Prep Your Car to Bring Home a New Baby

Bringing home a new baby is always such an exciting time! As parents we spend weeks or months preparing our home. But what about our car? It is so important to make sure your car, like your home, is safe and ready to handle anything a newborn might throw your way. 

1: Get your car detailed 

I always say, “a clean car drives better” so before you start loading the car down with a car seat and a stroller invest in a professional detail. This will give you a fresh start and provide a more clean and calm environment for any trips with your new baby! 

2: Get your vehicle serviced

I suggest getting your vehicle serviced as up to date as possible before the baby comes! Whether that be a regularly scheduled oil change, new tires or a recall, taking care of this prior will make your vehicle safer and more reliable. Plus, scheduling service appointments with a newborn at home is not ideal. So if you can, check this off your list prior! 

3: Consider a Roadside Assistance Service

When it comes to car drives with a baby, peace of mind is everything! So if you have never looked into roadside assistance before this might be the perfect time. 

4. Get in the habit of checking GPS before leaving 

Sitting in traffic is frustrating enough without a baby… so get in the habit of typing your destination in the GPS before every drive (even if its your daily route!). That way you can reroute your route if possible to decrease your chances of getting stuck in traffic. 

5: Car Seat

It's very important to familiarize yourself with your infant seat a few weeks before the baby comes! I would start this process around 6-8 weeks prior to your due date. Take this time to read your car seat and your vehicle manual child restraint section. Think about what seating position you want the car seat in and how that could affect the rest of the passengers in your car. Will the passenger have enough room with a car seat behind them? Is there enough room in the garage to open the door wide enough to remove the car seat?

Think through a typical day with your new addition. I think reaching out to a Child Passenger Safety Technician (CPST) to ensure a proper installation is always a good idea. Check out some of these online resources like The Car Seat Lady, Safe in the Seat and Safe Kids Worldwide for additional assistance.

6: Emergency Kit 

You can’t be too prepared when it comes to being a mom to a newborn which is why I highly suggest keeping some emergency essentials stored in your car for those “just in case” moments. I like to utilize the cars built in storage like the center console, glove box and/or hidden trunk storage. I highly suggest these mesh bags from Amazon.

I suggest keeping diapering essentials

• 4-5 Diapers
• Wipes
• Cream

Always keep some extra clothing backs ups

• 2-3 changes of clothes
• Burp cloth
• Extra socks
• Hat

And some extra comfort items

• Binkies
• Toys
• Small Blanket

These essentials will change as your baby does! I suggest setting a calendar reminder on your phone to update your kit every 4 weeks to replenish, adjusting sizes or add things as needed! 

7: Projectiles

Once you bring home that new baby, “precious cargo” takes on a whole new meaning. This is why it's so important to pay attention to any potential projectiles in your vehicle. In the event of a collision anything that is not restrained could pose risk to your or your new baby. So just be mindful of any items in the cabin and if possible store them or remove them. As far as “projectile storage products” I don’t really recommend most aftermarket products as they are not properly crash tested and often give families false feeling of safety thinking projectiles are stored properly. So instead of spending money I just really try to keep my car as minimalist as possible and practice the art of “one degree safer.” Every item you remove or store in your vehicle makes it safer- focus on progress over perfection. 

Hopefully these tips will give you piece of mind