Tips for Christmas Shopping for Babies and Infants
A baby's first Christmas will always be treasured by his parents
and when it comes to gift-giving this is a perfect time to start
your own tradition, like buying a special holiday ornament
representing the events of the year - either personally or
something from world events or special celebrations, like the
Olympics or a World Series or Super Bowl-themed ornaments.
Here are some other can't-miss gifts for Christmas for a newborn:
Piggy Bank: A piggy bank can be so much more than a place
to hold loose change - a hand-painted and personalized bank is a
collectible gift that will be treasured for a lifetime. It will
also come in handy when the child is older as a great way to
teach a young child how to start saving and managing his money.
Classic Baby Toys: Nostalgia is the new "new." Parents
love to see their kids play with the toys of their own youth.
Shop around for old-school Fisher Price people and buildings,
wooden blocks, shape sorters, Care Bears,
jack-in-the-boxes. If you know the parents well it should be
fairly easy to figure out what classic toys they enjoyed as
children.
Diaper Cakes: If you ask new parents what they spend the
most money on they will almost always tell you it is diapers.
A diaper cake is a thoughtful gift - the cakes are
made up of either disposable or cloth diapers to resemble a
tiered cake - think wedding cake for babies. They almost always
include other accessories such as toys, bibs, clothes, socks,
pajamas, rattles or blankets and often a keepsake as a little
gift for mom. Diaper cakes are also perfect for baby showers or
to present on arrival home from the hospital.
Educational Toys: Every parent loves educati
onal toys. Why not maximize playtime by learning a motor
skill? There are plenty of toys geared toward fine motor
development or that have striking contrasting patterns for baby
to look at and talk to. Teethers and blankets with tags or a
satin stripe of a blanket offer various sensations when baby
rubs them or puts them in his mouth.
Books: Another great idea, and something I always buy for
new babies, is a book. Parents are swamped with toys and
clothing on the birth of a baby and at Christmastime - toys
break or children get bored with them, but you can start
building a library that the whole family can enjoy for years.
Soft, squeaky or washable books are perfect for babies and real
little kids, but don't be afraid to buy books that are a little
ahead of where baby is - he will grow into it soon enough and it
will live on his bookshelf longer.
Spend some time thinking about the baby and his parents and
family life and try to tailor your decisions to what is
important to them - is the family religious or spiritual? are
the parents musically inclined? is mom a writer? is dad a NASCAR
fan or a hockey fan? You are sure to come up with a perfect gift
every time if you strive to make it personal and meaningful.