Make Baby Smile

It is always a welcomed gesture to give a present to a new baby. While the little one will not remember the occasion, the parents will definitely appreciate the kind thoughts at this joyful time. Baby gift baskets are a popular way to give an assortment of items that the new baby needs – and if you pick a theme that appeals to the mom, then everyone wins! One of the time-honored baby basket gifts is to fill a small plastic bathtub with all the supplies needed for bath time such as a hooded towel, water toys, baby soap and shampoo and even a snuggle robe.

 The ideas for other baby gift baskets are wide open, whatever you can imagine the new baby needs, you can transform into a baby gift basket. Remember, you don’t actually have to put all the items in a basket; in fact, it is much cleverer to assemble all the goodies in a container that can be repurposed in the child’s nursery. A laundry basket always makes a handy container that can be filled with blankets, burp cloths, sleepers, plush toys and other items.  A galvanized aluminum tub can be painted with the recipient’s name and filled with whatever you can dream up, from baby board books and building blocks to a month’s supply of diapers – later it can be used as a toy bin. Another idea for baby gift baskets is to fill up a little red wagon with lots of toys and treasures. If you need inspiration for your next baby shower gift, check out the great stuff at Cute Baby Gift Baskets.

Tags: baby gift basket ideas, baby gift baskets

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Most people don’t take the words “you’re a big baby” seriously. However, an Indonisian woman recently gave birth to a son who can one day say “it’s true.” Pictured next to a normal sized newborn, this super-sized baby weighed in at 19.2 pounds compared to the average newborn weight of just 7.5 pounds. Keep clenching your thighs, pregnant women – the story on amazingly large babies just keeps getting bigger. Apparently, the Guiness Book of World Records lists the world’s heaviest baby as belonging to a 7 ½ -foot Canadian, Anna Bates. At birth, the child weighed a whopping 22 ½ pounds, but sadly died 11 hours afterward. And, reports say a similar-sized baby was born in Italy and survived.

The odds of anyone you know having a baby this big is pretty slim, although it is not uncommon for newborns to be delivered weighing 9 and even 10 pounds. There is a big market for “preemie” clothes, but nothing for the extra large or overdue baby. If you are selecting clothing to give as a baby gift, the 0-3 month size is not going to work. Instead, use the baby’s weight as a guide for the next size up, or even two sizes up if there is any doubt. Make sure to include the receipt in case it fits too small!  Or, if you’d rather be safe picking out a baby gift for the bigger baby, a soft and cuddly baby blanket always works – baby blankets are one-size-fits-all!

Tags: baby blanket, baby gifts, big babies

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If your baby is sitting up and starting to eat a few finger foods, Thanksgiving is going to be an exciting (and messy) time! With the cornucopia of tastes, textures and colors, baby’s high chair tray will become the center of attention filled with exiting alternatives to that bland cereal and bananas. The great thing about many Thanksgiving foods is that they are already quite soft and easy for little ones to eat, even if you are still spoon feeding them. From smooshed up sweet potatoes and soft squash casserole to cranberry sauce and pumpkin pie, baby will be busy teaching his taste buds to love Thanksgiving as much as the rest of us.

 Pulling baby up to the table in his high chair with the rest of the family is a great way to keep him included and the center of attention. For sure, he or she is going to need a bib for Thanksgiving that is emblazoned with silly, fun sayings such as “Gobble to you Wobble” or “Mommy’s Little Pumpkin.” In addition to clever baby bibs, other baby gift ideas for a little one’s first Thanksgiving or even second go-round includes baby-friendly dinner ware, easy-grip utensils (just like the big people use) and little toys to keep entertained when the meal winds up and the football game is turned on!

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It’s not too early to start thinking about holiday gifts; what will you get that cute little baby that is having his or her first Christmas? Obviously, a brand new infant is not going to remember the festivities, but a special keepsake that marks the event will become a treasured heirloom. We love to give personalized ornaments as baby gifts at Christmas and any time of the year for that matter. A retro-looking silver-plated ornament shaped to look like a baby bootie, a rattle or a baby bottle can be hung on the tree for the first Christmas and every one to follow. At our house, we have a special tradition of giving each child a Christmas ornament personalized with a name each and every year. By the time our young ones grow up and move out, they will have amassed quite the collections to deck out their own Christmas trees. Any new mother would be delighted with a darling ornament marked with the child’s name and birth date. If given as a baby shower gift before the birth, simply tell the parents that you will pick up the baby gift to have it engraved with the details after the stork arrives – and have it returned in time for tree-trimming.

