Traditional Baby Shower Gifts
By Cathy Cripps

TRADITIONAL GIFTS

Gift Baskets

Gift baskets are something you can buy or make. If you want to save a little money, purchase a nice, inexpensive basket from Wal-Mart, Target, Kmart, or other retail chains and then fill it with items like baby powder, lotion, diaper cream, washcloths, bibs, sleepers, bottles, teething ring, pacifiers, and so on.

For a nice, added touch, purchase a second basket for the parents. In this basket, add some crackers and cheese with sparkling grape juice, Godiva chocolates, bubble bath, gourmet coffee, homemade cookies or muffins, two movie tickets, and so on.

Knitting

Beautifully, hand knitted blankets, bonnets, jackets, and other gifts are always a welcomed gift. With this type of baby gift, it is apparent that the person put tremendous time and effort into making something special, something warm and cherished.

Shoe Bronzing

This continues to be a cherished tradition. Bronzed shoes could be given as a certificate for the couple to have done after the birth of the baby or this makes an excellent gift for adopted babies.

Today, more than 14 million baby shoes have been bronzed. While only shoes were bronzed at one time, today other baby items can be bronzed to include stuffed animals, pacifiers, baby bottles, etc.

First Tooth Holder

A timeless, silver-plated first tooth holder is something the soon-to-be parents would love. These holders can be engraved with the baby’s initials or name and some have a nice Plexiglas hinged lid to protect the precious tooth.

An alternative to this is the “First Curl” holder for the baby’s first haircut, as seen in the photograph to the right.

Picture Frames

Couples always love cute picture frames, perfect for showing off the newest member of the family. You will find every design imaginable such as a pewter frame with a Noah’s Ark motif, ceramic frames with tiny bunnies or ducks, crystal frames, etc. With this type of gift, the theme of the nursery can be matched perfectly.

“Piggy” Bank

Although you could stay with tradition and go with a little piggy like the one shown, baby banks are available in all shapes, sizes, and designs. Something made from pewter or silver looks beautiful and will last for years, making it the perfect keepsake.

The opportunities for gifts are endless. The main thing is to think about what the parents will need for their newborn baby. Babies go through tons of diapers, crib sheets, bibs, sleepers, and socks so you would always be safe with any of these items.

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Cathy is the Owner of Baby Shower Moments and the author of Baby Shower Moments A to Z Guide. If you are looking for traditional baby shower ideas pay Cathy a visit.

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Tripling the Fun with Baby Shower Games
By Trevor Mulholland

A baby shower is not usually organized by the mother or father-to-be, but by their close friends or family members. These parties are designed to make the prospective parents feel that the people closest to them are celebrating their good fortune and are happy about the coming addition to the family. Parties like these are usually fun and full of good will, but they can be even more enlivened with baby shower games. These games provide more laughs and smiles, and they can be instrumental in bringing friends and families closer for an auspicious event – the coming of a baby.

A baby shower can have guests from a few couples to several dozen. Sometimes the larger the party is, the greater the chance that the guests do not know one another. People from all walks of life may find themselves in one room together for a few hours for the party: from Dad’s colleagues at work to Mom’s high school gang. Baby shower games are a great way to break the so-called ice, make the guests feel more comfortable with one another and remind them that they are present for a common cause: to celebrate the coming of a baby, the child of their friend or relative.

Organizers of baby shower party games should remember to keep activities short and simple. Games that are too complicated will not achieve the desired goal of letting the participants feel at ease with one another. Also, having complicated activities runs the risk of breeding boredom or resentment, either of which could cause guests to make a beeline for the door – something that the parents-to-be will not appreciate. So what party games would be ideal for a baby shower?

If you’re the party organizer, you would not want for game ideas; there are literally hundreds of suggestions and tips offered on web sites. Arguably, the most popular game would be the “Baby Food Game.” Participants are required to guess the name of the content of baby food jars whose labels have been removed. Variations of this game include placing the jar’s contents in a diaper and having the guests identify the baby food in the diaper, or having a guest describe a kind of baby food in unattractive ways (such as “mashed monkey food” for “banana”) and getting other game participants to guess the food being described.

Another example of baby shower games that is guaranteed to bring on the guffaws and jibes is the “Who Am I?” game. This activity needs a bit more preparation, but it may well be worth it. Basically, what this game entails is to show baby pictures of guests and game participants do their best to guess the identity of the person in the baby picture. An easier variant of this game would be to have the emcee announce something about the character trait of a guest, and have other people guess who he or she is referring to. For instance, the host can say something like, “When this person was a child, he or she always drew on the walls with crayons. It’s not a surprise then that he or she is now an artist.”

Another example of fun party games for baby showers is something called “What Am I Drinking?” Participants are blindfolded and asked to drink from baby’s bottles. All they have to do is identify what they’re drinking. The one with the greatest number of correct guesses wins the game. Another great guessing game would be “What’s in the Bag?” As the name of the game implies, participants are asked to name the contents of a bag and the person who gets the highest number of correct guesses wins.

It would be even more fun if prizes are awarded to game winners. But organizers of baby shower games shouldn’t think that they have to give expensive prizes or awards. Remember that these party games are all in good fun; games with too high a stake might just foster unnecessary feelings of competitiveness. Token awards are ideal, such as pens, candles, foodstuff, or perhaps a kiss or hug from the mother or father-to-be? That would certainly bring on lots of cheers and good-natured laughter.

Organizers should also remember to keep the number of baby shower games in moderation. Don’t plan ten games for a two-hour party; two or three games will suffice, and spare enough time for eating, chit-chat, and gift-opening. Planned and done right, these party games will make any baby shower an affair to remember.

Your-babyshower.com provides you with information on all kinds of babyshower related issues like baby shower games, invitations, gifts, cakes and more. Come take a look at http://www.your-babyshower.com/

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