Finding the Right Baby Shower Gift
It can seem really easy to find a baby shower gift because what’s NOT cute in the baby section?! The answer, of course, is that absolutely everything available in the baby section is ridiculously cute—so how to choose? Thankfully, a lot of mother’s-to-be are joining the ‘registry revolution’ and registering for baby shower gifts like brides-to-be have been doing for decades. The internet has been a big player in this, increasing the number of registries for wedding gifts, baby shower gifts, and more! Some people are even going so far as to create graduation or birthday registries. If the invitation to the baby shower does not give information on a registry, give the hostess a call; there may be a registry that was not just not mentioned.
…And If There’s Not a Registry?
If the mother-to-be has not registered anywhere, there are a few things that you can do to help you choose the perfect baby shower gift. The first, of course, is to find out (if it’s known) the baby’s gender. If it’s known, your job just got easier; if it is not known, your task is a little more complicated, but by no means impossible. If the baby’s gender is unknown, you can either choose gender-neutral baby clothes as shower gifts, or some toy or accessory that does not lend itself heavily to either boys or girls.
Books are always an excellent idea for a baby shower gift because books have gotten expensive, and no child can have too many books. Babies grow out of clothing, but not out of books. More guests will be giving clothing than books, so you can consider the choice of buying baby books or children’s books as a gift for a baby shower an original choice. There are also many toys available that are gender-neutral. Consider a ‘Leap’ frog—who sings the ABC’s when you press his tummy and comes in the gender-neutral colors of green, red and blue.
If you simply can not resist all those cute baby clothes and are determined to buy them as a gift for the baby shower, here are a few things to keep in mind when choosing sizes. Firstly, remember that most people will be giving baby clothing in the sizes of 0-3 and 3-6 months. This means two things: 1) that each of these items will be worn less frequently because there’s an abundance of infant-sized clothing in the dresser and 2) that Mom will have to go out and buy a whole new wardrobe when the baby starts outgrowing size 3-6 months! A choice of 6-9 months or even 9-12 months is a good idea.
Lastly, always buy clothing sized for the season corresponding to the time of year. If the baby will be 9 months old in December, a bathing suit in the size of 9 months might not be a good idea, depending on geography.