More than Grand
  • Home
  • About
    • Contact
  • Blog
  • Resources
    • New Grandparent Essentials
    • Gifts for Grandchildren
    • Best Books for New Grandparents
    • 7 Things New Grandparents Need
    • New Grandparent Checklist
    • 6 Tips for Protecting Your Grandchildren on Social Media
    • 242 Grandmother Nicknames
  • Shop

10 Ways to Help New Parents

3/4/2022

2 Comments

 
​Wondering how grandparents can help new parents? Here are 10 parent-approved ways.
Picture
Whether it’s their first baby or their fourth, parents of a newborn usually appreciate all the help they can get. Grandparents can help new parents in a variety of ways, whether they live nearby or across the world. The best part? Grandparents who offer meaningful support to parents are actually laying the foundation for strong bonds with their new grandchild.
​
As much as you want to spend your time doting on that new baby, putting your energy towards helping new parents will pay far greater dividends in the long run. By focusing on them, you’ll prove that you value your relationship with them—apart from their role as your grandchild’s parents.

When thinking about how to help new parents, don’t forget that the non-birthing parent needs help and support as well. It’s sometimes easy to overlook the partner that didn’t give birth, but they are also adjusting to their new role and the new demands on the family. Likewise, adoptive parents will need just as much support as any other parents.

As you read through the following ideas for helping new parents, keep in mind Rule Number One of successful grandparents: ASK FIRST. Don’t ever assume that your idea of how to help will be what new parents actually need. Read through these ideas, and pay close attention to number 9 and 10—they are the key to it all!
​

​Ten ways to help new parents

1: Meals
Drop off dinner, or send a gift card to a local restaurant or delivery service. Find out if anyone has set up a meal team, and set one up if no one has. MealTrain.com and LotsaHelpingHands.com both offer online calendars so friends and family can coordinate meals for the family. We have many more tips for how grandparents can help new parents with meals in this post.

2: Household help
Ask for a list of things that need to be done in and around the house. Think beyond dishes and laundry: are there minor repairs that you could make, lightbulbs to change, a lawn to mow or flowerpots to water? If you aren’t local, look into hiring help if you can afford to.

3: Run errands
What errands could you do to help new parents? Return library books or drop off dry cleaning? Make a grocery run or pick up prescriptions? Take the car for an oil change, or just fill it with gas? Check with mom or dad to find out what you could take off their plate.

4: Walk the dog
It’s easy for our furry family members to feel neglected when a new baby arrives. Taking the dog for a walk or playing fetch can help their transition, too. And nothing lets your adult children know you love them like offering to clean the cat’s litter box or scoop poop.

​5: Play chauffeur
Getting places with a new baby is a struggle in the beginning, and it just gets harder with subsequent children! Having someone else take the wheel on an outing to a doctor’s appointment or the grocery store can feel like a luxury, especially if you offer to wait in the car with the baby while they take care of business.

6: Surprise the parents
While your instinct will be to buy gifts for your grandchild, don’t forget about their parents. Sending their favorite chocolates or a book you think they’d like is a way to make them feel loved. Send them our Cheat Sheet for Delighting to find out what their favorite small indulgences are, and then use it to surprise them from time to time.  

7: Don’t ask how they are
Dr. Perry Mandanis recently shared during an Instagram Live that he likes to ask new parents “How are you coping?” He explained that those words allow them to share what they may be struggling with, because it shows you expect things to be difficult and not perfect. If you ask “How are you?”, the answer will probably be, “Fine”, whether they are or not.

8: Send encouraging messages
Don’t underestimate the power of a text that says, “You are an amazing parent!” Look for chances to point out what a good job they are doing as they learn their new role. If they send a picture of your grandbaby, don’t just comment on how cute the baby is. Instead, respond with “That adorable baby is clearly thriving! You are doing such a great job!” or “I’m so grateful you keep me updated—you’re such a thoughtful daughter-in-law!”

9: Ask what would be most helpful
Some parents welcome all the help they can get. Others see offers to assist as insulting or interfering. It’s important to know how your grandchild’s parents feel on the subject. Have a conversation or send an email to find out. Let them know you want to support them, and ask if they are open to help. Then outline the ideas you have, and ask if there are any that would work for them. Invite them to suggest other ways you could be useful. If they decline all help, let them know you are available if they ever change their mind.

10: Respect their wishes
This is listed last, but it’s actually the most helpful thing you can do. Whether you call them requests, boundaries, rules or demands, parents aren’t asking you to comply if it makes sense to you. When new parents make their wishes known, smart grandparents listen and go along with the request.

Have you found other ways to help new parents? Please share them in the comments!

Picture
2 Comments
Ann Thierauf link
7/3/2022 03:58:17 pm

I think those tips are excellent. I would include taking a grandparent's class before the birth because a lot has changed since we had our children. As a labor and mother baby nurse, I have seen a lot of miscommunication that could have been avoided had the grandparents better understood what was happening in the labor ward or how to best support the new parents instead of giving advise based on what they had learned years ago. For example we now know it is always so important to place a newborn on his/her back to reduce the likelihood of crib death but we taught parents differently years ago. The program I teach also helps grandparents anticipate potential problems so they can be avoided.

Reply
DeeDee
7/5/2022 09:06:03 am

Educating yourself is a great way to help, and I include that recommendation in my post for helping expectant parents: https://www.morethangrand.com/blog/6-ways-to-help-expectant-parents .

One of the reasons we developed New Grandparent Essentials was that so few communities offer a class for grandparents. Offering a digital guide to the many facets of modern grandparenting makes sure every grandparent can access the information that they need to start off this exciting relationship!

Reply

Your comment will be posted after it is approved.


Leave a Reply.

    Get new posts by email:
    Picture

    Categories

    All
    Activities
    Advice
    Books For Grandchildren
    Books For Grandparents
    Books For Toddlers
    Equipment
    Gifts For Grandkids
    Helping New Parents
    Make Fun Happen
    New Grandparents
    Stay Connected
    Toys
    Trends In Childcare
    What Grandparents Need To Know

    Archives

    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    October 2022
    September 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021
    September 2021
    August 2021
    July 2021
    June 2021
    May 2021
    April 2021
    March 2021
    February 2021
    January 2021
    December 2020
    November 2020
    October 2020
    September 2020
    August 2020
    July 2020
    June 2020
    May 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019

Want useful tips, stories and giveaways in your inbox? Pop your email address below!
    Built with ConvertKit
    Picture

    © 2019-2022 More Than Grand LLC

    Privacy Policy // Disclaimer // Terms & Conditions // Refund Policy

    • Home
    • About
      • Contact
    • Blog
    • Resources
      • New Grandparent Essentials
      • Gifts for Grandchildren
      • Best Books for New Grandparents
      • 7 Things New Grandparents Need
      • New Grandparent Checklist
      • 6 Tips for Protecting Your Grandchildren on Social Media
      • 242 Grandmother Nicknames
    • Shop