New parents can sometimes be overlooked for gift ideas when a new baby is expected. New moms and dads should feel a bit pampered, too, though! If you’re looking for ideas for non-baby gifts for new parents, then this is the right place to be.
Gift ideas for babies are never-ending. And don’t get me wrong. Shopping for cute baby outfits and decorations and adorable tiny shoes is a lot of fun. But what many of us fail to realize is that new parents are about to go from living a life of freedom and worrying only about themselves to a whole new game of thinking of their child first, staying up late, being sleep deprived, and caring for a little one full time.
A new mom is not only about to go through childbirth, which is a significant accomplishment in and of itself but she’s also gone through nearly a year of pregnancy ups and downs and will soon be responsible for the welfare and happiness of a child for at least the next eighteen years.
If you know a new mom or new parents, a nice gesture would be to gift them something that makes them feel like themselves again, if only for a short time.
Non-Baby Gifts For New Parents And a New Mom
A thoughtful gift for a new mom can go from a nice deed to lighten her load to something lavish. Depending on how much time you both have, your budget, her interests, and how close you are, many ideas will fit any needs or wants these women may have.
1. Massage Gift Certificate
Labor is intense for many women. Not only can it test the pain threshold of the strongest woman, but it often leaves a woman exhausted, sore, and a bit out of sorts. Even if the new mom had an epidural, there are still aches and pains leftover from the pregnancy. There is also the possibility of sciatica from pregnancy, epidural, or both, in addition to lots of strain on muscles due to carrying around that new bundle of joy in a car seat, baby carrier, or in their arms.
A wonderful and thoughtful gift idea for the new mom is a gift certificate for a massage. This can work out some of the muscle aches, knots, and tension that has accumulated during the pregnancy, ease persistent headaches and sciatica, and leave a mom feeling renewed and refreshed.
It also gives her a little time to be her own woman, even if only for a half-hour or so.
2. New mom gift basket
This is a great gift because you can personalize it to the unique needs and personality of the new mom. For example, if she’s breastfeeding, you can include healthy snacks, nipple balm, comfy pajamas or a robe, a good book, her favorite series or movie on DVD, a streaming service membership, crossword puzzles, and more.
Giving new moms gifts geared towards her, not the baby, can give a mom who is otherwise struggling to find herself amid motherhood a brief moment to herself and her own identity.
3. Grocery Shopping
Quite possibly the perfect non-baby gift for busy moms, volunteering to grocery shop for a new parent can be an absolute lifesaver.
If you have ever taken a newborn baby to the store, you probably understand how stressful it can be. A baby carrier is heavy, but you also have to keep your baby happy and quiet for the few hours that it takes to make a grocery list, get to the store, do your shopping, pay, load the car, and get back home.
Busy new parents will significantly benefit from you doing the shopping for them or paying for a service to deliver their groceries to their door. You can even have the tired parents make you a list, and you can order the items online and then just go pick them up.
It requires very little work from you, and it’s the perfect gift for the new mom who just wants to fall asleep on the couch for ten minutes rather than repeat every dozen steps that strangers are not to touch her baby in the store.
4. Food Delivery or Meal Delivery
The perfect gift that’s also a non-baby gift is a meal delivery service. You can ask the new parents and find out what their favorite foods are, or you can order them a subscription to a meal prep service that will deliver meals that only need to be heated up. This will save a tired mom lots of time and effort and will be greatly appreciated.
5. An Instant Pot
This is one of the best gift ideas you can give at the baby shower, as a gift after the baby arrives, or to any new parent. It’s an incredibly practical gift that will make a busy parent’s life easier now that they are on round-the-clock baby duty.
For the first few weeks, the mom is still recovering from labor and delivery, regardless of her childbirth method. She’s sore, she just wants to fall asleep and stay asleep for more than an hour at a time, and she most likely does not want to spend much time in the kitchen.
An instant pot cuts the time in half or more for meal making. This is one of those great gifts for new parents who still want to do the cooking themselves and aren’t keen on having food delivered. They can enjoy a home-cooked meal in a fraction of the time.
6. A Slow Cooker
Another of the best gifts for new parents is easy meals that you can start and leave to cook on their own. A slow cooker, or crockpot, will get any new venture as a parent off on the right foot.
If the extra cost of a service like Uber Eats is more than you can swing, or if you don’t have services like that available to you in that area, then this is the next best thing.
You can throw nearly any food in a crockpot. Other gifts that you can add to this to make it a whole package deal are crockpot liners, so there is no heavy-duty scrubbing involved, and crockpot recipes so that parents of a newborn or small child won’t have to spend a lot of time looking up ideas for food to make before settling on dinner for the evening.
7. A Cleaning Service
Your friend or family member who is a new parent will be forever grateful if they receive this gift from you. One of the best gifts for new moms is letting them relax or spend time with their little ones and not have to worry about a messy house.
