If you had walked in to my home in the days after I gave birth to Anya, you would have been forgiven for asking if I had suddenly turned in to a florist.  You could not move for the beautiful flowers I had.  While I adore giving and receiving flowers, I think there are many more useful things that you can give new mums. I often get asked for ideas and so I thought why not share a few of my favourite new mum gifts on here.

Sometimes it’s hard to think beyond the obvious gifts like flowers, baby clothes, toys or anything for the baby. But chances are the baby will already have everything it could possibly need and much more so I think with a little thought you can give the new mum something that she really needs and something that may just help make those first few weeks and months a little bit easier.  Here are some of my favourite ideas for some unusual and thoughtful gifts for new mums:

1.  One of the biggest things new parents lack is time.  Time to look after themselves and that includes not being able to eat well-balanced meals.  So instead of a gift for the baby, you could give them a week’s worth of fresh meals cooked by you.  But if that’s not possible, you can still give fresh meals from somewhere like the Food Stork who have ready made boxes of lots of different meals that you can have delivered.

2.  Another lovely and personal gift for a new mum is a pamper treatment – a facial or a massage would both be a much appreciated gift especially at a time when you’re not feeling your best.  This would have been top of my list of gifts to receive.  Think of how you felt in those days and weeks after a birth and then imagine escaping for a couple of hours to be pampered in a quiet, tranquil environment.  Pure bliss!

3.  Thinking on from pampering gifts for the new mum, you could even gift the new mum a baby massage session.  It’s a thoughtful gift that gives both the mother and baby some special bonding time that’s just for the two of them.  And the new mum will also get to meet other new mums around her.  There are many places that offer these but if you’re in London, The Portland Hospital has weekly sessions open to everybody.

4.  If you really do want to give something for the baby, then think about clothes in bigger sizes like 6-9 months or even 9-12 months.  The baby probably has more newborn clothes than she could ever wear so bigger sizes are much more likely to come in good use.  An alternative to clothes is a baby journal which is more of a gift to the parents but it’s something that will be kept and eventually be given to the baby. I remember my mum giving me my baby journal and it was so great to look through and read.

5.  New mums want advice, especially first time mums.  So I love the idea of all her friends and family (who already have kids) each writing down their best piece of advice in a beautiful journal.  It will be something fun and meaningful to read especially during those endless night feeds and it may just turn out to be the most useful parenting book ever.  This is what a friend of mine received and even though her son is now 5, that journal is something she will keep forever.

6.  If the new mum in question has an older child or children you can buy little gifts for them to keep them occupied.  Things like reading books, colouring or puzzle books, board games and small toys will distract the siblings for a little while at least.

7.  Another thoughtful gift for a new mum with older kids is to offer to look after them or take them out for an afternoon so that the new mum can spend some one on one time with her baby.

8.  One of the things I regret not having done properly is taking enough photos in the newborn days.  At the time I felt too camera conscious but I regret it now and I’m sure I’m not alone.  Newborn photography is very popular and it’s a wonderful thing because those fleeting moments will never come back.  So the gift of a photo session with a photographer who visits the new mums home is a wonderful thing to give as the memories will last forever.

9.  This may sound a bit impersonal at first but a voucher for the mum to buy something for herself is a thoughtful gift. It could be a voucher for her favourite clothes store or an amazon voucher if she loves reading or a voucher for her favourite beauty brand.  As a new mum it’s a treat to take a few minutes out and browse the internet looking for something you want that’s not baby related at all.

10.  One of the best gifts I received as a new mum was a 1kg box of the most divine chocolates ever.  That box of chocolates became my reason for being.  Every night, I looked forward to the time when my baby was asleep in between feeds and I could open that box and get my daily fix.  So the gift of a box chocolates or sweets or cookies, depending on what the new mama likes will be a sweet little gift and from experience I say the bigger the box the better!

11.  Last but not least, becoming a mum, especially for the first time, is a huge mix of experiences – some good and others not so good.  Loneliness is definitely one of the not so good things so instead of spending money on your friend, why not commit to visiting her once a week or more often if you can.  Once the dad has gone back to work, any new mum will cherish a bit of adult company over coffee and some conversation to help pass those long days.  This gesture will go far beyond any gift can.

Whats the most thoughtful gift you received as a new mum?  I’d love to hear in the comments.

This post is brought to you in partnership with The Portland Hospital – UK’s leading private paediatric and maternity hospital.  All content, words and ideas are my own.  Thank you for supporting my work with partners that support this blog.