Christmas newborn activities

[HEIHEI23]

We are due our first baby at the start of October and I’m so excited! I’m looking for what lovely Christmas activities people would recommend with a 2.5 month old. I’m reluctant to spend out on all the expensive light trails because they’ll only be very young and possibly be asleep 😂 however, if people have done them and can recommend them at that age then obviously we’d book them. We’re also happy with just staying in and doing Christmas things with them!

At 2.5 months do whatever you would like to do - it will be entirely for your benefit.

Tbh I think your little one will be too young to really notice anything!?? I used to take my son who was four months at Christmas time to a local garden centre and look at all the Christmas lights there. Or wrap him up warmly and walk the streets and look at everyone else's lights 🤣

I’d save your money or just do something you’ll enjoy, a baby that age won’t enjoy anything. When I had my first child at 2.5 months a trip to the supermarket took major planning never mind anything else😂

At 2.5 months old it is a bit like taking a (demanding) potato along! They won’t have any awareness of what’s going on at all, apart from wanting to be close to you.

Choose nice things for yourself where people won’t mind having a noisy baby in the mix.

Light trails are actually something the baby can enjoy. Laid back in their bassinet all cosy looking at the twinkling lights or up in the sling seeing it all around them. If they sleep then you can still enjoy it!

Depending on where you live Quarry Bank NT do a gorgeous baby Santa visit, all very sweet and gentle.

DS was a September baby and I have photos of him at 3m being held by Santa which I treasure and he loves to look back on. Other NT may do similar?

We also went to a local paint a pot and did hand/foot print baubles and a Christmas plate (made mugs as gifts too) and did some baby class 'Christmas specials'.

Please don’t do Santa. I saw a couple last year with a newborn at the grotto posing for pics with Santa .

it was so bad.

I would say just do what YOU enjoy, and baby will enjoy it too or sleep -- either way it doesn't matter.

I would save the ideas (and money) for when they're old enough to both remember and enjoy it. There's so much instagram-style pressure on doing things with newborns but so little encouragement for parents to focus on older children, which I find really sad.

Do activities you want to do, far too young to get anything from them !

A garden centre (warm but with mesmerizing Christmas lights) would be just fine.

Your newborn will have absolutely no idea what’s going on 🤣

Agree with others to do whatever you enjoy! My baby will be 8 months old by Christmas and we’ve booked an indoor light Christmas thing because it’ll just be a bigger version of the baby sensory lights so I think she’ll enjoy looking at those, and then we’ve booked a Christmas breakfast but that’s just because my husband and I want to go😂

I know the baby will have no idea which is why I didn’t spend £40 on polar express tickets no matter how tempting it was 😂 love the idea of bauble painting with their hands/feet. We will do some cute light walks around our local area; there’s always loads!

At 2.5 months I didn't want to do anything much at all... Christmas was just a pain in the arse

Demanding potato is spot on.

Do adult oriented activities op, this is the last Christmas you'll ever be able to put yourself first. Ever. EVER

Ps congratulations on your pregnancy. But really. EVER

Sorry to burst your bubble OP but our DS is coming up 3.5 months now and whether he was asleep or not on a lights walk would make no difference, he would only vaguely have any awareness of it. We have a star projector light and he's completely oblivious to it (although he does seem to enjoy a ceiling fan when we encounter one, so I'm not worried about his sight!).

Do whatever you want to do, enjoy a Christmas Market or whatever for the last time without having to chase a toddler!

Our son was born in early December. We took our newborn along to the local Saturday market to buy an Xmas tree and some nice food. He slept through the whole thing but it's a family tradition to go and buy a the Xmas tree at the market the weekend after his birthday.

My first child was around this age on her first Christmas. I found it so magical just having all the decorations up, doing lots of cute home photoshoots with her and visiting family and friends. A first Christmas with a first child is really special imo.

(Next year she’ll likely be pulling down the tree and screaming when she sees Santa 🤣).

Congratulations ❤️ xx

What was bad about it?

Mine was 8 weeks old at Christmas and so obviously I was on maternity leave and my husband had two weeks off work. Our normal tree was up, we had our lovely throws on the settee etc, the house was warm and cosy and we had lovely food and we had the most fantastic Christmas by being all heaped in a pile together, cuddling and feeding, snoozing and watching films. Having family come by to see us all. Occasionally heading out with baby all wrapped up in his pram, his little cheeks all pink in the cold!

He couldn't have given a shiny shit about Christmas activities but let me tell you that I would sell my left arse cheek to have that Christmas again and again because it was perfect! And every Christmas after this one will be spent with you running around after a child that will spend the next 8 decembers off their tits on excitement!

We went to a light trail for our little ones first Christmas when he was just under 4 months old and he enjoyed looking at the lights 😊 We also went to see Santa at a play area for babies ages from birth-18 months which was really nice 😊 His baby classes all did Christmas themed classes as well so there were plenty of photo opportunities - if you have Baby Sensory near you I would really recommend it!!

My three month old was more than happy with the pram just being parked in front of a few decorated trees in John Lewis and staring at them.

Definitely recommend things like the baubles. You will treasure them and put them on your tree forever more. Make memories for yourself. Whatever you do, your baby won't remember. But you will.

Just keep it low key and don’t have massive expectations. Just go with the flow, it doesn’t have to be Instagram perfect.

Can’t be any worse than my friend’s Xmas experience as a new mother. She took her 8 week old to a crib service. The vicar told her off because the pram was massive and said she had to carry him. Ok fine. The baby starts crying so she decides to feed him. Shakes the bottle of formula and the top flies off, and all the milk is on the floor. People tut and she gets flustered. Puts a screaming, wriggly baby on the floor. Cleans it up and gives him bottle number 2. Then sits him on her shoulder and baby is sick. Walked out the church at the end totally flustered and covered in sick. Happy Christmas everyone.

Baby is now a strapping 22 year old and my friend works in a church. No joke 🤣🤣🤣

This.

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