“What the fork is a push present?” I asked my husband (most likely not an exact quote). Of course, Google had the answer and I wasn’t loving it.
A push gift is one that a woman receives from her spouse (or partner) shortly after giving birth.
I found the topic of push presents, or push gifts, to be rather materialistic in nature. I, still, can’t quite grasp the idea that a woman should receive some fancy trinket or bauble because she has given (or will give) birth to a baby, which, more than likely, she wanted in the first place.
I don’t like the idea of giving or receiving a push present.
I say these things as a mother of two. With my first pregnancy, I enjoyed it rather immensely and I was just so excited to be having a baby that gifts other than what we needed for the baby never even came to mind.
I carried and delivered a baby because that is what I wanted to do. No one forced me to have a baby. I wasn’t doing it out of guilt or obligation. I was having a baby because it was a dream of mine for as long as I could remember.
After having my first, I all but stopped wearing non-essential jewelry because I was too busy cleaning spit up, bathing or feeding baby, cleaning or cooking, or feeling too run down to even think about my appearance. Forget jewelry. Forget expensive useless things that will sit around waiting for a date night or other semi-fancy evening without kids.
Whatever push present ideas I’d seen, hadn’t quite seemed logical in my mind. What is a new car or expensive jewelry doing to help me feel better in that rough infant colic stage? I’m going to be getting a new(ish) vehicle by the time the new baby arrives because a Prius isn’t going to comfortably (or safely) tote the baby seat and multitude of items, including our soon to be family of 4. Our next car isn’t a gift, rather a necessity to provide comfort and room, which is our responsibility as parents. And I can say that the next vehicle isn’t going to be something I’d like to drive if I didn’t have kids.
Even though I was expecting baby #2, I still wouldn’t request a push gift UNLESS …
It makes my life a little more easy to cope with crying, spit-up, doctor’s appointments, and all the other infant madness!
If you feel like you must get me a push present, I’d love to receive something like
to relieve me of some of the duties I’m not likely to be doing very well anyway once the baby arrives. Just saying …
