Welcoming a new child into your family is exciting and daunting, especially for military families that may have move often or rely on military benefits for healthcare and housing.

Anything that involves babies means juggling several responsibilities at once to the soundtrack of endless crying. To focus your energies on actually raising your children, make sure you have the financials and logistics figured out ahead of time.

Here are five tips for preparing yourself, your home and your family for a new baby, courtesy of USAA. 

  • Assess your current situation. Pull out all your documents and look at your income, expenses, debts, assets and insurance to see where you stand.

  • Adjust your budget. Plan for increased expenses and maybe less income, especially if one parent opts to leave a job and stay at home, even on a short-term basis. Visit local retailers to get an idea of today’s costs for diapers, baby food, clothing and other gear. Prepare for a bump in your health insurance premiums when the baby arrives.

  • Get the facts on family leave. Take advantage of the Family and Medical Leave Act. This federal law allows 12 workweeks of unpaid leave in a 12-month period for employees of public (federal, state and local) agencies, schools and businesses with 50 or more employees. Review your employer’s family leave policy and any maternity or paternity benefits.

  • Build an emergency fund. Start saving. At minimum you should set aside $1,000. Ideally, try to stash three to six months’ worth of basic expenses. You may have to cut back on little extras such as daily stops at your favorite coffee shop.

  • Review legal documents. Remember a new family member brings new responsibilities. If you have a will, you’ll want to update it to include provisions for your child. If you don’t have a will, now’s the time to prepare one. Check IRAs, pensions and life insurance policies. You may want to rethink your beneficiary designations or increase your life insurance.