This shop has been compensated by Collective Bias, Inc. and its advertiser. All opinions, tutorial and photographs are mine. #SummerCarCare #CollectiveBias

I know this may sound crazy to some, but one of the phases I was looking forward to in my pregnancy was the nesting phase. As an avid organizer and clean freak when it comes to my living spaces, I was excited to get my second trimester energy burst so that I could get the house into gear. 

After spending many weekends on the house, another aspect I couldn't neglect was the car. A few years ago we purchased our Nissan Versa, as we knew it was going to one day be our family car. I love it's pep and spunkiness and it's comfortable and roomy inside for road trips and kiddos. Here we are about to meet our first little son or daughter this summer and I knew it was time to get the car into gear for their arrival. 

​I started with taking it in for a deep clean, both inside and out, so that it would be ready for the car seat installation once we were past my baby shower. As well as the regular three month check and tune up. 

One of the most important aspects to me is that the air is clean inside and the engine runs as efficiently as possible, as filtered air, both for us and the car, is important when you're living in such a dry and dusty climate such as Arizona. 

I'm thankful my husband has been patient to teach me about how to care for my car in ways both big and small, so that I can feel confident in the every day tasks, as well as in emergency situations. It's empowering to be a woman or a mom and be able to make these easy swaps to know you're making your car as safe as it can be. 
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​I knew it was probably time to swap out my engines air filter, so that was my next step. We are FRAM fans, as they have an extensive line of wonderful items to help with our car care. Available at Walmart, the FRAM Extra Guard filter was easy for me to locate when it came to finding the right one for my car. On my cars model its super easy to find the filter box under the hood too, which made this a quick and easy task. If you need help locating yours you can look to your cars manual to help you locate it. Below I show you an easy step-by-step tutorial to changing your cars engine filter, once located on your car.  I've also included below my step-by-step guide to helping you get your car ready for baby. 

Like filtering the air in our homes the FRAM Extra Guard is your engines first line of defense. Which is really important to your car running effectively, increasing acceleration, horsepower, and improving your overall engine performance. Much in the same way that we perform most effectively when we can breathe clean air. 

​In less than five minutes, with zero tools, I started by locating my filters case and removing the lid. After snapping it off, I opened the new filter, ensuring it wasn't exposed to the elements until it was ready to be installed. 

It was actually exciting to see the difference for me! I know, I'm odd, haha, but i love seeing the improvement when I improve or upgrade something in my home or car. And that old filter definitely needed to be changed. 

In just a few seconds I popped the clean filter into the holder, slid it back in the case and voila! Done and done. A clean & happy car! A happy & secure mommy to be! Win/win! 

For more on how I am getting car ready for baby, click here to see my Top 10 Steps for Preparing Car For Baby.  
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Do you have any tips on preparing car or home for baby? I'd love to hear them below! 

4. Tune Up
This can be scheduled during one of your routine oil changes, but its important to know what may need to be tuned up on your car. Squeaky belts? Loose brakes? All of this should be addressed before your baby's birth date. 

5. Registration 
This should go without saying, but important piece of information to make the list. Make sure your emissions, tags and registration are up to date. 

6. Easy DIY Upgrades
Items like faulty windshield wipers, adding air to your tires, or swapping out easy changes, like your cars engine air filter, can all be done at home to save you on labor costs. See how I easily swapped out my cars engine air filter in under five minutes. 

7. Mommy Car Care Kit
Aside from the diaper bag, I created a Mommy Car Care Kit. It's a small box in my trunk that includes a pair of flip flops if I need to pop on some comfy shoes, diaper wipes, a small pack of tissues, an extra changing pad, a few diapers, a hoodie for me, a hoodie for baby and a summer change of clothes for baby as well. Always better to have extra items on hand than not enough I always say. When our babes gets older, the kit reflect that. With non-perishable snacks, color books and a toy or two. 

8. Car Emergency Kit
Mr. Charming and I are big into kits, for home, work and car and our car emergency kit consists of items such as flashlights, emergency blankets, water, a few canned foods, a First Aid kit and boots/close toed shoes, as well as the necessities to jack up the car or change a tire. 

9. Window Covers
This one is optional, but where we live in Arizona, the summer gets extremely hot. Shaded window covers and a car seat cover are must haves to keep the baby's area cool when we are shopping or out of the car. 

10. Car Seat Installation
Once your car is clean and checked its time for the cherry on top, installing car seat for baby! We plan to visit our local Fire House to have them install our model for the first time. To be safe, we can see how to properly install our chosen car seat in our particular car model as they are all so different.