Food gifts for new parents?

[Loud_curly]

(I apologize if this has been discussed already - I couldn't get the search to work.)

My brother and SIL just had their first baby. Since they live up in CT and we're in VA, I won't be able to visit for a few weeks. I'd like to send some food to them, since I remember how nice it was to have some food in the house after getting home from the hospital. Any suggestions for what to send? I'd like to send more than just fruit, since they're not the biggest fruit folks. Maybe something with cheese/meats as well? I did also get some cute cookies... Or should I do something like takeout taxi? Thoughts?

[Ohana]

I vote Takeout Taxi or something like that. Although it's nice to have convenient snack foods around the house, nothing beats a nice, hot meal delivered to your door.

[miaclear]

Agreed. In all the food we got the best was actually a home cooked ham and potato dinner complete with pie fresh from our neighbors oven. Yummmm. She's pregnant now, not sure if I can manage to return the favor as I'm not such a great cook.

[catmom]

something like takeout taxi would be awesome. Also, some of those make-your-own meal places will pre-assemble the meals and deliver them.

[Loud_curly]

Thanks for the quick input. Unfortunately, it looks as if Takeout Taxi does not have a branch in Stamford, CT. I'll keep googling to see what I can find.

[Marisa]

I would probably prefer gift certificates to local takeout places rather than an actual meal delivered, just so that I could look at the ingredients and choose something we all could eat. But that's coming from someone who has multiple food "quirks", most specifically no dairy or soy while nursing.

We would have really gone for GCs to Chinese food places, Japanese, even pizza places where I could get a plain meatball sub with no cheese, stuff that DH could run out and pick up or have delivered quickly.

[mommydearest]

I personally would have loved a gift card to a family-friendly restaurant. I was stir-crazy in the house and by dinner time, getting out was wonderful.

DD couldn't tolerate me eating pizza in the beginning. So I would stay away from pizza cards.

[cactus]

You said they weren't big fruit people, but I LOVED that my work sent us an Edible Arrangement. It was so nice to pick at it (it was while we were still in the hospital).

The best food gifts, IMO, are the home-cooked ones. But since you're far away, I agree with the others who have said gift certificates to local places where they can get delivery would be great too.

Or maybe even a GC to a place that does grocery delivery? That would have been great too--we have no family around to help and it has sometimes been a struggle to even get out to the store in the early weeks.

[kristin]

I loved getting an edible arrangement as well. It was really easy to pick at it while nursing!

I agree with PP, I'd love a GC to a meal prep place (make sure they do assembly though). That way the new mom can choose which meals she'd like and place her order and her DH could pick it up (some places will even deliver). I've only tried Dinnerbydesign.net which I loved, but this is the only similar place I found near stamford: http://www.entreesmadeeasy.com/home_store.php?store_id=20
HTH!

[twinnyme]

Here is another thread on here for Food Gifts (http://www.constantchatter.com/forum/showthread.php?t=20763).

Also, when DD2 was born, my sister (who makes very good money) sent us a week's worth of food from Omaha Steaks - it was amazing! They have complete meals in boxes that you just have to heat up. It was very good.

I had done something similar for my sister when she had her second son but it was a more inexpensive place and I spent about $100 to send a few meals. I can't remember the name of the place but it was something like this one: Home Bistro (http://www.homebistro.com/?gclid=COHFpfzU_JcCFQw9GgodzR0iDA). In fact, I remember checking that one but deciding not to go with it and picked a different one - I think it started with an "A...."

We also got lots of homemade goodies, mostly from MIL, that were delicious, too!

[nuhmah]

Another vote for an edible arrangement - I sent one down to my SIL who had twins in September and she called the day it was delivered thanking me up and down. Everyone else had sent flowers, but she loved that she could pick at the fruit and eat while nursing and holding the kiddos.

[catmom]

"I personally would have loved a gift card to a family-friendly restaurant."

I think this may depend on the family... one of DH's relatives sent us a gift card to a restaurant when our twins were born (7.5 months ago), and it is still sitting in a drawer while we figure out who to give it to. Going to a restaurant is just too much work right now.

[Loud_curly]

Thanks again, everyone. My Mom and Dad (who live 45 minutes away from my brother and SIL) will order some prepared foods for them on behalf of me, and will drop them off this weekend. My Dad also did a grocery run for them yesterday (they were discharged last night) to make sure that their fridge was stocked.