New baby/Mom Gift ideas

Casey_81

Hi,

I am currently expecting and have a lot of friends/family that are due soon also..

Any ideas on what to get a new baby/mom? I don't want to spend a huge wad of money as I don't want people to feel obligated to reciprocate.. but am running out of ideas.

Thanks

Ayla

I just got my friend who's expecting 2 big packs of nappies (size 3 so the baby will grow into them) and some organic baby soap/lotion and nipple & stretch lotions for her. The obvious thing to get is clothes, but generally new parents wind up with so many things that the baby never gets to wear most of it. If you're determined to do clothing, do it for a 6-12 or 12-18 month old - the child will grow and by that time the parents won't be given so much.

rylie

Dinners! My best friend arrived over the day I came home with baby rylie with a casserole, a bowl of mashed potatos and left. I realised then what an amazing friend she is.

Ayla

+100... good one!

cynder

My friend had a baby boy 6 days ago, i made up my own gift basket,

basket 10.00
wraping and bow 2.00

nappies babydry special offer (size 3) 3.00
johnsons baby wipes 1.39
johnsons baby lotion 2.00
johnsons baby bath 2.00
johnsons baby wash 2.00
johnsons baby shampoo 2.00
johnsons bedtime bath 2.00
talc 1.45
baby ear buds .45
baby spoons (tommy tippee) 2.45
baby bowls (tommy tippee) 4.00
bepanthan 5.45 (first baby and i thought that bepanthan was great)
paralink 10.45 (again its her first baby and paralink is a godsend)
cool baby bib 5.00
outfit 16.00
socks 2.00
rubber duck 4.00

thats about it, looked fab, of course you dont have to go to that expense but just to give you an idea (you could throw bottles or something in there aswell).

How Strange

+1 for dinners and maybe some light house work (vacuuming, wash clothes) for the first few weeks. Honestly doing that is worth it's weight in gold and you'll really appreciate them doing it for you when you have your baby

Casey_81

Can definitely see the benefit of dinners & housework.. will definitely do that for some of my closer friends.
Thanks for all the ideas

Charlies Angel

Someone got me "What to expect the first year" book and I thought it was a fantastic idea. Useful and different to clothes, photo frames etc!

Dinners and housework would be what I would choose for myself though

hacked

If you have lots of pressies to buy and dont hvae much cash I would definitely back up the baby lotion, bath soap, nappies, wipes and etc. People bought me so many lovely presents that were so nice to look at, but they end up taking up so much space and they never get used. The clothes are adorable but there are so many of them they get worn maybe once! The practical stuff is always handy, even if they have plenty already it saves money in having to buy it themselves!

For closer friends meals and housework for sure. The ladies in my church organised a meal rota for the first two weeks we were home...so amazing of them. My little girls godmother and her mother came in to hospital, took my house keys and went and cleaned the house spotless. (I had also just moved so they unpacked or me!) Absoloute gold!

Casey_81

hacked wrote: »

The ladies in my church organised a meal rota for the first two weeks we were home...so amazing of them. My little girls godmother and her mother came in to hospital, took my house keys and went and cleaned the house spotless. (I had also just moved so they unpacked or me!) Absoloute gold!

Wow you are so lucky to have such a great circle of support behind you!

aknitter

I would agree with the clothes, buy big but if you do be sure the clothes will be suitable for the season - I got lovely short sets for my baby but it will be the dead of winter when he will fit them & I got no gift receipts and some had no tags on them so I am just stuck with them.
I got a gift voucher to a beauty salon from some friends and I loved it - I was all defuzzed for the christening!

hacked

especially for baby showers -- some of my friends got presents for me. Like perfume, face masks, girlie things....so nice to use in the last stages of pregnancy when you feel like ****e!!

shellykbookey

http://www.firebox.com/product/2148/My-Life-Story

This might be a bit on the pricey side, but if you've a good friend whos had a child I think this is a class present and it's not something the child will grow out of It's basically a baby book and a 100 year diary in one

lynchtp

If making basket as mentioned above I'd say add a bottle of Calpol. Its really handy to have on in the house the first time you need it.

wallacork

Hi all, Thanks very much for the great idea. A friend of mine gave birth 3 weeks ago and I didn't want to rush to visit her knowing she'll be very tired and have loads of visitors.
I went to see her with a big chicken casserole so she wouldn't have to cook for a couple of days and she said it was the best thing ever as she was tired and not having to plan dinner and shopping was great.
I also got a gift for her baby girl on a website a friend recommended called formybaby.ie. It's a sign personalized to the baby's name that you can hang on the bedroom door or the baby's cot. I paid 15 euros for it and with this and the casserole my friend was delighted.