23 Ways You Can Help a New Parent When You Visit

It's all very well saying, 'Is there anything I can do to help?' when visiting a baby and his or her knackered, shell-shocked parents, but sometimes it's better just to get stuck in, or be so specific with your offer of help that you're greeted with a 'hell yes!', and tears of gratitude and relief.
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Visit a new baby and be helpful while you're there...

It's all very well saying, 'Is there anything I can do to help?' when visiting a baby and his or her knackered, shell-shocked parents, but sometimes it's better just to get stuck in, or be so specific with your offer of help that you're greeted with a 'hell yes!', and tears of gratitude and relief.

On top of making a huge fuss of the new arrival and telling the new parents they look great and that they're doing brilliantly, here are some ideas of what you can do to genuinely help out...

DISTANT RELATIVES + WORK COLLEAGUES

1. Bring food/snacks

2. Make tea

3. Wash up your own tea cups

4. Bring stamps, and offer to stamp thank-you cards

5. Insist you don't want a thank-you card yourself

6. Play with any older children so they don't feel left out

7. Hold the baby so parents can wash/sleep/go to the loo

CLOSE FRIENDS/IN-LAWS

8. Wash up

9. Empty the dishwasher

10. Stick on the steriliser

11. Collect empty cups and glasses from around the house

12. Change a nappy

13. Sort the recycling

14. Write addresses on thank-you cards

15. Run to the shops for any supplies

CLOSE FAMILY

16. Empty the nappy bin

17. Stick on a wash

18. Hang out a wash

19. Clean the steriliser

20. Clean out the fridge

21. Take out the bin

22. Make beds

23. Change sheets

:: New parents, or people who have been new parents, do you agree? Would you have liked visitors to do some of this stuff for you, or would the idea of your mother-in-law poking around the house collecting empty cups and glasses fill you with horror? Let us know on TantrumXYZ, where this post was originally published.