How to Run Errands With a Baby: Tips for New Moms
How to run errands with a baby: tips for new moms
I was chatting with a friend the other day and she confessed that she’s still not comfortable taking her eight month old out in public without her husband’s help. Everything was overwhelming and she was feeling really defeated.
I remember feeling like that when my son was a baby, feeling like I couldn’t get my ish together enough to freaking grocery shop made me feel inadequate and I spent a lot of time crying in the car when I first started running errands with a baby.
Since then, I’ve learned how to maneuver in the world with my son in tow, and I’m here to help you do the same. Today I will talk specifically about grocery shopping, but these tips can be applied to any errand you need to accomplish.
Don’t Try to Do Too Much Too Soon
Your body just went through something incredible. Incredible and kind of traumatic. You have a wound the size of a dinner plate inside your body. You may have an incision from a c-section or tearing down below. Your body is flooded with hormones and you’ve got an entirely new human to take care of. Give yourself a chance to heal and acclimate to the huge change you just went through.
I didn’t shop solo with my son until he was over eight weeks old. I just couldn’t handle it before then. Even after that point, I struggled to figure out my rhythm. I get that you need to eat, but maybe ordering grocery delivery for the first couple of months will work best for your family. Maybe Dad can do the shopping for a while. What I’m saying is don’t push yourself so hard that you take even longer to heal. You need to be the healthiest you can be for your new baby.
Practice Without Baby First
Have Dad watch the baby when he is not working, and try shopping like you normally did before baby. See how it feels, both mentally and physically. By the way, when you are ready to start reconnecting with your husband again, click here for my helpful guide for new parents.
As a new mom, your body has changed. Women move slower after giving birth, and normal, everyday tasks can seem complicated and overwhelming. Adding a baby into the mix makes it even more difficult. Are you finding that you get tired halfway through? Maybe shorter shopping trips are your new normal for a while. Maybe you’d rather go to a bulk store and shop for the month. Figuring out what works best can take some trial and error, but it will be worth it.
Prepare in Advance
When you are ready to try taking the baby with you, try your best to prepare in advance. Bring an extra change of clothes and diapers. Know your baby’s schedule so that you aren’t trying to haul groceries into the house while he is screaming to be fed. Bring along an extra bottle of formula if needed. Make sure you’re not needing to pump in the middle of your shopping trip. You get the idea.
When I was first venturing out with my son, I made sure my diaper bag was stocked. Toys, extra blankets, bottles, wipes. I never knew what was going to be the thing that kept him happy, so I made sure to be as prepared as possible.
Time a Nap for the Drive
If possible, time your shopping trip so that the baby’s naps align with your drive. My shopping trips always went smoother if my son was able to nap during the ride to or from the store. Preferably if he napped for both!
It also helped that the grocery store was 40 minutes from my house (yes, I AM willing to drive that far for a Lidl or Aldi!). While your baby is small, keeping them in the carrier might help them to sleep longer than if you take them out every time.
Take Breaks
If possible, find a store with a mother and infant room. Most (if not all) Walmarts have one. This is a safe space where you can lock the door and feed your baby or just sit with her for a while. If you have to, head out to your car for a few minutes before resuming your shopping.
Feed Your Baby Halfway Through
Shopping trips became much smoother when I figured out that I could feed my baby halfway through the excursion. This is another reason mother & infant rooms are fantastic!
I usually shop at two stores: Aldi for most of my food and Walmart for most of my toiletries or something I cannot find at Aldi. So when my son was still breastfeed, I would shop at one store, feed him in the car and then finish shopping at the other store. By the time we headed home, he was ready to nap on the way back.
Get Comfortable Wearing Your Baby
Between my son being able to hold himself in a seated position unassisted and being alert enough to want to see outside of his infant car seat, I wore him while shopping. This meant I could leave the cart and wander down an aisle if I needed to. It also let us bond while I was still able to accomplish my shopping, and he was happy to be able to see what was going on around him. An added bonus is that people are less likely to get too close to Baby during germ season.
If you are uncomfortable using a sling or wrap like I was, consider using a structured carrier. This made me feel like my baby was safe if I needed to bend over or reach something on a high shelf.
Pivot if it is Not Working
If you try shopping with your baby and nothing is going right, don’t be afraid to pivot. Maybe that means only getting half of your groceries this trip, or waiting until your baby is a bit older to try again.
If you notice that your baby is always cranky between 2pm and 4 pm, don’t go shopping then. If the weather is bad, and you don’t want to hassle with loading the groceries in the snow or rain, wait another day if you can. This is absolutely the time to experiment with what works for you.
Keep Trying
I hate to break it to you, but it is probably not going to go smoothly the first time you attempt to run errands with a baby. If it does, send me an email letting me know what worked for you! Some days might be harder than others. It may go well one time and not the next. The important thing is to keep trying and eventually you’ll realize that you can’t remember the last time it felt really hard. Heck, you might even be giving tips to a friend one day like I did.
Give Yourself Grace
You have never been a mother before. You are navigating an entirely new existence. Your baby is experiencing everything for the first time and it is okay to be frustrated, overwhelmed, and overstimulated. Click here for some stay at home mom self care ideas. Recognize that you are trying, and be gentle with yourself. You got this, Mama.
Recap:
- Don’t Try to Do Too Much Too Soon
- Practice Without Baby First
- Prepare in Advance
- Time a Nap for the Drive
- Take Breaks
- Feed Your Baby Halfway Through
- Get Comfortable Wearing Your Baby
- Pivot if it is Not Working
- Keep Trying
- Give Yourself Grace
Learning how to run errands with a baby can be daunting. Take it one step at a time, and never be afraid or embarrassed to ask for help if you need it. In my experience, people are generally incredibly helpful when the see a new mom struggling. No one is judging you, or thinks you’re doing a horrible job.
At the same time, your husband and loved ones are not mind readers. make sure you are communicating your needs to them while you learn how to reenter the world with a new baby. Have you tried to run errands with your baby yet? If so, let me know how it went in the comments below.
