Author Topic: Baby shower gift  (Read 11183 times)

FreeAsADragon

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Baby shower gift
« on: May 02, 2016, 03:38:47 AM »
So a friend is throwing a baby shower for themselves. They have several box store registries with lists of highly consumerist items that I'd rather not indulge them in.

Help me figure out some alternate ideas?

They're in their late 30s well to do. First kid.

Thanks I advance!

11ducks

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #1 on: May 02, 2016, 04:47:18 AM »
I like giving a little medical bag with stuff like a baby thermometer, nasal aspirator, infant panadol, nappy rash cream, nipple cream etc. Super boring, but also very useful if your 8 week old is sick in the middle of the night and you havent bought any of that stuff yet.

NewMustachian

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #2 on: May 02, 2016, 05:34:57 AM »
Baby/board books!

meerkat

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #3 on: May 02, 2016, 05:46:28 AM »
I like giving a little medical bag with stuff like a baby thermometer, nasal aspirator, infant panadol, nappy rash cream, nipple cream etc. Super boring, but also very useful if your 8 week old is sick in the middle of the night and you havent bought any of that stuff yet.

A good baby thermometer! One we were gifted took around sixty seconds to get a temperature. This doesn't seem like a big deal, but when my baby was sick and fussy he would flop around like a fish out of water. Fussy, wiggling baby + slow thermomter + frantic new parents = more stress for everyone. I ended up getting this one and I love it, so much quicker and the tip bends a bit so I'm less worried about hurting him if he wiggles unexpectedly.

Baby/board books!

Yep. For my kid's first birthday I'm going with either no gifts or, if they really must bring something, board books. Most of the ones we have come from the Friends of the Library book sale.

lizzzi

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #4 on: May 02, 2016, 05:57:09 AM »
Find out what kind of diapers they will be using, and get a big pack of those--it makes a large, impressive-looking wrapped gift, and is eminently useful. Also get a small, soft toy for the baby--something meant for those first baby months, and seriously cute. It will be very fun for you to pick out and buy...and not that expensive. If they want a lot of fancy pants pricey things, I would just ignore those requests. They can get that stuff themselves if they want.

I'm a red panda

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #5 on: May 02, 2016, 08:02:58 AM »
Board books/ bath books.

Gift card.

Burp cloths.

tomorrowsomewherenew

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #6 on: May 02, 2016, 08:27:59 AM »
A huge box of Luv's diapers. They go for less than $30 on Amazon, and you get 200+ diapers. More useful than any other gift they'll get.

meandmyfamily

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #7 on: May 02, 2016, 10:25:35 AM »
I give classic baby books and I often find brand new ones at secondhand bookstores.
« Last Edit: May 02, 2016, 10:40:18 AM by meandmyfamily »

I'm a red panda

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #8 on: May 02, 2016, 10:32:59 AM »
A huge box of Luv's diapers. They go for less than $30 on Amazon, and you get 200+ diapers. More useful than any other gift they'll get.

Did you like Luv's?  A lot of Mom's around here strongly recommended not using this brand.

MrsDinero

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #9 on: May 02, 2016, 10:34:15 AM »
+1 for medical baby bag
Also think about:
Baby bath/lotion set
Baby bath tub
Nail clippers
Hair brush
Baby mittens (so they don't scratch their faces)
Baby Burp Cloths (I like the Gerber flat fold diapers for this)
Books
A case of diapers or wipes will never go unused.

NV Teacher

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #10 on: May 02, 2016, 01:26:52 PM »
If you are handy with a sewing machine you can make burp cloths.   I made a dozen for my sister and she said it was the best thing ever. 

SKL-HOU

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #11 on: May 02, 2016, 08:10:50 PM »
You can make a diaper cake (google should help you) for cute presentation and stick some small toys/useful items on the layers.

ThunderCats

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #12 on: May 02, 2016, 08:32:14 PM »
Are you crafty?  One of the favorite gifts I got (after my first baby was born) was a blanket that had our daughter's name and birthdate embroidered on it along with a small animal.  For both of my babies, we made mobiles to hang over their cribs, something like this could be thoughtful.  I've cross-stitched onesies or little framed things for others.

If you're not overly crafty, one of my favorite gifts I got with my second pregnancy was a little picture frame for an ultrasound picture that said "love at first sight."  I never figured out anything special to do with the ultrasound pics from the first pregnancy and this was such a nice little gift to use.  And of course, there are always books :-)

ltt

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #13 on: May 02, 2016, 09:09:49 PM »
Diapers, wipes, and Desitin cream ointment with zinc oxide.  You can never have enough diapers.

