Back in the day when a new baby was born neighbours and friends would take to their stove, whip out their cookbooks and create casseroles and home style cooking for their friends and family. These dishes were welcomed and appreciated and eaten with gusto. Well, at least that sounds sort of accurate and don't correct me if I am wrong.
When my friends started having their babies I took to bringing food to them during the early days or sending a big gift basket filled with snacks. I knew that this was a decent idea after having a conversation with a good friend when she was pregnant. She told me that she really hoping people would bring over food dishes to put in her freezer. It would free her up from having to think about cooking or ordering out and allow her to totally focus on recovering and breastfeeding and just having a new baby in the house!
This post is my public service announcement to YOU; let's bring back the casserole craze for our friends with new babies. It doesn't have to be elaborate or fancy just something easy to heat up; you will be appreciated on a whole new level and a tired family will be singing your praises. What do you think? Will you join in?
When I had Ben I had an amazing girlfriend who cooked up a delicious storm from the moment I was in labor until about 2 weeks after Ben was born. There was: vegetable lasagna with oodles of cheese, handmade perogies with all the fixings (including the sour cream!), stir fry, a foodie gift basket of treats and some serious snacks. I can't sing enough praises of my friend Krista and her smart ways of supporting me. It was awesome to have these meals brought to us and she went above and beyond.
The times I have ordered gift baskets of snacks for freshly new parents they told me how nice it was to have a supply of easy snacks for visitors that would pop by to see the new baby. I have made fresh cannelloni for a girlfriend who had her second daughter and my husband has whipped up broccoli cheese soup for another close friend.
The point of this post is easy; bring food to your friends and family who have new babies at home and bring back the tradition! It should never have faded away. You don't need to be fancy at all and even gift cards for a local pizza joint will be gladly received. So, tie up those apron strings and get cooking!
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Well, Hello There!
Mama in the City since 2008 and blogging since 2009!
My first apartment baby is now a full on boy and we struggle with finding space in our condo for his growing toy collection. I'm also a new mum to our second apartment baby, born January 13, 2012!
I have a husband who is an excellent cook and takes amazing photos. I work as a labor and delivery nurse and really love the work that I do and gave birth to baby #2 at my work place.
I use this space to write about my family and to share my passion about breastfeeding, birth and parenting. I have a fantastic purse collection and have loved watching it grow, mostly lovely gifts over the years from my husband. I currently have a closet full of purses that are too small or impractical to fit a diaper or sippy cup in, and so they are on hold for future years.
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6 comments:
I guess that's the difference between living in Vancouver and living in the Maritimes - casseroles are alive and well here at births, illnesses, church suppers, potlucks - you name it, the cheezy breadcrumb covered dishes are there!
November 4, 2009 at 12:54 PMI started doing this recently and people really seemed to appreciate it. Then we had our first baby last month and we LOVED it when people did it for us. The best was when we had some friends bring over a pasta dinner and they sat and held the baby while we ate. It was a great way to visit new parents.
November 4, 2009 at 5:40 PMThis is a fantastic idea. I would have loved a home cooked meal (cooked by someone else!) in the week after my daughter was born. I was so overwhelmed and clueless and felt like I couldn't leave her side to even make a tea for myself. I'll definitely start doing this for other girls.
November 4, 2009 at 9:40 PMOkay, this sounds a little nerdy but I'm a member of St Aidan's United Church Casserole Caravan! Add that to my resume:) I've cooked up some homemade dinners for several families now. I was so happy to be on the receiving end of this when Gavin was born and when he was sick and in the hospital at one year old. Fully cooked meals--main course, salad, dessert and extras were delivered to our doorstep. You don't have to belong to a church to do something like this...friends, family and neighbours will surely appreciate it.
November 4, 2009 at 11:07 PMWhat I'd like everyone to know about my sister Andrea is that she doesn't actually like casseroles. Haha! Luckily Alex (and her friends!) can whip up delicous non-casserole meals to her liking:)
It was wonderful to have the delicious homecooked meal, that Alex made, after Brooke was born! It took some of the pressure off of having to make a meal! And.. did I say it was delicious!!! It definately made me realize how nice it is to have some nice, already made meals after someone has a baby. I will be carrying on this idea with other friends that have newborns at home!
November 5, 2009 at 9:29 AMI was one lucky enough to be on the receiving end of Alex's delicious broccoli soup after our daughter Ada was born a couple of years ago. Andrea, thanks for reminding us all how wonderful it is to receive some food made by someone else in those first few weeks after delivering a new baby. What a gift!
November 8, 2009 at 6:45 PMPost a Comment