Tags: baby christmas ornaments, baby ornaments, personalized baby gifts, personalized ornaments

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This is unofficial and plucked from the online pages at Just Jared, a celebrity website, but it is rumored that John Travolta and Kelly Preston will be naming their little boy Benjamin.  In 2010, the name Benjamin (which is Hebrew meaning “son of the right hand”) is ranked as the 17^th most popular name in the United States. The Travolta’s unborn child is expected to be born at the end of November and will be their third child together. Daughter, Ella Blue is 10 years old and their son Jett died tragically when he was just 16 from a seizure. Apparently John leaked out the baby’s name in advance, perhaps so friends would have time to get a little pilot’s suit and wings personalized – Travolta is a highly experienced pilot and is currently doing a publicity stint right now for Quantas airlines in Australia.  Actually, it is quite convenient to know a soon-to-be-born baby’s name before the big birthday because it gives friends and family time to shop for thoughtful personalized gifts. Baby gifts embroidered, engraved, painted, etched, carved or otherwise customized to celebrate the name the parent’s have chosen for the unborn bundle always makes a thoughtful gesture at baby showers.

Tags: baby names, benjamin, celebrity baby names, personalized baby gifts

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Morning sickness can really make a woman feel yucky – all day. Usually, it’s not to long lasting or too awful, but some women can get a pretty bad case of this byproduct of gestation. Researchers at UCLA and USC have found that pregnant women experiencing severe morning sickness were likely to have family members who have undergone the same condition. Extreme nausea and vomiting during pregnancy may be diagnosed as Hyperemesis Gravidarum (or GV), a condition that hospitalizes 60,000 women per year and can be a threat to bringing a pregnancy to term.  If you think your morning sickness is unusual, ask your mother, aunts and sisters for their experience and then make a visit with your doctor. You should definitely be under a doctor’s care for severe morning sickness; however, typical cases which come and go for the first trimester can be quelled in a variety of ways. The first line of defense is to keep your stomach from getting empty by eating small meals or snacks every several hours and before bed. Don’t forget to drink plenty of water, as well. Sea Bands and acupuncture are another natural way to ease queasiness by targeting specific pressure points. Also, some women report that drinking ginger tea, sucking on lemon drops or chewing peppermint gum can help. If you are a mommy-to-be with morning sickness or have a loved-one suffering, except in extreme cases like GV, you can pretty much count on the unpleasant condition resolving itself by the second trimester — and leave Miss Mommy feeling healthy, glowing and even energetic! But, in the meantime, treat her to some comforting gifts for mom that will help her deal with the ups and downs of morning sickness.

Tags: gifts for new mother, mommy gifts, new mommy gifts

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Many times at a mommy-to-be’s baby shower, she hasn’t yet picked out a name for the upcoming little bundle of joy. Playing creative games with the shower guests can help the expectant parents get some good ideas for their baby name short list. Here are some great ideas from past baby shower guests:

Game 1: Divide guests up into groups of 3 to 5 people. Pass out cute little bags filled with scrabble letter tiles or slips of paper filled up with enough letters to devise several names.  Set a timer and have the group put together as many names as they can within a couple minutes. The team with the most names wins!

Game 2: Arrange guests in a circle and pick a category of “girl names” or “boy names.” Have the first player name say a name in the chosen category while everyone claps to keep a beat. The next person has to immediately come up with another name in the right gender category from the LAST letter of the previous name. So, if “Alice” was the first name, then the second name would need to start with an “E”  — such as Emily – then the next name would need to start with a “Y” and so on. If the person hesitates and more than 3 claps happen, they are out.  The last guest to stay in the game wins

Game 3: Play a game similar to Scattegories where the mom-to-be gives a letter and gender (boy, girl or both) and groups of guests have a few timed minutes to furiously write down as many baby names as they can think of. After making the list, each team reads off their names and the team with the most thumbs-up from the soon-to-be mother wins a prize – and maybe even the honor of having just named the unborn child!

