A friend of mine had her first baby last week and I really want to buy her and her husband and son a gift. But I don't have a clue what they might like/need at this time. :baby:

I did buy them a baby shower gift so I don't think this is really necessary but I want to send them to let them know how happy I am for them. Flowers? Gfit basket with snacks? Baby toys or clothes? Gift Certificate?

Any moms out there who can tell me what they really appreciated receiving right after the baby was born? Thanks!
(I live 2000 miles from them so I gotta mail it)

A diaper cake! You can also find receiving blanket cakes.

http://www.customdiapercakes.com/Baseball.html

A sling!!

nothing for the baby!! get a massage certificate, give them a gift card for dinner with an offer to babysit--that kind of thing is so much better than something for the baby. the baby gets tons so a focus on the parents is a bigtime treat. good luck to them!

Since you live 2000 miles away I would get them a gift certificate for someplace that has take out, like Applebees or Outback (if they have one around them). Better yet a few smaller denomination ones so they can have several quick and easy pick up dinners.
Cooking is a huge task when you have a newborn.
Try to shy away from sending them a gift certificate for anywhere they have to go (movies, sit down dinners) the thought is nice but they could have a very hard time finding a babysitter or may not want to leave their young infant with anyone just yet. We got tons of well meaning gift certificates and movie passes that we ended up using as free "regifts" around Christmas because with two infants, one who was ill, we just couldn't arrange childcare to use them. To this day we have a pile up of movie tickets that people keep giving us but we never get a chance to use. The best choice is a place that also either delivers or they can pick up.
If that's unappealing to you, a gift certificate to somewhere like Babies R Us (if there is one by them) or Target is nice too. Babies grow out of clothing super fast and you always need diapers or baby shampoo or other consumables. Mom can also buy clothing for the "I'm too big for my old clothing but too small for the maternity" stage. Target's a nice choice for that stage because the clothing looks decent but it's cheap enough to not feel bad about wearing if she's planning on fitting back into her old clothing. (some of use don't care and just resigned ourselves to the slightly higher clothing tag size lol).
You can even get a GC for a local supermarket. Everyone needs food!
Happy shopping!
Mary

gift cards!!!
we loved those!!

Im a mom of 2 the oldest is 9yrs and the other one is 12months. What I really enjoyed getting was diapers and wipes. You can never get enough of those Also do you know if the mom is formula feeding or brestfeeding. If she is breast feeding maybe you could get some nursing bra's or maybe a boopy nursing pillow, also if she is formula feeding. You could send her some bottles and some can formula(makesure you ask what kind of the baby uses.
Congrats on your friends new baby

Though not always, (depending on the couple), I tend to buy things for the new mom and dad. Something relaxing for them. I usually make a basket filled with bubble baths, wine, a heating pad, comfy clothes etc. Candles, lotion, soap, anything that could be relaxing. Even making some casseroles to be frozen for a week or two is helpful, so they don't have to worry about dinners, etc. Or how about offering to babysit for a couple hours while they go to dinner for an hour, though I never felt like going anywhere for awhile.

Good luck:D