(Exactly) What to Say to Someone Who Had a Baby

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Having a baby is a joyous time, but sometimes you want to figure out what to say to someone who had a baby if you don’t have many parent friends or haven’t had one yourself so are not sure what’s appropriate to say.

This is a really happy time in many people’s lives, which makes it a really fun event to write a card or say a congratulations for, but if you want more ideas on what to say to someone who had a baby, check out this guide.

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1. Basic Congratulations on Your Baby

If you don’t know the person who had a baby well, a basic congratulations on your baby will do just fine.

This is a great message for a card you have to sign for a coworker or a general stranger.

You can turn it into a “Congratulations on your baby!” or “Congratulations on your little one, wishing you all the best for your family.”

You don’t have to get sappy or in-depth, just send them some quotes about how much you care for them and are happy their baby was born.

2. Tell Them You’re Looking Forward to Meeting the Baby

If you are a friend or family member, it’s always nice to mention how excited you are to meet their baby.

Fussing over someone’s newborn baby is definitely the right way to go as you’ll be sharing in the parent’s joy.

You can say something vague like “Can’t wait to meet him!” or you can be more specific and include something like, “Can’t wait to meet him when you guys have a chance to settle in to your new routine and you’re up for visitors. Just let me know if you could ever use some company!”

In the first few days of a baby’s life, the parents will be exhausted and likely only want immediately family around, if anyone at all, but in the coming days and weeks, friends and extended family are usually more than welcome to meet the baby at prearranged times.

3. Tell Them You Love the Baby’s Name

Naming a baby has a lot of thought put into it, so if you’re wondering what to say to someone who had a baby, start with the baby’s name!

Compliment how it sounds or the fact that you love the name, and possibly even mention something more specific like “Can’t wait to meet little James! All of the James’ I know are strong and self-assured, and I have no doubt your James will be the same.”

4. Compliment How Cute the Baby Is

Okay, this is cliche because everyone compliments how cute babies are, but guess what?

They are cute, and a new parent is never going to turn down hearing how cute you think their baby is.

Sayings like “she’s adorable!” or “he’s so cute” or “wow, he is precious!” are all fine things to say and will make the parents feel good that their baby is being doted over.

5. Tell Them How You Will Be Helping in Their First Days of Parenthood

If it’s a close friend who just had the baby and you know them well, you can always tell them how you’ll be helping them out while they recover from birth and get used to having the new little one around.

Something like, “Congratulations! I’m going to bring frozen dinners for the week over when you let me know it’s okay, and if you need anything else, just let me know.”

You could also offer to help out with childcare for their other children or taking them to school for the next few weeks while the parents adjust to having a newborn again.

If you don’t know them well enough to anticipate what they need, it doesn’t hurt to offer specific ways in which you can help and pose it as a question, like, “I’d be happy to bring over plenty of breakfast supplies for the rest of the kids for the next couple of weeks so you don’t have to worry about shopping. Is that okay?”

6. Give a Piece of Advice about Parenthood (Well-Meaning)

If you are a parent yourself, giving a well-intentioned piece of parenting advice can be a nice gesture, as long as it’s not something like, “Don’t forget to not let them watch too much TV!”

Instead, focus on something positive and sweet, and relate it to you and what you’ve learned, so saying something like “If there’s one thing I’ve learned, is that you never know what’s going to come next in parenting, so enjoy every moment!”

No one needs a parenting lecture in their congratulations card, but a nice piece of positive advice doesn’t hurt.

7. Compliment How Strong the Mom Is

If you’re speaking to the mother who just had a baby, it’s a great idea to remind her how strong she is for having the baby and enduring childbirth and that, well, she’s a rockstar.

The attention gets put on the baby when it is first born, but the mom has just gone through one of the craziest experiences a human can have, so use your skills for encouraging people and remind her that she’s awesome too!

8. Make a Lighthearted Joke to a Dad

If you are close friends or family with the people who just had a baby, you can throw a lighthearted joke in there like, “Your baby is in for a lifetime of listening to Tom’s bad jokes, good luck to him!” or “I wonder if she’ll have the same penchant for purses as her mom – might be time to build more closet space!”

It’s not aways the most original, and you definitely shouldn’t joke about anything that could potentially be hurtful, but a little lighthearted quip is usually fine.

9. Ask How They Are Doing

Sometimes we get so wrapped up in what to say to a person who had a baby that we forget that often, the most important thing we can do is ask.

Ask how they are doing and coping with a newborn.

Ask the mom how she’s holding up and remind her that you are always there to listen if she needs it.

Having a baby can be an isolating experience once you get home and have lots of sleepless nights, and not enough people think to genuinely ask the parents how they are doing.

What to Say in Other Situations

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