Tags: baby gifts, baby names, baby shower games

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Grammy winning songstess Celine Dion and her husband-manager recently welcomed a set of fraternal twins into the world – long-awaited additions to their family that already includes a 9-year old son, Rene-Charles. Born October 23, 2010, the two boys were born a bit prematurely but are reported to be in good health. The proud parents took several days to pick out names but decided on Eddy and Nelson. Wanting to select names of men who have inspired her, the name Eddy is a tribute to Eddy Marnay, the producer of her first five records and Nelson is a nod to Nelson Mandela whom she was introduced to a couple years ago during a South African tour.

The births come after a lengthy, heart-breaking struggle with infertility that Dion shared with her fans publicly.  We couldn’t be happier for Celine’s growing family of boys! If we were picking out baby gifts for twins that are sure to have everything, we’d choose a simply a photo frame. There is no way that we can compete with the lavish gifts these children are bound to receive from the well-heel acquaintances of their parents. A photo frame, such as our male twins inspired “The Boys” Photo Frame, provides a sweet parking spot for a photograph of the infants – a memory much more valuable than expensive trinkets.

Tags: baby gifts for twins, celebrity baby, Celine Dion, twin gifts

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If planning a baby shower menu, remember that the mom-to-be should not be drinking alcohol during her pregnancy. However cocktails always seem to make a party more fun, so party like its baby time with non-alcoholic drinks served in fancy glass barware. One of the most famous “mocktails” of all time is the Shirley Temple. How many times have you heard a character in a movie or television show say, “I’ll have a Shirley Temple?” What exactly is a Shirley Temple?! Created for the 1930s-era child star, Shirley Temple, this eponymous, liquor-free drink is typically made with seltzer or lemon-lime soda (such as Sprite), mixed with red grenadine syrup and garnished with a slice of orange and maraschino cherries – some recipes call for a little splash of orange juice as well. So, mix up a punch bowl full of Shirley Temples and enjoy the baby shower fun – playing silly games, admiring the mom-to-be’s belly and opening all the adorable baby gifts. The expectant mom will be in an effervescent mood and guests will appreciate having a fun drink on hand that won’t cause any afternoon headaches. Plus, these mocktails are pink – perfect for a little girl baby shower.

Tags: baby shower, baby shower ideas, mocktails, non-alcoholic drinks

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New moms are tired; there is no doubt about it. Some medical studies report that a new mother’s fatigue reaches its highest levels two to four days after returning home from the hospital while others say that the accumulated deficit of sleep really starts taking a toll around eight weeks after baby’s birth. Even when the newborn starts to turn the corner on sleeping for longer stretches, a new mother can still feel fatigued for a year or even longer. Many experience moms joke to the newbies that they can’t expect to sleep straight through until morning until the last kid has gone off to college.

One of the big causes of new mother fatigue is, of course, the lack of sleep. Missing out on quality REM sleep, the last and most often disrupted stage in a four-stage sleep cycle, will make a mom feel sluggish and bleary-eyed.  Elevated hormone levels also cause symptoms such as night sweats, hunger, depression, irritability and other factors that can negatively affect sleep.

The best way for new mothers to address their sleep issues is to manage their time so that they get enough rest. “Nap when the baby naps,” is a snippet of advice that is dispensed all the time – but so true. Even if you have to lower your expectations of what gets done around the house, the time you spent getting rest will be well worth it in the long run. Getting dad to share some of the night duties and hiring a babysitter or enlisting the help of a friend or family member to help in the day are all great ways to squeeze in extra sleep.

If you have a loved one who is suffering from a baby-induced sleep deficit, offer to help out! Rock the baby and play with the older siblings while she catches some shut eye, you’ll be the hero of the day. On your visit bring along some great mommy gifts such as a comfy robe, silk eye mask, or lavender-scented soaps and lotions to help her get relaxed.

Tags: baby sleep, gifs for new mom, mommy gifts, new mommy gifts, new mother issues, sleep deficits, spa robe

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