What’s the loveliest present you’ve received as a new parent?

[Olderandboulder]

I’m very excited about the imminent arrival of my DS and his DP’s first baby. We are going to do the decent thing and stay away until they’re ready for visitors, but when we do go, I’d like to take something special for the new mum. She’s been so brilliant through quite a stressful pregnancy, and deserves something lovely. They’ve already got a stack of baby stuff from various friends and family, so I don’t want to add anything else to that.
Does anyone have anything, practical or frivolous, that they were given as a first time parent that really hit the spot? TIA

Really yummy and wholesome meals.
Lots of snacks for mum especially.
Decent coffee!
Anything that Mum has had to give up whilst pregnant (ie soft cheese)
A really luxurious bubble bath or body lotion for mum so that she can do some self care at some point!

No to the nipple cream and easy access top. The new mum might not want/can't breast feed and these items could be perceived as a dig or encouragement to do so.

Pay for a few weeks worth of the meal kits in a box that are delivered to your door. A new mum pamper voucher for a local salon. You can get afternoon tea hampers as well which are lovely. It's lovely you want to do something for her as very often as a daughter in law you can wind up feeling like a vessel for the grandchild.

One thing I would avoid is rushing in and insisting on a million and one photos/holding the baby for hours,, despite the temptation to do so. My in laws insisted on coming up to the hospital after a fairly awful birth. Sneaking in all of my in-laws separately so I had 8 people in the room. They stayed for hours just passing the baby around. I was so bloody cross. Sat there with my insides half out, drips in arm and I have my brother in law's girlfriend gawping at me. Honestly I was so glad my second was born in COVID and I didn't have to deal with that arseholery.

I got one of these and there’s a lot of waste/packaging but the clothes are actually such good quality! I was surprised and expected them to be a bit rubbish because it’s quite a gimmicky thing.

I personally loved receiving flowers and luxury food items. If you know her taste then jewellery would be lovely or maybe some easy/quick makeup like a set from Merit.

A box of Fox's biscuits (because there are no better biscuits), some nice hand cream, lovely soft fluffy socks and some nice, soft pyjamas (button up, for breastfeeding).

My brother also bought me a subscription for WOW TV as I was a bit obsessed with RuPaul's drag race at the time, and that was brilliant for during the many, many contact naps.

Also not sure I’d want my MIL picking my knickers as much as I love her

I’d avoid any kind of salon/experience vouchers unless you’re also offering to babysit. I found hair appointments really stressful with a breastfed baby and I wouldn’t have wanted to attempt that any more than necessary.

Meals for the freezer! Cake. My mum bought us a few 'Cook' branded meals for our freezer and also provided the odd casserole. Knowing how much I love cake, I received at least 3 home made cakes in the first 3 weeks. Was really lovely to offer people those as they came to visit and gave me energy to get through the day. Bits of cleaning, holding baby when I was in the shower and washing etc was a godsend.

I'd avoid any sort of salon/pampering vouchers too, even with babysitting thrown in, unless you have checked with her first, I would not have wanted to be away from baby for anything like that in the early months. Same with offers to babysit etc, nice thought but not actually wanted.

As for the not crowding with visitors for photos etc, I can understand wanting to limit that to some extent, but I really treasure all the first photos of my DCs with grandparents, aunts and uncles and was a bit upset to find recently that I haven't got one of my Dad with one of newborn DCs, only all the other grandparents.

Handcream is a good shout, also nice shower gel, as well as food, consumables rather than stuff that clutters up the house is a good way to go IMO, babies bring enough clutter with them.

Do they need a cot or pram? I also appreciated personal stuff, vests, sleep suits, postnatal vitamins. Just practical stuff. I wasn’t fussed about food or alcohol.

I agree to this. I didn’t want to be apart from baby. I think I had a hair appointment maybe 6 months post partum.

Maybe a newborn photoshoot? Investing in memories rather than stuff?

Subtly check how much freezer space they have/if they have a spare freezer some easy stick in the oven meals / snacks! Oooh if they don’t have a spare freezer and have space for it, and your budget stretches to that - a spare freezer and fill it with a few meals - other friends and family could help fill it!

Gifts that have gone down well from me have been Bamford products (they smell glorious and feel very lux) and a fluffy robe/poncho from the White Company

Ooh and this is a good idea too. The photos from those sessions are astronomically priced so we don’t have any unfortunately-would have loved this (son now 9m)!

My friend got me a beautiful silver bracelet with 2 interlinking hearts, one larger than the other, and it means the world to me

Oh and another friend sent me a travel mug, some lovely hot chocolate and biscuits, and some face masks and bath bubbles. That was really lovely too

🤣 that's made my day!

A wheel of Brie, a bar of dark chocolate and a basket of new mum pampering products. I was over the moon. Everyone else bought gifts for the baby - which was lovely and we were really grateful, but to get something just for me was fabulous.

A delivery of frozen meals from Cook.

One of the best presents we got was a food delivery from an auntie. They were lovely freezer meals from a company called Field Goods. I also got a lovely Elemis face cream from MIL.
I think a voucher for a local beauty salon for a massage or pedicure, or an M&S / Waitrose voucher is a good idea so they can stock up on nice easy cook food bits.

• Fresh baked sourdough from my fave bakery
• Baked goods
• Homemade food ready to go in the freezer
• Some super sized, really soft, cotton mulins. I used them for EVERYTHING for years. Lining the buggy, creating shade above the babygym, covering baby for naps, feeding cover in public in the early days when I bothered with such things, then in later years the kids used them for dens, to make their own baby carriers. They were great.

I think we had this brand - https://www.adenandanais.co.uk

This! As long as they have a bit of freezer space.

A reading lamp (w/battery) that clips onto the side of a cot/changing table/bed. I give it to every pregnant friend/coworker, and a couple of months after baby's been born they are thanking me as if it's been a life saver. I promise you, no-one likes to have to turn the main light on to change a nappy, clean sick, look for a toy in the middle of the night.

I bought my sister a necklace which had the birthstones of all three of them (first baby) with the option that more stones could be added if they expanded their family. She still wears it 20 years later.