Baby Shower Gift Ideas - Freedom Inside the Box

Whether the baby shower is for you and you are building your registry or someone in your life is expecting, deciding on the best baby shower gifts and what a family may need or want for a new baby can be both fun and daunting. There are a lot of supplies for a baby out there, so I am using this blog to highlight a few ideas and suggestions. These ideas do incorporate my First Year Must Have and First Year Luxuries blogs, but if you want to prioritize what is the most useful for many first time parents, check those blogs out first.

Adorable Clothing

Everyone loves buying tiny, adorable baby clothes. Try to get a variety of sizes, not just newborn but all the way up through 12 months. This will ensure the baby has options in their first year of life.

Matching Outfits

I am a sucker for matching outfits. It can be Mommy/baby, Daddy/baby, siblings, or the whole family. It doesn’t matter what it is, I love all of them!

Nerdy Clothes

You all know I’m kind of a nerd, so of course I have to have nerdy clothes. These 4 favorites are mine represent! “I’m acute baby” is for my smart, punny nerds, “Player 3” is for my video gamers, and the “Kodama” and “Totoro” both are because I simply love Miyazaki and thus couldn’t decide on just one.

Kodama

Totoro

Just Cute

okay, so we have splurged a little on the single adorable outfits. Now it’s time to expand your little one’s wardrobe without going overboard. Getting a multi-pack of clothes or pajamas is always useful because it gets you 3-8 outfits all in one go. We can’t always be sensible though, and it’s never too late to throw in a sassy or sloth outfit request.

Accessories

Beyond your simply adorable outfits, you do need some accessories as well. Things like jackets or snow suits for the winter, a Little Riding Hood or 2 for the fall, or even adorable socks (I recently found this awesome article about socks that will actually stay on! Check it out!) are all those little things you don’t think of until you need them.

First Books

I’m a huge fan of building baby’s first library. So much so that I have an entire series that highlights as many books as I could think of because I simply love reading with my little one. So I have highlighted a few of my favorite books here, but there are always so many book options. Plus, check out my blog about replacing baby shower cards with books for a fun way to give something long lasting, instead of a throw away card.

You can also look at my suggestions for the Top 5 Books to Read When Pregnant and my favorite Parenting Books if you want to get something for more than just the baby.

Other Book lists

I love making book lists because I read so many and love sharing good ones when I find them. So here are a few that I have, relevant to the first year.

Essentials

There are some items I can’t imagine being without at all. Car safety, diapering, feeding, you know, the types of things that keep baby alive in the day to day. These gifts aren’t always the most fun, but they are essential and can make a huge difference for parents.

Car Gear

If you drive a vehicle, you need a car seat, no getting around that. The infant car seat is ideal if you like to carry your tiny back and forth already clipped in. If you get this and you have two vehicles I cannot suggest highly enough that you get a second car seat base for ease. And as long as you are getting this system, if you also like strollers, I advise you look into a whole stroller car seat system. Don’t like carrying the infant car seat and your baby is likely to be heavier than 5 pounds at birth? You can skip the infant carrier and go straight into a 3 in 1 car seat that will grow with your kiddo.

Diapering

How you wrap that little baby butt will be up to you. Some highly prefer disposable diapers and wipes, and others prefer cloth diapers and wipes (find guidance on cloth diaper supplies here and maintaining your cloth diapers here). Along the lines of diapers though, I found having a changing pad to be really useful in the first year (who knows how often those changing tables are cleaned). And finally, I love the reusable swim diapers because I never struggle to find them in the middle of winter when I inevitably decide to take the kids for a swim but forgot to buy a whole pack of swim diapers (seriously, who needs 10 single use swim diapers?).

Feeding

In the first year you are either going to breastfeed or formula feed your baby. You will need supplies for this. If you nurse, you may want nursing pads to prevent milk from dampening all of your shirts. You also will likely need bottles (check out additional options here) and burp cloths. Baby starting to eat solids? You will want to switch over to feeding bibs to keep food from ruining all their clothes.

My kid’s dad mentioned two things that I often forget (likely because I nursed) that he was really grateful for. As he said, there are cheaper alternatives such as filling a pot with water and boiling it. But he was really glad we invested in a bottle warmer and a bottles sanitizer. They made feeding for him much easier, and cleaning bottles after school was simpler as well.

Care

Babies need a lot of odds and ends in the way of general care and necessities. These items are not meant to be an end all be all, but to help get your mind turning around these less common but still very necessary items.

Wubanubs

Baby Bathtub

Large Gear

This gear is big and can be more on the expensive side, but can be very beneficial for day to day with your little one. They are the fun furniture that we use to help care for and sooth our children. This list does not include a full nursery layout, but more the gear I feel can be more helpful than a standard nursery set up.

Play Mat

Toys

Toys are my absolute, selfish, favorite items to get for a new parent. They are fun and cute and there are so many options. These are just a few that came to mind immediately. Feel free to check out my 0-6 Month Toys and 6-12 Month Toys blogs for even more ideas.

Balls

Balls are good for rolling, feeling, holding, and shaking. They grow with your kid and can be fun for years to come.

Blocks

I like blocks because they are versatile and, similar to balls, grow with your kids. At first it’s about feeling them. But then you start manipulating and exploring them more until eventually you start stacking them. I also added stacking cups as a reminder that blocks don’t always have to be in your typical block forms.

Bath Toys

Bath time is always a blast, but one thing that can make it even more fun is toys. I have your standard 3 here: animals, balls, and letters!

Rattles

Rattles are your quintessential baby toy. They come in various styles and colors for you to choose from. I like the grippy rattle the most because it seemed easiest to hold, but shakers and soft rattles are fun too.

Different and Fun

Now I feel a lot of what I have already mentioned are relatively common gifts. I wanted to include a section for more unique gifts. Items we think of less often, and sometimes even items that mean a lot more to the new parents.

Night Light

Often your little one won’t really need a night light, especially as a tiny baby. However, I believe in the sacred hour of sleep at an early age, so having light for you so you can feed and change in the middle of the night without kicking lights on throughout the house can be really beneficial.

Mobile

I want to be clear, some children love mobiles and others couldn’t care less about them. This mobile in particular is my favorite though because it offers versatility and can be used in places other than just in the crib. Also, the battery power over wind up feature means it will actually play for more than 30 seconds.

Sound Machine

The womb is not quite. It isn’t a silent space where total stillness and quiet exist. It is pretty loud, even if the noise is relatively rhythmic. Think heartbeat, digestion, and even talking around you. So quiet rooms are not the win for infants you might think. A sound machine can help your little one feel like they are safe in the womb once again.

Baby Book

I like the baby book concept because it prompts me to remember significant dates. First words, haircuts, and celebrations are all fun things to track and save.

Playkit Subscription

I am going to suggest the KiwiCo play kit specifically because I love their products. A monthly activity to do with your kid can help you track development, switch up stale activities, and generally just engage. I love that they have boxes for such a wide range of ages and highly encourage everyone to use them.

A Plant

Plants are nice. Simple as that. Something green or flowering can easily brighten a room. Worried your thumb isn’t green enough? Request a succulent specifically as they tend to flourish even if watering is few and far between.

Something for Mom

Mom is pregnant and going to give birth. There is no shame in asking for mama specific support. Prenatal massage or pedicures were two of my favorites.

Volunteer of Time

Sometimes time is the most valuable resource. Mom and possibly Dad are and will be tired and pressed for time. Things like doing a load of laundry, cooking a meal, or sweeping the house are huge. I’ve even seen people put together little ‘coupon’ books, including babysitting!