My sister just had her first baby! For all you mommas out there, what was something that made your post-birth experience easier / comfier

Question

Ginger · Answer

Food: Door dash gift cards, frozen casseroles, heck— my SIL gave us a bunch of frozen food bc she had been diagnosed with celiac around the same time we had the baby, and we those Dino nuggets were  amazing!

Amy · Answer

Keep a box of heated eye masks in the linen closet: For those nights you can’t sleep or have a headache - grab a heated eye mask and dream well.

Sil · Answer

Frozen burritos are the best post-partum food: Two words: frozen. Burritos. I had one friend bring me a bunch of ones similar to these from smitten kitchen, and another friend bring a batch that was black bean+spinach+cheese on whole wheat tortillas. So great to have a one-handed lunch that’s homemade and easy to heat up and you don’t have to worry about eating all of before it goes bad!

Melissa S. · Answer

A rolling nursing cart and pillows: Excellent if breastfeeding. Stock the cart with a GIANT water bottle, burp cloths, bra pads, nipple cream, and nutrient-dense snacks. The “my brest friend” nursing pillow is elite and helps provide lumbar support (imho the boppy sucks) but also have other pillows around so she can prop her head and elbows while feeding.

Melissa S. · Answer

Taking over household chores: I have a six month old at home, and the best thing that could have been done for me was someone doing the household chores when they came to visit: heating up food, washing dishes, laundry, dog walking and feeding, general picking up. Friends and family will want to come snuggle the baby, but that’s a new mom’s time to rest and bond - you never get it back!

JV · Answer

Going Ham On Your Postpartum Thread: I’m sorry, I just completely spammed your thread about postpartum mama needs from a sister, and mostly it’s because there really are so many ideas! But most of all, I found it comforting to be around my sister because she was really tuned into my needs: she brought me water when it was on the counter and I was nursing, she made me an iced coffee, she told me what time it was, and she only asked about the baby (how many ounces she was taking, or how long her feeds were, how many wet diapers we’d gone though, and how the baby was sleeping.) She also made it easy to coordinate her arrival: she didn’t ring the doorbell, and she was on time—she was CHILL. And she left within like an hour or so, that way I could get back to my bubble. Ok I’ll zip it now 💕

JV · Answer

Mother Brain: How Neuroscience Is Rewriting the Story of Parenthood: Mother Brain explains the neuroscience behind new parenthood. It’s wild, but our brains change so much in the first six months. Parenthood is a journey I wish I could have read more about before it happened, but based on this books’ findings, I might not have understood any of it before going through it.

JV · Answer

Uber Eats Gift Card for Newborn Parent Pals: Text your newly minted-newborn parent friends an Uber Eats gift card. They’ll be truly so happy to order in with your help, and they will thank you profusely —you don’t need to make the food, you just need to help make it appear.

JV · Answer

Classic Pajama Pant Set: Perfect button down for postpartum nursing, or pajamas to feel put together in during the first few weeks.

JV · Answer

Boyshort Postpartum (8 pairs, Frida Mom): I’m really going for it now, and sharing all the real-real recs. If you are planning on having a vaginal birth, get disposable underwear. Buy these boyshorts in grey (or black), line them with thick cooling pads…and let your newborn wear the diapers, k?