“What are the best new father gifts?,” I asked my husband. Without hesitation, he said, “A sling.” With a little encouragement, he came up with two more gifts that would also help a new father in his new role as part of an attachment family.
Baby Carrier
My husband is so convinced that a baby carrier is the most essential baby gear for a new father that he said he would take the sling and leave absolutely everything else, including the cloth diapers. “Really?” I asked. “Yes, I could practice elimination communication.” So, in a poll of one husband, a baby carrier wins 100% support from fathers.
Maya Wrap
I’m sure that my husband would like other baby carriers and other styles if he tried them, but he also insisted that I should list Maya Wrap for a specific reason. When our babies would fall asleep in the sling, he could very easily loosen the sling and ease the sleeping baby onto the bed. Then, the tail of the unthreaded sling can be used as a light blanket.
Blender
My husband’s second most used tool for early parenthood was a juicer. During my pregnancies and when I was breastfeeding full-time, I got a lot of dense nutrition from beautiful, dark vegetables. One problem, though, was cleaning our juicer. It took 30 minutes every time we used it. Cleaning out every little piece of the juicer became a disincentive. Once we got a Vita-Mix, those days were gone.
Vita-Mix
A breastfeeding mother needs great nutrition and a lot of fluids. Juiced vegetables and a variety of smoothies help her keep up with the demands of a hungry newborn baby. Who ends up juicing and making the smoothies? Daddy does it. In my house, while the mother sits down to nurse, the father heads to the kitchen to make a snack for her. A great blender will make his job much easier.
I’ve written about and photographed my Vita-Mix for smoothie posts and even for our surprise pumpkin soup. We didn’t have this when we were new parents, but we would have used it every day—several times a day. The best part about a VitaMix over a juicer is that the pulp is blended in rather than separated.
Pillow
Figuring out the family bed isn’t difficult, but it sometimes helps to have a couple of tools to make it easier. The last gift my husband suggests for a new father is a bolster pillow that keeps the baby safe in the family bed. Having the whole family sleep in one bed is the best way to ensure that everyone gets as much sleep as they need. Sleep is a big issue for new parents, so anything that helps here is a great gift for a new father.
TresTria bolster pillow
We did not have TresTria when my babies were little, but I loved learning more about TresTria, natural rubber, and the company that makes it when I wrote a profile of Better for Babies last year. This pillow was invented by a father to help co-sleeping families.
Last week I wrote about new mother gifts to support babywearing, cloth diapering, and breastfeeding. The best gifts are those have been helpful or meaningful to the giver. When you tell a new parent “I found this helpful when my first baby was born” or “I wish I had this when I was starting out,” the gift is far more than a consumer product to go on a shelf. A much-loved item offered to a new parent is a loving embrace in support of their new parenthood.
Image © Alis Gheorghe Leonte | Dreamstime.com
