Ten things you can do for a new mom

1. Cook and freeze her one week’s worth of dinners. Dinner is the toughest meal to prepare, because at the end of the night, parents of newborns are exhausted.

2. Take her baby for a two or three hour walk. Go to the mall or to the park, anything to get the baby out of the house so mommy can sleep.

3. Insist she have a shower or bath while you look after baby. Tell her to take her time, wash her hair, shave her legs, clip her nails, blow dry her hair, tweeze her eyebrows, etc. all of the things that new mommies don’t have the time for.

4. Take her for a massage, or for a manicure or pedicure. Allow her to savour this pampering while you watch baby.

5. Offer her a cleaning service or clean her house yourself while she spends quality time with her baby or catches up on her sleep.

6. Tell her that she looks great – even if she does look a little rough around the edges.

7. Make her a cup of coffee or tea and sit down to ask her how she’s doing. Genuinely listen to her responses – don’t offer advice or tell her a similar situation that happened to you – just listen.

8. Babysit so she can go shopping for herself. Tell her that the conditions for you babysitting are that she not return from her shopping trip with anything new for baby, and NO grocery shopping!

9. Babysit for an evening (or afternoon if that is easier) so that Mommy and Daddy can enjoy a quiet meal together. So they can catch up and have much needed time away from baby.

10. Every time you come over for a visit, check her dryer. If there are clothes in there fold them for her! Baby clothes are very little and a full load of laundry takes a long time to fold – especially when you have to continuously stop to tend to a crying baby!

These are just some suggestions. Keep communication lines open with a new mommy, it can be a very stressful time. She is exhausted, and even if she is not one to ask for help, she will definitely need it. Even if it seems like she has everything under control, be sure to do at least one of these things for her every so often. Even if she says no, insist on it, she will appreciate you for it! Don’t take no for an answer, and most importantly don’t ask, just do!