What to take to a momma at the hospital?

[ds2003]

I'm going to visit a friend at the hospital who just had a baby.

Is there anything that you mommas received while in the hospital that you thought was useful or worthwhile at that time and didn't see it as just some more crap to lug home? Or should I just bring nothing but me.

[littlebear]

I think that magazines or something edible is always good. It depends on how long she's going to be there. I was in for 5 days because I had complications and a c-section so I was dying for something other than hospital food and something entertaining to read.

Those are also good options because she really won't have to worry about taking something home. Flowers were OK for me because they brightened up the room and were dying by the time I was leaving. If she's only there for a short time, she might feel obligatedto take them home and that could be a pain.

[scout]

I'd recommend some food for the new mom and dad. I was starving after having my baby and the hospital wouldn't feed my DH. He had to keep going down to the cafeteria and half of the time it was closed.

[kimthebride]

My (truly fabulous) friend brought me fruit, granola bars, yogurt & juice since I am SO not a hospital food type of gal (she came between breakfast & lunch)! If you come around mealtime, bringing her Real Food is great too - and don't forget something for her hubby who is also stuck in there with her. I also loved having magazines and easy books to read. Oh - and a small book light for reading during nighttime insomnia if she has a roommate in the hospital.

It would be cool for you to bring her a big tote or large carrier bag with handles to help carry the crap other people bring her home.

Flowers & balloons do cheer you and the room up, but if you bring flowers make it a tasteful small arrangement that's already in a vase.

[KKay]

Your friend's favorite food would probably be really appreciated. I'm a picky eater and the hospital food wasn't all that special.

I also agree with kimthebride. Flowers in a nice vase really cheer the room up.

[ds2003]

Thanks gals. I will call and see what food she and her hubby may want. I will get a paper too.

[DisneyGirl]

one word FOOD! The hospital food is nothing to write home about thats for sure. so, bringing something yummy from her favorite place would be the way to go.

[HGMorgann]

I was gonna say fruit, but that was covered already. I couldnt believe how UNHEALTHY the hosp food was!

[IrishEyes]

I agree with the previous posters--food and reading material. Perhaps a gift certificate to a take-out close to their house for when they go home? Everyone gave us either flowers or more outfits for baby. They were great however (1) DH is allergic to flowers so we chucked them pretty quickly and (2) we already had so many outfits.

[jennylou]

Another vote for food. Especially if you know that it was a long labor. I was in labor for 17 hours (thank goodness I had a bowl of cereal before going to the hospital). They did not let me eat until almost noon the next day, which was well beyond 24 hours at that point.

[Sarah]

ITA on the food- make sure it's something nonperishable and easily portable. Someone I know came to see us in the hospital, two days before we went home, and she brought us meatloaf, mashed potatoes, and salad. While I was incredibly thankful for a good homecooked meal, it was impossible to store or keep until we left. So yeah, granola bars, cookies, yogurt in single packs, crackers, etc, are all good choices. Maybe some bottled water, too, since hospital water can be gross.

[Renrel]

One more vote for food. My bfing schedule or in hospital classes or vistits from docs always seemed to mess up my ordering or getting my meals. I was always hungry. I tried to order stuff I could stash in the room fridge when the meal was over. I still remember how unbelievable good the lox and bagel my husband brought me was. MMMMMMM The fact that I could not have lox while pg made it even better. I was sooooo pissed that someone threw out the half I was saving for a midnight snack.

[Koala_Gurl]

FOOD!!

LOL, seems everyone has the same idea. I sent my DH out for food (even McDonalds was better than the hospital stuff.)

Don't bring flowers...chances are she has a bunch already, and I remember leaving most of mine there (I told the nurses they could take them home or give them to other patients, whatever.) THere was NO way they were coming home (I did bring home 2 plants, but wasn't going to try and take the flowers).

[kimthebride]

I also wanted to just throwin here that when I got home I was too exhausted/busy/overwhelmed to deal with grocery shopping, so I started grocery shopping online and having it delivered.

Maybe if you were looking for a bigger gift you could find a grocery store near her home that delivers and give her a gift card with their web site on it. This way they can stock up on groceries easily in that first week home.

