My lovelies, one of the questions readers most often ask is what to give friends who just had a baby. So, I'd like to share eight gifts for new parents. These ideas aren't wacky or offbeat, but they
are gifts that parents will adore. (And I'd love to hear your thoughts, too!) Here goes...
Gifts you can mail:
1. A cuddly robe. As a new parent, when you get up (multiple times) in the middle of the night, or at the crack of dawn, it's wonderful to have a cozy robe to wrap around yourself. Alex has
this navy-and-green one, I have
this one, and this
striped one is adorable.
2. Massages. Alex and I went for a couples massage (at a cheap walk-in massage place near our house) three weeks after Toby was born. It was honestly the best massage of my life; I still remember how incredibly good it felt. You're so sleepy and your muscles are sore, and it was just wonderful. I remember half falling asleep, which felt dreamy and peaceful. (TMI:
My boobs leaked milk on the massage table. After we left, the massage therapist must have been like,
What the...? :)
3. Your favorite children's book. New babies are
soooooo sleepy, and, to an (impatient) new mama, any sort of playful interaction can seem like a thousand years away. So, I loved one evening when a friend came over with his favorite children's books. It made me so excited for the years ahead with Toby! (Growing up, I loved
Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs,
Roald Dahl and
Amelia Bedelia, and here are
Toby's favorites.)
4. Chocolate-covered strawberries! It sounds kind of random, but
chocolate-covered strawberries make a surprisingly wonderful new-mom gift. When Toby was born, my friend
Lina sent me a dozen, and I just about died and went to heaven. They were rich and decadent, but also fresh and healthy. She told me they were her favorite gift when she was a new mom, and once I mentioned them in conversation to other new moms, they would all pipe up. ("Euphoric," said
Abbey. "The best," said
Megan. "Perfect," said
Samantha.)
5. An adorable outfit. We had stocked up with cheap
basic onesies for Toby, so when friends would bring over
adorable outfits for him (that we wouldn't have splurged on ourselves), we were over the moon! I especially love
Winter Water Factory.
6. Baby notepads. Many new moms (myself included) find it helpful to record when your baby eats and naps and all of those sweet things, so you can keep track of your emerging schedule. A
personalized notepad with her baby's adorable photo would be an endearing
and useful gift for a new mama.
Gifts to give in person:7. Cooking. Food of any kind. When Toby was a newborn, Alex and I were so, so grateful when friends would come over with soups, fresh salads, sandwiches, homemade cookies...It felt delicious and nourishing. (A handy tip: If your friend is
breastfeeding, leave out garlic and raw onions, since those ingredients can make newborn babies fussy.)
8. Cleaning up the house. I literally teared up when a friend came over and, without asking, went into the kitchen and did all our dishes. It's so wonderful for people to help around the house when you're a new parent! You just never get to those things. If a friend came over and swept the kitchen floor, did a load of laundry, changed the bedsheets, replaced the toilet paper, and did the dishes, it would be such a joy and gift to the overwhelmed new parents.
A final tip: The gift of no pressure. When Toby was brand new, my good friend in California wrote a lovely congratulatory email to me, and at the end, she said, "Don't respond, go and be with your baby." And it felt SO good to know that I didn't have to do anything but read her lovely words and then turn off the computer. So, consider, at the end of any emails or with gifts that you send, including the words, "No need to respond" or "Don't write a thank-you note. Congratulations again!"
What would you recommend as a gift for friends with new babies? New moms and dads, what gifts do you remember really adoring? I would love to hear your thoughts!P.S. A
beautiful ring for mamas.
P.P.S. Speaking of books, the fantastic non-profit
Milk + Bookies provides books to underprivileged children. Read more
here.
(Top photo of
Jora; dishes photo by
Liv Dueck)
Did this summer fly by? I mean, seriously, I blinked once in June and here we are. Today is the first day of autumn, which, luckily, is an amazing season, too. Looking forward to crisp evenings, rosy cheeks, the smell of bonfires and turtleneck sweaters.
My lovelies, one of the questions readers most often ask is what to give friends who just had a baby. So, I'd like to share eight gifts for new parents. These ideas aren't wacky or offbeat, but they are gifts that parents will adore. (And I'd love to hear your thoughts, too!) Here goes...
