Much like any other “new age” father-to-be, I tinker with my iOS apps quite often because, as I like to put it, I need it for “work” – which is obviously an excuse to zone out, pass some time and not be disturbed.

I rely on project management apps for most of my work so obviously, I wanted to rely on a simple app for this pregnancy thing to keep things in perspective.

I didn’t want too much information though.

So I started looking around for an app that will be perfect for me. You know what? The apps I found were either:

• For moms
• Books or Newsletters turned into an app

I didn’t want all that information. That’s for her to discern. I needed the gist. I wanted a dumbass way to keep track of things and ONLY research further when I get to that certain point.

It doesn’t make me irresponsible, it’s just more efficient. I’ve seen a lot of dads that went through pregnancy knowing not a single thing. Not even going with their wives for their routine checkup. Now that’s stupid.

Don’t get me wrong, the My Pregnancy Center | BabyCenter app is probably the only one I’d recommend right now because it keeps me updated weekly with small chunks of information but it’s practically just you signing up on their site for a newsletter. I don’t even open the app. It’s not you, it’s me. 🙂

My Father Pregnancy App

So here I am, looking for an app to make this work…and it hit me. Just create a “roadmap” (lol) and put it on the most used app on my phone, which was Trello.

I initially filled it up with stuff that I was expecting based on the stuff I have researched and I learned from friends. The rest are the stuff that I have already experienced.

On Trello, a card is that horizontal clickable thing. The vertical column is called a list.

Here’s what you (only) need to do

It’s just a few steps really.

1. The first list is where I put important details. Something that’s always visible or want to remember. Something that I need “to do” or something to serve as a constant reminded throughout the pregnancy.
2. The cards on the 1st, 2nd and 3rd Trimester lists will have checklists within each one. You just need to click on the checkbox to indicate that you have done it.
3. Once the card is done, I’ll move it to the last “Done” list.

We’re currently on the 2nd trimester. The card below is where we are at the moment.

 Now for some of the details

• I use “labels” to label cards that are in progress, just added, encountered a problem, I failed at miserably, super important and what I’ve finished. You can label them differently on your own board but this is how I do it.

• Obviously, try to add your wife on Trello. If you need to assign a certain task, then assign her to the card.

•  On the Sidebar, I make sure I “Subscribe” to it so any changes or “alarms” that I set will show up in my email or “notifications” area.

For Those on a Mac

There is no Trello app on the Mac so this is what you need to do.

1. Visit my tutorial here about Fluid. My tutorial there is about using Google+ but it’s the same process with Trello. Fluid is free to use as long as you don’t need “Badge Notifications” or popups to remind you. I bought it because I always want to see the Badge on my dock so I am always notified.
2. At the bottom of that post, you can see that I have already provided a Trello icon for you. Use that.
3. You can also see there that I have provided the code for the notifications (if you did buy Fluid)
4. That’s it. Copy, paste and launch the app. You now have your own Trello app on your dock.

Conclusion

I know this isn’t really about “apps” but there are a LOT of posts about that already. See for yourself. This is about what works for me and could potentially work for someone else out there.

For those that want to use or try it, check this out.

• Join Trello. You can use social accounts to login.
• Check out the board here
• Click “Show Sidebar” on the right
• Click on “Copy Board”
• Put a name for that board.
• Use it.

I just wanted to show my way, a different route. Something I could improve as the months pass. Something other would-be-dads like me, can use and share to their friends. I hope it does help a lot of dads out there. I’m always open to changes, just leave them in the comments area or email us. I’ll add your suggestions in.

BTW, it wouldn’t be right for me to make this specifically for Android as I never had an Android my whole life but this post is for both iOS and Android users. It’s also for Mac and Windows users. Even that Windows Tablet…

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Papa

Co-Founder at LeapFroggr Inc.

Co-Founder and Digital Marketer @LeapFroggr, a mobile app development company based in the Philippines & SeriousMD. Start-Up Supporter. Proud Daddy.

@denseymour

Papa