Okay, I have a friend/relative who is having a baby shower on Sunday. This is her first child–it’s a boy. They are not registered ANYWHERE and when I asked what they wanted/needed, she said she didn’t know. In fact, she said, “I’ve never had a kid before. How should I know?”
So, here’s my question: What do brand-new parents of a bouncing baby boy really need? What should I buy as a shower gift?
Onesies, socks, spit rags & diapers. Thats all theyre going to need for the first couple of months
Diapers – both disposable and cloth (the cloth ones have LOTS of uses besides wrapping a baby’s bottom. They’re great burp cloths, for instance. You never have enough of them)
Baby Wipes
Crib Sheets
Blankets
A diaper genie
Refills for the diaper genie
Assorted clothes (restrain your desire to bring booties)
Another good thing to buy is everyday clothes in a larger size (like 12 months). Everyone tends to buy infant clothes and they are outgrown faster than you would believe. Really fancy clothes also never get worn. Jammies are especially useful. (Be sure to buy for the season it will be at the time, not the present season.)
Picture books are also a good, inexpensive choice. Babies love looking at books with photographs of people and animals. Get cloth or board books with thick pages so the baby can carry them around and drool on them a bit.
I’d avoid diapers unless you know if they are using disposable or non-disposable.
If they are going the cloth route, there have been some amazing technological breakthroughs in cloth diapers since we were babies - I kid you not! They have these neat ones that are shaped like disposables and have snaps. Super easy to use!
Other than that, a nice soft blanket, one of those “baby bag” fleece things they can get wrapped up in to go outside in the winter (assuming you live anywhere where it gets cold).
Onesies are ALWAYS useful, and as a friend who recently had a baby remarked: there is no such thing as too many t-shirts. Socks also, since they are constantly falling off and getting lost.
Also, if you go to one of those baby stores, the people who work there are usually pretty cool about steering you towards good shower gifts.
If your friend is going to breast feed, one of those weird nursing shirts with the hidden flaps might be a good choice.
Couple of suggestions:
A photo album. Not a baby book, they probably already have one and will get a couple more. But a regular photo album. Not every picture they take will go in the baby book, and an album can be a nice pastime and a way to preserve family vacations, etc. You might even include one of those disposable cameras with it. First children get their pitchers took all the time by the proud parents.
Something for the parents. Believe it or not, the best gift my wife and I got when our daughter was born was a gift certificate to a really nice restaurant. The man who gave it to us told us, “You’re getting a lot of nice things for the baby, but this is for you. You’re going to need a night out in a couple of months, and this way you can just enjoy yourselves alone.” A paid-for night out alone after a couple of months of 2:00 am feedings is a godsend to new parents. Worth considering. We sure appreciated it, and we still remember it 15 years later, unlike most of the (appreciated and needed, to be sure) baby stuff we got.
Sea Monkeys!
“The perfect gift for every occasion”
I always get the same things for new parents.
I get a nice gift wrap bag, fairly large. I put in it the following things. A set of a dozen electrical outlet shields. A set of four kitchen cabinet latches. A set of two thermally sensitive baby spoons. (they turn color if the food is hot.) An orthodontic Num-num. (you know what a num-num is, right?) A forehead thermometer strip. A set of a dozen soft flannel washcloths. A cotton jersey cowl. (these are getting real hard to find, and I don’t understand, practical, and cute.)
Then I get a boxed edition of The Chronicles of Narnia, and inscribe it with a loving admonition that they read it to the baby every day, even before the baby understands it.
Tris
Is there a grocery store that delivers (or that they can order groceries from via the web) in their area? We got this as a gift when #2 arrived in January and it was great.
Gift certificates for takeout food, movies, etc are also nice.
If you do buy clothes, skip the 0-3 month sizes, and get something a little bigger. Also, leave the tags on and enclose the receipt so they can exchange it if, say, their ultrasound was wrong, like mine was 
.
–tygre
Thank you everybody, so much! (Except maybe you, Eve. Sea monkeys…grumble grumble…)
Not having any little Sunshines yet, I am really unfamilliar with what is most necessary with a baby. All your suggestions are great! I really appreciate the input.
Two things:
a foldable, wipeable flat mat to go into a diaper bag. look by the diaper bag section - there will always be times that A. you need to change the diaper and gosh I wouldn’t want my baby to lie on that cause it’s yucky… (gas stations/the outdoors come to mind) or B. wyou need to change the diaper and gosh I wouldn’t want my baby to lie on that 'cause I’m afraid of the damage we’ll cause (mother in law’s bedspread for example)
a board book by Sandra Boynton called “But not the Hippopotomus” I lucked onto that one and I swear my son even at a couple of months old seemed to enjoy that one…
good luck.
My favorite baby gift is a (I’m trying to think of the right name for it) baby monitor. It’s a two-piece set, sort of like a walkie-talkie. One piece goes in the baby’s room near the crib, and the other piece you can carry around with you. Then, the parents can do whatever they need to do during nap time, and when the baby wakes up you can hear them.
I’m not describing this very well, but they are very useful gadgets.
The right name for it is… um… baby monitor. 
