3rd trimester: Week 28

Shopping

If friends and relatives want to throw you a shower, help them get what you need by registering at a few baby stores, and by compiling a wish list in our shopping channel. Our Gear Guide and other shopping guides narrow the field to the products that other moms say you just can't live without.

Exercise

For an easy arm stretch, stand or sit and clasp your hands behind your back. Pull them back and down, then release. Repeat ten times.

Relationships

If parents and in-laws aren't on board with your birth plans (you want a natural birth, for example, and they point out that anesthesia didn't hurt their babies), thank them for their opinions but avoid getting into arguments. Focus instead on how wonderful it is that they're so concerned. Learning how to be diplomatic now will help you navigate future parental land mines. (Just wait until you start discussing your views on disciplining children.)

Siblings

Page through your photo albums and ask your firstborn to choose an early baby picture of herself for you to pack for the hospital. Having her photo will lift your spirits during labor, and it will remind her of her importance to you.

Twins

Breastfeeding one baby can be a challenge, so two or more may seem truly daunting. But it needn't be. In fact, 32 percent of moms of multiples nurse for at least six months (vs. 29.5 percent of singletons' moms). Plan to experiment with a two-at-a-time position like the double cradle (also called the crisscross): Put each baby's head in the crook of an arm, and lay their bodies one on top of the other in opposite directions across your lap. This will make feedings go more quickly and spare you a fretful, hungry baby-in-waiting.