Box of goodies for a new mum - what would you want in it?

[Comvit]

My friend has just had a baby. I want to make up my own box of goodies to send to her.

But I'm wondering what to put in there. I've never had a baby so not sure what a new mother would appreciate.

I was thinking of a nice body cream, a scented candle, some chocolate, some wild flower seeds, a gift voucher for a baby shop. Is this naff? What else could I put in there? What would you have wanted in a gift box just after you'd had a baby?

By the time I get around to buying the stuff and sending it off, the baby will probably be a week or so old.

I have just sent a care package to my friend made up of sweets and chocolate!! Also a cook ready meals voucher or some of their meals you capfuls get delivered to them. Found these useful when I had both mine meant I didn't have to worry about planning dinners to much. Things for baby are lovely but stick to useful things such as clothes as we were given loads of comforters and bears and as lovely as they seem just end up sitting around and not knowing what to do with them.

Ah - just thought. When you do go and see her take:-

something she can put in freezer/fridge like shepherd's pie/lasagne etc.

cake - I did a great chocolate and banana loaf cake have posted the recipe here it's super easy to make and went down a storm with all new mum friends/relatives (and it's also nice when people make you cakes!):-

www.nigella.com/recipes/members/glitterss-chocolate-and-banana-cake

It's a long time since I had a young baby, but with hindsight, the things I appreciated were:
Lanolin or calendula nipple cream
An insulated cup that can be completely closed, like the Thermos thermo king
A pre-prepared meal
Muslins
Snacks

These days I'd like Audible vouchers.

Some lovely bath stuff to help you heal after childbirth.
Breastfeeding can make you very thirsty so some posh squash ( not orange)
A cosy blanket for short naps on the sofa.

Chocolate. Chocolate chocolate. With nuts. Or healthier stuff that can be reached from breastfeeding armchair. Clusterfeeding sometimes means you are very hungry and thirsty and weak, and just need some instant energy to help you up so you can make some late lunch.

a spare phone charger.
1l thermos water bottle with sports mouth, to be able to drink with one hand whilst holding baby.
A kidney karen tummy warmer, so you dont have a cold tummy and hips when breastfeeding.
Lanolin tube can also be used as lipbalm or hand balm , for dryness from all the handwashing.

When I had my first, somebody got me this card and it made me cry. I get it for all new mums now!

Box of goodies sounds lovely.

I was so grateful for everything we received but the best things were:

Vouchers for M&S, boots or next.

Bottle of badedas for the bath.

Malteasers.

Box of biscuits.

A nice lip balm
A Boots voucher
A John Lewis voucher
A nice body butter & a nice shower gel
A good coffee
Cake & chocolate

All nice ideas. I've had some of the above as gifts and bought the rest myself once DS arrived last year and it cheered me up no end when I was really exhausted with a newborn. You're very thoughtful, OP

Homemade cake
Flap jacks if breastfeeding
M and S or Cook voucher
Sugary sweets
Nice hand soap and hand cream
Fancy Muslins
Bb cream/tinted moisturiser

A tube of Lansinoh. Even if she never needs it for early weeks of breastfeeding whilst she and baby are learning to latch pain free it’s still great stuff for other uses. I used some on some on the tongue of some squeaky leather boots once 🤣 worked a treat.

My best gifts for me as a mum with a newborn was a friend brought a bag with ready meals, big bags of chocolate and a load of trashy magazines

Avoid MLM like the plague.

Hand cream for all the handwashing if she's making up bottles. Snacks for feeds, either breastfeeding or bottle feeding. If you know her well, a chilled homemade casserole to her taste or mezzo graze board or ready meal from M&S. Comfy socks for sitting up feeding at night. Nice dressing gown.

Cook vouchers, or just dropped round a few of their meals for two.

A friend gave me a silk eye mask so I could sleep any time of the day with the baby, super soft socks (I wore them in bed as my feet always got cold up and down feeding) and a really soft cardigan (primark!) and honestly they were the things I used most and loved!

I always give first time mums a thermal mug with a lid. The number of times I got trapped under a sleeping/feeding baby - this meant I could at least keep my much-needed cuppa hot, and drink it without worrying about spilling it on the baby!

While I think the thermal mugs are very useful pretty well everyone has them already I would have thought, we've been given several over the years, as well as the non-thermal lidded ones. We use them all the time but have far too many.

Wine

Wine. Soft french cheese. Seafood.

Reusable bamboo fabric breast pads, preferrably backed in wool. The disposable ones can stick and really hurt when being pealed off.

Lansinoh if she's breast feeding

I honestly wouldn't have wanted a box of things that need unpacking and putting away somewhere and which might be someone else's idea of what I'd like. (I prefer to choose my own hand creams etc tbh.) I'd have loved a pasta subscription or similar (Pasta Evangelist is v good,)

2 big fat biftas and a bottle of gin.
*joke 😀

Wouldn't want the seeds...bit this:
Special hot chocolate sachets
Biscuits biscuits biscuits
Chocolate
Sweets
Tea tea tea or coffee
Cake cake cake
Restaurant/cafe vouchers

Another thing I bought for SIL which she used was a posh (Nars) lip chubby pencil, you can get cheaper. She actually said it cheered her up to put it on and when she finally did venture out of the house with her baby DS she put it on before she left.

Graze boxes, or those Gousto types boxes- (throw in a pan healthy foods) afternoon tea delivery, a nice lidded mug, oh, some really nice loungewear. Nice and comfy for scruffing round the house but also fine to answer the door in kind of thing.