[Jodi AKA BostonTeacher]

I've gotten in the habit of bringing gift cards. It is somewhat impersonal, but at the same time I think the last thing they need is something to transport home. I either get a gift card for a local restaurant so they don't need to cook or something for mom (like a GC to the Gap for non-maternity clothes or a nail salon for when she is ready to leave the baby for an hour or two). They are always VERY well received. I've also baked cookies or brownies to make it more personal. That way they have something to munch on, offer to visitors or can toss if need be.

[Kristeen]

Well, I just liked having good conversation, I was stuck in that place for 5 days! I hated it when people came for 5 minutes, saw the baby and high-tailed it out of there. The let-down was worse than if they hadn't come at all! And I know they were just trying to be polite, but sheesh. Read the mom's signs. If she asks you to stay longer, hang out for a while. If she looks sleepy, offer to leave. :)

As far as presents go, I loved it all! I was unconcerned about carrying it home because I assigned the task to DH in advance, lol.

[ce_Kathleen]

I too recommend food! But for me since I had a c-section I had some issues for the first 48 hours so all I could eat was broth, but my poor DH was starving and the cafeteria was terrible and the only thing close to our hospital was KFC and after a few meals of that it gets old.

Other than that I really liked having some magazines to read (Cosmo, Redbook, something easy) and having conversation.

Oh and at our hospital we had to use phone cards to call out so maybe a phone card so when she gets lonely she can call a friend!

[cpbride8203]

One of my friends brought me a nice big cup of Dunkin Donuts hazelnut coffee...it was such a treat since I had not had it for 9 months! :D

[alienhost]

I have to agree with the food recommendation, especially for those in the hospital for a long time. Even some baked goods - cookies, brownies etc that mom and dad can snack on would be nice. My room had a fridge which was nice but I really didn't have anything to put in it!

[ds2003]

Thanks for all the great replies. I called her to see what she wanted to eat and she had recently eaten (hospital food) as was not hungry. She thought the food was pretty good, but her husband thought it was horrible. I really should have asked him when I called instead of her. She was just really hungry from barely eating the previous day. Anyhow, all we brought was a pink blanket and a matching hat. She hasn’t had her shower yet and the babies gender was a surprise. So I wanted to bring something small that could hopefully be stuffed in a bag. Had I thought ahead I really should have washed it before bringing it. That way they could use it right away. They may still have used it but some people like to wash things first.

We visited with them for 2 hours. It wouldn’t feel right to just drop by to see the baby and leave. So we sat around and talked.

[manatee]

Hi everyone,

One of my good friends just had her baby boy last night! I will be stopping by the hospital for a visit this evening. I wanted to find out from the moms here what they appreciated the most from their visitors.

I am thinking of flowers but it seems kind of mundane. I also want to avoid giving the new parents another thing to lug home. I don't have time to make anything special though as I have to go there from work.

Any suggestions or ideas would be greatly appreciated!

[vjel]

the best things some friends brought us was FOOD! I had one girlfriend who brought us a goodie bag w/ snacks to munch on, magazines for me to read and some other stuff but the snacks and magazines were the best. (I ended up having a c-section so I was there for 4 days. I really did appreciate reading material and snacks) I also had another girlfriend bring us dinner one night too. I REALLY appreciated that b/c I was STARVING and the hospital food was really bad! :rolleyes:

[twinnyme]

Chocolates!!! (or whatever snack she likes). Many, many people brought gifts for the baby (which I very much appreciated); one friend brought a gift for the baby (Valentine's outfits) plus chocolate, which was so cute - and so welcome. I had a c-section and was in for 4 days so they came in handy once I was able to eat again, and for visitors. My family also brought cookies and one day an ice cream, so that was nice, too.

ETA: The PP has a good point about reading material. My sister brought me a "Chicken Soup for the Mother's Soul" book and I really did have some downtime to read and enjoyed having something to actually read!

[janders6]

I agree with the food and magazine suggestion. My good friend brought us a container of chocolate chip cookies, which we then were able to share with everyone that came to visit. We also snacked on them ourselves. My sister also brought me a bunch of magazines and I read all of them. If you bring food, make sure it is something that's not messy and if it requires silverware or plates, bring those too. When my parents brought us dinner one night we had to search for forks.

