our hand soap, dish soap, made all purpose spray..... it had endless uses! I needed a gallon before long. Then I needed another gallon..... then I had another thought: Can't I just make this stuff myself? (to be continued)

• MamaSuds Castile Soap is a true liquid castile soap made with pure olive oil, water, and lye.
• Versatile and powerful enough to clean any surface around the house, including babies and toilets.
• All-purpose spray cleaner, baby wipe solution, bathing solution, dishwashing soap, floor cleaner, fruit/veggie wash, hand-washing solution, toilet cleaner and scrub/scouring paste recipes to use the product.
• Also effective on tough stain spots.
• Tips for making it last longer.

• No lye is present in the final product of MamaSuds® soap.
• To create soap, it needs only three ingredients: water (or other liquid), fat and lye.
• Most products on the shelves of grocery stores are not true soaps as they use surfactants instead of lye.
• Surfactants can be drying and irritating to the skin and are commonly found in detergents, soaps and body washes.
• MamaSuds® uses just three ingredients when making liquid castile soap: Olive oil, lye and water.

• People on various sites and forums debate the safety of Borax, also known as sodium borate or tetraborate.
• The Environmental Working Group rates Borax-containing products as a D due to a rat study done by Price et al. (1996a).
• Reproductive toxicity was found only when it was administered orally.
• Borax is recommended for cleaning anything not directly applied to skin, rinsing off completely with no residue left behind.
• Borax increases the effectiveness of soap by making water stable and releasing hydrogen peroxide to act as bleach.
• It is safe to use as a cleaner, not an ingredient in body wash, shampoo or skincare.