And that is the best gift that I can think of, short of a live in nanny for the first three months. Even if it turns out that someone else gives them the same gift, s’okay… two or three of those things around the house are really handy.
ps. I have a cousin whose actual name is sunshine. Is that you?
Did I miss reading it? Could it be that no one suggested a month or two diaper service? This saves you from:
You get as many diapers that you need for a week plus a container to put the dirty diapers in after use. Miracles of miracles, the can also prevents smelly diaper odor in the house. Put the can out by the front door and the service will pick it up/drop off new can with necessary sanitized diapers. This is like having a nanny who only does diapers.
Europeans use a diaper wrap over the clothe diaper. It’s light plastic and can tie front/back or, as the kid grows older, on each side. You can wash 'em or toss 'em out depending upon your budget.
I totally agree with DAVEW0071- get something for the parents. My cousin gave me a basket with yummy smelling bubble baths, lotions, candles, ect. when I had the babypotomus. When I finally got the chance to relax by myself it was great to have a present for me.
The second best gift is gift certificates. There’s always something cool that you don’t want to spend money on- gift certificates let you splurge without feeling guilty.
I always get the same thing for first-time parents. I put together a basket with
[list]
[li]baby toothbrush (it starts out with a soft tip to basically clean the gums, then it goes to a tip with little nubs on it to massage teething gums, and then it goes to a very soft brush to brush those first teeth.)[/li][li]electrical outlet covers (always handy)[/li][li]a floating rubber duck bath thermometer to gauge the temp of bathwater[/li][li]a collection of bath gels, lotions, scented candles, and such for mom[/li][li]coupon for golf, batting cages, etc. for dad[/li]
It’s just something for everyone and you can tweak it to match the personalities of the parents. Mom may want to go to the batting cages and Dad may want a bath!
My gift to the new parents really depends on them. I like to survey what they already have and try to find something special.
One of the best gifts you can get is called a **boppy **
It costs about $19-24 and the parent puts it around their waist to help support the baby during feedings.
I happened to pick up several boppies ( last years model) for $3.00 at Target and they have been tremendous successes.
I try to do themes:
One is: foods. A laundry basket full of 1’s, 2’s and 3’s, with rice, mixed rice and biter biscuits and the sippy cups that don’t spill. ( They are the one’s that EVERY TODDLER IN AMERICA use. I only have like 10 of them)
Another is: STuff for the car: window screen, stuff to keep child occupied,etc.
Two gifts I’ve always given is a folder with inserts with articles on baby care that you see in all the parenting magazines. That way they can rip out the stuff they need and toss the magazine. It includes copies of articles on every aspect of parenting with a cool cover that is from a Dick and Jane book. Ilove modern technology.
And books. I always give a couple of books with a firm lecture on reading to their children.
Sunshine, this is just a personal rant, but if a friend of mine said to me, " I don’t know what I need, I’ve never had a baby before." and is having a baby shower, I would have a really hard time buying as nice a gift as I usually give. This person sounds incredibly shallow and very immature. It’s too late to direct her to the baby book section that helps parents pick out gear they need. (though, from experience, you don;t need half the crap they say you do.)
Yup…Dave hit it on the head.
Spend half on the baby…the other on just Mom…or both parents.
A day at the spa. Hotel and breakfast. A trained monkey.
You get the picture.
Gap triple-roll socks do not fall off. They are a very good gift, although they don’t seem exciting.
I like to give a copy of “Baby Bargains” by Alan & Denise Fields to parents. They provide reviews and advice on all brands of everything. What clothes run small, what strollers fall apart, etc.
I also like board books as a gift (they are books printed on cardstock–baby can’t tear them). All my other gifts? I probably would have ended up buying them myself, at some point. But books, I would’ve skimped on, or put off buying (I’m a big book fan; don’t get me wrong, but they don’t send me to the store frantically like my other baby needs did). So the fact that I have about 40 board books now? I’m really grateful. I would never have bought that many on my own.
I agree, sort of, on “buy things big” but I have a lot of beautiful outfits that I ended up giving away, unworn, because people guessed on what size my kid would be at the time of year the outfit would be appropriate–and they were way off.
If you want a gift for mom, you might consider a nice robe. You spend a lot of time unshowered, in your nightclothes, when you have a new baby.
I third the recommendation to give gift certificates. Ones for food are always nice, esp. if they deliver. I think Target gives gift certificates, too, and they sell practically everything they’d need there. If you can afford it (I’ve no idea what this costs) maybe a gift certificate for housekeeping? I know I’d have killed for one of those.
I think Old Navy socks are pretty much the same as the ones from Baby Gap and they might be cheaper. And Cranky is right, they don’t fall off. Very, very important. If you want to give a gift of clothes, think practical. Sure, it’s fun to buy the teesy sailor suits, but I cry every time I think about the tons of brand new dressy clothes my son never got the chance to wear. Sleepers are great, and come in lots of fun prints. I’d say as a rule of thumb buy one size bigger than the baby’s age. Warning: The more expensive brands tend to run big, cheaper brands tend to run small.
I love that book! All of the Boynton board books are great, I’d highly recommend them.