[Marisa]

Nooooo flowers! LOL... I hated dragging them home! :D

I third the idea of snacks. If you can call ahead and talk to her DH or mom or someone, find out if she has any dietary restrictions. (I was on "clear liquids" for 2 days and I would've had a fit if anyone brought in yummy snacks -- I wasn't allowed to eat them!! :D)

By day 3, though, all was well and I could have sandwiches and cookies again. :)

[BooeyJ2]

FOOD :) Hospital food is pretty BLAH. Just remember to bring things that don't need to be refrigerated. My sister brought me a slice of cheesecake from Cheesecake Factory and I didn't finish it all since it was so big....and of course it didn't keep well so I had to throw it away :(

[pontmarie]

FOOD!!!!!!!!!! We had tasty food service at the hospital but still, I got hungry at the most random hours. And I was always thirsty, too.

[KGif]

Bring snacks. I just had a baby and while i LOVED all my flowers i did NOT love trying to lug the mall home. You're already worried about having a new baby in the car so the last thing you need to worry about is a bunch of flowers spilling everywhere.

I second (or third? or fourth?) the snack nomination. Definitely check to see if she is on a restricted diet first. Is there something she *really*likes, a certain restaurant's french fries or a milkshake from a certain ice cream shop?? I would have loved that AND it shows that a lot of thought went into it.

[KKay]

I'll also chime in with the FOOD recommendation. The hospital food leaves a lot to be desired.

[alienhost]

Definitely food - my room actually had a small fridge but no one brought any food :(

Flowers (while lovely) are a pain to lug home and cart through the hospital, parking lot etc. DH took them home the day before so we didn't have to worry about flowers, bags and baby!

[ann2002]

I agree with snacks, bottled water, magazines, etc... We got a ton of flowers, and as nice as they are, they are a PITA to bring home...

[Aug2002Bride]

I definitely agree with the Food recommendations! Hospital food stunk and I was always making DH go out and get me something!

I got a big ol bag of candy right after from MIL and I loved her for it!! YUM!

[usafwife]

I loved my flowers that I received. Of course I didn't receive that many so bringing them home wasn't a big deal. DH just brought a box to set them in so they didn't tip/fall over on the way home. We got four or five outfits for DD. Everyone who came in enjoyed seeing the outfits that we had hung on the closet doors. My mom brought me two books. And we also got a couple of stuffed animals for DD.

However I think that the food idea would be good. Hospital food leaves much to be desired. Trust me, after eating it for more than one day, you'll wish that you could have anything but that to eat. Do check to see if there are restrictions on what she can have.

Our hospital does a 'celebration dinner' for the couple before going home. You get to chose the meat (chicken or steak), potato, dessert, salad, and veggie. They also let you chose if you want it at lunch or supper. It actually didn't even taste like hospital food. We were quite impressed with it. Oh, and they also served it with a bottle of juice. We got to have a meal together and be able to spend some time alone (which didn't happen very often while in the hospital).

[Freckles]

I usually give my friends a comfy set of PJs or lounge wear, as well as books or magazines. I guess I will add food to my agenda for the future! ;)

[booksie]

What kinds of food does everyone suggest? Are you thinking snickers bars and mixed nuts and muffins?

Or something like an actual meal, a hot pizza or take-out? I am worried I'd have to schedule something like that around their eating and nursing times...

[tgray99]

I agree with all prior posters, flowers, while nice, are a pain to deal with. DH broke a vase taking ours down to the car. :rolleyes:

I had a C-section too and was there for 4 days, I would've loved reading material. TV got boring after a while so I really craved something to read when my baby wasn't in the room or was sleeping.

I also would've liked Little Debbie-type snacks. My hospital had fabulous food but snacks would've been nice.

[Renrel]

Food is definately a great idea.

A journal type book to write down her thought during these first few days might be nice. I know I desperately wanted to type out my birth experience while it was fresh in my mind but could never manager to get the lap top set up in a way I could use it at a time I was not sleeping or nursing. Having the c-section made this more of a challege.

An easy to read digital watch to help track all those feedings and poopings. This is a gift that will be useful for months or even years after she leaves the hospital. Moms need to know what time it is to keep kids on schedule for naps and feedings. Even if you don't actually keep a strict schedule if you remember when your kid ate last and he starts crying and you look at your watch and see it was close to 2 hours ago you may be able to guess that he is hungry.

The happiest baby on the block book.