2. Massages. Alex and I went for a couples massage (at a cheap walk-in massage place near our house) three weeks after Toby was born. It was honestly the best massage of my life; I still remember how incredibly good it felt. You're so sleepy and your muscles are sore, and it was just wonderful. I remember half falling asleep, which felt dreamy and peaceful. (TMI: My boobs leaked milk on the massage table. After we left, the massage therapist must have been like, What the...? :)
3. Your favorite children's book. New babies are soooooo sleepy, and, to an (impatient) new mama, any sort of playful interaction can seem like a thousand years away. So, I loved one evening when a friend came over with his favorite children's books. It made me so excited for the years ahead with Toby! (Growing up, I loved Cloudy with a Chance of Meatballs, Roald Dahl and Amelia Bedelia, and here are Toby's favorites.)
4. Chocolate-covered strawberries! It sounds kind of random, but chocolate-covered strawberries make a surprisingly wonderful new-mom gift. When Toby was born, my friend Lina sent me a dozen, and I just about died and went to heaven. They were rich and decadent, but also fresh and healthy. She told me they were her favorite gift when she was a new mom, and once I mentioned them in conversation to other new moms, they would all pipe up. ("Euphoric," said Abbey. "The best," said Megan. "Perfect," said Samantha.)
5. An adorable outfit. We had stocked up with cheap basic onesies for Toby, so when friends would bring over adorable outfits for him (that we wouldn't have splurged on ourselves), we were over the moon! I especially love Winter Water Factory.
6. Baby notepads. Many new moms (myself included) find it helpful to record when your baby eats and naps and all of those sweet things, so you can keep track of your emerging schedule. A personalized notepad with her baby's adorable photo would be an endearing and useful gift for a new mama.
Gifts to give in person:
Do you ever use bookmarks? I end up using scraps of paper and receipts, but this book hook would be a real step up. It would transform your book into a piece of art on your nightstand.
(Illustration by Caitlin McGauley)
How rad is this Bike Rain Cape by a Seattle designer? Two thumb loops pull it over your hands, arms, body and legs, so all those parts stay dry. The hood fits over a helmet, and the cape cinches to fit snugly. The bottom hem covers your bike seat, and the jacket has reflective piping. Genius!
I've always loved the idea of a house filled with greenery. But whenever we've brought home a brave little plant, it has shriveled up and died within a couple weeks. Eeps! What gives?! Maybe it wasn't meant to be, I thought.
8 easy houseplants that Amy swears by:
(Plant layout by Em from HipHipGinGin for Cup of Jo. Home photos by SFGirlbyBay, Bologet and Lonny.)
My darlings, we love taking vacation photos (who doesn't?) but then we never really look at them again. They're just stuck on our computers. So! We decided to make a Pinhole Press photo book with our England vacation snapshots, and I love love love the way it turned out. The paper is really soft, the photos look gorgeous, and it's amazing to have a little book of our vacation. Alex and I have read through it like fifty times. :) Here are a few of the pages...
Anyway, it was easy to make and it's so wonderful to have; now I'm dying to make litte photo books for all our vacations and events, including every Christmas break and our wedding and honeymoon. Thought I'd share! xoxo
P.S. Inspired, I also made some thank-you notes to have on hand at home, using a photo Amy Merrick emailed me of her flowers. :)
My old bike got stolen a few weeks ago (even though it had the baby seat on it, harrumph!). It was a rusty Schwinn that I'd had for five years, and I figured it was now finally time to get a grown-up bike.
Riding in Manhattan...
Over the Brooklyn Bridge...
Fast...
But not as fast as Alex.
Amy Merrick arranges the most gorgeous flowers. Here are a few photos to add some beauty to your morning. Don't you love how wild they look? xo
Oh. My. Goodness. I adore these hand-embroidered United States pillows, which feature cities, states, countries, regions and national parks. Aren't they fantastic? Which would you get? Where are you from?
Yesterday I went to Terrain, the gorgeous home and garden shop in Pennsylvania, after being a fan for years. The grounds are stunning, and I learned that people spend an average of TWO HOURS browsing the shop! (On average!) But I wasn't surprised: The flowers, linens, mustards, cookbooks, everything are so beautiful. Here are the two things I splurged on:
A velvet pumpkin (with a real gourd stem) to put on our mantle this fall.
Black sea salt. Wouldn't it look cool on baked potatoes?
Leave it to the Dutch to install a slide in a subway station. Commuters are encouraged to use it if they're running late, and the official name is a "transfer accelerator." At night they play Bach. How rad is that?!
Alex and I had a few people over for wine and cheese last night, and, just as a twist, we made personal wine labels from Pinhole Press. I used a photo of Paris and the words, "Have a magical evening."
When I was in college, I wore a nerdy green backpack, but ten years later, backpacks are back! They're actually considered cool in New York right now (for real), and they're comfy and perfect for bike rides, laptops, weekend trips, and baby stuff. What do you think? Would you wear a backpack?