DeltaBond

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #14 on: May 03, 2016, 10:32:25 AM »
If you know the gender of the baby, diapers are a great idea.

If you want to give a toy with the diapers, I highly recommend the black-white-red colored toys.  Infants can see those really well and every child I've given that kind of toy to ends up keeping that one as a favorite.

rubybeth

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #15 on: May 03, 2016, 10:39:02 AM »
Totally board books--they're the sturdy cardboard type. They promote early literacy, which is extremely important. For recommendations, I like this list:

http://www.slj.com/2013/07/standards/early-learning/must-have-board-books-for-early-childhood-collections/#_

Or just go browse Barnes & Noble or a local bookstore. They usually have a few good ones. You could also find out their local library and print off an application for a library card. :)

Signed,

A librarian

Ceridwen

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #16 on: May 03, 2016, 10:51:14 AM »
If you know the gender of the baby, diapers are a great idea.

If you want to give a toy with the diapers, I highly recommend the black-white-red colored toys.  Infants can see those really well and every child I've given that kind of toy to ends up keeping that one as a favorite.

What does the sex of the baby have to do with the type of diapers to buy?

DeltaBond

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #17 on: May 03, 2016, 11:01:03 AM »
If you know the gender of the baby, diapers are a great idea.

If you want to give a toy with the diapers, I highly recommend the black-white-red colored toys.  Infants can see those really well and every child I've given that kind of toy to ends up keeping that one as a favorite.

What does the sex of the baby have to do with the type of diapers to buy?

Diapers are made differently according to the area where the urine will be coming from ;)

SKL-HOU

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #18 on: May 03, 2016, 01:24:17 PM »
If you know the gender of the baby, diapers are a great idea.

If you want to give a toy with the diapers, I highly recommend the black-white-red colored toys.  Infants can see those really well and every child I've given that kind of toy to ends up keeping that one as a favorite.

What does the sex of the baby have to do with the type of diapers to buy?

Diapers are made differently according to the area where the urine will be coming from ;)

No they are not. Please tell me what brand has that.

Bettis

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #19 on: May 03, 2016, 01:27:39 PM »
I know I've seen something that was based on gender, may have been pull ups.  When I buy Pampers or Huggies, they are gender neutral so i assume it isn't much of an issue.

onlykelsey

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #20 on: May 03, 2016, 02:06:21 PM »
If you know the gender of the baby, diapers are a great idea.

If you want to give a toy with the diapers, I highly recommend the black-white-red colored toys.  Infants can see those really well and every child I've given that kind of toy to ends up keeping that one as a favorite.

What does the sex of the baby have to do with the type of diapers to buy?

Diapers are made differently according to the area where the urine will be coming from ;)

No they are not. Please tell me what brand has that.

It's been a while since my babysitting days, but I think the gender specificness kicks in more around kids who are being potty trained, not for infants.  I'm thinking of huggies "little movers" for example.

ETA: they actually start differentiating at size 3/16 pounds, which is earlier than my memory.  I guess as soon as they start crawling around? 
« Last Edit: May 03, 2016, 02:08:04 PM by onlykelsey »

brycedoula

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #21 on: May 03, 2016, 02:17:48 PM »
Offer to set up a "meal train" for them once their baby arrives. As a current new parent having meals brought to us was an absolute godsend, especially in the first few weeks. There are websites to help you do this, or you could arrange it the old-fashioned way on paper.

Or you could give them gift certificates for meal delivery services.

ABC123

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #22 on: May 03, 2016, 02:22:48 PM »
Yes, it's only once they get to training pants that they become gender specific.  Can you find something on the registry that is actually useful?  Did they register for a certain brand of diapers, or bottles, or bibs, or something like that?  It's difficult to know what they might already have, so hopefully there is something that you could from the registry that isn't completely useless.

Captain FIRE

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Re: Baby shower gift
« Reply #23 on: May 03, 2016, 02:59:00 PM »
I've made bibs, burp cloths, and nursing covers, which are all very practical.  Tutorials abound on the internet.  (I've also made other loved handmade items which are less practical but are still inexpensive to make and don't require sewing.  Google is your friend, or let me know your skillset and I can suggest some items.)
« Last Edit: May 03, 2016, 03:01:03 PM by Captain FIRE »