Decorate the nursery, find a daycare, create a game plan for maternity leave, prep your hospital bag—the pre-baby, pregnancy to-do list goes on and on.

With nine months until baby’s arrival, it’s important to prioritize your list in a way that is manageable and as stress-free as possible. So what’s the best approach to take this on? Check out these tips for creating a list and efficiently crossing off each item.

Creating Your Pre-Baby, Pregnancy To-Do List

Let’s face it, there’s a lot that goes into preparing for a new baby, even if this isn’t your first rodeo. Not to mention, the rest of your life will still be chugging along–work, household chores, projects, kiddos. To keep things in order, the best place to start is by creating your pre-baby, pregnancy to-do list. Think of this list as something that will be completed before your baby’s arrival and strongly consider leaving the tasks that can wait off of the list.

Below is an example of what your list may look like.

Hint: Don’t forget the fun stuff! For example, planning and putting on your gender reveal party may not seem like a big undertaking because it is something fun that you are looking forward to however, it still takes time and needs to make the list.

Sample Pre-Baby, Pregnancy To-Do List

• Any non-baby related tasks that were already on the to-do list
• Find OBGYN or midwife and set up appointments
• Share the news with your family and friends
• Set up nursery
• Register for baby items
• Research baby gear
• Set up gender reveal
• Line up child care
• Create plan for maternity leave
• Decide where you’ll be delivering your baby
• Write a birth plan
• Find a pediatrician
• Pick a name
• Write a postpartum plan
• Nest, nest, and nest!
• Shop for baby — clothes, gear, and more
• Baby proof the house
• Prepare your kiddos
• Prepare your pet
• Pack hospital bag

How to Organize Your Pregnancy To-Do List

Once your list is compiled, and trust me, it will most likely look a lot longer than the sample list, it is time to organize and prioritize. For me, this looked like separating the items out into a few different categories. Here’s how I chose to break it down:

• Those that require physical energy vs. those that did not
• Those that can be done online vs. those that needed to be done in person
• Those that needed to be done by the first trimester mark, the second and the third

Those that require physical energy vs. those that did not.

Definitely start by picking and choosing which tasks will need your physical energy. I learned the hard way during my first trimester that some of the tasks on my pregnancy to-do list, no matter how badly I wanted to complete them, were simply not going to be crossed off the list at that time due to the mere fact that I was growing a human. During the first trimester, your body is working hard to grow your sweet baby. You are fatigued, nauseous, and in general, feel like crap!

For example, I had priority number one on my to-do list to help my husband complete our master bedroom and bathroom remodel. In my mind, this had to be done before the baby arrived so it had to be first and foremost. While we may have been overly inspired by Fixer Upper, this project became quite the undertaking–moving walls, ripping out carpet, tiling, painting, you name it. However, my first trimester body was drained and all I wanted to do was sleep. This task got moved down my list to one that could be completed when I had more energy.

Those that can be done online vs. those that needed to be done in person.

Next, identify those tasks on your pre-baby, pregnancy to-do list that can be done online vs. those that need to be done in person. These online tasks, such as creating a baby registry and researching the best baby gear, can be done essentially anywhere and at any time. Take advantage of that and prioritize them accordingly!

I was also able to add finding a pediatrician and OBGYN to this list, as I’m a big online researcher and do my fair share of diving into reviews.

Those that needed to be done by the first trimester mark, the second and the third.

Lastly, categorize by the trimester. Your life will already be driven by the timeline of your pregnancy, so it is easy to look at your pregnancy to-do list that way, too. Setting dates within this list will make it seem more manageable and also give you a deadline that is more attainable than “before baby.”

Use these guidelines as a way to prioritize and your pregnancy to-do list will quickly go from overwhelming to achievable, orderly, and complete.