For Baby's First Christmas, a Lump of Coal? Ten Baby Gifts to
Avoid This Holiday Season
What could be worse than a lump of coal in baby's first
Christmas stocking?
One of these ten gifts:
1. Any Toy or Product With More Than 10 Pieces That Must Be Put
Together
Ever see a new parent on Christmas day? You know why they look
so tired? Because they spent the previous 12 hours putting
together a single baby toy that promised to be "easy to
assemble."
If you see the words, 'Assembly Required' anywhere on the
packaging, that is not a gift you want to give for baby's first
Christmas.
If you're absolutely in love with a particular toy or baby
product that requires assembly, put it together yourself before
you give the gift. The new parents will appreciate your efforts
as much as the baby gift itself."
2. Frilly, Impractical, "High-Maintenance" Baby Clothes
You know the outfits: They're oh-so-cute, yet oh-so-impractical.
They have buttons instead of snaps. Or they have no snaps in the
legs. Or they snap up the back, rather than the front, turning
diaper-changing into a gymnastics exercise for the parents. Or
worse yet, they're dry clean only.
Think about it: What new mom has time to take her baby's clothes
to the dry cleaners every time he spits up?"
3. "Hot Button Baby Christmas Gifts"
These are products the parents will only use if they subscribe
to one particular parenting theory or style.
For example, books like "On Becoming Baby Wise" by Gary Ezzo and
"Solve Your Child's Sleep Problems," by Richard Ferber, are "hot
button baby gifts," because parents tend to either strongly
agree or strongly disagree with these theories.
So are things like breast pumps and nursing pillows (unless
you're absolutely sure the new mom is nursing), and bottles and
bottle accessories (again, unless you know for certain the
parents are using them).
4. Incomplete Gifts
Don't make your recipients work to enjoy your gifts. If the
recipient has to buy something else in order to use the gift,
it's a loser.
For example, a Boppy (special nursing pillow) is a great gift.
But the Bare-Naked Boppy is not, because you have to buy a
slipcover for it, which costs almost as much as the original
gift.
Most people expect to have to buy batteries for toys and baby
gear, but including them is one of the most thoughtful things
you can do to make your Christmas gift for baby stand out.
5. Wipe Warmer
Not only do wipe warmers cause wipes to dry out and get
discolored, they're often more uncomfortable for babies than
cold wipes.
Babies are much more sensitive to heat than we are. They don't
want anything too hot touching their skin, whether it's a warmed
wipe or hot bath water.
6. Baby Bouncy
This stabilized exercise ball, which retails for $39.95, is
supposed to calm a colicky baby and help the mother "exercise
her core" at the same time.
But how many moms can accomplish anything while trying to soothe
a colicky baby? Yes, babies do like to be bounced, but they
typically enjoy a motion that requires the parent to be on his
or her feet, not sitting down.
What's more, there are cheaper bouncing alternatives that last
much longer, such as the Fisher-Price Infant-to-Toddler Rocker,
which goes from birth to 40 pounds.
7. Baby Walker
Each year, some 8,000 children are treated in hospital emergency
rooms because of injuries related to baby walkers. The American
Academy of Pediatrics has called for the sale of baby walkers to
be banned in the United States. They are simply unsafe.
That should be reason enough to skip the walker for baby's first
Christmas. But if it isn't, consider this: Baby walkers do not
help children walk sooner. In fact, they can delay walking.
8. Cradle
Another beautiful, but impractical, baby gift, cradles are
unsafe because the rocking can cause baby to turn over and
suffocate.
9. Newborn Clothes
Even if the baby was born last week, newborn clothes are a baby
Christmas gift "Don't."
There reasons are simple:
1) The parents probably already got oodles of newborn outfits at
the baby shower 2) babies typically grow out of newborn clothes
within a few weeks.
A better bet: 3-6 month clothes.
10. Baby Shoes
Pediatricians recommend that babies go barefoot or with socks
until they're actually walking, making baby shoes unnecessary.
Some doctors even say baby shoes can interfere with proper gross
motor development.
For a list of holiday baby gifts that are sure to please, go to
The Shopping Mom's Guide to Baby Gifts