Clutter and mess can really accumulate in the first weeks and months of having a new baby. This is because the mom is still recovering; oftentimes, the dad or the mom’s partner has to return to work, and getting used to having a new baby who depends on you for literally everything takes some time.
Gift certificates for a cleaning service or simply hiring one yourself is a great way to gift parents you know.
8. Babysit
New parents and new moms, in particular, are often reluctant to ask for any help or time to themselves right after having a baby. They may feel overwhelmed and need a break for a little while, but they will rarely voice that.
One of the most thoughtful gifts for new moms is to show up (not unannounced) and take care of the newborn and other kids for a while so that the mom or new parents can sneak away and take care of things they may have previously taken for granted.
Giving time for a quick shower, a warm cup of tea or coffee, a favorite drink alone, a nice meal without having to eat one-handed while holding a baby, and a nap to stave off a little of that newfound sleep deprivation is a great way to show moms in your life that you care and are willing to allow them some time to themselves.
9. At Home (or Away) Spa Day
Show the new mom in your life that you care about her by providing her with a spa day. You can make up a gift set of luxurious bath items like bath bombs, facial masks, lotions, snacks, a nail kit, and more. She can de-stress in peace for a bit and feel appreciated because she gave up her body for nine months and is now a full-time parent.
If you don’t mind the extra cost, you can even send her to an actual spa for the day. It will get her out of the house, away from the alarm clock, onesies to launder and fold, and all of the bottles and bottle parts taking up space on the countertop and sink.
10. A Fancy Diaper Bag
The best gifts for new moms are the ones that make her feel appreciated and are still useful. Remember, she doesn’t want to forget that she has a new baby. She just needs a bit of a reset to feel herself.
While those big clunky diaper bags with cartoon characters and baby animals are adorable, they’re also heavy, awkward, and don’t tend to reflect the personality of the mom or new parents at all.
If you can swing the extra cost, consider purchasing a fancy diaper bag that looks more like a trendy backpack, messenger bag, or purse for the new mom, in a material, style, and color that reflects her likes and personality.
Backpack diaper bags are great gifts because they allow new parents to be hands-free, and purse diaper bags are great because they can be used long after newborn babies turn into infants and then toddlers and then no longer need the use of such a bag for supplies. Moms can leave the house with this bag, using it as a regular purse, and rest easy knowing that she still looks fashionable and cute.
11. A Coffee machine
Parents of new babies miss out on a lot of sleep when their child enters the scene. From babies who need to nurse every couple of hours throughout the night, to changing diapers that have blowouts in the wee hours of the morning, to the missed nap in the afternoon because dishes and laundry need to be done, there are a lot of reasons why a mom and dad don’t get enough sleep.
Caffeine is often the lifeline of these parents. Give the gift of a new coffee maker. It can be inexpensive and straightforward or fancy and full of options. Either way, your friend or family member who is walking around with bags under her eyes will be grateful.
You can also gift bags of specialty blend coffees, pods, delicious creamers, cold brew kits, and more. This will give parents the notion that they don’t have to give up all the luxuries in life because they’ve become sleep-deprived zombies.
12. A Night Out
If you used to have a monthly girls’ night out, get it going again. Be sure to remember that your friend who recently had a baby is probably not the party animal she used to be. In fact, come nine or ten o’clock, she may be begging for her bed.
If you liked to party or dance the night away, consider a more mellow night out on the town, but if she wants to put those heels on and dance the night away, that’s okay, too.
Friends and family are such an important part of everyone’s life. That should not end just because your friend, sister, coworker, or cousin has had a baby. Even if it’s just for a quiet night of conversation and a glass of wine or a cup of coffee, getting out of the house with other adults is something that many moms crave.
13. A Camera or Photo Subscription
Parents love to capture all of those adorable moments with their little ones and each other. The first bath, the first haircut, the first-month milestone, every single moment for a new mother is significant.
While we all walk around with high-quality cameras on our phones, the gift of a nice point-and-shoot camera is a great gift. However, if your friend prefers her phone and would rather not have another gadget to keep track of, consider a photo subscription service for her.
There are many websites and apps that allow you to pay a monthly or annual fee to print photos, photo books, or other keepsakes made from the snapshots you take. A subscription to one of these services is a worthwhile investment that the new mother you know will love.
Mental Health and Remembering Mom
Postpartum depression affects more new mothers than many of us realize. In fact, up to twenty percent of women experience issues with mental health and depression after a child’s birth.
While a discussion with a mental health specialist or doctor is strongly recommended to gain the best treatment plan possible, remembering to spoil or celebrate your female parent friends also does a world of good for mental health.
Getting out of the house and reconnecting with other adults can give someone the boost of self-esteem, validity, self-identity, and confidence they need to either feel a bit better or realize that the way they feel regularly needs to be addressed by a professional.
Be sure to offer an ear or a shoulder to your friends. Giving gifts is great, but the gift of open, loving, accepting friendship is really the best thing you could ever provide.
