First weeks with a newborn: logistics
Organising the first weeks: documents and doctor, dividing duties, food and help, visitors and calls, night shifts and where to turn for support.

[ ] Check the deadlines and register the baby's documents
    Birth registration, medical paperwork, any payments. Deadlines and procedures differ — check early and put dates in the calendar.
[ ] Write down the doctor's and clinic's contacts
    Who provides care, how to book, where to go urgently and in which cases. Keep it on paper somewhere visible.
[ ] Divide the household duties for the first weeks
    Food, shopping, cleaning, older children, pets. Specific areas rather than \u201cwe'll help each other\u201d save energy and the relationship.
[ ] Cover food for a week ahead
    Frozen meals, deliveries, simple dishes. Cooking is the first thing to fall away and the first thing you then miss.
[ ] Accept help as specific tasks
    \u201cBring groceries\u201d, \u201ctake the older one out\u201d, \u201cgo to the pharmacy\u201d. A general \u201ccall if you need anything\u201d almost never works.
[ ] Limit visitors and agree the rules
    Short visits, arranged in advance, not while unwell. \u201cWe will write when we are ready\u201d is a normal and polite line.
[ ] Decide who answers calls and messages
    One person replies to everyone and sends updates. Otherwise the same answers get repeated twenty times a day.
[ ] Agree on night shifts
    One person sleeps several hours straight while the other is on duty, then swap. Sleep is the resource everything else depends on.
[ ] Sleep during the day when the baby sleeps
    The housework can wait. This is strategy rather than laziness, and worth saying out loud to whoever comes to help.
[ ] Plan time and attention for the older child
    Fifteen minutes that belong only to them beats presents. And agree in advance who takes and collects them.
[ ] Prepare pets for the change
    New smells, sounds and routine. Decide in advance who walks and feeds them in the first weeks; that slips first.
[ ] Check the stock of everything consumable
    Nappies, toiletries, cleaning products, any prescribed medication. It all runs out at night and simultaneously.
[ ] Set up a safe place for sleep and care
    Following your doctor's guidance rather than pictures online. Keep everything you need within arm's reach of the changing spot.
[ ] Know where to turn about your own state
    Postnatal depression is common and treatable. Note the contacts in advance and tell family what to look out for.
[ ] Plan trips out with a margin
    The first outings are short and have no deadline. The bag is packed in advance rather than on the way out.
[ ] Postpone everything that can wait
    Renovations, big purchases, moving, guests from out of town. The first weeks are not the time for projects.

Checklist from Unload: https://unloads.me/c/newborn-first-weeks