Septate Uterus/Every Pregnancy Ever: The waiting game begins

I am nearly 31 weeks pregnant, much earlier than anyone would want to have a baby, but I can't help feeling like the waiting game has begun. I had Jr. at 36 weeks and the nurse practioner has pointed out more than once that there is a chance that I will have this baby earlier. Obviously, I'm not wishing for this baby to come any earlier than 36 weeks, and full term would be a welcome miracle, but pregnancy hormones (or the mothering mind) won't let me not think about all of the possibilities.

I'm anxious to get Jr. moved and settled into his own room (he recently mastered the art of sleeping in his crib, instead of our bed, all the way through the night), get our room ready for baby, have people lined up to help out, and most of all to meet this little boy or girl. 

There's all of this to accomplish while keeping the house in decent shape, providing meals for my family, finishing non-baby related special projects, and Christmas shopping. Doesn't seem like too much, but I am 7 months pregnant and my husband is away from the home most of the day for class and work, and when he is home he's working on homework or things for one of his jobs.

I'm finding that it can be difficult to not do too much. I'll get to a point in a project and remind myself that I really can't do anything more until my husband can be there to move heavy boxes or furniture. When I was pregnant with Jr. I had plenty that I could do to get ready for our move (we moved when Jr. was 4 weeks old, talk about great timing). I could spend several hours in one room packing and  getting rid of stuff. This time projects are full of moving furniture and heavy boxes full of books.

At this point in everyone's pregnancy it is very easy to over do it. Nesting kicks in and you just want stuff to be done and ready yesterday. In case no one has told you tips for taking it easy, or in case you forgot how to relax, here are a few no-brainers and some you might not have thought of:

1. Keep water with you while working on a project. It continues to amaze me how much drinking a little bit of water makes me feel rejuvenated.

2. Do as much as possible while sitting. You don't need to stand to organize something or fold laundry. If you're working on a project, try to gather all of your materials then sit at a table to work on it.

3. Don't sit too much. Sounds like a major contradiction to the last statement, but sitting for too long will make you feel very stiff and it increases your chance of blood clots.

4. Organize your day to day life. You may think it sounds stupid, but create a list of what cleaning and what laundry you will do each day. There are tons of free printables out there- find them, fill them in, print them, then hang them somewhere you're going to look everyday. This has revolutionized my life. The house looks decent most of the time,  laundry only gets backed up if we travel, and I know that when my brain is fried after baby #2 I will have those lists to keep me on track.

5. Create a To Do list with a course of action. If you have big projects that you want to get done, break them down in smaller pieces. This is especially important if you don't really have a weekend free to tackle a big project. 

6. If you think you shouldn't do it, don't do it. Yes, you know your own limits, but if before performing a task you wonder if you should do it, the answer is probably no. 

7. Meal plan. On your cleaning/home keeping shedule, pick a day to do your meal planning, ideally before you go grocery shopping. It's easy to cook supper every night when you know what you're going to eat. 

8. Make large quantities of easy to freeze meals. We have a couple meals that freeze really well (vegetarian chilli and sloppy lentils). Whenever I plan to make one of those I make a lot more than we can eat in one sitting, then divide it into appropriate portions for us and throw it in the freezer. I also recently bought a beef roast while it was on sale, cooked it in the crockpot (salt, pepper, and some water), shredded it, packed it in pint size freezer bags, and then put it in the freezer to use later cooked up with onions and peppers, mixed with beef gravy over mashed potatoes, or anyway that tickles my fancy.

9. Pamper yourself. Get a manicure or pedicure or both. Get a prenatal massage (so nice! Just remember that depending on how far along you are you may need your doctor's approval). Take a bath. Just do something periodically that is all for you. I would say this is especially important when you already have children, because you're less likely to have time built in for yourself.

Do any of you have tips for taking it easy while pregnant?