If you’re anything like me you take a baby shower invite pretty seriously. I love getting the chance to celebrate the birth of a baby. But before I was a mom myself, the moment the invitation came, I started sweating at the thought of giving a gift. I would immediately scour the registry to find a gift that was both thoughtful and useful. However, after Luke was born and we discovered for ourselves what we needed and what would have been great to have, I decided to change my baby shower gift-giving habits. So, I created this list of helpful gifts that may not be on a registry but will be appreciated once baby arrives. Gifting any of these to the parents-to-be will guarantee gift-giving success. These ideas are also great for parents who are expecting their second, third, fourth (insert number) baby. Often, these parents don’t create registries or their registries are much smaller because they have most of what they need. And, if you are an expecting parent, add these to your registry! Registry platforms like Babylist allow you to pull in unique items like these, so your friends and family can see exactly what you’re wanting.
1. Restaurant Gift Cards/ Food Delivery Gift Cards
When I was making our registry, someone had suggested adding gift cards to restaurants around us that delivered, and this was a game changer. Most new parents are gifted a meal train. Basically, friends and family signup to bring the new parents meals for a few weeks which is amazing. Josh and I ate so well for the first few weeks after Luke was born. But then I noticed even into months two and three, I was too tired to cook, grocery shop, or do anything that required leaving the house. That’s when the gift cards came in extra handy. And, now that Door Dash, Grubhub, and Postmates are popular, gift cards to these companies would make any new parents happy.
2. Gift Card to a Cleaning Service
Honestly, I think this is great gift for any occasion, but especially for new parents. We didn’t have the energy to clean anything for probably the first six months of Luke’s life, and even then, we were learning how to juggle normal activities with caring for a baby (still working on that). It would have been so helpful to have someone come in and clean even just the kitchen and bathrooms. This would make a great gift to go in on with a group of people because you could potentially pay for an entire house cleaning – what a new parent dream!
3. Toy Subscription Box
As an expecting parent, it’s difficult to know what toys to register for and how many. And, inevitably, new parents will be gifted a million toys – some baby will play with, some they won’t, and some will get tossed out the window because they’re obnoxious. So, one gift that I think would have been really helpful is a toy subscription box. Companies like Lovevery make developmentally appropriate toys and deliver them every 2-3 months. The toys are well-made and based on mounds of developmental research. Each box also comes with a play guide that helps parents understand how to play with their child based on their age and development. This type of subscription box takes the guess work out buying toys, and it’ll be a gift the child can continue to use for as long as you want. This is another gift idea that is perfect to split with a group of people.
4. Post-Partum Clothes/Supplies for Mom
In my opinion, I don’t think we talk enough about the post-partum period and all that goes into it. At most baby showers, gifts are given that are centered around baby, but those first few months can be an adjustment for new moms. Our bodies do new and weird things, exhaustion is real, and we don’t want to wear anything that isn’t stretchy. At my baby shower, my mom gave me two pairs of amazing pajamas, and I lived in them after Luke was born. They were baggy, soft, and comfortable. She also gave me nursing tank tops that I also lived in because I was nursing so frequently for those first couple months. If you’re close enough to the expecting mom, ask her what size she is, and gift her a couple of the following clothing items:
· Pajamas
· Nursing Tops – if she plans to breastfeed, these have a snap at each strap for easy nursing access
· Comfy Socks
· Comfy Underwear
Another part of the immediate post-partum period that isn’t talked about is how much stuff is required for the bleeding that occurs after baby is born. Hospitals provide some supplies but definitely not enough to last the amount of time she will need them. One item that I could not have lived without was padsicles. Yea, you read that right – padsicles. They are homemade ice packs that help to soothe and heal in those first few days. Check out my blog post on these life-changing cooling packs. You’ll find the supplies needed (which can all be purchased from Amazon) along with the directions. I suggest combining some comfy clothes with padsicle supplies and directions. Put it in a cute basket she can repurpose, and voila, the perfect post-partum gift.
There you have it – four gift ideas that will make you a gift-giving pro. Also, keep in mind these gift ideas can be used for any occasion too! No matter which occasion you choose, these ideas will guarantee your gift will be remembered.
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