Pregnancy is not a time to run yourself ragged. In fact, it’s probably one of the few times in life you can get away with people understanding if you can’t stay out late, have limited physical energy, etc. You can make Tom Haverford proud, and turn EVERY day into Treat Yo’Self day.

But instead of relaxing or finding other ways to take care of ourselves (regular exercise, making sure we sleep enough, etc.) so many of us pregnant gals spend our entire pregnancies without really thinking about our own wellness – trying to make a good impression before we leave work, working on the never ending pre-baby to do list of home improvements, etc.

Recently, a good friend of mine had a bit of a scare with some bleeding during her pregnancy. She has an extremely stressful job, and had felt a lot of pressure to put in the same effort and hours as her colleagues, who are mostly younger and single or without kids. Luckily, all was fine, but as we talked through this experience, she said it was a huge reminder to her that she needs to slow down and take better care of herself.

She’s absolutely right – because taking care of yourself is so much more than that when you are pregnant. Taking care of yourself means taking care of your baby, too. If your baby were living “on the outside” you’d react so much differently to the various situations that you come across throughout your pregnancy, but with their cute little butts resting comfortably in the womb, it’s easy to focus only on to do lists and demands made by other people, and not taking time out for yourself.

For those of you who are pregnant and already have kids, you don’t have to tell me that this challenge is only compounded by the existing kiddos who already need you on a daily, hourly, or minute by minute basis. Still, I believe it’s worth fighting to make the time to take care of yourself.

Taking care of yourself doesn’t have to mean blocking out an entire day to head to the spa (though MAN that sounds good). Below are some ways you can treat yourself while pregnant:

Whether you have kids or not:

• GO ON DATE NIGHTS. There is nothing I missed more post-baby than being able to go out to dinner with my husband at a moment’s notice. Squeezing in as many dinners, movies, and special events with my husband before baby was awesome, because it took a few months before we felt comfortable leaving our son for more than an hour or two.

• Make plans with friends. I haven’t lost any friends since giving birth two years ago, but I definitely don’t see them as much as I used to.

• Get a prenatal massage. These are heavenly. Schedule for a good sixty minutes if possible – it is sooo worth it and I think allows you enough time to really relax.

• Get a pedicure (and manicure!). There is no better time to pamper your feet, because it’s truly impossible to do yourself (or is that just me?). Just make sure to stay away from a really intense foot rub, and enjoy knowing that at least you’ll be looking at some beautiful toes while you’re in labor.

• Buy something you love to wear. Whether it’s a maternity shirt you actually like, comfy sweats, or a piece of jewelry that you can wear long after baby is born, buy something that makes you feel good in the final stages of your pregnancy.

• Exercise. Take a prenatal yoga class, mall walk if it’s too cold to go outside, or do something more hard core if your doctor has cleared it, but try to get your heart rate pumping a bit (for me, this sometimes just takes a walk up the stairs…guess I need to work on this!) and then enjoy a nice warm shower after. I recently tried doing a yoga DVD with Oliver – it wasn’t a huge success, but I learned a few poses I can try after, and think this could be a fun activity with older kids.

• Get your house professionally cleaned. This may be my favorite thing to do (or not do). My son’s nanny occasionally cleans our house for extra cash, and when I walk through the door, I swear I hear angels sing. Even if you can’t do this regularly, think about setting up someone to come the last few weeks of your pregnancy while you are busy with the more fun nesting (and then again after baby is born if possible!)!

If you already have kids:

• Send your child to their regular daycare and take the day off work (or if you’re a SAHM, hire a baby-sitter or call a relative to help for a half or full day). If you MUST, run an errand or two, but schedule lunch with a friend, shop for something fun, get a prenatal massage (assuming you’re out of first trimester), or just watch a chick flick you’ve been dying to see at home in bed.

• Use your impending hospital stay as an excuse for your little one to do a “test run” and stay with the loved ones who will be caring for him while you’re in the hospital. This will give your kiddo a chance to get more familiar with their temporary home away from home, and you will have a night free of diaper duty or bedtime battles!

• Have your partner take over bedtime if this usually falls on your plate. Use this time to take a warm bath, read, you name it.

• Help your child become more self sufficient during your pregnancy. For me, with a toddler at home, small practical ways to do this would be things like: keeping a few healthy snacks within toddler reach so he can get his own snacks, and teaching him how to get in and out of his carseat (I still buckle!) on his own so I don’t have to lift him. We’re also working on getting him to clean up his own toys, but I can’t claim any real victory there yet!