Nesting - not in the traditional sense
Nesting is about creating a space to care for your baby that is not only comfortable and calming but most importantly is set up in an ergonomic way.
When I think of nesting now after having my first child, I realize that there is so much more to nesting than just making your baby’s room look cute and buying a bunch of baby things that you may or may not use, but you got just in case.
Ideally you want to minimize the amount of lifting and carrying you need to do during the day to care for your child.
We do so much lifting…bending down and lifting baby from play mat, walking to bedroom to change diaper on change table, then lifting baby up again and walking back to bend down and place baby on play mat.
Try to do all care for your baby in the same room and floor in your home by placing the diaper change table, playmat, rocking chair and crib near each other.
If possible avoid going up and down stairs to do frequent tasks like diaper changing, feeding, dressing and undressing etc.
If your baby’s room is multipurpose (mine doubles as my husband’s office) then get a diaper caddy that makes your whole diaper change setup mobile. We used the Lily Miles Diaper Caddy. Our diaper change table was the Hatch Grow Smart Changing Pad and Scale. I loved it because it was mobile so I could move it anywhere in my apt, plus it could be wiped clean (no laundering change pad sheets) and we could weigh our son, which gave us a lot of comfort that he was gaining weight when he first came home from the hospital. You can easily move your soft diaper changing pad as well.
My Living Room Setup
I did all of my care for my baby in my living room. I only carried him to his room for naps, which in the beginning is every 2 hours or so, therefore you really want to minimize lifting and carrying baby for all other tasks. I should also mention that I live in a 1 floor apartment. If you live in a house with multiple floors you might want to consider having a set up for doing all care for your baby on the first floor during the day and then at night do all care on the second floor where baby’s bedroom and your bedroom is. The idea is to minimize the amount of times you are carrying your baby up and down the stairs throughout the day and night.
This was my setup in the living room (see above picture): I fed and burped him on the couch. Then slid him down to the play mat which I set up directly below and next to the couch. We did tummy time on the play mat. Then for diaper changing I moved the hatch pad to the floor next to the play mat and brought my diaper carrier over. I changed him on the floor with minimal lifting and no carrying. Then back to the play mat for more fun.
Place your diaper change pad at a level that works for you and your back. For me that was on the floor. For others that might be on the couch or on the living room table for example. Find a height that works for you, your arms and your back.
I also rotated what position I was in when changing the baby to rotate what arm holds baby’s legs up. Also having another person help you change baby’s diaper and distract baby from wiggling is extremely helpful, but of course not always possible.
Once baby is a toddler, finding his or her favorite toys or books for them to hold while changing is great to help them keep still.
I also recommend cushioning your floor with carpet, styrofoam tiles/mat to not only make it soft for baby, but easy on your knees!
You will be sitting and kneeling on the floor a lot, so cushion your seat. I got a meditation cushion (yellow cushion on floor pictured above) which I found really helpful for kneeling and sitting. I still use it to this day. An exercise ball is also a great option to sit on especially during those toddler years when your baby is taller and more active.