Eat: How to Feed a Family with a New Baby
To go along with our maternity theme this week (sorry, I’m 38 weeks pregnant so it’s very much on the brain!) I thought I’d highlight some “there’s a new baby in the house” meal ideas and tips. Hopefully this one will also be helpful to those of you who are not expecting a new baby, but are trying to decide what to bring to friend/church member who is in need of a meal.
10 Recipe Ideas:
Baked Penne with a bag of steamable broccoli
Tortelleni with Edamame and Sausage
Southwestern Stew with a bag of salad on the side
Any kind of quiche with a fruit cup on the side
Enchiladas with a packet of instant rice and a can of pineapple
Easy Lasagna plus a bag of salad and a loaf of french bread
Broccoli Cheese Soup with a side of whole wheat french bread
Melt in Your Mouth Slow Cooker Pork Roast (with big fluffy biscuits!)
Other tips for families preparing for new babies:
- Before having the baby, families can prepare by making a month-long menu
and then stocking up on all the non-perishables needed for those meals.
Not only will it make grocery shopping for the first month much faster,
but it will also take out the brain power needed to figure out what to
feed everyone. - Be gentle with yourself. Of course many of us don’t want to feed our kids boxed mac and cheese or chicken nuggets on a regular basis, but allow yourself to have some of those easy meals on hand. A frozen pizza will not hurt your children :). But it may really help your sanity on a particularly rough day.
- If you have the freezer space, cook and freeze beforehand. You will thank yourself even though you may not feel like doing it at the time.
Other tips when delivering meals:
- When delivering a meal, why not include a breakfast bread too, or maybe a pack of yogurt and fruit? Some frozen breakfast burritos? Especially helpful for those mommas who already have kids….who wants to get up at the crack of dawn to make breakfast after waking up all night to nurse?
- When delivering meals, deliver in containers that you don’t want back. To make things really easy, you could just buy some from the dollar store that you always have on hand.
- If taking food, label with heating instructions, and maybe include a recipe card too! Not only will they know what is in the food (important for those who may have allergies in the family) but then they can make it again if they like it!
- Go easy on the dessert. Don’t feel like you have to bring it– the last thing new parents need are older kids who are on sugar highs, or figuring out what to do with all the dessert that is bound to pile up! If you love making dessert and really want to include it, think about packing just enough for the family to have one piece of something. Keep the rest for yourself– win win!
- If you need to, bring the meal over the night before. That way the family can eat whenever they want.
- Consider giving a gift card instead of cooking, especially if you know the family has picky eaters.
- Consider waiting awhile before bringing a meal….around week 3 or 4, meals from family and friends have ended, but the difficulty still remains! 🙂
- Finally, remember that your meal doesn’t need to be extravagant. The simplest meals are so appreciated and taste WONDERFUL because the family didn’t have to make it! 🙂
Good tips. When you are expecting a baby, it's recommended to eat healthy and it would be great if the whole family is cooperating as well.
I love to use http://www.takethemameal.com. It creates a schedule for the person. You can give participants a passcode to schedule their meal to bring. They can include the menu and an email is sent out to both the person bringing and the person receiving. I love it! It makes organizing a whole week of meals very easy. Thanks for sharing this at Mom's Library!