Baby Gifts: How to Make Yours the One They Remember

by Stephanie Gallagher Editor
The Shopping Mom's Guide to Baby Gifts


Why do some baby gifts stand out from the crowd and others
seem to get lost in the recipient's memory, never to be
found again?

Surprisingly, it has little to do with cost of the baby
gifts. Rather, it's the little, thoughtful touches that
make all the difference.

Some tips:

Add an Element of Humor

You don't have to spend a lot of money to give baby gifts
that are memorable. Try putting together your own "Nursing
Survival Kit," with breast pads, Lansinoh cream, frozen
peas (to ease nursing soreness), and a copy of The Womanly
Art of Breastfeeding.

Put Together a Creative Baby Gift Basket

Create a "Sleep Like a Baby" baby gift basket with a soft
baby blanket or lovey, a white noise CD (vacuum sounds are
great!) and a Miracle Blanket (for easy swaddling).

Or transform a simple baby book into a "Remembering the
Moment" baby gift basket, by adding a copy of the local
newspaper from the day the baby was born, copies of Time
and People magazines from the week the baby was born, a
current postage stamp, and a sales flyer from the local
grocery store.

Twenty years from now, the parents and grown child will
have fun looking back at everything from the price of a
dozen eggs to who the hot celebrities were back when junior
was a baby.

For more gift basket ideas, check out "The Baby Gift Basket:
Finding the One That's Guaranteed to Please" at
http://www.gifts-babies-love.com/baby-gift-basket.html

Include Everything the New Parents Will Need to Make It Work

Nobody likes extra work. So do whatever you can do to make
it easy for the new parents to enjoy your baby gift.

For example, if your present requires batteries, include a
small package of batteries (the correct type, of course,)
with it. You don't even need to give the whole pack -- just
the right amount for the item you've given. You'd be amazed
how grateful the new parents will be.

Put it Together For Them

The best baby gifts for new parents are those that require
no work on their part to enjoy.

However, this is a strategy that's best used when you are
absolutely positive the new parents want what you've gotten
them. Remember, baby gifts that are put together aren't so
easily returned. So do this when you're buying something
off the registry or when the recipients have specifically
asked for what you're giving them.

Include a Gift Receipt

They may love what you've gotten, but they may have also
gotten two or three baby gifts just like it. Make it easy
to return yours, and they'll be grateful.

Include Your Full Name and Address on the Card

After 36 hours of labor and two weeks of sleep
deprivation, a new mommy can't be counted on to remember
her own last name, let alone yours. That's true even if
she's your sister or best friend. So make it easy for her
by writing your full name on the card. Including your
address, too, makes it easy for to write the thank-you note.

Author Bio:

Stephanie Gallagher, a.k.a., The Shopping Mom, is the
author of several parenting books and Editor of The
Shopping Mom's Guide to Baby Gifts, http://www.guide-to-
baby-gifts.com